Association of
Alaska School Boards
E-NEWS
...your dues at
work.
A weekly digest
of education news for Alaska's School Board Members.
Association of
Alaska School Boards, 1111 West 9th St., Juneau, AK 99801. Tel.
907-586-1083,
Fax 907-586-2995. Carl Rose, Executive Director,
crose@aasb.org: John Greely, Editor, jgreely@aasb.org. Review past issues of
the E-News on
the AASB Website at <http://www.aasb.org>. To unsubscribe send an email
stating the same to jgreely@aasb.org.
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Sponsored by
Alaska Public Entity Insurance Co. <http://www.akpei.com>
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AASB E-News
February 22,
2007
--FLU AND FLU LIKE ILLNESSES SPREAD IN
ALASKA
--ANCHORAGE INFLATION RATE RISES 3.2
PERCENT IN 2006
--MAT-SU SCHOOL DISTRICT SUES STATE OVER
AUDITS
--AFTER SHOOTING, BETHEL WORKS TO PREVENT
BULLYING
--STATES PUSH LAWS TO CURB ONLINE
BULLYING
--WAGNER TO HEAD FAIRBANKS SCHOOL
DISTRICT
--ALASKA COMIC SUPERHERO
--TEACHER-TO-TEACHER INITIATIVE NOW
ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS
--AASB POLICY UPDATE AVAILABLE NOW
FLU AND FLU LIKE ILLNESSES
SPREAD IN ALASKA
Go wash your hands. Lab tests the past couple of weeks show
an increase in the number of Alaska flue cases after months of very few. It
could be the start of a lot of flu, or it might just fade away, the state
epidemiologist says. See full story here:
http://www.adn.com/front/story/8663037p-8554783c.html
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ANCHORAGE INFLATION RATE
RISES 3.2 PERCENT IN 2006
The cost of living in Anchorage rose 3.2 percent in 2006 as
rising energy costs nudged up prices for most consumer goods and services,
according to federal labor figures released on Wednesday. See full story here:
http://www.adn.com/front/story/8659065p-8550923c.html
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MAT-SU SCHOOL DISTRICT SUES
STATE OVER AUDITS
The Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District filed suit
Wednesday against the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development in
an effort to end what the district sees as discriminatory practices in the way
the state audits the money spent on students with disabilities. See full story
here:
http://www.adn.com/front/story/8663117p-8554878c.html
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AFTER SHOOTING, BETHEL
WORKS TO PREVENT BULLYING
Bullying and teasing are a toxic brew
with dangers that are far from understood. ThatÕs the message from Bethel this
week as community members mark the anniversary of a school shooting 10 years
ago. See full story here:
http://www.ktuu.com/Global/story.asp?S=6117416
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STATES
PUSHING FOR LAWS TO CURB ONLINE BULLYING
Ryan
Patrick Halligan was bullied for months online. Classmates sent the 13-year-old
Essex Junction, Vt., boy instant messages calling him gay. He was threatened,
taunted, and insulted incessantly by so-called cyberbullies. In 2003, Ryan
killed himself. His father pushed
Vermont to force schools to put anti-bullying rules in place and is now pushing
for a broader law to punish cyberbullying. Many other states are considering such laws, too. See full
story here:
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/techpolicy/2007-02-21-cyberbullying-bills_x.htm
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WAGNER
TO HEAD SCHOOL DISTRICT
Nancy
Wagner will be the new superintendent of the North Star Borough School District
after Ann Shortt retires in August. The school board announced its choice of
Wagner on Monday after a seven-month search. See full story here:
http://newsminer.com/2007/02/20/5370/
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ALASKA
COMIC SUPERHERO
Sure,
Superman and Spider-Man can hold their own when it comes to policing the urban
jungle. And yeah, they both rock the tights. But DuktÕootlÕ has practical
Alaska superpowers, like tearing a tree right out of the ground and putting the
smackdown on a gi-normous sea lion. Anchorage artist Dimi Macheras and Juneau
storyteller Ishmael Hope spent the past two years designing an action-packed
comic called ÒStrong Man.Ó The comic was recently published by the Association
of Alaska School Boards and its youth advocacy arm, Alaska Initiative for
Community Engagement. See full story here:
http://www.adn.com/life/arts/story/8646007p-8537737c.html
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Teacher-to-Teacher
Initiative is Now Accepting Nominations for the 2007 American Stars of Teaching
The Teacher-to-Teacher Initiative of the U.S. Department of Education is
pleased to announce the start of the 2007 American Stars of Teaching nomination
process. The American Stars of Teaching program is designed to honor
exemplary classroom teachers who are using innovative teaching strategies to
improve student achievement and positively shape their school environment.
Every day AmericaÕs teachers extend themselves beyond their classroom doors to
meet the needs of all children in their school community. DonÕt miss this
opportunity to honor a teacher that has made an impact on their students, as
well as their school community, by investing in the lives of those they teach
and sharing success with whom they work.
Nominations for the 2007 American Stars of Teaching are currently being
accepted at <http://www.ed.gov/teachers/how/tools/initiative/index.html>. The nomination process will conclude on April 1st at which time
a committee of teachers at the Department will review the details of each
candidate and select the recipients of the 2007 American Stars of Teaching
honor.
One teacher from each state and the District of Columbia will be selected as
representatives of the many teachers who are making a difference in the lives
of students. Officials from the U.S. Department of Education will
announce the American Stars by visiting the recipients in the fall of 2007.
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AASB POLICY UPDATE AVAILABLE
NOW ON LINE
The most recent edition of AASBÕs
Policy Reference Manual Update is now available on-line on a subscription basis! The update has been posted on the AASB Website
(www.aasb.org) in a Word format that makes it quick and easy for you to
download the instructions and policies
and prepare them for your board to review, revise and adopt, according to the
needs of your school district.
Currently 45 of AlaskaÕs
53 school districts utilize the AASB Policy System format.
Knowing that all school boards want to keep their manuals current with
changes in laws and regulations, each of those 45 districts will be
automatically invoiced for the update and a password will be issued upon
payment. Districts may access the
update sooner by simply contacting Laurie Miller (lmiller@aasb.org) or Diana Miller dmiller@aasb.org with a purchase order number to receive the password
right away.
Districts not currently
using the AASB Policy System can also benefit by purchasing the Update package to either update the AASB Policy Reference
Manual that you may already own, or simply to access current legal language to
use in your own policy manual.
Please contact Laurie or Diana at the e-mail addresses listed above.
Regular policy updating
is essential to keeping the district in compliance with changes in state and
federal law and avoiding the risk of
legal exposure. This edition of the Update contains important changes that
include:
¥ School
District Report Card
¥ Sexual
Harassment
¥ School
Discipline and Safety
¥
Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying (to include Cyberbullying)
¥
Performance Enhancing Drugs (Anabolic Steroids)
¥ Health
Care Emergencies (SB 48 changes)
¥ Student
Mental Health – Medication and Services (SB 48 compliance)
¥
Qualifications of Board Members
AASBÕs Policy Update is an
affordable way to attain comprehensive and legally sound revisions to your
manual. The cost of this
current edition of the Policy Update is $995.
A listing of districts currently using the AASB Policy System
is shown below:
|
Alaska Gateway |
Lower Kuskokwim |
|
Aleutian Region |
Lower Yukon |
|
Aleutians East |
Mat-Su Borough |
|
Annette Island |
Nenana |
|
Bering Strait |
Nome |
|
Chatham |
North Slope |
|
Chugach |
Northwest Arctic |
|
Copper River |
Pelican |
|
Cordova |
Petersburg |
|
Craig |
Pribilof |
|
Denali Borough |
Sitka |
|
Dillingham |
Skagway |
|
Galena |
Southeast Island |
|
Haines |
Southwest Region |
|
Hoonah |
St. MaryÕs |
|
Hydaburg |
Tanana |
|
Iditarod |
Unalaska |
|
Kake |
Valdez |
|
Kashunamiut |
Yakutat |
|
Kenai |
Yukon Flats |
|
Ketchikan |
Yukon Koyukuk |
|
Klawock |
Yupiit |
|
Kuspuk |
|
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STATE SEEKS SPONSORS FOR
SUMMER FOOD PROGRAMS
The Alaska Department of Education & Early Development
Child Nutrition Services is looking for community sponsors to run summer food
programs to prevent children in low-income areas from going hungry when school
lunchrooms close for the summer.
For many of these children, the U.S.
Department of AgricultureÕs Summer Food Service Program could fill the summer
hunger gap if enough sponsors are signed up to run the food program. Last year
sponsors served an average of 1,408 low-income Alaska children each day and
served a total of 105,890 free meals or snacks through the Alaska Summer Food
Service Program. These numbers can be increased significantly with more meal
sites in unserved areas of the state.
Child Nutrition Services is asking school districts, parks and
recreation departments, non-profit organizations, tribal organizations, and
churches to consider operating a Summer Food Service Program for children and
youth.
The Summer Food Service Program is targeted to children up to age 18
living in low-income areas. The program operates in schools, public housing
centers, playgrounds, camps, parks, churches, and even rural town cafes.
Sponsors can be public or nonprofit private schools or school districts, public
or private nonprofit organizations, day or residential summer camps, local
government agencies or tribal organizations.
Federal payments are based on the number of meals served by a sponsor
and are paid to the sponsor after paperwork is submitted to the state agency.
All sponsors receive training and technical assistance from Alaska Child
Nutrition Services prior to starting their Summer Food Service Program and
throughout the duration of their program.
To sponsor the program this summer, organizations must contact the Child
Nutrition Services SFSP specialist at (907) 465-4788. Applications and sponsor
information will be sent to potential sponsors upon inquiry.
The Summer Food Service Program is available to children regardless of
race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability.
More information: Project Assistant Ann-Marie Martin, 465-4788; or
Information Officer Eric Fry, 465-2851.
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Association of
Alaska School Boards
...promoting BOARD STANDARDS through...
Vision Structure
Accountability Advocacy Conduct-Ethics
Association of
Alaska School Boards
1111 West 9th
Street, Juneau, Alaska 99801-1510 Tel. 907-586-1083
Fax 907-586-2995
Email: aasb@aasb.org
Website: http://www.aasb.org