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EDITOR’S NOTE: The EOC held a full meeting today at 1:00 p.m. at the ETV Telecommunications Center in Columbia. Recommendations to the budget were made at this meeting.

Columbia – Amid projected declines in Education Improvement Act (EIA) revenues of over $103 million dollars, South Carolina Education Oversight Committee (EOC) members adopted budget recommendations for the 2009-10 fiscal year today.

Committee members made many recommendations that placed top priority on providing and improving instruction and instructional support services to students, a funding principle of the EOC. The declines in the EIA, funded solely with revenues generated from the penny sales tax, required the committee to recommend reallocation of program funding and in some cases, suspension or elimination of EIA programs.

“The impact of the state economic crisis required the committee to examine all aspects of EIA funding,” said Mike Brenan, chairman of the subcommittee that brought initial recommendations to the full committee Monday. “We had to look at consolidating, restructuring, suspending, and eliminating programs in order to preserve services to children.”

The recommendations, which now head to the General Assembly and the Governor for consideration during next year’s legislative session, include:

·               Fund base student cost at FY09 level, at a minimum, with an increase as revenues become available

The committee recommended funding the EFA base student cost at a minimum of $2,578, which requires a general fund increase of at least $71.7 million to restore mid-year EFA cuts and an additional $1.2 million in employer contributions. As revenues become available, the base student cost would increase above $2,578. Full funding of the EFA requires an increase of $152.3 million for a base student cost of $2,687.

·               Preserve teacher salaries at current year’s average

The proposal maintains teacher salaries at the current year’s level of $47,376, which is $372 above the 2008 Southeastern average of $47,004.  Teachers are still eligible for step increases based on years of experience and educational attainment.

“Although the committee wanted to match the projected 2009 Southeastern average of $48,261, we faced the threat of losing up to 1,000 teacher jobs,” stated Brenan. “If it is a choice between losing teachers and increasing salaries, then the right choice is keeping teachers in the classroom.”  

Brenan further pointed out that the Southeastern average teacher salary projection was made in August of 2008, prior to the fall’s economic downturn.  “All states in the Southeast except Texas are facing the same economic issues as South Carolina.  In turn, when state legislatures convene in January, the issue is preserving jobs for teachers versus pay raises.”

·               Reduce EIA programs to the current funding level

As of November 10, 2008, reductions in EIA revenues have resulted in cuts to EIA programs of approximately 12.95 percent. The committee recommended making these current year cuts permanent in the base budget for 2009-10.

·               Continue funding of Child Development Education Pilot Program (CDEPP) in public and private centers at $21.0 million

·               Restructure appropriations made to EIA-funded programs offering professional development services

Programs offering professional development services (Writing Improvement Network, SC Geographic Alliance, Science P.L.U.S., SC Afterschool Alliance, Council on Economic Education) will be required to generate 25 percent of total appropriation through other funds (grants, fees, contributions, etc.) 

·               Discontinue state supplement for National Board Certification after all current obligations are met
Teachers currently certified or those who have applied for certification will receive the $7,500 supplement for the life of the 10-year certification. The EOC recommends that the supplement be discontinued after current obligations are met and that the SCDE look at alternatives to the supplement, to include pay-for-performance. In the current year, over $45 million of EIA funds and $8.4 million in general funds were appropriated to National Board.  

In a 2007 EOC report, state investments in National Board certification were compared. Of the nine southeastern states investing a set annual amount, SC’s $7,500 supplement was the highest.

·               Reduce and restructure funding of EAA technical assistance – Total Funding of $45.0 million

Currently, a minimum allocation of $250,000 is given to schools with an Absolute Rating of At Risk (formerly Unsatisfactory.) Schools with an Absolute Rating of Below Average receive a minimum allocation of $75,000 to improve academic achievement. The intent is to provide funding for a minimum of three years to implement system reform and building local education capacity.

The committee recommends funding schools who receive an Absolute Rating of Below Average or At Risk for the first time with the release of the 2008 report cards (scheduled for January 2009.) Schools in their second and third year of technical assistance will continue to be funded, along with schools in their third year of funding whose 2008 Absolute Rating improves from At Risk to Below Average.

The EOC recommends that students within schools that have received three years of technical assistance funding and show declines or no change in their 2008 Absolute Rating, be allowed to transfer to a different public school with a higher Absolute Rating in or outside the district of residence. The child’s district of residence would provide to the receiving district an amount equal to the local revenues per pupil of the receiving district.

The SCDE would work with the persistently underperforming districts to implement innovative strategies for improved student achievement.

An SCDE report released to the EOC in October 2008 identified 151 schools with “persistent underperformance.” These schools had an Absolute rating of Unsatisfactory or Below Average for the years 2004 to 2007.

“The committee is concerned with the inability of the current technical assistance program to improve academic achievement in persistently underperforming schools,” stated Brenan. “Despite investments in these schools, some schools are simply not improving. We must do something different.”

·               Suspend five EIA programs for one year with funds transferred to teacher salaries and fringe benefits

It is recommended that funding for five EIA programs (arts curricula grants, competitive teacher grants, Palmetto Gold and Silver awards, external review team evaluations, and instructional materials) be suspended for one year with funds being transferred to teacher salaries and fringe benefits. The first priority for restoring funds is the arts curricula grants program.

·               Eliminate the Office of School Improvement Council Assistance and service learning engagement program

The EOC recommended the elimination of EIA funding for a service learning engagement program based at Coastal Carolina University and the Office of School Improvement Council Assistance. Elimination of both programs would save approximately $218,000 of EIA funds. Local school improvement councils would continue to exist.

·               Increase funding for formative assessments by $3.4 million.

These funds will go directly to SC school districts.

According to Brenan, supporting teaching and learning experiences for all children should remain the top priority of the system, as we face the current economic crisis.

“It is not time to back away from the progress South Carolina schools and students have made,“ stated Brenan. “If we target our existing resources effectively, we can make certain that South Carolina’s students achieve at high academic levels.”