Idaho State Board of Education approves temporary change to attendance rule

BOISE, Idaho (KIFI/KIDK) - The Idaho State Board of Education approved a proposed and temporary rule change for how Average Daily Attendance (ADA) is reported by Idaho public schools Wednesday.

The change is in response to the coronavirus pandemic and disruption it has caused to education.

The distribution of state funds for Idaho school districts and charter schools is based on the average daily attendance of students. The rule approved by the Board would revise how funds are allocated by using an average of the full-time equivalent enrollment reported to determine each school’s ADA numbers for funding purposes. The practical effect of this temporary rule is schools will be allowed to count students who are learning remotely for ADA funding purposes.

The temporary rule is effective immediately.

The proposed rule will be returned to the Board after a 21-day comment period and will then be submitted to the legislature as a pending rule for consideration in January.

The State Board of Education also heard updates and took actions in several other areas both in public K-12 education and higher education. 

Here are some of the agenda items either discussed and/or voted on by the Board during its August regular Board meeting.

Superintendent of Public Instruction Sherri Ybarra briefed the Board on progress made to distribute federal coronavirus funding to school districts and charter schools, also referred to as local education agencies or LEAs, to purchase devices and improve connectivity for remote learning.  The State Department of Education has received 155 grant applications from LEAs out of 183 that are eligible.  Superintendent Ybarra says her staff is reaching out to the 28 LEAs who have not yet submitted grant applications. To date, 119 applications have been passed on to the review committee for initial review.  52 of the 119 LEAs have been recommended for funding and 36 have been returned for revisions.

The Board approved a waiver of the minimum instructional hours for the required under state law for 88 school districts and charter schools for the 2019/20 school year in response to the coronavirus pandemic. 

The Board also approved $1 million in federal coronavirus funding for districts to use to address social/emotional learning problems among students.

Idaho State University Annual Report

The Board heard a presentation from Idaho State University President Kevin Satterlee who said ISU will focus efforts in the coming year on recruitment and retention of students, while finding efficiencies within the University to maximize the budget. Satterlee says ISU has already addressed its budget deficit over the next two years through budget reductions totaling nearly $16.5 million. ISU generated the savings by reducing administrative overhead, strategic staffing reductions, cutting operating expenditures, holding vacant positions opening, and employee furloughs.

Graduate Medical Education Program

Dr. Ted Epperly, the Board’s Graduate Medical Education (GME) coordinator, told the Board that Idaho’s GME or residency programs have increased by 33 percent from 9 to 12 residency programs the first three years of Idaho’s 10 year GME plan.  Residency programs throughout the state help train medical school graduates to become practicing physicians.  The number of resident in training in Idaho has increased 46 percent from 134 residents to 195 since 2017.  The purpose of the GME program is to increase the number of physicians in our state. The goal after 10 years is to have 21 residency programs with 347 residents in training.

Legislative Proposals

The Board approved three legislative proposals to be presented for consideration during the 2021 legislative session.  The first proposal would update statutory definitions and endorsements relating to Idaho’s Teacher Career Ladder to reflect changes made to the law during the last legislative session.  The second proposal would consolidate statutory requirements and update provisions for “literacy intervention” to align with Governor Brad Little’s “Our Kids, Idaho’s Future” Task Force recommendation to focus on ensuring every student read at grade level by the end of the 3^rd grade.  The third proposal would remove the maximum tuition cap that Idaho’s community colleges are allowed to charge for enrollment. State law currently sets maximum tuition at $2,500 per year to attend a community college. 

Other Board actions include:

• Approved a recommendation from Idaho’s STEM Action Center Board to reorganize and update the Board’s minimum standards for STEM school designation.  The updated standards will improve accounting for progress made by schools working to achieve STEM school designation.
• Approved the mission, and vision statements and core values for the Board’s K-20 Education Strategic Plan.  This is the first step in a review of the overall plan for the FY2022 strategic plan.
• Approved a new Master of Public Health program at Boise State University.
• Approved the University of Idaho’s request to discontinue several graduate-level academic programs.  The programs are: a Master of Arts in Philosophy; a Master of Science and a Master of Education in Rehabilitation Counseling and Human Services; a Master of Science in Bioregional Planning and Community Design; a Master of Laws degree. 
• Approved construction of a Boise River side channel by Micron Technology, which will then be donated to Boise State University.  The project will occur along the river in east Boise, near at the Diane Moore Nature Center - Intermountain Bird Observatory, near the Highway 21 Bridge. The side channel will improve wildlife habitat and create another educational asset for Observatory visitors.
• Approved Idaho State University’s request to proceed with bidding and construction of the Idaho Central Credit Union Bengal Alumni Center. The $9.2 million facility will be paid for primarily through private donations.  ISU will contribute $2 million in university reserve funds toward the project.