Last night, I attended an education meeting that was very different. It was a very odd group of folks getting together in one room to talk about things that affect all Delaware schools. It was a mixture of people who represented two different sides of public education.
Special Education Strategic Plan
Highlights From The January State Board of Education Meeting
Delaware State Board of EducationAside from the controversial Special Education Strategic Plan presentation and Delaware Academy of Public Safety & Security going under formal review, what else happened at the January State Board of Education meeting? This is what goes out to legislators and all those important education folks in the state!
January State Board Meeting Highlights
The State Board of Education held its Regular Monthly Board Meeting on Thursday, January 18, 2018 at 5:00 p.m.
All materials and presentations from the meeting can be accessed on the online meeting platform posted within each month’s agenda as posted on our website (www.destateboarded.k12.de.us ).
- Here is a direct link to the agenda complete with links and attached documents related to presentations and other items before the Board: SBE Monthly Meeting Agenda
The audio recording from the meeting is now posted on the State Board website. An index of the recording with live links by section is copied below.
· Board President, Dr. Dennis Loftus, discussed his attendance at the Governor’s State of the State address earlier in the day and provided a recap of the key points involving education. The Executive Director presented her report which included discussion of the latest publication by NASBE which focuses on Early Learning. A link to the publication as well as a few other articles regarding accountability plans across all 50 states according to ESSA plans and an interesting approach to chronic absenteeism. Her posted report called “News Updates and Information” is provided monthly. There will soon be a link added to the home page for easier access to these reports and local and national articles related to education issues which are provided for review by the Board and public. Ms. Johnson then updated the Board on the work related to the Literacy Campaign and highlighted the upcoming meetings for the steering committee and subcommittees of the Campaign for Grade Level Reading.
· Secretary Bunting provided a comprehensive report to the Board which included details about several school visits and opportunities to engage with members of the business community and other policy leaders, meetings with school administrators, educators, and students in which she had been involved throughout the month. These visits included meeting with the School District Consolidation Task Force Academic and Student Needs Committee where they discussed the state’s EL Strategic Plan. She also had the opportunity to recognize the outstanding achievement of 4 schools for Continued Excellence and identified 15 as Recognition Schools. Recognition Schools receive a banner to display in their school as well as $8,000 to further advance learning at their schools. She highlighted her involvement at the P-20 Council, Governor’s Cabinet meeting, Family Service Council, and the G.E.A.R meeting.
· The Board received a presentation from the 2018 DE State Teacher of the Year, Virginia Forcucci. Following her presentation and discussion with the Board they honored her with the SBE Award of Excellence.
· The Board received a presentation on the Special Education Strategic Plan from the co-chairs of the Special Education Strategic Plan Advisory Council, Dr. Michele Marinucci and Bill Doolittle. Board members discussed the development of the plan and asked questions regarding the goals and metrics within the plan. Additional information and resources from the presentation were provided on the agenda page for this item.
· Department Regulations
o Regulation 925: Children with Disabilities Subpart D, Evaluations, Eligibility Determination, Individualized Education Programs was presented for final action. There was discussion regarding the comments received from the GACEC and Statewide Disabilities Council as well as the fact that this change was only addressing one aspect of the regulation to align with federal requirements. The Board was informed that a broader group of stakeholders are currently working on revisions to further update the rest of the regulation and that this regulation may be before them again with more comprehensive changes in the near future. A motion to approve the regulation as presented for final order was made by Mrs. Rutt and seconded by Dr. Whittaker. The motion passed unanimously by voice vote with one abstention (Mr. Rushdan, who was just confirmed to the Board the prior day and not a part of the prior month’s discussion of the regulation).
o Regulation 501: State Content standards was presented for final action. The amendments included the addition of statewide K-12 Financial Literacy and Computer Science standards. The public comment received as well as feedback received through the community engagement sessions held by the Department was shared with the Board. There was discussion regarding the date in regulation for adoption and how that was different from the full implementation date of these standards to be integrated and aligned with curriculum. It was explained that the date in regulation is the date that the standards would officially become the state content standards and that the implementation of those standards into professional development for teachers and integrated and aligned with curriculum would follow a similar timeline trajectory has was used for the Next Generation Science standards. A motion to approve the regulation as presented for final order was made by Mr. Heffernan and seconded by Mrs. Rutt. The motion passed unanimously by voice vote with one abstention (Mr. Rushdan, who was just confirmed to the Board the prior day and not a part of the prior month’s discussion of the regulation).
o Following the approval of Regulation 501, the Board took a moment to thank Mr. Michael Watson, Chief Academic Officer, for his many contributions to improving education for children in the state of Delaware. It had been announced the prior month that this would be his final State Board meeting before leaving the department. The Board recognized him for his service and awarded him the State Board’s Award of Excellence.
o Regulation 1008 DIAA Junior High and Middle School Interscholastic Athletics and Regulation 1009 DIAA High School Interscholastic Athletics were presented to the Board for discussion. These regulations are out for comment during the month of January and will be back before the Board in February for final action. The DIAA Executive Director and legal counsel addressed questions from the Board members regarding the proposed changes which dealt with Officials organizations and Foreign Exchange and International Students’ eligibility.
· The Board received public comment from two individuals commending them on the decision to approve regulation 501 and adopt statewide Computer Science standards for Delaware.
· John Carwell, from the Charter School Office, presented the Department’s request to place Delaware Academy of Public Safety and Security on formal review.
o At the December 18, 2014 meeting of the State Board of Education, the charter for DAPSS was renewed with the following conditions:
§ 1. The school shall attain a rating of “Meets Standard” on the Academic Framework for the 2014-15 school year; and
§ 2. The school shall attain a rating of “Meets Standard” on the Financial Framework for the 2014-15 school year.
o In SY 2014/2015 Delaware implemented a new system of accountability known as the Delaware School Success Framework (DSSF) and was permitted by the U.S. Department of Education to use this school year as the year from which to measure academic achievement and progress. Due to this waiver, DAPSS was provided an additional year to satisfy its conditions.
o In SY 2015/2016, Delaware changed the academic assessment for high schools from Smarter Balanced to SAT. Due to this change in academic assessment, DAPSS was provided an additional year to satisfy its conditions.
o In SY 2016/2017, DAPSS failed to meet academic standards in three of the four DSSF metrics and showed a decline in both academic achievement and academic growth.
o As for financial standards, in SY 2014/2015, SY 2015/2016, and SY 2016/2017, DAPSS failed to meet financial standards.
o In 2015-2016, DAPSS was approved for a modification to decrease enrollment. Despite this decrease, the school did not meet the 80% requirement for enrollment by May 1st for SY 2017-2018 enrolling only 77% of its projected population. As of September 30, 2017, DAPSS enrolled 228 of their projected 340 students or 67% of their approved enrollment. Since September 30, 2017, DAPSS’s enrollment has again declined. The school currently has 217 students enrolled.
o This is the third year that the school has shown a decline in enrollment going from 303 students in SY 2015/2016 to 217 students SY2017/2018. With a 2018 graduating class of 47 students, 49 choice applications, and one withdrawal at the time of this report, it is doubtful that DAPSS will meet the Financial Framework standard this school year.
o After considering these potential violations of its charter, the Department as approving authority, has determined that DAPSS should be submitted to formal review to determine whether the school is violating its charter and whether there are grounds for remedial measures. The Department is seeking the assent of the Secretary and the State Board for this action.
· The Secretary of Education following this outline of performance and concerns regarding the compliance with their charter stated, “Delaware Academy of Public Safety and Security appears to have failed to meet the conditions of its charter renewal and should have the opportunity for a rigorous review of the school performance. Therefore, as Secretary of Education, I assent to placing Delaware Academy of Public Safety and Security on formal review. In accordance with 14 Delaware Code Section 511(c), I seek the assent of the State Board of Education to the decision to place Delaware Academy of Public Safety and Security on formal review.”
· Dr. Loftus asked for a motion to assent to the formal review of the charter for Delaware Academy of Public Safety and Security. The motion was made by Mrs. Sorenson and seconded by Mr. Heffernan. After discussion of the Board which involved discussing the process that is included during formal review the motion passed unanimously by voice vote.
· The charter office also provided in its monthly update, which was posted on the SBE website for information a timeline for the review of the new application received to open a new charter school in Sussex county called Sussex Montessori as well as the major modification requested for Design Lab HS. The links to all of these were provided in the agenda item online.
· The Professional Standards Board had no items to bring before the SBE this month since their January meeting was cancelled due to snow.
· The Board had no one signed up for general public comment
· The Board received an update from its Deputy Attorney General regarding two appeal requests that have had their hearing and are currently in the time window in which either party is able to submit responses to the hearing officer’s recommendation. Both of those appeals will come before the Board for action at the February meeting.
The next regular monthly meeting of the State Board is scheduled for
Thursday, February 15, 2018
The meeting will begin at 4:00 p.m. and the Board will enter Executive Session to discuss two disciplinary appeals and then will return to general session at 5:00pm
January 18, 2018 – Delaware State Board of Education Audio Recordings
18 Who Will Make An Impact In 2018: Kim Williams & Her Awesome Bill In Circulation
Delaware State Rep. Kim Williams
I am predicting now Kim Williams will have a HUGE year in 2018. Judging by a draft bill she sent into circulation for sponsors yesterday, she is already starting off 2018 on a high note for me!
Delaware Parents Of Students With Disabilities: Your Immediate Input Is Essential!!!!!
Special Education Strategic PlanThe Delaware Department of Education released (finally) the Delaware Special Education Strategic Plan. It will be available for public comment until June 5th. I strongly encourage all parents of special needs children in Delaware to very carefully go through every single line of this plan. I will be doing the same on this blog from now until then and I will be putting my breakdown into public comment form for the plan as well. I do want to thank the very hard work of the Special Education Strategic Planning Group who spent many hours and days, volunteer I may add, to work on this plan. The group consisted of 24 Delawareans, a moderator, and various employees of the Delaware Dept. of Education. As well, former Secretary of Education Dr. Steven Godowsky as well as current Secretary, Dr. Susan Bunting, provided support for the plan. I would especially like to thank State Rep. Kim Williams and Dr. Michele Marinucci, the Special Education Coordinator for the Woodbridge School District, for getting this large group of people together during a time when it could have been completely different (and not to the benefit of students with disabilities).
At first glance, I see both positive and negative things in the plan. It isn’t going to please everyone. But it is a start and more than we had before. This isn’t a time to throw stones, but it is a time to let your thoughts be known. Public comment for this plan is as follows, as per the Delaware DOE:
Public comment for this document can be sent to matthew.korobkin@doe.k12.de.us. Public comments can also be mailed to:
Matthew Korobkin
Special Education Officer for Strategic Planning and Evaluation
Delaware Department of Education
401 Federal Street Suite 2
Dover, Delaware 19901
State Board Of Education Postpones Special Education Strategic Plan Presentation
Delaware Special EducationThe Delaware State Board of Education has their monthly meeting today at 1pm. On the agenda was a presentation by the Special Education Strategic Plan Officer Matthew Korobkin. That presentation has been postponed. Yesterday, the Delaware Department of Education, disability groups, and district and charter special education directors, along with other stakeholders, met to discuss progress on the strategic plan. Delaware State Rep. Kim Williams also attended the meeting, along with many other meetings in this process. The entire group realized there were still many things to iron out in the process.
Last month, citizens were invited to participate in public comment sessions for special education in Delaware. Meetings were held in each county. The Special Education Strategic Plan was inserted into the epilogue language for the Delaware State Budget for FY2015 and work began on the plan in November of 2014. The plan was originally slated to be finalized at the end of this year. After hearing the concerns of stakeholders, Secretary Godowsky opted to postpone the presentation and hear more from stakeholder groups to establish a defined plan represented by all voices.
Delaware AG Matt Denn Supports Parents In Upcoming U.S. Supreme Court Special Education Case
Delaware Attorney General Matt Denn
As the Chairman of the IEP Task Force in Delaware back in 2014, Delaware Attorney General (then Lieutenant Governor) Matt Denn stated in the first meeting that Delaware students with disabilities deserved more than what federal law under IDEA stated. He announced yesterday he will advocate for special needs children getting a top-notch education. Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme court decided to hear a special education case regarding what a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) really is. The is significant due to the fact that special education changed a lot when IDEA was reauthorized in 2004. This will be the first time the highest court in the land has tackled FAPE in a very long time.
Today, the Supreme Court of the United States agreed to hear a case from the state of Colorado involving the level of educational services that must be provided to public school students with disabilities. The case, Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District, is significant because it will be the first time in decades that the U.S. Supreme Court has addressed this issue, and different federal courts around the country have come to different conclusions on the question.
“This case may not have significant implications for Delaware public schoolchildren with disabilities,” Delaware Attorney General Matt Denn said. “Delaware state law was changed in 2010, in a bill I worked on as Lieutenant Governor with Representative Quinn Johnson and Senator David Sokola, to require that Delaware public schools provide services to Delaware students with disabilities that matches the highest level of services required by federal courts interpreting this issue. However, sometimes the language that the U.S. Supreme Court uses in issuing its decisions can be as important as the decisions themselves. For that reason, the Delaware Department of Justice will be seeking to advocate – potentially with other state Attorneys General — for the U.S. Supreme Court to find that the highest level of services for children with disabilities currently recognized by federal courts is the correct level for all of the nation’s children, and for the Supreme Court to provide specific guidance to the states as to how to implement its decision in order to ensure that children with disabilities have an opportunity to fulfill their potential.”
In regards to that bill from 2010, Denn said the following about the bill when it was introduced:
“It is completely unacceptable for us to tell the parents of most children that we want their kids to have the best public school education in America, while telling the parents of students with disabilities that their kids will receive the educational equivalent of a serviceable Chevrolet,” Lieutenant Governor Denn said. “We have a legal and a moral obligation to these children to provide them with a meaningful education, and this bill is a first step to making sure that happens.”
Denn has always been one of the strongest advocates in Delaware for students with disabilities. I am glad he is putting his support behind the parents in this potentially landmark Supreme Court case. With that being said, the very definition of special education will be redefined yet again if education reformers get their way with their dreams of “IEPs for ALL”. I pray, if that time does come, that Matt Denn will be at the front of the pack for students with disabilities, their parents, and disability advocates to make sure special needs students don’t get lost in the shuffle.
In the meantime, the Delaware Dept. of Education, under the direction of Governor Markell in epilogue language in the FY2015 budget, is still working on a Special Education Strategic Plan for the state, more than two years since it was created.
How Is It A “Strategic Plan” When It Takes An Ex Rodel Employee Over Two Years To Build It?
Special Education Strategic Plan
If the strategy to improve special education in Delaware is to delay improving it for two years, the Delaware Department of Education is doing a bang-up job!
The Delaware Dept. of Education put out an announcement today for their “Special Education Strategic Plan”. This plan was snuck into the epilogue language of the FY2015 budget on June 30th, 2014. Here we are, over 27 months later, with NO Special Education Strategic Plan. The director of this strategic plan is a former employee of the Rodel Foundation with no actual teaching experience in the classroom. Matthew Korobkin worked for a collaborative that helped ten school districts with assistive technology. That is NOT the same thing as living and breathing special education. But somehow that qualified him for a job with the Massachusetts DOE (which Rodel CEO Paul Herdman worked for way back when) where he worked for 14 months. Then he worked for Rodel for 2 1/2 years. In October of 2014, he joined the Secretary of Education office as a “Special Education Officer”.
Given his background with technology and Rodel, I can easily see where this “strategic plan” is heading. I can picture words like “personalized learning” and “competency-based education” being in this report. And let’s not be fooled by this new desire for public input on special education. This guy has never once sought out my opinion on anything. This is more of the DOE charade where they give the illusion of public input so they can include it in the report with words like “we brought stakeholders from across the state together to discuss this”. Right out of the Rodel playbook…
After butting heads with the Autism community over the failed amendment to Senate Bill 93, this is the guy who we want creating this strategic plan? Let’s get real here. Somehow, someway, Rodel wanted to get in on special education. Their biggest enemy, in my opinion, is parents of children with disabilities. We see through their crap and know that anything they want to invade our kids lives is somehow going to benefit companies and not our kids. So they wormed one of their guys into the Secretary of Education office. This guy has been collecting a paycheck for well over two years with NO results. And now, we are led to believe we are going to see this “strategic plan” sometime before Jack Markell leaves office? Why haven’t they been soliciting parent input on this for the past two years? If this guy was remotely serious, he would have gone to parents in the first place. Not wait two years. When the DOE has this strategic plan overshadow everything else in special education, I have a major beef with that. I guess we have to wait even longer for our kids to get the special education they needed two years ago so the ex Rodel guy can figure it all out. How ironic they will be getting this out along with the Every Student Succeeds Act implementation and “stakeholder” input. Almost as if that was the plan all along…
Meanwhile, the Delaware DOE is seeing a large increase in special education due process hearings and administrative complaints. The placements in residential treatment centers is increasing every year, whether in-state or out of state. Students with disabilities continue to do poorly on the Smarter Balanced Assessment as they are forced to take the test for longer periods of time than their peers. Is it really a coincidence this is all happening at larger rates since Delaware implemented Common Core? And what will happen to these students when we go full-blown personalized learning? Competency-based education and special education are oil and water.
Here is the press release with my thoughts in red.
Public input sought to inform special education strategic plan
Why Hasn’t Governor Markell Signed Some Key Education Legislation?
Governor MarkellFor Delaware Governor Jack Markell, a great deal of time is spent during his summer months signing legislation passed by the Delaware General Assembly. But some legislation has not received a signature by the Governor. Three education bills, in particular, all show what can only be seen as resistance to many of the policies and agendas Governor Markell, Rodel, the Delaware Charter Schools Network, and the Delaware DOE have put forth in Delaware the past eight years. The Governor has nothing on his public schedule this week. That doesn’t mean he won’t sign bills this week. But when he has nothing, that usually means he isn’t in Delaware.
House Bill 399 w/House Amendment 1, Senate Amendments 1 and 2
This is the controversial teacher evaluation bill that stretched into the wee hours of July 1st this year. Coming out of the DPAS-II Advisory Sub-Committee recommendations, this bill generated a lot of heat after Senator David Sokola butchered the intent of the bill. It was originally designed so other state-approved assessments could be used as a measure in Component V of the DPAS-II teacher evaluation system. By forcing the Smarter Balanced Assessment scores to factor into teacher evaluations, the Delaware DOE and Markell got a ton of heat the past few years. The bill was supposed to change that. But Senator Sokola decided to intervene with a lot of help from ex-DOE employee Atnre Alleyne and the usual suspects over at the DOE and State Board. So why hasn’t Jack signed the bill yet? Rumors circulated at Legislative Hall that Markell did not like this bill. We all know what happened the last time Jack “didn’t like” a bill. Engrossed version of bill.
House Bill 408 w/House Amendment 2
The school breakfast bill, which would also give free breakfast to students in Delaware, caused a lot of controversy with a part about charter schools not being included. An amendment in the House made sure they were. Gee, when did a charter school meal program last cause a lot of conversation? Perhaps when they applied for a major modification and it came out their meal program was not what it appeared to be? Hello Newark Charter School! Engrossed version of bill.
Senate Bill 93 w/Senate Amendment 1 and House Amendment 1
This bill is awesome. The Autism community in Delaware spoke loud and clear in support of this bill. But when an amendment was tacked on in the Senate giving the Delaware DOE a seat at the table through the very controversial Special Education Strategic Plan, led by ex Rodel employee Matthew Korobkin, the Autism community was outraged. An amendment in the House stripped the entire Senate amendment out. Over two years after Governor Markell signed this Special Education Strategic Plan into the FY2015 budget, we have yet to see it. I’m hearing it is due any time now. I can’t wait to see what Rodel and the charter lobbyists comes up with for this one! Engrossed version of bill.
I see confusion on Markell’s part. Does he sign these or not? If he does, what does that say to some of his key allies? If he doesn’t, he invites the wrath of many. He is a lame duck, but he still has political aspirations. Depending on what they are, could signing some of these bills affect those plans? What to do, what to do…
Delaware House Education Committee Releases Two Autism Bills But Kills Controversial Amendment
AutismThe Delaware House Education Committee released Senate Bills 92 and 93 yesterday at their weekly meeting. The unanimous release was expected, but an amendment on Senate Bill 93 was taken off by the committee. If the full House passes Senate Bill 93, it will go back to the Delaware Senate since the amendment previously approved by the Senate was taken off. Since there is a fiscal note for both bills, they are going to the House Appropriations Committee. The amendment that was removed by the House Education Committee states the following:
AMEND Senate Bill No. 93 by deleting lines 58 through 60 and substituting in lieu thereof the following:
14) A representative from the Delaware Collaborative for Educational Services (DCES) or, until DCES is created, the Special Education Officer for Strategic Planning and Evaluation at the Delaware Department of Education;
15) A representative appointed by the Division of Prevention and Behavioral Health Services;
16) A parent or caregiver of a child or adult with ASD from each county in Delaware;
17) An individual with ASD.
FURTHER AMEND Senate Bill No. 93 by inserting the following after line 102:
(t) The Network and the Network Director shall collaborate with the Delaware Collaborative for Education Services (DCES), an entity to be created out of recommendations from the Special Education Strategic Plan, a plan directed by language in the FY15 Budget, Section 307 Epilogue. The collaboration shall begin after the DCES is formed. In particular, the Network shall collaborate with DCES to develop coaching, professional development, and technical assistance in areas where there is overlap with services provided to people with Autism Spectrum Disorders as well low incidence disabilities, including but not limited to visual or hearing impairments, or simultaneous visual and hearing impairments; significant cognitive impairments; or any impairment for which a small number of personnel with highly specialized skills and knowledge are needed in order for children with that impairment to receive early intervention services or a free appropriate public education.
SYNOPSIS
| This amendment adds a representative from the Delaware Collaborative for Educational Services (DCES) or, until DCES is created, the Special Education Officer for Strategic Planning and Evaluation at the Delaware Department of Education as a voting member of the Interagency Committee on Autism (ICA). It also adds a new paragraph (t) at the end of the bill containing provisions for the collaboration between the Network and the Network Director and the DCES, after it is created. |
Many members of the Delaware Autism community did not like this amendment and felt the Delaware Department of Education was overstepping quite a bit. I wrote about this a few weeks ago. Apparently the legislators in the House Education Committee agreed.
As Legislation For Autism Pass In Delaware Senate, Very Strange Rodel Connections Sneak Into Special Education
AutismLast week, the Delaware Senate passed both Senate Bill 92 and 93. The legislation, dealing with Autism, passed unanimously in the Delaware Senate. I wholeheartedly support this legislation as originally written, and I hope the House of Representatives passes it very soon. The children and adults with Autism of Delaware have waited long enough for more support. But what concerns me are the amendments added to both bills during the Senate vote last week. Below are the original bills and the amendments.
With the amendment on Senate Bill 92, this takes away the authority of the Delaware Department of Education and the State Board of Education to provide training and technical assistance for students with autism. This will shift to the University of Delaware’s Center for Disability Studies. The funding for the training specialists comes from the appropriations act AND possible tuition fees from the local school district.
The amendment for Senate Bill 93 references things that aren’t even in existence at present. Upon doing a Google search, there is no established entity called “Delaware Collaborative for Educational Services”. I did find reference to similar groups in New Hampshire and Massachusetts but none for Delaware. How can legislation provide for an organization that doesn’t exist anywhere in the public domain? But while we are waiting for the creation of this mythical initiative, the representative on the Delaware Network for Excellence in Autism will be the Special Education Officer for Strategic Planning and Evaluation at the Delaware DOE. Who is this person? That would be Matthew Korobkin.
Korobkin came to the Secretary of Education’s office in March of 2015. I first found out about him last summer when I was discussing special education with Melissa Hopkins from the Rodel Foundation. She mentioned Korobkin and how he was going all over Delaware to find out best practices with Delaware special education. She suggested I reach out to him to discuss my concerns with special education. I emailed him but never received a response. I found out soon after where Korobkin came from: the Rodel Foundation.
This is where things get very strange with this bill. Korobkin’s history shows more of a slant towards special education technology. How does someone who has a very brief tenure as a special education data teachers and an administrator position that is more a Technology Curriculum role than a true administrator become the key person in Delaware’s special education strategic plan? Simple: he came from Rodel. If you do a Google search on Korobkin in Delaware, you see many links to his functions at Rodel. But for the DOE, you see his role as a member of the Statewide Educational Data Task Force come up the most. He appears somewhere in the below picture.
I find it somewhat frightening that a data person would be put in charge of a statewide special education plan, much less someone who came from Rodel. During his time at Rodel, he ran the Rodel Teacher Council. He even gave his own biography in 2012 after he joined Rodel. I can think of hundreds of other people in Delaware who are immensely more qualified than Korobkin for this key role that was snuck into the Fiscal Year 2015 budget epilogue:
I did find a link to the minutes of the February 2016 meeting of the Governor’s Advisory Council for Exceptional Citizens. Korobkin gave a presentation on the progress of this special education strategic plan. Even more interesting was the attendees part of the minutes. Both Hopkins and CEO Dr. Paul Herdman with Rodel attended this meeting. I would imagine it was to see their former employee/current DOE plant give his big presentation.
I also linked to this Korobkin’s proposed Strategic Plan when he gave a presentation to the State Board of Education at their Spring Retreat last Friday.
Like I said in the first paragraph of this article, this legislation is a must. But why do we have Rodel poking around in special education? This non-profit organization doesn’t support a parent’s right to opt their child out of high-stakes testing, helped Governor Markell and the DOE win our first-round win in the Race To The Top competition, supports Common Core and personalized learning, and heavily supports charter schools at the expense of traditional school districts. And now they want to get involved in special education? Sorry, I’m not buying it. Their activity in Delaware education is not good for any student, much less students with disabilities.
It will be interesting to see what comes out of the House Education Committee meeting on these bills. And I plan on viewing this Strategic Plan due in May of 2016 the second it comes out! Parents of children with Autism should have concern about some of the language in these amendments, specifically Senate Bill 93.
The Season Of Myths 