THIS AND THAT:

• You may be keeping up with the budget news out of Salem (and therefore know what is coming next), but wanted to provide you with some information that Shay communicated to the school board yesterday afternoon:

  Earlier this morning [Thursday], the Oregon Legislature’s Joint Ways and Means Education Subcommittee passed an $8.2 billion State School Fund bill, which will now move to the full Ways and Means Committee and could reach the Senate floor as early as next Tuesday.  The bill, SB 5517, includes no new carve-outs of the State School Fund.  It also splits funding 50-50 between the two years of the biennium.

   This bill does not address Measure 98, but subcommittee members did say that Measure 98 will be funded separately from the State School Fund.  At this point, how much funding is planned for Measure 98 is not clear.

   Subcommittee members encouraged the legislature to continue to work on cost-containment and revenue packages, and said that they hope to add to the $8.2 billion State School Fund later in the session.  Any additions, if they occur, are likely to be added in the second year of the biennium to move SSF funding distribution closer to the traditional 49-51 biennial split.  Subcommittee members said, with the caveat that nothing is ever certain until the final gavel of the legislative session, that this establishes a likely new $8.2 billion “floor” for K-12 funding in 2017-19. 

• All of your certified staff were assigned to complete an evaluation Self-Reflection this year.  However, you only need to complete summative evals on half of your staff.  Therefore, feel free to mark “complete” on those certified staff that you will not be formally evaluating this year as this Self-Reflection form only needs to be completed during years of summative evals.

REMINDERS:

• I’m sure you have a plan already in motion, but wanted to remind you that half of your certified employees need to have a completed Summative Eval done this year.  (The other option would be to evaluate all of your certified this year and only do summative evals with your probationary/temps next year.  If you chose this one please let me know.) Additionally, all of your certified need to have their SLGGs completed this year.
• Principals, I’ll see you Monday afternoon at 3:15 here at the Ed Center.  We’ll meet in the TLC conference room.  Please bring me a copy of the positions you have interviewed for, the FTE of that opening, and the name of your top candidate for that position.