Representative Randy Alexander

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:42:14)

do, I'll do it. I'd rather study for two years what's happening because we may find answers that would address those other issues as well.

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:40:52)

of criteria, most importantly, actual student success. Is this really something we want to punish? The determining factor for consolidation ought to be academic performance and financial stability, not enrollment. It's time to take a comprehensive look at how well our efforts have impacted student performance, and that is what this bill will do. We're only asking for two years. There is no need to close more rural schools until that question is answered.

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:40:18)

and see a problem instead of a solution. Inputs are easy to control. We can spend more money. We can provide more professional development for teachers. We can write wonderful education policy. We can even count to 350. We've done all that. But high-quality output is what really matters. That's harder to achieve. But the Wiener community has figured out how to do it. They've demonstrated a high level of commitment to student success as measured by a variety

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:39:44)

to close it, and an award-winning GT program whose director was named the 2013 recipient of the Arkansans for Gifted and Talented Education's Top Service Award, a school that in 126 years has never been in academic or fiscal distress. And it goes on. I'm not

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:40:03)

going to read everything I was going to read. I don't really think we need to. How did we

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:40:13)

reach the point where a Department of Education could look at a school like this

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:39:09)

parental involvement, local funding, community support, et cetera, and Wiener earns straight A's. In only one respect does Wiener fall short. It doesn't meet the arbitrary state minimum of 350 students. A school with a 100 percent graduation rate that sends all its seniors, either to military service or college, with a zero dropout rate and above average ACT scores, all achieved for thousands of dollars less per student than metro school spend. A school with high participation in AP courses, higher than the district seeking

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:38:32)

amounts of taxpayer dollars for little or no added educational benefit. How did we reach the point where we are now? Another handout you had was from a column written by Dana Kelly in the Democrat Gazette. And just a few of his comments. Pick any education standard in Wiener scores well above the medium. rate, test scores, average ACT, cost per pupil, throw in the intangibles, overall thriftiness,

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:38:02)

bureaucrats, controlling the annual expenditures of $1.45 million taxpayer dollars, jealously protective of the benefits enjoyed by the people employed in the system and dismissive of the abilities and preferences of parents and children is a policy headed off in a totally wrong direction. Such a policy will ultimately, and despite the best efforts of many persons within that system, shortchange our students, defeat the preferences of many parents, and spend ever-escalating

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:37:27)

I looked at a study by, I think it was the Ethan Allen Foundation did for Vermont, another small state who only has two or three cities of any size, lots of rural areas. And in their report, titled Better Value, Fewer Taxpayer Dollars, one of the summary quotes was this. The fundamental premise of this report is that a policy of creating an ever-enlarging system directed from the top down, populated with thousands of teachers, administrators,

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:36:57)

A more comprehensive analysis by the American Legislative Exchange Council based on student scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, that's referred to as

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:37:08)

the Nation's Report Card, ranks Arkansas 45th in the nation. 45th.

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:37:18)

There are other ways to approach this.

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:36:27)

This first came out in January. The analysis, the total analysis, ranks states on six education policy and performance categories. And this study indicates that Arkansas ranks fifth in education policies. They give us a D in K-12 achievement and a C-minus in chance for success for the students that graduate from my high schools.

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:35:55)

I haven't been to it. Adequate equipment, Wiener has smart boards in every classroom. Somehow they've been able to do this, despite the fact that they're below 350. So we have a matrix, but we also have actual performance here. We've heard recently a report that we now rank fifth in education, an educational analysis published by Education Week.

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:35:25)

equipment. Let's talk about adequate curriculum. Wiener has two times the AP courses as Harrisburg. Wiener has an award-winning GT program. Harrisburg doesn't have one. With regard to adequate facilities, as was mentioned, their high school is 12 years old. I believe Harrisburg's is 30. Much worse condition from what I've heard.

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:35:08)

have a matrix that below a certain level, which is 350, a school does not have adequate funding to provide a quality education, and yet Wiener and several of these other schools do that. He says the three important areas are adequate curriculum, adequate facilities, and adequate

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (1:35:05)

bill sir thank you Mr. Speaker Mr. Richardson says that they

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (19:26)

and that's what they've had

Meeting — March 19, 2013 (19:11)

just make one comment. In their defense, they work with the hand they're dealt by the legislature. They didn't pick the 350 number. That was something that was determined through a political process, a very long one, a very contentious one,