The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education • September 2012 11

Report to the Membership 2010-2011CABE: Dedicated to strengthening public education through advocacy,

professional development and service to boards of education.

(please see page 12)

school districts. We continue to work withseven of the original Lighthouse districtsand look forward to adding between threeand five new districts this year.

Ensuring members receive themost up-to-date communica-tions

Board Chair ListservCABE has seen a very successful con-

tinuation of the Board Chair listserv. Thislistserv began in the late spring of 2009 andhas provided board chairs with a newmeans of communicating ideas and con-cerns with each other and CABE. Topics ofdiscussion and sometimes friendly debatehave included special education and boardbudgets.

We aim to track budget developmentsfrom around the state on an ongoing basisduring budget season and provide districtswith a spreadsheet of budget information.CABE looks forward to continuing this ex-cellent means of fostering communicationsbetween member board chairs and CABE.

Customized Policy ManualsFour districts entered into contracts for

customized policy manual development.New manuals were completed for two dis-tricts. Four additional districts have newmanuals close to completion.

CABE Policy ReferenceCore ManualThe CABE Policy Reference Core

Manual, containing over 550 sample poli-cies and regulations, was continuously re-vised throughout the year. Moreover, newpolicy topics were added. It is easily“searchable” and remains accessible forCABE members on the CABE website in amulti-searchable user-friendly format.

Policy Audit ServiceThree districts had audits completed of

their existing policy manuals. This serviceprovides the district with a report of thestrengths and weaknesses of the existingmanual with recommendations to update themanual. Two of the audit districts then en-gaged CABE to update their manual basedupon the audit findings.

Policy Update ServiceNinety-three districts subscribed to the

Policy Update Service publication. Sub-scribing districts received four mailingswhich reflected current and timely policyissues, including the need for new and/orrevised policy topics based upon legisla-tive action or judicial rulings or contempo-rary policy issues, especially in the areasof technology, health, student disciplineand personnel issues. Fifty-eight districtsalso received this publication electronicallyto facilitate local district usage of the samplematerial.

Custom Policy Update ServiceTwenty districts subscribed to the Cus-

tom Policy Update Service. In this service,CABE assumes the responsibility for up-dating the district’s policy manual. Majorfocus was placed on providing needed poli-cies, administrative regulations and infor-

mation. Some of the topics pertained tech-nology, workplace climate, student healthissues, evaluation of personnel, staff devel-opment and various personnel issues.

Connecticut Online Policy Service(C.O.P.S)Twenty-nine districts subscribed to the

Connecticut Online Policy Service (C.O.P.S.).Districts appreciate that their manuals areeasily accessible and searchable online andare kept current through CABE.

Promoting public educationAwardsCABE Board Recognition Awards are

presented to boards of education which ex-hibit the most effective leadership, charac-terized by their ability to work together as a“team.”

CABE Board Leadership AwardLevel One – In 2011, 11 boards of educa-tion received the Board Leadership Awardfor their continued work on their leadershipskills. Boards need to fulfill 22 of 34 LevelOne criteria to earn this Award.

CABE Board of Distinction AwardLevel Two – In 2011, 11 boards of educa-tion received the Board of Distinction Award.This Award was granted to boards who haveachieved Level One at least twice in the priorfour years and meet the eligibility criteria.

Student Leadership Awards – TheCABE Student Leadership Awards programcontinues to be very popular, with 348 stu-dents from 96 CABE member school districtsearning the award. This program enableseach high school and middle school in mem-ber districts to nominate a boy and a girl tobe honored for their leadership qualities.

Awards of Excellence for EducationalCommunications – This year CABE pre-sented 33 Awards of Excellence in Educa-tional Communications and 42 HonorableMentions. Effective communications withparents and taxpayers are extremely impor-

tant in school district operations.Affiliate Membership Program —

Business Affiliates – CABE invites privatesector companies, institutions and firms withan interest in public education, to becomeour partners and to show their support. Theprogram grew to 32 partners in 2011-2012.Membership consisted of: 1 Diamond, 5Gold, 7 Silver, 11 Bronze Plus and 8 BronzeMembers.

Education Affiliates – This programhelps provide education-related organiza-tions with a closer relationship with CABE.In 2011-2012, we had 12 Education Affili-ates.

A current list of Business and Educa-tion Affiliate members can be found on page3.

Providing services to meetmember needs

AdvocacyCABE’s positions on a broad range of

local, state and federal issues are adoptedeach year at the Delegate Assembly. TheState Relations Committee then developsCABE’s Legislative Priorities, and boardmembers and staff implement the advocacyagenda. In this “year of education” at thelegislature, CABE was involved in an un-precedented number of discussions withlegislative leaders and the Governor’s of-fice, and partnered with numerous other or-ganizations to promote public education.Highlights of CABE’s advocacy effortswere:

• Relentless efforts to maintain currentlevels of education funding.

• Defeat of numerous proposed newmandates.

• Participation in meetings with legisla-tors around the state. Board memberswere able to give legislators factualand anecdotal information on issues

to be debated in the General Assem-bly.

• CABE staff reviewed all pending leg-islation, and monitored, provided tes-timony and lobbied those with an im-pact on education. The focus ofCABE’s legislative efforts centered onincreasing flexibility for school dis-tricts, defeating numerous new man-dates, and working with other organi-zations on issues of mutual interest.

• A successful Day on the Hill program,which included the participation ofmany high school students andschool business officials.

• The Advocacy Action Center, whichmakes it easier for board members tocommunicate with their legislatorsand to access more information onpending legislation. During the ses-sion emails were sent out on a weeklybasis to all members who requestedthe most current legislative informa-tion.

• Participation in and monitoring of nu-merous task forces, including thoseaddressing the achievement gap, theEducation Cost Sharing formula,implementation of high school reform,and teacher and administrator evalu-ation.

Federal Relations ProgramOur Federal Relations Committee lobbied

the Connecticut Congressional delegationon several key issues: the reauthorizationof ESEA, increasing funding for special edu-cation, modifying federal special educationrequirements, investing in early childhoodprograms, and providing resources for TitleI programming.

Legal IssuesOver the last year, CABE’s attorneys

have responded to hundreds of requestsfrom board members and superintendentsasking for individual assistance on legal is-sues involving student discipline, teachertenure, contract issues, personnel practices,freedom of information, parliamentary pro-cedure, meeting procedures, grievances,referenda, special education and other is-sues.

Other legal services to school districtsincluded: workshops for board membersand other organizations on such issues asreferenda, freedom of information, collec-tive bargaining, student discipline, boardroles and responsibilities and parliamentaryprocedure. CABE also participates as am-icus curiae in cases of statewide impact.

In the last year, we’ve conducted sev-eral workshops on teacher compensationand student achievement, including CABE’sannual Collective Bargaining workshop.Legal Issues workshops included Roles andResponsibilities of Board of EducationMembers, freedom of information, religionin the public schools and the annual Nego-tiations Workshop at the CABE Conven-tion.

In addition to legal issues, CABE hasalso been collecting and distributing infor-mation on district budgets each season.

Photo courtesy Groton Public Schools

12 The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education • September 2012

Report to the Membership 2011-2012CABE: Dedicated to strengthening public education thorugh advocacy,

professional development and service to boards of education.

This past season marks the 3rd year CABEhas been collecting data and sharing dis-tricts’ budget information on our BoardChair Listerv.

Negotiations and Labor IssuesCABE redesigned its surveys for collec-

tion of the salary and benefit information ofsuperintendents, administrators, teachers,

bers to receive information on areas of in-terest with no additional membership fee.By providing us with an email address mem-bers receive: Advocacy, Policy, Program andLabor Relations Highlights and the weekly(biweekly during July and August) e-news-letter, What’s Going on at CABE.

CABE CONNection

to hire key personnel.In 2011-2012 CABE Search Services has

performed 12 successful searches or is con-ducting searches for the following Boardsof Education: Bethany – Superintendent ofSchools, East Hartford – Superintendentof Schools, Enfield – Superintendent ofSchools, Manchester – Superintendent ofSchools, Oxford – Superintendent ofSchools, Region #5 (Amity) – Superinten-dent of Schools, Region #12 – Superinten-dent of Schools, Rocky Hill – Superinten-dent of Schools, Scotland – Principal,Simsbury – Superintendent of Schools,Stamford – Superintendent of Schools andStratford – Superintendent of Schools.

Unemployment Cost ControlOur Unemployment Cost Control Pro-

gram membership totaled 21 districts in2011-12. This program, which is adminis-tered by CCC, offers consultation, claimsprocessing and full administration of all un-employment compensation claims for a dis-trict.

Business Travel InsuranceCABE contracts to provide Business

Travel Insurance to all school board mem-bers whose boards are CABE members. Thispolicy provides $25,000 of Accidental Deathcoverage and is free of charge to CABEmembers.

Coverage is for any school board mem-ber traveling on school board business,whether it is local commuting to schoolboard meetings, meetings sponsored byCABE, or any state or national meeting re-lated to being on the board.

Media Assistance forMember DistrictsCABE continues to offer this service to

members who need the services of a com-munications experts:

• To improve internal communicationswith political leaders, parents, stu-dents and taxpayers

• For member boards to get help in timesof crisis communications

• To learn about timing your messageto rally support for your budget

• To help member boards get the mes-sage out on the good programs in theirdistrict.

This work, in conjunction with BaldwinMedia, will continue over the next year.

Providing services to meetmembers needs

State CEUsAs part of our professional development

activities, CABE continues to be a state-approved provider of continuing educationunits (CEUs). CEUs were awarded to ap-proximately 171 superintendents, adminis-trators and teachers for their attendance atCABE professional development programs.

School Governance CouncilsCABE continues to provide training for

those School Governance Councils that re-quest our support. We view this collabora-tion between local boards of education andCouncils as a way to help transform schools,as well as galvanizing the community oneducation issues. We provided training forSchool Governance Councils in four dis-tricts and are glad to help out when othermembers desire the training for their coun-cils..

Photo courtesy Wallingford Public Schools

paraprofessionals, and custodians. CABEhas now started the redesign of its data-base file system to enhance the organiza-tion of the data and promote efficiency. Thereport formats are designed to be more user-friendly. Many individual data reports werealso provided upon request to assist indi-vidual boards with their negotiations. Dataand surveys are also available online tomembers at the CABE website.

CABE e-ServicesCABE Website — (www.cabe.org) – The

CABE website, “powered” by finalsite, isprovided to keep board of education mem-bers and the general public up-to-date aboutvarious services and information providedby the Association. This past year we up-dated our look to make our website moreattractive and to make navigation easier.

Through our website, members have ac-cess to: policies and regulations from theCABE Core Policy Manual; The CABE Jour-nal; superintendent/administrator data; aNCLB Resource Page; and much more.

Webinars – CABE has begun usingwebinars to provide timely information tomore people. Some of these are presentedlive and others are recorded and placed onthe CABE website for review at our mem-bers convenience. To see our growing se-lection of Webinars, visit our website andclick on Podcast/webinars from our Educa-tion tab.

CABE Email Service – We provideCABE Email Services as a way for our mem-

In 2011-2012, 25 school districts took ad-vantage of this communications service.CABE offers this service to school districtsto assist them in communicating with theirmany publics. Ten times a year, a packet fullof communications ideas, tips, and articlesis mailed or emailed to subscribers.

CABE-MeetingThis program allows your central office

to create and deliver board packets in apaperless environment. This program savesdistricts time and money, and allows boardmembers easier access to data before andduring meetings. We have added 5 districtssince the last annual report and currentlyhave 16 districts enrolled. This reflects anincrease of 45%. We demonstrated CABE-Meeting to an additional five districts andtwo municipalities that inquired about theproduct but have not yet made a decisionabout using CABE-Meeting.

CABE Search ServicesAs part of CABE’s ongoing effort to pro-

vide local boards of education with the re-sources they need to carry out their mostimportant responsibilities, we continue tostrengthen our Search Services program.Our consultants Jacqueline Jacoby, RandallCollins, Paul Gagliarducci and Robert Kingare uniquely qualified to assist boards inrecruiting and retaining key personnel suchas superintendents, principals and othercritical members of your district staff.

This year CABE Search Services sent 19proposals to Boards of Education looking

Photo courtesy Newington Public Schools

Coming in 2012-2013

Revised Glossary of School Board Terms

The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education • September 2012 13

The Media Messagefrom Ann Baldwin, Baldwin Media Marketing, LLC

CABE and Baldwin Media:Partners in Managing Communications

CABE ispleased tointroduce thenewly updatedCollectiveBargainingHandbook.This handbookcontainspracticalinformation that we believe willenable you to better understand thecollective bargaining process andbe a more prepared member of yourboard of education. There is nosubstitute for careful preparation.

New in this revision is anexplanation of the Teacher Negotia-tion Act and the Municipal Employ-ees Relations Act. There aresections on: ground rules, preparingfor negotiations, bargainingstrategies and techniques, provi-sions a public employer should tryto obtain, common board mistakesin bargaining, and collectivebargaining terms.

This handbook is designed as areference guide to the negotiationsprocess for school boards. Thehandbook is not intended toprovide specific or direct adviceregarding the legal responsibilitiesof the school board or schoolofficials.

For specific legal advice or ifassistance is required, pleasecontact CABE at 860-571-7446 oryour district’s negotiating attorney.

The handbook was mailed toboard chairs in August. If youwould like additional copies they areavailable for $7.95 each by callingCABE at 800-317-0033 or 860-571-7446.

New CollectiveBargainingHandbookavailable

CABE recently mailed to member boardchairs a copy of the National SchoolBoards Association (NSBA) publication,Telling Your Story: A CommunicationsGuide for School Boards.

The Guide is a quick read full of valu-able information that will assist you andyour Board in understanding and improv-ing your communications strategiesthroughout the course of the school year.

While the guide gives you a lot of use-ful information and strategies for a moresuccessful communications initiative, of-ten additional resources and expertise areneeded, especially in a crisis communica-tions situation.

Over the course of the past couple ofyears, several boards of education andsuperintendents have taken advantage ofCABE’s contractual affiliation with Bald-win Media Marketing (see above), pro-viding hands-on assistance, professional

New publication providescommunications strategies

Even though the new school year hasjust begun, some districts were still busyover the summer dealing with some prettyhigh profile media stories. Due to theconfidentially of these situations, I can’tspeak to the details, but from a publicrelations perspective, I can speak to whatwas done right to minimize the mediaimpact and more importantly the publicperception of the issues.

Step One:Know the benefitsof CABE membership

All three districts are CABE membersand were aware of the fact that one of thebenefits of their CABE membership is theimmediate services of Baldwin Media.They called and spoke to me and in one ofthe three situations, we were able to dealwith their issue with just a couple ofphone calls and the approach worked. Inthe case of the other two situations, amore comprehensive plan and strategywas needed. Baldwin Media was thencontracted via CABE by these districts toput together a more extensive communica-tion plan for some pretty big issues.

Step Two:Coordination ofcommunications betweenthe Superintendentand the Board Chair

It is important in sensitive situationsthat the Superintendent and the Board areon the same page as far as what informa-tion can (or will) be released to the mediaand to the public as well as strategicallyfiguring out who the best spokesperson isin these particular cases. For example, inone scenario, which was an issue involv-ing an administrator, it was appropriate forthe Board Chair to speak to the pressinitially and then as the situation evolved,it was the Superintendent who releasedinformation.

Step Three:Development of“Key Messages”

Regardless of who is speaking to the“issue,” it is imperative that key messagesare developed. Despite what questionsthe media or the public asks you, what isthe message that you want to dissemi-nate? This process is especially valuablefor educators, who with all due respect,don’t always speak in layman’s terms.While we all realize that due to legalissues and confidentiality there are certainthings that can’t be discussed, there areways of saying something that willhopefully calm the fury and let peopleknow that the situation is being dealt within an appropriate manner.

Step Four:Bringing in Handson Expertise

In two of these situations the mediawas heavily interested in telling the story.The problem was initially that; 1) theydidn’t truly understand the issue and 2)the media was getting their informationfrom the wrong people.

How many times have you seen orread a story where the reporter merelystops at a gas station or any public placeand asks a totally random person aquestion, who doesn’t know the details,but wants to say something for that tenseconds of fame?

It happens ALL the time. That is whyit is important that media inquiries are not

ignored and that the correct informationgets out there on your district’s behalf.Oftentimes what Baldwin Media will do isfilter the media calls and inquiries andprepare our “spokesperson” in advanceof talking with the reporter.

We may have five minutes or fivehours but whatever it is, it is alwaysbeneficial to be prepared.

Editorial Note: CABE and BaldwinMedia partner to provide crisis manage-ment services in the initial phase of amedia emergency to all CABE members.In addition, we now offer communica-tions services through CABE anddelivered by Baldwin Media. For furtherinformation, contact Executive DirectorRobert Rader at 860-571-7446 orrrader@cabe.org.

developmentand expertiseto CABEmemberdistricts.

The ulti-mate goal forall of us is toget the goodword out onthe positivethings thatare happen-ing in public education.

You can contact CABE at 860-571-7446or Baldwin Media directly at 860-408-1580.

If you would like to purchase additionalcopies of Telling Your Story, A Communi-cations Guide for School Boards, they areavailable for $8.95 each by calling CABE at860-317-0033 or 860-571-7446.

A board of education member mayexpress support for a pending referendumduring a televised board of educationmeeting without violating the law as longas members of the general public areallowed to express opinions.

A complaint was filed by George Ruhealleging that Martin Walsh, a member ofthe Wethersfield Board of Education,expressed support for a referendum duringa televised meeting of the board ofeducation in April of this year. Connecti-cut General Statute Section 9-369b(a)provides that “No expenditure of state or

municipal funds shall be made to influ-ence any person to vote for approval ordisapproval of any such proposal orquestion.” The State Elections Enforce-ment Commission (SEEC) found that Mr.Walsh’s opportunity to make commentwas, in effect, no greater than any memberof the public wishing to speak and, assuch, the nature of his municipal officewas immaterial.

The SEEC also ruled on a separatecomplaint filed by Mr. Ruhe regarding aflyer that allegedly supported the referen-dum to renovate the high school. The

SEEC found that the Town ofWethersfield and its agents wrote theflyer with help from an architectural firm,consulted the town attorney, and thensought advice from SEEC employees.

Edits that the SEEC’s employeesrecommended were included in the flyerand the amended flyer was submitted backto the SEEC for additional review. TheSEEC found that the law was not violatedin either instance.

CT Law Tribune, August 6, 2012Kelly B. Moyher

Senior Staff Attorney, CABE

State Election EnforcementCommission rules in Board favor

14 The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education • September 2012

Schools can’t reject blueberries

CABE-MeetingCABE-Meeting is a user-friendly, web-based service specifically designed to assist the board, superintendent and central office staff in preparing forand running board of education meetings.

An exciting feature designed for use by committees, in addtion to boards of education, was recently added to CABE-Meeting. Now all your boardwork and committee information is conveniently located in one place!

Is CABE-Meeting for you?

• Do you want to save your district money?• Do you want to utilize technology to enable staff to be more efficient?• Do you want to focus more of your human and financial resources on

increasing student achievement in your district?• Do you want to enhance communication with your community?• Do you want to model the methods that should be used to infuse

technology in your schools?If you answered “yes” to at least one of the above questions, read on.CABE-Meeting can help you!

Learn more:

Take a few minutes and go to http://www.cabe.org/page.cfm?p=158 tocomplete our CABE-Meeting cost analysis worksheet (located at thebottom of the page) and see how much your district can save in oneyear. Districts can save thousands of dollars each year by usingCABE-Meeting.

CABE-Meeting

Lisa SteimerConnecticut Association ofBoards of Education81 Wolcott Hill RoadWethersfield, CT 06109www.cabe.org

For more information, a list ofdistricts currently using CABE-Meeting or to schedule a demonstra-tion for your board, call LisaSteimer at 800-317-0033 or 860-571-7446 or emaillsteimer@cabe.org.

Editor’s Note: Jamie Vollmer was theFriday morning speaker at the 2010CABE/CAPSS Convention. We thoughtyou’d enjoy this story!

“If I ran my business the way youpeople operate your schools, I wouldn’tbe in business very long!”

I stood before an auditorium filled withoutraged teachers who were becomingangrier by the minute. My speech hadentirely consumed their precious 90minutes of inservice.Hence their initial icyglares had turned to restless agitation.You could cut the hostility with a knife.

I represented a group of businesspeople dedicated to improving publicschools. I was an executive at an icecream company that became famous in the

middle1980s when People Magazinechose our blueberry as the “Best IceCream in America.”

I was convinced of two things. First,public schools needed to change; theywere archaic selecting and sorting mech-anisms designed for the industrial age and

out of step with the needs of our emerg-ing “knowledge society.”

Second, educators were a major part ofthe problem: they resisted change, hunk-ered down in their feathered nests, pro-tected by tenure, and shielded by abureaucratic monopoly. They needed tolook to business. We knew how to pro-duce quality. Zero defects! TQM! Con-tinuous improvement!

In retrospect, the speech was perfectlybalanced – equal parts ignorance andarrogance. As soon as I finished, a wo-man’s hand shot up. She appeared polite,pleasant – she was, in fact, a razor-edged,veteran, high school English teacher whohad been waiting to unload.

She began quietly, “We are told, sir,that you manage a company that makesgood ice cream.”

I smugly replied, “Best ice cream inAmerica, Ma’am.”

“How nice,” she said. “Is it rich andsmooth?”

“Sixteen percent butterfat,” I crowed.“Premium ingredients?” she inquired.“Super-premium! Nothing but triple A.”

I was on a roll. I never saw the next linecoming.

“Mr. Vollmer,” she said, leaning forwardwith a wicked eyebrow raised to the sky,“when you are standing on your receivingdock and you see an inferior shipment of

blueberries arrive, what doyou do?”

In the silence of thatroom, I could hear the trapsnap…. I was dead meat,but I wasn’t going to lie.

“I send them back.”She jumped to her feet.

“That’s right!” she barked,“and we can never send back our

None of this negates the need forchange. We must change what, when, andhow we teach to give all children maximumopportunity to thrive in a post-industrialsociety.

But educators cannot do this alone;these changes can occur only with theunderstanding, trust, permission, andactive support of the surrounding com-munity. For the most important thing Ihave learned is that schools reflect theattitudes, beliefs and health of the com-munities they serve, and therefore, to im-prove public education means more thanchanging our schools, it means changingAmerica.Jamie Robert Vollmer © 2011Jamie Vollmer is a former businessexecutive and attorney who now works toincrease public support for America’spublic schools. His new book, SchoolsCannot Do It Alone is available atwww.jamievollmer.com

blueberries. We take them big, small, rich,poor, gifted, exceptional, abused, fright-ened, confident, homeless, rude, andbrilliant. We take them with ADHD, juniorrheumatoid arthritis, and English as theirsecond language. We take them all! Everyone! And that, Mr. Vollmer, is why it’s nota business. It’s school!”

In an explosion, all 290 teachers, princi-pals, bus drivers, aides, custodians, andsecretaries jumped to their feet and yelled,“Yeah! Blueberries! Blueberries!”

And so began my long transformation.Since then, I have visited hundreds of

schools. I have learned that a school isnot a business. Schools are unable tocontrol the quality of their raw material,they are dependent upon the vagaries ofpolitics for a reliable revenue stream, andthey are constantly mauled by a howlinghorde of disparate, competing customergroups that would send the best CEOscreaming into the night.

The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education • September 2012 15

You need an up-to-date policy manual to run your district effec-tively. CABE can help. Our policy specialists will assist in updat-ing your manual, ensuring your district’s policies are current andup-to-date with the Connecticut statutes.

Call Vincent Mustaro, Senior Staff Associate for Policy Service(860) 571-7446 or (800) 317-0033 to begin updating yourmanual today.

Running adistrict ishardLighten yourload with anupdatedpolicymanual

(continued from page 1)rated into the model a great deal of roomfor professional judgment, as well asflexibility based on the needs andpriorities of particular districts andschools.

While some members of the WorkingGroups reacted negatively to the “speed”of this process, we were impressed thatthe Commissioner, the State Board ofEducation and the SDOE took advantageof the Governor’s focus on educationreform to push forward changes toperformance evaluation standards at apace generally not seen in governmentactions.

The consulting groups that facilitatedthis process made us aware of bestpractices from other states, and we wereable to contribute similar best practicesfrom our own school districts.

The consultants also encouraged

dialogue and feedback from all thestakeholders represented in the WorkingGroups, but they were also very effectivein limiting redundant discussion andcreating closure on key points.

Where Do Things Stand?The pilots of the new Connecticut State

Model for Educator Performance Evalua-tion and Support are underway in tendistricts. Even more importantly, everydistrict in Connecticut will be required toimplement either the State Model or itsown Commissioner-approved planstarting on July 1, 2013.

Yes, things are moving fast. And yes,the changes will be substantial for everydistrict in Connecticut – and huge forsome. But, ready or not, districts need toact now.

What Role Should BoardMembers Play?

As a starting point, if they have notalready done so, boards should consideradding preparation for the new system ofteacher and administrator evaluation andsupport to their goals for 2012-13. Next,each board member should becomefamiliar with two key outputs from PEACand its Working Groups:

1. The Core Requirements: Theminimum standards each districtmust meet. This set of standardswas asopted as guidelines by theState Board of Education.

2. The State Model: A pre-approved,flexible plan and set of resourceswhich meets the Core Requirementsand is being piloted this year. TheState Model can be seen as an “offthe shelf” plan for addressing thenew requirements. It is targeted tobe both flexible enough to meet theneeds of a large majority of Con-necticut districts and rigorousenough to incorporate incentivesand opportunities for the continu-ous professional growth of oureducators.

During the course of the 2012-13school year, boards and their districtswill need to:

• Follow the pilot implementationprocess and any associated lessonslearned (CABE will provide updates

Education Reform update

1. CABE Board and Staff MembersWho Served on Committees:Teacher - James Marpe(Westport) and Patrice McCarthy(CABE Staff)Administrator - Elaine Whitney(Westport) and Bob Rader (CABEStaff)Pupil Personnel Services - Rich-ard Murray (Killingly), AnneGruenberg (Hampton) and SheilaMcKay (CABE Staff)

2. List of pilot districts:Bethany, Orange, and Woodbridge;Branford; Bridgeport; Capitol RegionEducation Council (CREC); Colum-bia, Eastford, Franklin, and Sterling;Litchfield and Region 6; Norwalk;Waterford; Windham; and Windsor.

Additional Information is availableon the SDE website (http://www.sde.ct.gov).

and seminar opportunities, includ-ing a session at the CABE/CAPSSConvention to facilitate this);

• Compare the Core Requirements andthe State Model to your district’scurrent approach.

• Decide what part(s), if any, of theState Model your district will adopt.

• Develop a district-specific plan forany components of the new systemwhere your district will diverge fromthe State Model (if anywhere).

• Obtain approval from the Commis-sioner of any district-specific plans.

• Assess the budget implications ofhow your district will implement thenew system (e.g., administrativestaffing levels; where to allocateyour district’s professional andcurriculum development resources).To prepare for the 2013-14 budgetcycle, we suggest that districtsshould at least begin this discus-sion this fall.

• Conduct corresponding profesionaldevelopment in advance of the2013-14 launch (i.e., by summer2013).

As much work as there is ahead, we arehopeful that this new system will be amodel for other states and will helpConnecticut to close its achievement gapthrough raising the achievement of all ofits students.