Fall 2014

NCSA TODAY A PUBLICATION OF THE NEBRASKA COUNCIL OF SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS

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Fall 2014

www.NCSA.org

4 Questions Nebraska Educators Should Ask Before Retiring

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CONTENTS

2 NeSA Transition: Based on a Solid Foundation

BY DR. VALORIE FOY

6 Education Data Systems Study

BY DR. DEAN FOLKERS

14 Superintendent Turnover Continues to Decline in Fall 2014

BY DR. JAMES E. OSSIAN

5

Spotlight on Nebraska School Transportation Association

BY DAVE LENGYEL

8

Hastings Principal Named One of Six Finalists for 2015 National Principal of the Year

9

Jan Glenn Named Central States Regional Director for NASBA

10

ESUCC & NDE Collaboration

BY DAVE LUDWIG

11

Positive Behavior Support (PBiS) in Schools

BY MIKE APPLE

12

Does the $3,100 HSA Eligible Health Plan Work for You?

BY GREG LONG

13

Local View: Holding the Line on Health Care Costs

BY CRAIG R. CHRISTIANSEN, DR. MIKE DULANEY, AND JOHN SPATZ

5 9 10 11 16

Upcoming Events Legislative Preview Conference 2014 Emerging Superintendents Workshop NAESP/NSASSP Principals Conference Calendar of Events

NCSA Mission The mission of the Nebraska Council of School Administrators (NCSA) is to be an effective leader for quality education and to enhance the professionalism of its members.

NCSA Today is a benefit of membership in the Nebraska Council of School Administrators, 455 South 11th Street, Suite A, Lincoln, NE 68508. Telephone 402.476.8055 or 800.793.6272. Fax 402.476.7740. Annual membership dues are $335 (active members), $100 (associate members), or $40 (student members).

NCSA Today is published quarterly. Send address changes to NCSA, Membership, 455 South 11th Street, Suite A, Lincoln, NE 68508. Copyright Š2014 by NCSA. All rights reserved.

NCSA EXECUTIVE BOARD 2014-2015 Chair . . . . . . . . . . . .Dr. Mike Teahon Vice Chair . . . . . . . . . .Brian Tonniges Immed. Past Chair . . .Dr. Chris Stogdill NASA Representatives President . . . . . . . . . . . . .Mike Apple President-Elect . . . . . . .Kyle McGowen Past President . . . . . .Dr. Mike Teahon NASBO Representatives President . . . . . . . . . . . . .Rick Haney President-Elect . . . . . . .Jeff Schneider Past President . . . . . . .Kelli Ackerman NAESP Representatives President . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Rod Engel President-Elect . . . . . . .Mark Johnson Past President . . . . . . . .Mike Janssen NASES Representatives President . . . . . . . . . . .Sally Gittinger President-Elect . . Wendy Kemling-Horner Past President . . . . . .Dr. Brenda Tracy NSASSP Representatives President . . . . . . . . . .Ryan Ricenbaw President-Elect . . . . . . . . . .Troy Lurz Past President . . . . . . .Brian Tonniges NARSA Representative President . . . . . . . . . .Dr. Larry Sweley NCSA STAFF Dr. Michael S. Dulaney Executive Director/Lobbyist Dr. Dan E. Ernst Associate Executive Director/Lobbyist Megan Hillabrand Event Coordinator Amy Poggenklass Finance and Membership Director Carol Young Executive Administrative Assistant Michelle Smith Administrative Assistant The opinions expressed in NCSA Today or by its authors do not necessarily reflect the positions of the Nebraska Council of School Administrators.

FALL 2014 NCSA TODAY 1

A S SES SMENT AND ACCO UNTABIL ITY

NeSA Transition: Based on a Solid Foundation

BY DR. VALORIE FOY, NDE Director of Assessment and Accountability

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Foy

hange is on the horizon for the NeSA-Reading assessment with the 7-0 vote of the State Board of Education on September 5, 2014 to pass the revised English Language Arts (ELA) standards.

Nebraska university and community college representatives have signed off on the new ELA standards that are aligned to college and career ready expectations, setting a higher bar for the next generation of Nebraska State Accountability (NeSA) assessments.

Some of the changes to take place, while complex, are fairly easily accomplished. The current multiplechoice items that have been developed over the past five years for NeSA-Reading will be aligned to the Revised ELA standards, with two results: a list of items that will be usable to assess the revised standards and the loss of some items as they will no longer align. Next, the new tables of specifications will be developed to serve as the blueprints for the assessments to be given at the seven grade levels.

After the starting points of alignment and development of the tables of specifications, some options are available for consideration. With more rigorous standards comes the opportunity to develop items with higher depth of knowledge (DOK). Most language arts items on the current NeSA-Reading do not go above a DOK of 2, but the revised standards bring a need for the development of items that provide opportunity for students to interact with complex items that call for higher order thinking skills. Items such as open-ended, two-step multiple-choice and technology-enhanced are all candidates for consideration in the revision process.

However, more complex item types add cost to assessments. An adage in large-scale assessment is that a “good” test is one that is “fair, fast, and economical.”

The current NeSA assessments fit into all three of those descriptors—and I welcome the chance to address these aspects of the NeSA tests.

Fair Anyone who traveled with Nebraska educators through the STARS days knows the characteristics of a fair test— free of bias, matched to the standards, at appropriate level, with appropriate mastery levels. At Administrators

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Days 2014, a principal stated that a special education teacher who had provided the accommodation of reading the NeSA-Math test to two students, one a fifth grader and one a sixth grader, told him that the fifth grade test was very hard, much harder than the sixth grade test.

Another administrator told me that one of her teachers who had read the seventh grade math test aloud as an accommodation for a student had indicated some concerns about questions because she believed some wording would be more difficult for Hispanic students. These are common concerns for districts, and in both instances, an understanding of the technical quality of the NeSA tests provides assurance that all students have equitable opportunity to perform well on them.

Ever since the NeSA test was started with NeSA-Reading assessment in 2010, a NeSA Technical Report has been produced and posted on the NDE Assessment Website. What the Technical Report would tell anyone who cared to read through the 350 pages of explanation and psychometric charts is that NeSA tests cannot be more difficult for the students in one grade than in another.

While it is true that each grade level has items that are written appropriate to the grade level, thus sixth grade items are more difficult than fifth grade items, the test cannot be more difficult for the students in one grade than in another. The average difficulty of every NeSA assessment hovers around the P-value of .65. P-value = level of difficulty—literally what percentage of students get an item right. Any item on the NeSA must fall generally within a range of .40 P-value to .85 P-value—and the overall average P-value of any form will average at approximately .65. The result is that tests are equally difficult at every grade level.

A test that is fair is also not biased toward any group of students. How does NDE know items are not more difficult for a particular student group, such as males or females or whites or Hispanics? A value called the C DIF indicates if any such biases exist with items—and determining the calculation follows this process: An item that has a C DIF, showing a negative bias toward males, would be discovered through a method by which each student’s overall score would be compared to that stu(continued on next page)

A S SES SMENT AND ACCO UNTABIL ITY NeSA Transition: Based on a Solid Foundation (continued from page 2) dent’s performance on this item. If females who earned high scores on the test answered an item right, but males who earned high scores on the test answered the item wrong at a higher rate, a C DIF that indicated a negative bias towards males would be identified. In other words, if both high scoring males and females do not equally score well on a test item, a C DIF will make the bias evident. The same calculation would be used in identifying items that have bias for Hispanics, whites, blacks, or Native Americans.

Items with C DIF issues are avoided on NeSA test forms.

Finally, there is one more calculation that furnishes additional information about fairness of a test: the point-biserial indicates if an item is biased against high performers or low performers.

An example of a low point-biserial would be an item that is easy— (remember we know easy items because they have high Pvalues), but a majority of the students who score highest overall on the assessment miss this item. Another example of a low pointbiserial would be that a majority of the students who score lowest overall on the assessment answer a hard item correctly. A low correlation indicates there is a smart way to get an item wrong and a not-smart way to get an item right. Items with low correlations are avoided on NeSA tests.

Every item that appears on a NeSA test is field-tested and those who build the test forms have all the statistics about every single item. An item that is negatively biased towards Hispanics will not be on the NeSA, an item that is so hard few students in the state answer it correctly will not be on the NeSA, and an item that has a wrong answer choice (called a distractor) that draws most low-performing students will not be on the NeSA. Much work and scientific evidence is used to build all NeSA test forms to ensure fairness to all students.

That students have the opportunity to learn is another aspect of fairness. We at NDE cannot provide the opportunity to learn as that is relegated to school districts, but what we can do is provide clear tables of specifications and adhere strictly to the requirements. If NeSA-Reading is supposed to have 4-6 items on standard 5.1.5, the test form should not have 2, or 7. Test forms do not deviate from the requirements of the tables of specifications, and if one did, the information would be in the NeSA Technical Report provided every year for every NeSA test. NeSA tests are fair.

Fast The second criterion for a “good” large-scale assessment is “fast,” meaning students should not have to spend an inordinate amount of time on statewide assessments. The average eighth grader, who takes all four tests, NeSA-Reading, Math, Science, and

Writing, spends approximately four hours total spread over the four tests. The average time used by an eighth grader is 70 minutes for NeSA-Reading, 70 minutes for NeSA-Math, 40 minutes for NeSA-Science, and 60 minutes for NeSA-Writing, spread over a nine-week window—three weeks for NeSA-Writing and six for Reading, Math, Science, approximately one-half hour per week for nine weeks. Third graders average 80 minutes for NeSA-Reading and 70 for NeSA-Math for a total of 2.5 hours. The NeSA statewide assessments measure over fifty state standards in Reading, Math, Science, and Writing, give the results for Nebraska Performance Accountability System, and provide the rich data available on the State of the Schools Reports—with a relatively efficient use of student time.

Economical Finally, the last measure of a “good” large-scale assessment is that it is economical. The Nebraska Department of Education contracts with Data Recognition Corporation for $5.3 million to conduct NeSA assessments, not cheap, but yes, economical. The cost of the NeSA is approximately $10.50 each for NeSA-Reading, Math, and Science and $12.50 for NeSA-Writing per student. The costs include everything start to finish: forms construction (building the tests), printing, online test delivery, testing helplines, customer service, test grading—even the performance-based writing, delivery of results to school districts, individual student reports, and preparation of the technical reports.

The average cost in 2012 showed Nebraska at the middle of the states, with average costs, while some of the highest costs were in Massachusetts at $64 and Delaware at $73 per student.

The landscape of costs is changing as many states are going through transition. In addition, few states include in their costs an interim assessment program such as Nebraska’s Check for Learning (C4L), which is provided at no cost to any Nebraska district that wants to join; districts “buy” their membership by writing or reviewing standards-aligned items to be used in the system, available to all participating districts. Last year over 350,000 assessments were administered through the Check for Learning system.

Transitions Currently, NeSA tests are fair, fast, and economical, but this article began with a reference to change on the horizon. The goal remains to provide statewide testing that is fair, fast, and economical, but with the possibility of developing new item types comes new opportunity. When NDE was piloting the NeSA-Reading assessment online in 2009, very few students had taken largescale online tests in Nebraska. I was in a school district observing (continued on next page)

FALL 2014 NCSA TODAY 3

A S SES SMENT AND ACCO UNTABIL ITY NeSA Transition: Based on a Solid Foundation (continued from page 2) the field testing of NeSA-Reading online. As I followed a group of students out of the computer lab, one girl said to another, “That was kind of fun.” Her friend earnestly nodded of her head and said, “Yeah!”

Nebraska students have come a ways since then, the novelty of taking assessments online having worn off, but by far the majority of Nebraska students complete their tests online: 94% of all NeSA-Reading, Math Science are taken online and 98% of Grades 8 and 11 NeSA-Writing, despite the fact that approximately 20% of students could take paper/pencil assessments due to accommodations provided for special needs students and English Language Learners. Students generally want to be assessed online—and the NeSA tests have progressed, providing text-tospeech (audio) through the the online test engine for students who are allowed the accommodation of having the assessment read to them (not the NeSA Reading passages) and spellchecker for those specially designated as having that accommodation in writing.

In fall 2014 Data Recognition Corporation and Nebraska Department of Education partnered with four school districts to conduct an iPad study in nine classrooms in grades 3-11 to pilot technology-enhanced items on iPads. Items included drag-anddrop responses, moveable number lines, matching, and equation builders. Students interacted well with the items and the devices, using the pinch-and-zoom technique and accessing most tools with ease, but they expressed a preference to have keyboards to complete some test processes. Anything less than nearly instantaneous response time annoyed the students and could cause them to redo actions, creating some inability in the device to respond. A complete report of the iPad study will be available this fall.

In order to continue to expand technology use for NeSA, a Technology Trial is being offered using the INSIGHT engine October 27-November 7, 2014. Districts may, not only have students access practice NeSA tests in the secure testing environment on any computers as they have in the past, but also on secured iPads and Chromebooks. Since iPads and Chromebooks will be an option for NeSA-Reading, Math, Science testing March-May 2015, districts that plan to test on these devices may enhance their students’ experiences by participating in the Technology Trial.

Technology continues to evolve for NeSA testing in Nebraska, but revised English Language Arts standards will also cause Nebraska to go through some transition, exactly how much and how fast as yet undetermined. Nebraska educators can count on the NeSA tests remaining unchanged in spring 2015 and spring 2016.

Districts have one year to adopt the state standards after the

4 NCSA TODAY FALL 2014

State Board Adoption—and with the district adoption comes the need to align curriculum, provide materials based on the revised curriculum, and prepare students to perform on more rigorous college and career ready aligned items—a challenge that calls for professional learning opportunities—all which take time. A revised assessment on which students perform reliably is the result of much complex work taking place in in school districts and the Nebraska Department of Education. Nebraska educators will have the opportunity to weigh in on the details of the transition and the timeline through a variety of advisory committees and online survey available to all educators.

Steering Straight Having read many articles over the past three years since becoming Director of Assessment and Accountability, attending national assessment conferences, and hearing personal stories of educational leaders, I cringe at the chaotic educational landscape in some states. The Oklahoma governor signed into law a repeal of the Common Core standards, and post-secondary institutes in the state have not signed off on Oklahoma’s college and career ready standards, so no standards are in place for teaching, let alone assessing. Louisiana is a battleground between Governor Jindal with an anti-Common Core stance and Louisiana Superintendent of Schools John White, who supports the work state educators and leaders have invested in the Common Core standards and consortium assessment. At a recent federal meeting a state assessment director told me the teachers in her state are saying, “Just tell me what to teach, and I’ll do it.” While not all states have taken the center stage that Louisiana and Oklahoma have recently, many are experiencing the ebb and flow of pro-Common Core and anti-Common Core factions exerting efforts that undermine processes in place. Political chaos that impedes the operation of school districts to effectively teach their students and have state tests fairly represent their efforts, undermines effective education.

In Nebraska, we have held the course with the NeSA assessments and have comparable results for five years in reading, four in math, three in science, and two stable years for fourth grade writing. The federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requirement that districts needed to have 100% of their students at proficient by 2014 was unrealistic at best, but if living within the confines of the federally NCLB mandated Adequate Yearly Progress of 100% is the most egregious effect of federal oversight in Nebraska, it may be better than the alternatives of jumping on the federal bandwagon of national standards adoption, participating in a consortium assessment, meeting the demanding timelines of United States Department of Education (USDE), and facing possible po(continued on next page)

PARTNERSHIP

Spotlight on Nebraska School Transportation Association

BY DAVE LENGYEL, NSTA President

S

ince its beginning in 1968, the Nebraska School Transportation Association has been a valuable source of information for virtually every aspect of student transportation in the state of Nebraska. The association, through its relationship with state-level decision makers and the National Association for Pupil Transportation (NAPT), harnesses numerous resources to assist school districts in managing a safe and efficient student transportation program.

NSTA offers Professional Membership to any person who is employed as a superintendent, transportation director/supervisor, Level I/II instructor, driver, or mechanic. NSTA also provides for sustaining membership for those individuals, organizations, ven-

dors, or private transportation operators that wish to support the purpose of the Association.

NSTA holds two statewide conferences each year. These conferences, typically held in Kearney, provide a wonderful opportunity for student transportation professionals to network and share valuable information. The conferences also feature in-state and national level speakers such as Peggy Burns, Linda Bluth, and Nebraska Senator Scott Price.

Membership information is available from the NCSA by contacting Amy Poggenklass, amy@ncsa.org, or NSTA’s website: nsta-nebraska.com. n

NeSA Transition: Based on a Solid Foundation (continued from page 4) litical uncertainty. In the thirteen years of STARS and NeSA assessments, Nebraska has taken a sensible, calm, deliberate approach to the changing educational landscape and federal oversight, continuing the practices that Nebraskans know and work best: Nebraska educators and Nebraska Department of Education working in partnership to develop standards, write assessments, improve learning, and determine methods of meeting federal requirements. With the adoption of revised ELA standards in the current year, and other standards revision slated in subsequent years, some changes will occur, but as we move through the transition, let us be guided by common sense—and that is how we will handle transition—calm, steady, best for students, the right way, the Nebraska way. n

Resources Camera, L. (2014, September 9) Okla., La. Center stage in Common-Core battle.

Education Week. Retrieved from http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/ 2014/09/10/03pushback.h34.html?cmp=ENL-EU-NEWS1 Chingos, M. (2012, November).

Strength in numbers: State spending on K-12 assessment systems. Brown Center on Education Policy at Brookings. Retrieved from www.brookings.edu/.../11_assessment_chingos_final.pdf

Upcoming Events State Education Conference November 19th-21st Embassy Suites – La Vista ister visit www.NASBonline.org to reg

State Principals Conference December 4th-5th Younes Conference Center – Kearney visit www.ncsa.org to register

Emerging Superintendents Worksh op December 10 – NCSA Offices – Lincoln visit www.ncsa.org to register

Legislative Preview December 11th NCSA Offices – Lincoln visit www.ncsa.org to register

FALL 2014 NCSA TODAY 5

S CHOOL TECHNO LO G Y

Education Data Systems Study

BY DR. DEAN FOLKERS, NDE Senior Administrator

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Folkers

n the summer edition of NCSA Today, I was able to introduce some of the work occurring around systems—specifically education data systems. Since then, progress continues to be made on the implementation of the ADVISER data dashboard and the completion of an education data systems study. The focus of this article describes the high level results of the study and shares the emerging priorities around education data systems in Nebraska. The achievement of these priorities relies on the belief that by providing leadership, collaborating with key leaders and organizations, and ultimately working to realize a vision we can provide both cost-effective solutions, but more importantly enable the great work of Nebraska schools to support every study, every day.

The Study The Study of Nebraska Education Data Systems resulted from Legislative Resolution 264 (LR 264). The resolution primarily requested an understanding of data systems and collections in Nebraska, including costs, access, timeliness, and adequacy of systems. The study was ultimately a collaborative effort by NDE in partnership with the Educational Service Unit Coordinating Council (ESUCC), the Nebraska Council of School Administrators (NCSA), the Nebraska State Education Association (NSEA), and informed by members of the Nebraska Education Technology Association (NETA).

The process involved over 200 educators in Nebraska through a survey of district leaders and NETA membership, focus groups on each type of system and with ESUs, and financial interviews with representative districts.

Over 68 percent of district leaders responded to the survey, and respondents covered all the ESU regions. Participants described the availability of their systems, costs associated with software licenses and accountability submissions, and weighted in on priorities for data use and system development.

The study of Nebraska education data systems gathered information on three types of systems (Teaching and Learning, Administrative, and Back Office) as well as the cost and effort associated with data and accountability submissions.

6 NCSA TODAY FALL 2014

The Findings Nebraska spends an estimated $100 million annually for technology systems, software systems, and accountability data submissions by the public school districts and the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE).

The NDE systems and applications are largely focused on satisfying Federal and State accountability reporting requirements and do not directly contribute to supporting teaching and learning. The districts submit annual collections of data to support accountability to the state using a combination of automated and manual methods.

An estimated 655,200 hours are spent by districts preparing the required collections for each year’s data submission.

Each district has selected its own set of administrative, teaching and learning, and back office applications.

There is a wide difference in the number of applications available in small districts versus larger districts often due to budgets, staff, and/or capacity. The student information system (SIS) is the single most important application for districts, supporting the day-to-day operation of schools, typically requiring a major investment in licensing, infrastructure, support, and professional development. Outside of Nebraska’s largest districts, the system tools are most often not integrated, there is little support for data-driven decision-making, and tools are not consistently available to support continuous improvement approaches identified as part of the NDE and ESUCC priority initiatives of blended learning, teacher and principal evaluation, and data systems integration.

Nebraska’s network of Educational Service Units (ESUs), the ESU Coordinating Council (ESUCC), and Network Nebraska are all contributing to improving the capabilities and the efficiencies of the data systems for the districts. However, the capabilities and support provided by the ESUs varies across the state and additional capacity as well as coordination is needed.

The overarching study recommendation included a statewide-integrated data system that builds long-term capacity, efficacy, and efficiency for the system of education. The following specific recommendations emerged to achieve that goal: (continued on next page)

S CHOOL TECHNO LO G Y Education Data Systems Study (continued from page 6) 1. Ensure security, privacy, transparency, and the proper use of data the core of the Nebraska Education Data System implementation.

2. Unify the data collection requirements into the Nebraska Education Data System to minimize the reporting burden on districts.

3. Require application vendors and other sources to provide data in a standard form specified by NDE directly into a Nebraska Education Data Standard (NEDS).

4. Leverage and strengthen Nebraska’s ESU network, the ESUCC, and Network Nebraska to host, maintain, and sustain the Nebraska Education Data System, to support a statewide help desk, and to train the educators in it is use.

5. Leverage the state-level market to influence vendors, negotiate lower prices through competition, provide consistent functions and pricing across large and small districts, and expand the number and quality of instructional applications.

6. Invest in providing education intelligence - access to actionable insight - through a warehouse, business intelligence tools, and increased internal capacity for districts, policy makers, and researchers.

7. Invest in an integrated data system that spans the districts, the ESUs, and NDE to support continuous education improvement.

8. Integrate staff data from district and state data sources, link teachers to student performance and success, and add additional data to better support teacher evaluation and professional development.

9. Invest in the licensing, integration and training of an Instructional Improvement System that is cost-effective for districts of all sizes.

10. Develop the staff and processes necessary to sustain the Nebraska Education Data System.

The Future Using the findings and subsequent recommendations, a fiveyear strategy—leveraging current investments funded by the Nebraska’s current Statewide Longitudinal Data System (SLDS) grant —provides five specific work streams. The targets create a roadmap for the future and enable a framework for budgeting and planning for a strategic investment into the next biennium. The high-level description for each of the target areas include:

teachers and secure data warehouses for reporting. Developing the Nebraska Education Data Standard—will mean a set of data standards for interoperability of systems. This work will also include the infrastructure to support a major data system, including a single sign on offering from the ESUCC. Automated Collections: Reduce reporting burden by providing efficiency and automation for data submissions through the leveraged secure data infrastructure and support.

Actionable Insight: Targeted resources, once expended on data submission, can be directed to effectively using Nebraska’s data system and ensuring privacy and security of the data. The educational insight will include the ADVISER Dashboard, data warehouse, and other longitudinal analysis that would inform both policy and practice.

Sustained Support: Collaborate to include Training and Help Desk support around the systems—statewide. The cooperative support would provide opportunities for NDE, ESUCC and others to coordinate assistance using a tiered ticketing system, knowledge transfer, and professional development for data use.

Instructional Systems: Leverage the interoperability of the data standard and the state “buying power” to support an Instructional Improvement System.

The creation of an “app store” would provide low cost or free options for school districts to choose applications that support digital system access and data integration—for all districts in Nebraska.

The primary benefits from the strategic work streams will be a greatly improved instructional and educational data system that supports improved student performance. The proposed approach also results in savings and efficiencies to districts provided from substantially reducing current data collection burden and ongoing technology costs. A significant projected cumulative net return for the investment over five years would occur. To find out more about the study or keep to track of the progress toward of the SLDS grant work visit 1.usa.gov/1qGqwxO. The results of the study and the subsequent proposed path to the future provide an exciting opportunity to support schools and every student, every day. n

Leveraged Capacity: Leverage an open-source education data standard along with accompanying technical assets—student-level dashboards for

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HONOR S AND RECO GNITION

Hastings Principal Named One of Six Finalists for 2015 National Principal of the Year

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avid Essink of Hastings Middle School in Hastings, NE is one of six exceptional school leaders selected as a finalist for 2015 NASSP National Principal of the Year.

The finalists will be honored during a September awards luncheon to be attended by dignitaries and policymakers, including House EdWorkforce Committee member Rep. Susan Davis (D-CA).

Reaching out to build supportive relationships is key to Essink’s leadership at Hastings Middle School. Teachers collaborate with him to make important decisions, and, every student has an adult advocate, and Essink finds creative ways to get parents and community members into the building to interact with students.

The collaborative and caring culture provides the foundation for consistent increases in achievement and led to the school’s 2014 designation as a MetLife Foundation-NASSP National Breakthrough School. Essink holds a bachelor’s in education and a Nebraska Assessment and Leadership Endorsement from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and master’s and specialist degrees in educational administration from the University of Nebraska–Kearney.

“NASSP is delighted to recognize so accomplished a principal as David Essink, who has dedicated such extraordinary effort to advance student learning,” said NASSP Executive Director JoAnn Bartoletti. “Schools cannot succeed without great leaders committed to the success of each student, and David clearly models the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that constitute great leadership.”

The six finalists will be recognized during the State Principals of the Year Institute, which convenes all middle level and high school principals of the year from the 50 states in Washington, DC, September 7-10 for a series of professional development activities and meetings with their members of Congress. The finalists will formally receive their awards during a September 9 Capitol Hill lunch-

Join us for the Principals Award Reception at State Principals Conference, December 4-5, 2014, Kearney, NE

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eon, keynoted by Rep. Susan Davis (D-CA). Each finalist will receive a $1,500 grant, and the national winner will receive an additional grant of $3,000. The grants will be used to improve learning at the school.

The NASSP National Principal of the Year Award is given annually to one principal who Essink exemplifies the characteristics research has shown to be most effective in school leadership. The search for the national principal of the year began in early 2014 as each state principals' association selected its state principal of the year. From this pool of state award winners, a panel of judges selected three middle level and three high school finalists. The finalists will be interviewed by a separate panel of judges September 7 and the 2015 national winner will be announced during National Principals Month in October.

About NASSP The National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) is the leading organization of and national voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals, and all school leaders from across the United States and more than 36 countries around the world. The association connects and engages school leaders through advocacy, research, education, and student programs. NASSP advocates on behalf of all school leaders to ensure the success of each student and strengthens school leadership practices through the design and delivery of high quality professional learning experiences. Reflecting its long-standing commitment to student leadership development, NASSP administers the National Honor Society, National Junior Honor Society, National Elementary Honor Society, and National Association of Student Councils. n

HO NO RS AND RECOG NITION

Jan Glenn Named Central States Regional Director for NASBA

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an Glenn, Director of Business Services at ESU #3 in Omaha was nominated to be the Central States Regional Director for the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA). She was recommended to the NASBA nominating committee because she brings a governmental, educational, and financial statement user perspective amongst a board made up of CPAs who bring a vendor/provider perspective. In her role as Regional Director, Jan will serve as liaison to State Boards of Accountancy in Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Minnesota, will serve on the Board of Directors for NASBA, and will Chair the Communications Committee. She is eligible to serve for three one-year terms. NASBA is committed to preserving the public trust through effective regulation of the accounting profession. To do that, NASBA provides State Boards of Accountancy with a high level of support to regulate the accounting profession. www.nasba.org In 2012, Jan was appointed by the Governor to serve on the Nebraska Board of Public Accountancy (NBPA) as a Public Member.

She serves as NBPA Board Secretary and is Chair of the Education and Exam committee. The NBPA’s mission is to protect Nebraska citizens to assure the competency of CPAs through examination, certification, licensure, registration, continuing professional education, quality review, and investigation/enforcement of standards. www.nbpa.ne.gov Serving on both boards allows exposure to a large group of professionals and experts on both a state and national level, who are key players in the regulation, integrity, and protection of the accounting profession. NASBA’s end result lies with the accounting profession, however much of the discussion can be applied to the work of the education/governmental sector. With the national and state emphasis on accountability, transparency, and public trust, understanding what is happening with regard to accounting regulations is very important. Jan looks forward to sharing this information with Nebraska Superintendents and Business Officials.

Jan indicates that the purpose of our work in public education

Mark yo ur C al en dar:

is to provide a quality education for Nebraska children. It is important for educational leaders to utilize proper accounting procedures, comply with state and federal regulation, and document the proper use of public funds no matter the size of the school district or Educational Service Unit. The public expects efficient use of their tax dollars however; they are often exposed to many stories of waste, embezzlement, improper use, Glenn etc. If the public cannot trust us to properly use and account for governmental funding, how will they trust what we are doing with our students?

NASBA has some emerging topics which impact education.

• Through an educational research grant, NASBA is looking at the impact of Advanced Placement (AP) accounting courses in high schools.

• NASBA is exploring options to deliver new learning methods for college credit hours, college testing, and education.

• NASBA is listening to general discussion regarding the deficiencies that employers see in the candidate pool of professional staff. There is a trickle down process into K-12 education and college/career ready standards.

• NASBA operates the NASBA Center for Public Trust which provides a focus on the recognition of ethical situations through a Leadership Certification program and annual conference.

• NASBA operates NASBA International Evaluation Services (NIES), which evaluates and compares education received internationally with US standards.

If you are interested in more information, please contact Jan Glenn at jglenn@esu3.org. n

Legislative Preview Conference December 11, 2014 Cornhusker Hotel Lincoln, NE 8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

FALL 2014 NCSA TODAY 9

ESUCC

ESUCC & NDE Collaboration

BY DAVE LUDWIG, ESUCC Executive Director

T

Ludwig

he Educational Service Unit Coordinating Council (ESUCC) was created in 2007 through the passage of LB 603 and officially came into existence by statute on July 1, 2008. The statutory description of and the duties of the ESUCC as described in Nebraska Revised Statute Section 79-1246 includes: • The Educational Service Unit Coordinating Council shall work toward statewide coordination to provide the most cost-effective services for the students, teachers, and school districts in each educational service unit. The council’s duties include, but are not limited to: • Preparation of strategic plans to assure the costefficient and equitable delivery of services across the state; • Administration of statewide initiatives and provision of statewide services; and • Coordination of distance education.

As a result of the existence of the ESUCC, the review and revision of Rule 84 (Regulations for the Accreditation of Educational Service Units) was completed through a committee comprised of ESU Administrators and NDE Staff during the 2011-2012 School Year with the effective date of June 23, 2012. Within the revised rule, as defined in section 003.02A1, “The ESU administrator or his or her designee shall participate in two jointly established meetings with representatives of the Department and the ESU Coordinating Council annually to establish the focus and coordination of necessary core services based on priorities and on needs that are identified through the analysis of data.” Through this collaborative effort, three focus areas or statewide

initiatives to included BlendED Learning, Data, and the Teacher/Principal Evaluation were adopted.

The development and implementation of the three statewide initiatives has been an ongoing collaborative effort of the ESUCC and the NDE through the ESU Professional Development Organization (ESUPDO) comprised of five affiliate groups to include: Staff Development Affiliate (SDA), Technology Assistance Group (TAG), Network Operations Committee (NOC), Instructional Materials affiliate (I-Mat), and the ESU Special Populations Directors (ESPD). Three annual ESUPDO Meetings are scheduled during September, January, and May to develop and implement a collaborative statewide system with NDE to support and implement the initiatives.

Each of the three statewide initiatives are led by the following personnel: BlendED Learning: Beth Kabes (ESU 7), Linda Dickeson (ESU 18) and Craig Hicks (ESU 13) Statewide Longitudinal Data System: Marilou Jasnoch (ESU3), Dean Folkers (NDE), Russ Masco (NDE), and Kathy Vetter (NDE) Teacher/Principal Evaluation: Toby Boss (ESU6) and Donlynn Rice (NDE) As we continue to move forward with the development and implementation of the statewide initiatives, updates will be provided through ESU’s and NDE. We have many tremendous opportunities as we continue to work collaboratively in meeting the needs of students. If you should have any questions, please contact me via email (dludwig@esucc.org) or one of the chairpersons listed above. Have a great year! n

2014 Emerging Superintendents Workshop

December 10 2014 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

NCSA Offices 455 S. 11th Street - Lincoln

Topics Include

*Leadership Perspectives of the Superintendent *Marketing Yourself on Paper *Financial Knowledge For the First Year Superintendent *Interviewing At Your Best *The Superintendent Transition Plan

Register online at www.ncsa.org 10 NCSA TODAY FALL 2014

AF F IL IATE LEADERS HIP

Positive Behavior Support (PBiS) in Schools

BY MIKE APPLE, Superintendent, Hitchcock County Schools; NASA President

W

Apple

hile principal at a district in Southeast Nebraska, I had a second grader in school (we will call him Tyler). Tyler was a cute kid but he had a bad habit of letting the F-bomb slip out at school. Inevitably the second grade teacher (Mrs. B) would bring him down to the office wanting me to fix him. On one of these office visits I told Tyler “if you don’t speak that way at the dining room table don’t speak that way at school.” Tyler’s response was immediate and sincere “we do speak that way at home.”

To some degree PBiS is meant to work on these behaviors in a positive proactive way rather than a negative reactive way.

The PBiS team (teachers), along with students, creates videos on correct behaviors to display around school as well as videos on how not to behave. For example, a video on lunchroom expectations may show a mock food fight followed by the appropriate version where students visit quietly while eating, then stack trays neatly before exiting the cafeteria.

These videos are then shown by all teachers in the same school, on the same day, at the same time. The end result is that all of the students know what is expected of them and the faculty are all on the same page as well.

Students who continually do the right thing are reinforced positively. In our high school the most popular reinforcement is the “lunch line leaper.” The leaper student has a one-time ticket to go to the front of the lunch line, which students often save for “fried chicken day” or another popular entrée day.

We also reinforce teachers for positive postcards sent home. Each time one is mailed, the teacher has their name put into a drawing for a new chair or some other positive reinforcement to be held at the end of the school year. The really nice thing about the postcards is they often wind up as on the refrigerator at the students’ home and the parents have actually had a positive contact from the school!

PBiS is also helpful in that it tracks behavior patterns.

When office referrals are made, we record the type of behavior, and the place and time it occurred. Tracking then alerts the PBiS team and administration of possible “hot spots.” The information is used to determine if a classroom teacher needs help with a particular class. It also shows if a certain area of the school is not monitored well enough while also providing data to back up changes.

The last piece of the PBiS puzzle is the support schools receive from the state PBiS staff. Refresher trainings are offered every summer for new and old PBiS team members. PBiS staff make school visitations to check on progress and needs and even to offer help with a particularly tough child.

Lastly, as a public school administrator for over twenty years, spending several of those years in high-poverty districts, I am absolutely convinced that PBiS, when implemented well with faculty buy-in, will make a difference for your schools in a very positive way.

For more information on PBiS, contact Jolene Palmer with the Nebraska Department of Education. n

2014 NAESP/NSASSP Principals Conference December 4-5, 2014 • Kearney, Nebraska (YCC)

It’s time to register for the 2014 State Principals Conference.

This year’s event will feature Keynotes from Kim Ratz reminding us all that Success is Liking What You Do and Amanda Karhuse with an Update on Federal Education Policy: How does Washington Affect Your School?

Help honor this year’s award winners and enjoy some networking at Thursday’s Award Reception and take back new ideas to your school with our many breakout sessions with topics including: * Making your School A Better Place * Learning Management Systems * Staff Meetings * Staff Selection and Development * Graduation Rates * Working with Middle Schoolers * Small Learning Communities * The Power of Grassroots Advocacy * Balance Sheets * Social Media * And More!

Register online at www.ncsa.org

FALL 2014 NCSA TODAY 11

HEALTH CARE

Does the $3,100 HSA Eligible Health Plan Work for You?

BY GREGORY LONG, EHA Field Representative

T

Long

he $3,100 high deductible HSA eligible plan is the first dollar plan which commits the single member to pay the first $3,100 of all health cost. Once the single member has satisfied the $3,100 cost, Blue Cross Blue Shield pays 100 percent of costs for the remainder of the year. If you have a family on this option, the deductible increases to $6,200, meaning that the combined family out-of-pocket costs must meet the $6,200 deductible. Once the deductible is met, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska will pay 100 percent of costs for the remainder of the year.

How is this funded?

Typically, schools that offer the dual option will give all or a negotiated amount of the premium savings to the individual member. If the school meets the requirements of the 5 percent discount, that individual school must put 100 percent of the premium savings in an HSA for the member in order to keep the 5 percent discount.

The underwriting guidelines for the 5 percent discount are as follows: Any EHA subgroup where the employer contribution is made exclusively for health insurance premiums only, with no options, as such contribution is in the amount of 100 percent of the single and 100 percent

of the family rates shall be subject to a 5 percent premium rate reduction.

In case of subgroups offering coverage to part-time employees, the 100 percent may be prorated according to the full-time equivalency (FTE) of the part-time employee’s. For example, a three-quarter-time employee (0.75 FTE) of the full premium toward all rate tiers.

Premium savings are applied to your out-of-pocket health expenses. Savings are based on the plan that you have selected to meet your health needs.

If you participated in the $750 PPO plan and met the maximum out-of-pocket on health care for each of the above examples, your possible savings would be cut in half under the $3,100 plan.

The EHA is dedicated to offering our members the most plans possible to help meet your diverse needs.

Moving from one plan to another to better meet specific insurance needs is solely the choice of the member. The EHA does not have a preference on what plan you choose. Our mission is to meet your health insurance needs with the policy that works best for you or family.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact Greg Long the EHA Field Representative at 402-440-1358 or greg@ehaplan.org. n

Yearly premium savings for a school who has the 5 percent discount on premiums: Based on 5 percent discounts for school districts on the $750PPO/$3,100 plan Individual $ 938.28 Employee/Child $1,735.68 Employee/Spouse $1,970.28 Employee/Spouse/Child(ren) $2,645.76 *This money lowers maximum out-of-pocket health expenses.

Maximum out-of-pocket health expense after receiving premium savings on the $3,100 High Deductible Plan: Individual Employee/Child Employee/Spouse Employee/Spouse/Child(ren)

12 NCSA TODAY FALL 2014

$2,161.72 $4,464.32 $4,229.72 $3,554.24

HEALTH CARE

Local View: Holding the Line on Health Care Costs

BY CRAIG R. CHRISTIANSEN, Executive Director, NSEA DR. MIKE DULANEY, Executive Director, NCSA JOHN SPATZ, Executive Director, NASB

M

Christiansen

Dulaney

Spatz

ost of us wouldn’t make a significant purchase without comparing the cost and quality of the options available. We research everything from cars to television sets before we buy.

Yet when it comes to our health care— some of the most important decisions we make—we are often in the dark about the value we get for the money we spend. The same medical service can be performed at equal levels of quality by two different providers—but at very different prices. Higher costs don't always mean higher quality.

Nationally, nearly $3 trillion, or one-sixth of the U.S. economy, was spent on health care in 2011. In one way or another— through health insurance premiums, doctor and hospital charges, taxes and other fees—those are costs we all pay. And if left unchecked, health care is expected to become even more expensive in the future. As costs increase, they will continue to cause hardships for the most vulnerable, especially working families and seniors who face making the choice between basic necessities and paying for needed care.

That is a future we want to change.

As the health and dental health provider for more than 80,000 Nebraska school teachers, school employees, administrators, retirees and their dependents, the Educators Health Alliance works very hard to ensure our members have access to quality, convenient health care that is provided at a reasonable cost.

To help contain costs across the state, we’ve initiated many unique programs and benefit options for our members, including wellness programs, generic drug incentives, disease management programs, and biometric screenings. And, we’re proud to have partnered with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska since 1968 to continually provide additional options that provide the best care for our members.

Unfortunately, we’ve found that not all health care providers in our state are working to contain costs in the same way. Denver-based Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI), the national health care provider with hospital

and physician affiliations across our state, maintains significantly higher costs than other Nebraska providers.

In fact, costs charged by CHI affiliate Alegent Creighton Health in Omaha, are significantly higher than other Nebraska providers. Services provided to our members by Alegent Creighton Health/CHI cost $12 million more a year than similar services offered by their competitors. That is a number that bears repeating—$12 million more for the same services our members could receive from another provider. Those are real, significant dollars that impact every teacher and school district we protect in Nebraska.

These negotiations affect your local hospital because that facility is part of the CHI network. On behalf of our members, we appreciate and fully support Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska’s efforts to reach a new agreement with CHI that would bring its costs in line with other physicians and hospitals. We agree with BCBSNE that it would be irresponsible to allow one provider group to charge 10 to 30 percent more for the same care we can receive elsewhere.

As negotiations between the two parties continue, we remain hopeful an agreement will be reached. Both CHI and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska are valuable partners in providing health care services for our members.

By working together we can all find a way to hold the line on rising costs in Nebraska while providing quality care. That's an agreement that benefits us all. n

FALL 2014 NCSA TODAY 13

TR ENDS IN S UPERINTENDENCY

Superintendent Turnover Continues to Decline in Fall 2014

BY DR. JAMES E. OSSIAN, Wayne State College

I

Ossian

recently read a study entitled School Superintendents: Vital or Irrelevant? That was recommended by Dr. Jerry Beach, who retired as Superintendent at Ft. Calhoun and is currently an adjunct instructor at Wayne State College. The 2014 report was authored by three staff researchers at the Brookings Institution’s Brown Center on Education Policy.

Using a statistical technique called hierarchical linear modeling, the researchers analyzed 10 years of student performance on state reading and mathematics assessments in Florida and North Carolina. After sifting all the data, they concluded that superintendents, regardless the length of tenure, had very little impact on student achievement in their districts. The authors do concede, however, that there is credible empirical evidence showing that teachers, and principals to a lesser extent, have a substantial influence on student performance.

Though it was an interesting report, my first impression was what prompted the researchers to attempt quantifying a relationship between superintendent characteristics and student achievement in the first place? Of Florida’s 67 school districts, 13 have enrollments that are larger than the Omaha Public Schools’ 49,500; Miami-Dade alone serves 347,366 students. In North Carolina, five districts are larger than OPS, with Wake County’s enrollment of 144,173 topping the list of 115 districts.

This would be a difficult research project, even in Nebraska’s smaller school districts, assuming that a legitimate rationale for the study could be established.

Superintendents in all states hire and train the best principals they can find and, in turn, principals do the same for teachers. And, the sobering truth, no matter the heroic efforts of some principals and teachers, is that student achievement is largely dependent upon the social and income demographics of their families.

The New Year At the beginning of the 2014-2015 school year, there will be 26 school districts with a new executive leader, six less than a year ago and an all-time low for the 36 years that these data have been tracked. The previous low was 31 for the fall of 2001. In all, there will be 240 individ-

14 NCSA TODAY FALL 2014

uals in the superintendent role for 245 districts, including seven who will be serving as superintendents in two different districts and two co-superintendents in the newly merged districts of Greeley-Wolbach and North Loup Scotia. Other district mergers involved Newcastle with Hartington, Spalding with Cedar Rapids, and Coleridge with Laurel-Concord. The decrease in turnover for the new year had a slight impact on the 36-year average, which dropped from 41 per year to 40.6. Accordingly, the 12.9 percent turnover rate from last fall fell to 10.7 percent for fall 2014.

The median tenure-in-position figure increased from 3.46 years to 4.00 years, and the average tenure-in-position dropped from 5.38 years to 5.17. Depending upon which report one reads, estimates for average superintendent tenure across the country range from three to five years.

Of the 25 individuals who left a Nebraska Superintendency last year, 14 retired, seven moved to another instate superintendent or ESU administrator position, and four left the profession at least for the time being. Ten of the superintendents in year one are assuming the top executive position for the first time, and 92 of 240 (38 percent) superintendent positions will involve three years or less tenure in the same district, including the 2014-2015 school year. One reason for there being fewer novice superintendents this fall is that there are at least six experienced executives who have contracted for interim stints.

The Veterans For the past 36 years the number of Nebraska superintendents with 20 or more year’s tenure in the same school district has averaged 14.2, with the high-water mark being 28 in the fall of 1991. For the past two years there were two, and there are only two to begin the 20142015 school year. Given the numbers in the pipeline, this figure may increase somewhat over the next few years, but it is doubtful that double-digits will be obtained again within the foreseeable future.

The two 20-plus veterans are: Randall Anderson, 36 years at Crofton; and Jon Cerny, 22 years at BancroftRosalie. (continued on next page)

TREND S IN SUPERINTENDENCY Superintendent Turnover (continued from page 13) Those who have been on the job between 15 and 19 years in the same district include: Kevin Johnson, Yutan, Jack Moles, Johnson CO Central, and Dan Novak, Elmwood-Murdock (19); Jay Bellar, Battle Creek and Dan Bird, Burwell (17); and Pat Osmond, Callaway, and Kevin Riley, Gretna (16); Bob Hanzlik, Stuart and Clint Kimbrough, Humboldt (15). The numbers for other superintendents with double-digit tenure are six with 14 years, five with 13 years, one with 12 years, ten with 11 years, and six with 10 years.

The Super Supes The list of the state’s most experienced superintendents and service-unit directors has dwindled from seven to five. These distinguished survivors are still active and have accumulated at least 25 years as a lead executive educator. Once more, please inform me if you know of any individuals who are approaching the 25-year mark in total tenure as a school superintendent and/or serviceunit director.

Randall Anderson: Crofton, 36 years; Wayne Bell: Grant, Gothenburg, and ESU 10, 36 years; Dale Rawson: Benkelman, Kansas Schools, and Mead, 33 years; Dwaine Uttecht: Elgin and Ravenna, 32 years; and Ted Hillman: Wynot, Pleasanton, Osmond, South Dakota School, and Lynch, 31 years. Best wishes to these veterans and here is hoping that they maintain good health and persist in their work for many more years to come.

Service Unit Directors This is the fourth year in which ESU administrators are being recognized in this annual article. They are an experienced and capable group of educators whose organizations provide invaluable assistance, ranging from staff development to technology, for the P-12 districts in their service areas. ESUs 18 and 19, Lincoln and Omaha respectively, function as a part of their districts’ central office administration. Steve Joel, superintendent in Lincoln, and Mark Evans, superintendent in Omaha, are the nominal ESU directors, although the job responsibilities are usually shared with other district administrators.

Wayne Bell, ESU 10 in Kearney, tops the tenure list with 21 years. Other ESU directors and their years at the helm include: Jon Fisher, ESU 4 at Auburn (16); Marge Beatty, ESU 16 at Ogallala (14); Bob Uhing, ESU 1 at Wakefield (12); Dennis Radford, ESU 17 at Ainsworth (11); Dan Shoemake, ESU 6 at Milford (9); Jeff West, ESU 13 at Scottsbluff and Paul Calvert, ESU 15 at Trenton (6); Kraig Lofquist, ESU 9 at Hastings and Paul Tedesco, ESU 11 at Holdrege (4); Brian Gegg, ESU 5 at Beatrice (3); and Bill Mowinkel, ESU 8 at Neligh (2); and rookies Ted DeTurk, ESU 2 at Fremont, replacing Dave Ludwig; Larianne Polk—joining Marge Beatty as the second female to lead an ESU—ESU 7 at Columbus, replacing Norm Ronell;

and Dan Schnoes, ESU 3 in suburban Omaha, replacing Gil Kettelhut.

Female Superintendents The number of women superintendents edged back from 27 to 26 for the fall of 2014, a figure that is two less than the 28 count in 2011, which was the highest recorded in Nebraska for at least 60 years. Female leaders who left the superintendent ranks included Cindy Huff, Wood River; Candace Conradt, Central City; Stephanie Kaczor, Spalding; and Rita Moravek, Hyannis. Women taking on the superintendency for the first time are Melissa Poloncic at Douglas County West and Kate Urbanek at Mitchell; Cindy Wendell is returning to the top job as an interim superintendent at Sumner-Eddyville-Miller.

For fall 2014, 26 of 240 (10.8 percent) Nebraska superintendents are women. The number of female Nebraska school executives is gradually increasing but still far short of the 24 percent reported for women in AASA’s 2010 Decennial Study of American Public School Superintendents.

Other Nebraska women in the fall 2014 group are as follows: Jamie Isom, Valentine and Lana Sides, Banner County (11 yrs.); Holly Herzberg, Hampton, Margaret Sandoz, Niobrara, Amy Shane, O’Neill, and Paula Sissel, Garden County (9 yrs.); Trudy Clark, Bruning-Davenport, Melissa Wheelock, Minden, and Dana Wiseman, Sutton (7 yrs.); Lynn Johnson, Arlington (6 yrs.); Joan Carraher, Cedar Rapids/Spalding, Amy Malander, Greeley-Wolbach/North Loup Scotia, Cherrie Malcolm, Homer, and Caroline Winchester, Chadron (5 yrs.); Kim Lingenfelter, Neligh-Oakdale, Ginger Meyer, Scribner-Snyder, Julie Otero, Centura, and Joan Reznicek, Ponca (4 yrs.); Jane Davis, Hershey, Geraldine Erickson, Keya Paha, Nicole Hardwick, Loomis, and Jami Jo Thompson, Norfolk (2 yrs.).

Looking Ahead In the past few years, I have identified two consistent trends as being the increase in women superintendents and the decrease in the number of school districts. Those trends continue albeit at a very incremental pace. For this fall, there are four less school districts and the number of female superintendents is holding at 26. It is also apparent that the practice of the dual superintendency is losing popularity. Over the past decade the number of school leaders serving more than one district has hovered in the low teens, never being more than 14. School boards in the smaller districts are moving toward the utilization of half-time educational execs or finding superintendents who are willing to share all of the K-12 administrative responsibilities.

Nebraska educational leaders continue to have a full plate. Our state’s school officials are still wrestling with mandated testing and data-reporting matters as well as evolving models for standards-based curricula and teacher evaluation. Though financial is(continued on next page) FALL 2014 NCSA TODAY 15

TR ENDS IN S UPERINTENDENCY Superintendent Turnover (continued from page 13) sues have improved for some districts, year-to-year predictions for budget resources are in a state of flux.

The Unicameral is doing its part to ensure that superintendents are ever mindful of accountability and transparency. LB 438, the Quality Education Accountability Act, incorporates a protocol wherein three low performing school districts will eventually be identified and targeted for priority intervention by a team of five, yet as unnamed, intervention specialists. Those districts have five years to shape up or else they must endure the same procedure all over again. LB 470, the Superintendent Pay Transparency Act, stip-

ulates that superintendents and service-unit administrators must publish their contracts in the budget document as well as posting them on the organization’s website. Maybe superintendents should get a salary increase just for abiding such nonsense.

As before, sincere thank yous are tendered to Dan Ernst, Associate Director of NCSA, and Craig Pease, my colleague at Wayne State College, for their help in compiling the data in this annual article.

“Through strife all things arise and then pass away.”—Heraclitus n

Nebraska Public School Districts Superintendent Data, Fall 1979, 2000, 2014 Item School Districts Number of Superintendents Median Tenure in Position Average Tenure in Position Supt. with 1-Year Tenure Percent Turnover Supt. with 20+ Years Tenure Female Superintendents

1979 317 317 3.97 6.16 56 17.7 10 2

2000 275 261 3.74 6.36 52 18.9 15 8

2014 245 240 4.00 5.17 26 10.7 2 26

CAL ENDAR OF EVENTS NOVEMBER 19-21

State Education Conference

Embassy Suites

La Vista

Younes Conference Center NCSA Cornhusker Marriott

Kearney Lincoln Lincoln

York Public Schools Cornhusker Marriott

York Lincoln

Younes Conference Center NCSA

Kearney Lincoln

DECEMBER 4-5 10 11

State Principals Conference Emerging Superintendents Workshop Legislative Preview

JANUARY 7 19 22-23

Legislative Session Begins Nebraska ASCD Winter Workshop NASES Legislative Conference

FEBRUARY 3-4 Education Forum 7 & 14 Emerging Administrators

NATIONAL CONVENTION DATES NASSP – February 19-21, 2015 – San Diego, CA NAESP – June 30-July 2, 2015 – Long Beach, CA AASA – February 26-28, 2015 – San Diego, CA ASBO – October 23-26, 2015 – Grapevine,TX ASCD – March 21-23, 2015 – Houston,TX CASE – October 26-31, 2015 – Atlanta, GA 16 NCSA TODAY FALL 2014

Gold Sponsorships Ameritas Investment Corp.

Dallas Watkins dallas.watkins@ameritas.com 5900 O Street, 1st Floor Lincoln, NE 68510 800-700-2362 ameritas.com

Boyd Jones Construction Mark Pfister mpfister@boydjones.biz 333 South 9th Street Lincoln, NE 68508 402-318-4794 boydjones.biz

D.A. Davidson & Co. Paul Grieger pgreiger@dadco.com 1111 N 102nd Ct., Ste. 300 Omaha, NE 68114 800-942-7557 davidsoncompanies.com/ficm

DLR Group Curtis Johnson cjohnson@dlrgroup.com 6457 Frances St., Ste 200 Omaha, NE 68106 402-393-4100 dlrgroup.com

EHA Wellness Howie Halperin howie@ehawellnessprogram.org 256 N 115 St, Ste. 7 Omaha, NE 68154 402-614-0491 ehawellness.org

ESUCC Dave Ludwig dludwig@esucc.org 6949 S. 110th St. Omaha, NE 68128 402-597-4866 esucc.org

First National Capital Markets Craig Jones craigjones@fnni.com 1620 Dodge St., Ste. 1104 Omaha, NE 68197 402-598-1218 fncapitalmarkets.com

Horace Mann Keith Jorgensen keithjorgensen@horacemann.com 10612 Monroe St., No. 4 Omaha, NE 68127 402-680-9382 horacemann.com

Humanex Ventures Katie Lechner katie.lechner@ humanexventures.com 2900 S 70th St., Ste. 100 Lincoln, NE 68506 402-486-1102 humanexventures.com

Insuring Success Family Heritage Product Provider

National Planning Corporation Brian Luther brian@compassfr.us 500 Central Park Dr., Ste. 204 Lincoln, NE 68504 402-467-0531 compassfr.us

Nebraska Public Agency Investment Trust Becky Ferguson becky.ferguson@ubt.com P.O. Box 82529 Lincoln, NE 68501 402-323-1334 npait.com

Nebraska Liquid Asset Fund

Silver Sponsorships Awards Unlimited Larry King larryking@awardsunlimited.com 1935 O Street | Lincoln, NE 68510 402-474-0815 awardsunlimited.com

Bes-Tech, Inc. Tony Zimmerman tzimmerman@bes-tech.net 4640 South 59th Street Omaha, NE 68117 402-502-2340 bes-tech.net

School Traditions Reid Brakke reid.brakke@jostons.com 12100 W. Center Road, Ste 901 Omaha, NE 68144 402-733-0300 schooltraditions@msn.com

Ty Christensen tchristensen@legacyservices.com 12117 Grover Street Omaha, NE 68144 402-960-5387 familyheritagelife.com

Barry Ballou balloub@pfm.com 455 S 11th St. Lincoln, NE 68508 402-705-0350 nlafpool.org

John Baylor Test Prep

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Dave Raymond dave.raymond@trane.com 5720 South 77th St. Ralston, NE 68127 402-452-7762 trane.com/omaha

Learning Together

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Linda Fox Linda@learningtogether.com 5509 B W. Friendly Ave., Ste. 201 Greensboro, NC 27410 866-921-0000 learningtogether.com

Will Hays will@unanimousagency.com 8700 Executive Woods, Ste. 100 Lincoln, NE 68512 402-423-5447 unanimousagency.com

Kearney Visitors Bureau

National Insurance

Wells Fargo

Steve Ott sott@nisbenefits.com 9202 W. Dodge Rd., Ste. 302 Omaha, NE 68114 800-627-3660 nisbenefits.com

Heather Kudron heather.h.kudron@ wellsfargo.com 1919 Douglas St. Omaha, NE 68102 402-536-2090 wellsfargo.com

Northwest Evaluation Association

Software Unlimited, Inc. Corey Atkinson rph@su-9nc.com 5015 S. Broadband Lane Sioux Falls, SD 57108 605-361-2073 su.inc.com

Bronze Sponsorships Sarah Focke sfocke@visitkearney.org PO Box 607 | Kearney, NE 68848 800-652-9435 visitkearney.org

Dan Henderson dan.henderson@nwea.org 121 NW Everett St. | Portland, OR 97209 503-624-1951 nwea.org

University of Nebraska High School Charlotte Seewald cseewald@nebraska.edu 1520 N. 20th Cr. | Lincoln, NE 68588 402-472-1922 highschool.nebraska.edu

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