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reserves. We are 10 months into this fiscal year
without an overall state budget and even for districts
that have been able to maintain the suggested level
of reserves, the math just doesn’t work at some point
without state funding.
Of course, any superintendent has to question
burning through their district’s reserves to cover for
the political impasse in Springfield. Would that
jeopardize the long-term financial health of your
district? Is it wise to open school in August, run for a
few weeks and then close your doors until a budget is
passed? These are just a few of the daunting
questions now facing superintendents.
In addition to sharing your district’s situation with
legislators, I would suggest starting this conversation
with your board, your faculty and staff, and your
community. It always helps to present a united front,
so I would suggest working on your strategy with
neighboring districts and districts in your region,
much like you work in concert on weather-related
decisions.
If schools are open and running in August, this
unprecedented political logjam likely won’t be broken
until after the November 8 general election.
However, if schools are NOT open then all bets
are off because the political pressure to resolve the
stalemate will be immeasurable. Imagine being an
incumbent on the November 8 ballot if the school
doors are closed in your legislative district – not a
real promising scenario regardless of party affiliation.
Feel free to share this column with your board or
community groups as you see fit.
(Continued from page 3)
Brent
The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) was signed into law by President Obama on
December 10, 2015, effectively replacing the No Student Left Behind legislation. ESSA is now in
the rulemaking phase, an extremely important part of the process that will actually define how the
law is to be implemented and what states and schools will need to do to meet the new federal
guidelines. In this three-minute video Noelle Ellerson, the American Association of School
Administrators (AASA) Associate Executive Director for Policy and Advocacy, gives a status
update on ESSA and how the rulemaking is progressing.
AASA’s Ellerson provides update on ESSA
Click on the image to view the video.