The ICNS Electronic Report is back in your inbox after taking the summer months off. Once again this year, school administrators from member schools in the Illinois Coalition of Non-Public Schools (ICNS) will receive each month on the 15^th, an issue of the Electronic Report. The purpose of this Report is to provide brief synopses of developments with the Illinois Coalition of Non-Public Schools, legislative updates, and information of interest to our nonpublic school administrators. Simply put, the Electronic Report is written and sent to you as a way of keeping you informed.

ADVOCATING FOR NON-PUBLIC SCHOOLS

The annual membership drive for ICNS is underway. Membership dues are $50. Click here to find a form to use in renewing your membership. There are few organizations that charge only $50 a year to be a member, particularly one where the school receives significant benefits.

Allow me to share why it is important to join the Illinois Coalition of Nonpublic Schools. The Illinois Coalition of Non-public Schools (ICNS) is committed to communicate and visibly participate in educational dialogue with local, state and federal leaders on behalf of nonpublic schools for our common purposes, needs and concerns. We can assure our member schools that we will monitor legislation at a local, state and federal level. ICNS is the voice of the non-public school community representing twenty different non-public school associations. Administrators are encouraged to print the membership form and mail your annual dues in today.

SCHOOL SAFETY BILL

SB 2688 amended the School Safety Drill Act to require that each year, schools must conduct a law enforcement drill to address incidents that would necessitate the use of law enforcement officials. Previously schools were strongly encouraged to undergo these drills. The drills must be conducted according to the school's emergency and crisis response plans, protocols, and procedures, with the participation of the appropriate law enforcement agency. The bill further provides that law enforcement drills may be conducted on days and times when students are not present in the school building. In addition, schools are required to conduct 3 evacuation (fire) drills, 1 bus evacuation drill (curriculum based if you have bus service), and 1 severe weather drill. Of the 3 evacuation drills, 1 should be held in conjunction with your local fire department, and they are supposed to contact you by September 1 to set that up. If they haven’t contacted you … contact them.

The statute requires a one-page annual review report be filed with the Office of the State Fire Marshall. That report should be sent to your school. The report does include, and you must conduct, an annual review of your school's crisis plan with yourself or your representative, a teacher's representative, and local first responders (the fire department). The annual review report is due back at the Office of the State Fire Marshall by October 1st. If you have questions or need a report form, call the Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshall at 217-785-0969.

NEW FLU GUIDANCE AND TOOLKIT

The federal government has released updated guidance and a new toolkit to help school administrators prepare for, and respond to, the H1N1 flu in the 2009-10 school year. The guidance includes recommendations for school responses to flu outbreaks similar in severity to what took place this past spring as well as to potentially more severe outbreaks. The toolkit includes practical advice on how to contain the spread of flu, sample letters to parents, and posters related to flu prevention. The toolkit can be downloaded at: http://www.flu.gov/plan/school/schoolflutoolkit.pdf

POSTERS

There is no need to buy required posters. There are companies out there who will tell you that you do but these online posters meet the letter of the law. They may not be laminated but they are free. Use the following address for the Federal Department of Labor and download the posters you need to post: http://www.dol.gov/osbp/sbrefa/poster/main.htm.

The posters you will need for your school are the following:

· Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)

· Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

· Job Safety and Health Protection

· Equal Employment Opportunity Act

· Notice to Workers with Disabilities

· Employee Polygraph Protection Act (EPPA).

EDUCATION IN THE NEWS

Spotlight on school climate
In a commentary in Teachers College Record, authors Jonathan Cohen, Arnold Fege, and Terry Pickeral ask educational leaders to think broadly about the responsibility that federal and state departments of education have for the well-being of children and families in schools. The authors identify six ways to close a gap that now exists between school climate research, policy, practice guidelines, and teacher education. First, they advocate that education leaders define school climate in ways that are aligned with recent research. Second, they propose that schools routinely and comprehensively evaluate school climate, recognizing student, parent, and school personnel "voice," as well as the major dimensions of safety, relationships, teaching and learning, and overall environment. Third, they recommend that school systems adopt standards for positive school climate, and climate assessment procedures. Fourth, they propose that climate assessment be a measure of accountability. Fifth, they recommend that teacher preparation programs give teachers and administrators the tools to evaluate classroom and school climate, and use these findings to promote a climate for learning in schools. Finally, they call for increased research on the evaluation and dissemination of resources focused on improving school climate.
Read more: http://www.tcrecord.org/Content.asp?ContentId=15698
See the report: http://publiceducation.org/pen_news/archive/20090625_Measuring.asp

Ruling affirms provision in the IDEA
In a 6-3 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court has found that an Oregon high school student can receive a private education at taxpayer expense without first having received public special education. His local school system, Forest Grove, fought the ruling in court, positing that a provision in the Individual with Disabilities Education Act of 1975 dictates that students first receive services in public school before private placement. Writing for the majority, Justice John Paul Stevens said Forest Grove's argument amounts to "immunizing" a district from liability for payment in the "egregious situation" in which officials unreasonably deny services and parents turn to private schools. In a dissenting opinion, Justice David Souter, joined by Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas, noted the high cost of private school placements and said it "makes good sense" for parents to work with administrators to come up with an alternative within the public system. School systems nationwide warn that the decision could drain millions of dollars from tight education budgets.
Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124569250832237881.html

MANDATED REPORTERS

Is your staff aware that they are “Mandated Reporters” and are required by law to report incidences of or evidence of child abuse that they observe? Mandated Reporter Training is readily available. At the following DCFS web site. https://www.dcfstraining.org/manrep/assessment/userProfile.jsp

ILLINOIS LEGISLATIVE NEWS

This summer, the General Assembly was unable to come up with any plan to meet the over $8 billion budget hole for this fiscal year. Instead, they passed a lump sum appropriation budget, meaning they gave each agency of state government a lump sum of money to fund their programs as best they could. The lump sum was about 50% less than last year's total appropriation for most state agencies, including ISBE.

ISBE had to decide how to cut 50% from their grants and programs budget. Unfortunately, for this fiscal year, they decided to cut funding for Transportation Reimbursement and Textbook Loan completely. They cut the School Safety Block Grant by 75%, meaning instead of approximately $36 a student your school will receive about $9 a student. Fortunately, the Preschool for All program was cut only 10%, and the $500 Tuition Tax Credit will not be affected and remains available to all of our families.

The cuts to these programs are tragic and harmful. The truth is we are caught up in a fiscal mess years in the making. These issues must be addressed soon, and we are, for the foreseeable future, at the mercy of those outcomes. Still a focused advocacy campaign over the next 9 months will help us restore these cuts. It will be possible to reinstate the funding for these programs next year, but it will take a superior effort that begins here and now. Our challenge over the next year is to convince policymakers of the critical importance of these programs.

GRANTS

Lowe's: Toolbox for Education
Lowe's Toolbox for Education grant program funds school improvement projects initiated by parents in recognition of the importance of parent involvement in education. Maximum award: $5,000. Eligibility: K-12 schools (including charter, parochial, private, etc.) or parent groups (associated with a non-profit K-12 school). Deadline: October 16, 2009.