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Oregon voters show strong support for schools in passing measures
Wednesday, January 27, 2010

yes-on-66-&-67-logo.jpgOregon voters gave a resounding "Yes" to funding for schools and other vital services Tuesday, passing Measures 66 and 67 by margins of about 54 to 46 percent.  The individual and corporate income tax measures provide $733 million for schools and other vital services in this 2009-11 biennium.

"The campaign focused on the importance of schools to Oregon's economy and its future," COSA Executive Director Kent Hunsaker said Tuesday night.  "Oregonians have spoken, and they have made it clear that further reductions in schools days or increases in class sizes would be irresponsible."

Hunsaker said that, as the legislature convenes next week, COSA and its education partners will be working to build on the momentum of the election and assure that, regardless of upcoming economic forecasts, Oregon K-12 will receive the promised $6.0 level of 2009-11 funding.

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Parkrose leader receives OACOA Achievement of Excellence Award
Wednesday, January 27, 2010

marian-young.jpgMarian Young, Director of Human Resources, at the Parkrose School District, is the 2010 recipient of the OACOA Achievement of Excellence Award.  She has served in her current job since 2003.

She is currently developing four specific projects for the Parkrose School District.  The first is a new certified staff evaluation system of performance review, which she is working collaboratively on with the staff, administration and the teacher’s association.  It will be based on Oregon State Standards, Charlotte Danielson’s performance model, and the district’s Power Standards and Professional Development.

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Middle, high school Principal of the Year nominations sought
Monday, January 11, 2010

OASSA  is currently seeking nominations for Oregon’s principal of the year.  The award, sponsored by NASSP and MetLife, is given each year to an outstanding middle and high school principal. 

To increase participation, OASSA and COSA have shortened the process for the initial round of judging only.  In this way, it is possible to nominate a colleague without their knowledge.  Nominees or nominators should complete all parts of the application except the three essay questions.  The winner will then complete that portion of the application, to be submitted to NASSP.

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'World Class' Norfolk Public Schools highlight Winter Conference
Thursday, December 10, 2009

School district leaders from throughout Oregon have the opportunity to learn from the remarkable success story of the Norfolk, Va., Public Schools at the OACOA/OASE Winter Conference, January 29-30, at Salishan.  A team from Norfolk will be on hand to share their “Journey to World Class” via a keynote and breakout sessions.  Register for the conference today.

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March revenue forecast down again, but $6.0 billion still possible for schools
Monday, February 8, 2010

kent-hunsaker.jpgby Kent Hunsaker, Executive Director

This morning the state’s revenue forecast was updated. Below is a summary:

  • Total General Fund Revenue dropped by $182.8 Million
  • Lottery Resources dropped by $9.9 Million
  • Overall Revenues dropped by $192.8 Million
  • These revenue losses also included an additional cost for the Business Energy Credits of $75 million, however, on Friday the House voted to reduce this cost by $55 million. This action will lower the overall revenue loss to $137.8 million.

This forecast continues the trend of lower economic forecasts for the state. When I heard the forecast, I thought it meant that our funding for 2009-11 would be restricted to $5.86B under the method of calculation we had been told about. However, after meeting with Speaker Hunt and Paul Warner today, there are two factors that will impact our funding for the biennium.

The first is a change in the calculation of the trigger for the extra $200 million for education. After the forecast today, I have been told by Paul Warner that the “new” method of calculating the trigger would result in $123 million additional going to education rather than about $60 million. That would bring the total funding for education to $5.923B, if this revenue forecast holds through May. It is also historically important to note that the May revenue forecast is almost always higher than previous forecasts.

The second is a desire by leadership to fund education at $6.0B and to do it in this special session and not wait for the May forecast. The only barrier we experiencing in our advocacy for $6.0B is the belief from legislative leaders that this level of allocation will not prevent significant reductions in services to kids from what districts are now funding. In other words, there is support from leadership for finding a way to get to $6.0B, but they are not likely to do it if districts will cut services to kids (higher class sizes, fewer teachers, fewer school days, etc).

So, we will be developing a brief survey of school districts with a very ...

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