February 27, 2013 at 7:00 PM - Regular Board of Ed. Meeting

Rationale:  Members of the Killingly community are encouraged to share their thoughts with the Board of Education and are invited to do so during this segment of the meeting. When appropriate to do so, members of the Board and the administration may respond to comments. However, in consideration of those in attendance and in an effort to proceed in a timely manner, follow-up discussion may need to take place outside of the meeting setting.

Rationale:  Public Law 111-296, "The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act (HHFKA) of 2010" reauthorized numerous child nutrition programs until September 30, 2015.  Though the Act  was re-authorized and signed in December 2010, the federal regulations have been coming out over the past two years.  The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act leaves much of its implementation up to the regulations, which are issued by the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture.  This legislation marked the most comprehensive changes to the school nutrition environment in more than a generation.  The last update to federal school meal standards occurred more than fifteen years ago.  Since that time, tremendous advancements in our understanding of human nutrition have taken place.  In response to that reality, the HHFKA required the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to update school meal nutrition standards to reflect the most current dietary science.

Rationale:  P.A. 12-116  "An Act Concerning Educational Reform," eliminated the requirement that professional certificate holders successfully complete 90 CEU's every five years as a condition of certificate renewal.  Starting July 1, 2013, all certified employees, including initial and provisional certificate holders, are required to participate in professional development programs.  The reform legislation revised professional development to emphasize improved practice and individual and small-group coaching sessions.  It continues current requirements that districts: (1) offer professional development according to plans developed in consultation with a professional development committee consisting of the district's certified personnel and other appropriate members; (2) determine specific professional development activities with the advice and help of their teachers, including their union representatives; and (3) that the activities give full consideration to the Connecticut State Board of Education's (SDE) priorities related to student achievement.

In addition, the administrative regulation which accompanied this policy has been replaced with a new version which reflects the statutory changes and the memorandum, dated September 21, 2012, from Nancy L. Pugliese, Chief of the Bureau of Educator Standards and Certification, pertaining to the substantive changes to the requirements for the professional educator certificate and the new requirements for professional development.  The new administrative regulation is included and it reflects the changes to be in place for the 2013-2014 school year.

Rationale:  The United States Department of Education on May 29, 2012, approved Connecticut's waiver from certain provisions of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requirements.  Connecticut created a system of differentiated recognition, accountability and support that places each school into one of five categories; Excelling, Progressing, Transition, Review, and Turnaround, base upon an index that includes student achievement, gains in student achievement, graduation rate, and the percentage of students meeting the State's highest performance level.  Connecticut has constructed a School Performance Index that will give schools strong incentives to help all students improve.  The state has established new performance targets for reading, math, writing, science, and graduation rates that will cut the gap to proficiency in half in six years.

Based upon Connecticut's ESEA Flexibility Request and Plan, certain requirements of the NCLB have been waived.  Districts and schools are no longer required to offer "Supplementary Educational Services (SES)" and public school choice to schools that were previously designated under NCLB and the failure to meet Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) as "Schools in Need of Improvement."

Since this waiver we now know that KMS is no longer "in need of improvement" and that no school choice now exists for students to attend KCS as tney had in the past due to NCLB.  Any student that is currently enrolled as of this year at KCS can finish the highest grade (4th) before moving on to KIS.  This policy will make this clear.  The district also has the option of not transporting these students, however, it is our mission to continue to provide necessary transportation to and from KCS.