| Michigan
ASCD Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
April 22, 2005
Members Present:
Linda VanderJagt, President-Elect
Sara Shubel, Past President
Patricia McNeill, Treasurer
Olga Moir, Executive Director
Dave Buell, Region 3
Shannon Griffin, Region 5
Charlotte Koger, Region 6
Karen Hart, Region 7
Lucy Stieber, Region 8
Narda Murphy, At-Large
James Reese, At-Large
Kathy Griffey, Board
James Perry, Board
Elmer Vruggink, Board
Judy Schaftenaar, Middle Cities Association Liaison
President-elect Linda VanderJagt called the meeting of the
Michigan ASCD Board of Directors to order at 9:07 a.m.
Jan Ellis of the MDE Office of School Improvement
presented an update for the Board about current topics within
the Department. A handout was provided for members outlining
a rough draft of the new Science Content Expectations. The
format for Science is currently by “grade span,”
rather than “grade level” format, which are how
Math and English Language Arts are communicated. There are
different “schools of thought” as to how Science
should look, so the Department is looking to resolve the issue
by the end of the school year. They will then send them out
for a national review process to check for alignment, but
stated that process will probably not be through Achieve.
The goal of MDE is to seek approval at the July State Board
of Education meeting.
Jan also discussed:
• The new “School Improvement Framework”
that is now available on the web through the MDE page. A PowerPoint
is also available to explain the purpose/use of the Framework
itself. Jeremy Hughes will be sending a letter to ISDs, PSAs,
superintendents, and principals to let them know of its availability.
• She is setting up a format on the State’s website
so that educators will be able to access ALL GLCEs by grade
level.
• The review process of the GLCEs will begin soon since
the Math and ELA GLCEs have been out for about one year.
• The Scope Curriculum, previously hosted at the Michigan
Virtual University website, will soon be added to MDE’s
website.
• High School Reform – The Department of Education
is in the process of interviewing/hiring a consultant to be
in place by June 1st. Mary Alice Galloway will work with the
new consultant to set up a fall conference on the topic of
“high school reform.” MDE will be seeking a grant
through the National Governors’ Initiative for high
school re-design efforts. Jan suggested that MASCD should
let Jeremy Hughes and Mary Alice Galloway know of our interest
in being involved and having a voice in the high school reform
discussions/action teams.
• MDE is currently working with the English Language
Learners group to provide professional development for educators
involved with ELL students.
• MDE is in the process of beginning to develop “High
School Subject Expectations.”
Any questions for Jan should be directed to EllisJan@michigan.gov
Tom White, Executive Director of the Michigan School
Business Officials (MSBO)
Tom is serving as the Chairperson of the K-16 Coalition for
Michigan’s Future: a group of State organizations working
together to seek long-term change for financing public schools.
Information is being released during the 3rd week of May to
the public. Tom pointed out that it is important for us to
continue to communicate closely with our legislators since,
even with significant core group involvement in the Coalition,
legislators still view it as an “educator view”
and are seeking input from their constituents and community
members. The K-16 Coalition is working closely with parent
groups around the State, with the PTSA being an organizational
member involved in the Coalition. The Coalition’s simple
approach to State funding includes:
1. Give K-12, community colleges, and higher education an
inflationary increase each year. This inflationary increase
becomes part of the law (lawmakers can vote it up or down
each year).
2. Retroactivity: due to 3 years with no increase.
3. Retirement System: put the responsibility of the system
on the State (cap the schools’ contributions; calls
for State to pay).
4. One point focuses on districts that are experiencing declining
enrollment, as they are having the most difficulty.
Tom pointed out the Governor’s criticism of the plan
is that ALL areas of the State’s budget have problems/deficits,
and that we can’t just look at education in isolation.
The Coalition feels that this plan is a place to start since
$550 million has been taken away from education each year
for the past 3 years.
A rally is being planned for June 21, 2005 in Lansing.
The objectives of the rally are: 1) to promote SB246 and HB4582
with legislators, and 2) to make a statement that there is
a problem with funding of education in our State. Tom pointed
out the importance of getting our residents and communities
involved. A website with more information about the Coalition
is available at: www.michigank12.org It is recommended that
you register at the website if you plan to attend the rally.
Dan Pappas, Executive Director of MIEM,
spoke with the Board of Directors about collaborating with
our group on future endeavors. He is currently working with
MDE on the School Improvement Framework. MIEM will be determining
priority areas this year, using Zoomerang to survey members.
Dan can be reached at: dpappas@gomasa.org
Approval of Minutes
Motion by Charlotte Koger, seconded by James Reese, to approve
the March Michigan ASCD Board of Directors Meeting minutes.
Motion carried.
Treasurer’s Report
Patricia McNeill presented the Treasurer’s Report, which
reflected revenue and expenses through the end of March. Registrations
for the April 26th “Closing the Achievement Gap”
conference is at capacity (200 registered). ASCD book sales
are going well; we have experienced one of our largest years
in book sales. Charlotte Koger motion to accept the Treasurer’s
Report. Karen Hart seconded. Motion carried.
Past President’s Report
Sara Shubel gave an update on the National ASCD Conference.
Serving on the Nominations Committee was very enlightening.
ASCD is very appreciative of Michigan’s support. Sara
represented our organization’s leadership at the Leadership
Council meeting on Monday where input was sought to assist
in moving the national organization forward.
Executive Director’s Report
Olga Moir reported that the highlight of the national conference
for her was accepting an award on behalf of MASCD for “The
Source” publication. ASCD nominated Michigan for the
award.
Olga mentioned that at our “Data Management
Systems Workshop” held earlier this year vendors
were inquiring about “Business Memberships.” Other
states are experiencing success with the business membership
concept. She will look into other states’ guidelines
for said memberships and report back to the Board.
Olga suggested that we consider involving other MASCD
members into the organization by serving on various
committees when Board members are not able to attend/represent.
Most all of our seminars have been oversold
throughout the year. We should be proud of this accomplishment,
especially in times when school budgets are tight.
Dave Buell suggested the possibility of the need
for an “Operations Manager,” based on
discussions of help needed to expand services and expand book
sales at conference, etc. Discussion ensued regarding having
the Executive Board put together a Business Plan to carry
out our organization’s plan for the future (see PowerPoint
presentation handout). Lucy Stieber made a motion to employ
temporary help to assist at Tuesday’s workshop at Washtenaw.
Seconded by Charlotte Koger. Charlotte then offered to assist
at the workshop; motion withdrawn by Lucy.
Karen Hart suggested having an outside consultant
with appropriate expertise develop the business plan since
everyone is so busy in his or her districts. (Allow him/her
to develop a rough draft.) Karen then made a motion to authorize
the Board of Directors to hire someone to help put together
a draft of a business plan prior to the June retreat. Jim
Reese seconded. Discussion followed. Karen Hart then made
a motion that we authorize $500 for Olga to hire temporary
help between now and the June retreat. Discussion focuses
on the fact that $500 may not be enough. Dave Buell suggested
the amount be open-ended, left to Olga’s discretion.
Charlotte Koger then made a motion to reflect Dave’s
suggestion. Seconded by Jim Reese. Motion carried.
Liaison Reports
Judy Schaftenaar (Middle Cities Association) reported that
she is going to be reading for the “Muth Award”
that individual districts apply for. She suggested that we
look into a process for MASCD to develop an annual award for
member districts.
Fran Loose (Title I/IDEA Partnership Grant)
Fran reported that MDE is looking for “State of the
State” (optimally operating programs) to participate
in a State videoconference dialogue on June 30th from 9:00
a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The effort focuses on building collaboration
between IDEA and Title I, building on past connections and
creating new ones. As a State, we can learn from model programs.
This would also include ELL programs from around the State
working in partnership with existing Title I and IDEA programs.
Fran’s question to our organization: Is MASCD interested
in being involved in hosting the day’s event? Is a meeting
on June 30th via video conferencing possible? We have the
capability to videoconference at our Lansing facility and
the feeling of the group was that it would be worth pursuing/co-hosting.
Meeting Re-Cap/Follow-up
Lucy Stieber brought up the “Sunset Policy” concerning
Board members that travel more than 150 miles each way. After
discussion, Lucy motioned that Board members that travel more
than 150 miles each way be reimbursed at the IRS rate through
the June retreat. Karen Hart seconded. Motion carried.
Members’ availability for the June retreat scheduled
for June 23rd and 24th was discussed. Should the retreat be
2 full days, 1½ days, or 1 day? Discussion also centered
on the K-16 Rally scheduled for June 21st. Will members travel
to the rally, then back to Lansing two days later? The Executive
Board will further discuss dates.
The meeting adjourned at approximately 2:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Shannon Griffin
Region 5 Representative
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