Board of Education
February 28, 2007
Video Transcript

Segment 1: NCLB and Limited English Proficient Students
Mark Emblidge/President, Board of Education (reading from letter)
Dear Dr. Emblidge...thank you again for the time you spent meeting with Dr. Grover Whitehurst, Dr. Catherine Freeman, and me on February 22.

Narrator
Board of Education President Mark Emblidge opened the meeting by reading a letter from the U.S. Department of Education on the testing of limited English proficient students. The letter outlines potential consequences if school divisions continue to use the Stanford English Language Proficiency assessment as a proxy for the SOL reading test.

Mark Emblidge/President, Board of Education
…if this practice continues, this department [U.S. Department of Education] could withhold all or a portion of any local educational agency’s allocation under Title I, Part A of ESEA, if the local educational agency is in violation of the law. Please see the enclosure to this letter for the amount of fiscal year 2006 Title I, Part A funds for each local education agency that could be withheld.

Gary Jones/Board of Education
What is the time frame in which we have to be prepared to enforce the law?

Billy K. Cannaday Jr./Superintendent of Public Instruction
Well, there are a couple of things. First of all, no one has not complied with the law. We will not know if there needs to be any enforcement beyond what we normally do until we see what takes place during the testing time frame.

Narrator
The letter detailing potential consequences for school divisions is posted on the No Child Left Behind page of this Web site.

Segment 2: Richmond City Division-Level Review
Narrator
The success of Richmond Public Schools in meeting the objectives of its 2005 corrective plan prompted the board to release the city from the division-level academic review process. The board heard from Richmond Superintendent Deborah Jewell-Sherman.

Deborah Jewell-Sherman/Superintendent, Richmond Public Schools
We are a district that has gone from being one of the lowest performing in the commonwealth to one that can hold its head high and one that is determined to move from good to great. It truly has been a collaborative effort. The Council of Great City Schools report formed the genesis of the Memorandum of Understanding and there were over 120 some recommendations. We were able to determine the essential actions that needed to be met. We have worked diligently every day and the DOE [Virginia Department of Education] has been with us every step of the way.

Mark Emblidge/President, Board of Education
It has been very exciting for me and it has been very exciting for the Governor to see the progress that has been made in Richmond. It is kind of like this “ New York, New York” song, if it can happen here, it can happen anywhere – and you have proven that it can happen here.

Narrator
While Richmond has been released from the division-level review process, the Virginia Department of Education’s Office of School Improvement will continue to monitor and provide technical assistance.

Segment 3: Student Advisory Committee
Narrator
The board heard from the members of its 2006-2007 Student Advisory Committee. The students meet in February to select the issues they want to study. This year’s committee will look at achievement gaps and early childhood education, drug and alcohol abuse, and cultural and international awareness.

Katlyn Allen/Student Advisory Committee
We feel that it is vital that American children ultimately graduate from high school with a clear understanding and appreciation of their surrounding world. These opportunities can provide social, educational, and economic benefits.

Narrator
The students will report on their findings at the April board meeting.

Finally, the Virginia Education Association provided each board member with top hats made famous by Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat as a way of promoting the annual “Read Aloud America” campaign.

The Board of Education’s next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, March 29, at 9 a.m., on the 22 nd floor of the James Monroe Building in Richmond.