INFORMATIONAL

 The Superintendent's Leadership Advisory Council meets regularly.  It is composed 
of the chairmen of the eight regional study groups, plus the VASS officers.  We will 
distribute the minutes of each meeting by means of a Superintendent's Memorandum.

The minutes of the meeting of February 25, 2000 are attached.  If you have questions 
regarding this information, please contact Richard Layman at (804) 225-2024.

Thank you.

JLD/pg

                               Attachment
         Meeting of the Superintendent's Leadership Advisory Council
                        Friday, February 25, 2000


Present -	Superintendents' Group:	Mark A. Edwards, Harry Ward, Glenn Burdick 
(for Edgar B. Hatrick), John H. Kidd, Woodrow W. Mullins, Philip C. Worrell, 
Andy Stamp, VASS, and Walter A. McFarlane, superintendent, Department of Correctional 
Education.

Department of Education:	Jo Lynne DeMary, Richard W. Layman, Thomas A. Elliott,
Cam Harris, Anne Wescott, Charles W. Finley, Margaret N. Roberts, Lan Neugent, 
Jo Bunce, Yvonne Thayer, and Harry L. Smith.


	Dr. DeMary welcomed the members of the council, and asked if there were any 
issues that the superintendents wanted to discuss.  Since there were none, the 
meeting proceeded with the following agenda:

	Report on the Meeting of the State Board of Education on February 24.

	Dr. Margaret Roberts distributed copies of the agenda for the board meeting 
that included adoption of resolutions recognizing the achievements of recipients of 
the 1999 Milken Educator Award, members of the Virginia team that competed in the 
International Space Olympics in Korolev, Russia, on October 12-24, 1999, and the 
Virginia Association of Future Farmers of America.

	Considerable discussion was devoted to an item dealing with a report from 
the State Special Education Advisory Committee on proposed regulations governing 
special education programs in Virginia.  The superintendents agreed that the state's 
special education regulations should not exceed federal requirements.  Dr. DeMary 
called attention to a bill introduced in the current session of the Virginia General
Assembly that would direct the board not to adopt any special education regulation 
that exceeded federal requirements.  The bill was carried over to the 2001 session 
of the legislature.

	During the discussion, Dr. Edwards made a motion that the superintendents 
present a resolution to the Board of Education that proposed new state special 
education regulations, on which public hearings were held recently, not exceed 
federal requirements.  Richard Layman was asked to draft the resolution.

	The superintendents also discussed the school based index concept proposed 
by president Kirk Schroder.  Mr. Layman reported that the Board of Education had 
approved the concept and had appointed Susan Noble to form a committee to study the 
proposal and make recommendations to the board.  He noted that the index information would appear on the school report card for informational purposes and would not affect school accreditation.
Andy Stamp distributed a statement made to the board by Dr. Steven R. Staples on 
behalf of eight educational organizations in Virginia that had developed 
recommendations about the accreditation standards.  The coalition's statement 
included five recommendations for consideration by the board.  The coalition 
expressed its support for standards and public school accountability, and stated 
that, "we have an opportunity here and now to refine Virginia's Standards and 
Accountability program so that our students, our schools, and the public are 
beneficiaries of meaningful reform.  The SOL and the SOA set high standards; we 
must ensure that they are also fair and equitable and we must provide the support 
necessary to achieve these goals."

	The Board of Education at its February 24 meeting also received an update 
on the status of proposals to revise the standards for accrediting public schools.  
The council was told that the board may call a special meeting to redraft the SOA 
proposals and submit them again for public comment.  Final action on the standards 
is not anticipated before next August.

	Dr. Roberts also called attention to the final review by the board on 
character education programs requested by the General Assembly.


	SOL Assessment Update

	Cam Harris reported a "good turnout" at the recent SOL pre-assessment 
workshops.  She noted that the time for the spring SOL tests is approaching and 
test materials have been distributed to school divisions.  She pointed out that 
weather conditions could present a problem for the testing schedule.  Dr. DeMary 
stated that 20 bills dealing with the SOL assessment had been presented during the 
current session of the General Assembly and five of them were still active at the 
time of the superintendents' meeting.


	Governor's Technology Initiative

	Lan Neugent distributed a folder containing information about the 2000-2002 
budget proposals by Governor Gilmore for K-12 education, including a technology 
initiative to implement a statewide Web-based computerized system which could be 
used to provide instruction, data transmission, and on-line computerized testing.


	Legislative Update

	Anne Wescott and Yvonne Thayer presented an update on the status of 
legislation in the General Assembly and responded to questions from superintendents.



	Teacher Supply and Demand in Virginia

	Dr. Elliott presented as the last item on the council's agenda a report on 
the supply and demand for teachers in the commonwealth during 1999-2000, that had 
been presented to the House Education Committee.  Dr. Elliott told the council that 
a complete report on teacher supply and demand, including an in-depth analysis of 
data, would be made in May.  The report pointed out that the "most acute teacher 
shortages in Virginia continue to be in science and special education."  Also, the 
need for mathematics teachers has increased, and is now the fourth most severe 
shortage in Virginia.  The report included recommendations, based on preliminary 
data, for dealing with the future need for teachers.