July 21, 2010
Education bills pass, fail during special session
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CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- West Virginia will allow one of its lowest-performing schools to partner with community groups under one of several education-related measures that emerged from Wednesday's conclusion to the weeklong special legislative session.

Lawmakers also voted to approve a separate pilot program meant to divert and then reach out to disruptive elementary and middle school students. Up to five schools statewide would experiment with alternative settings for these students.

But the House and Senate continued to disagree over other education measures, leaving four unresolved. They also trimmed a pair of supplemental funding measures. Among other changes, they removed funding to the Capitol's new food court and deleted a proposed transfer of $8 million for a new high-risk insurance pool.

The community development pilot would last five years, with a school on Charleston's West Side a likely candidate, said Sen. Erik Wells, D-Kanawha.

That bill would also allow a two-year test of as-yet-unspecified pay boosts for educators in an array of settings. Those include low-performing, high-poverty or high-minority schools, subject areas critically short of teachers and schools with "career ladder'' systems that aim to reward educators who take on additional duties and aid student growth.

That and six other bills on the session's agenda were revised from measures that failed to advance during a May special session focused on education. Despite efforts by a House-Senate working group to fashion compromises in the interim, several other of these items died or were scaled back this week.

The House Education Committee voted down a sweeping revamping of the state's response to low-performing schools. It idled another measure that proposed alternative ways to certify teachers and principals.

That committee also reduced a bid for frequent student health screenings by medical professionals to a recommendation. Noting that the measure lacked teeth when introduced, Delegate Woody Ireland said the committee took "a ridiculous bill and made it worthless.''

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Education bills pass, fail during special session

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- West Virginia will allow one of its lowest-performing schools to partner with community groups under one of several education-related measures that emerged from Wednesday's conclusion to the weeklong special legislative session.

Lawmakers also voted to approve a separate pilot program meant to divert and then reach out to disruptive elementary and middle school students. Up to five schools statewide would experiment with alternative settings for these students.

But the House and Senate continued to disagree over other education measures, leaving four unresolved. They also trimmed a pair of supplemental funding measures. Among other changes, they removed funding to the Capitol's new food court and deleted a proposed transfer of $8 million for a new high-risk insurance pool.

The community development pilot would last five years, with a school on Charleston's West Side a likely candidate, said Sen. Erik Wells, D-Kanawha.

That bill would also allow a two-year test of as-yet-unspecified pay boosts for educators in an array of settings. Those include low-performing, high-poverty or high-minority schools, subject areas critically short of teachers and schools with "career ladder'' systems that aim to reward educators who take on additional duties and aid student growth.

That and six other bills on the session's agenda were revised from measures that failed to advance during a May special session focused on education. Despite efforts by a House-Senate working group to fashion compromises in the interim, several other of these items died or were scaled back this week.

The House Education Committee voted down a sweeping revamping of the state's response to low-performing schools. It idled another measure that proposed alternative ways to certify teachers and principals.

That committee also reduced a bid for frequent student health screenings by medical professionals to a recommendation. Noting that the measure lacked teeth when introduced, Delegate Woody Ireland said the committee took "a ridiculous bill and made it worthless.''

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