Health Care Reform Facts

Health Care Reform:
What Employers Need to Know

Brown & Brown Insurance Healthcare Reform Update

Update on impacts for schools:          This information has been summarized and reported out by our Health Benefits Broker - Brown & Brown
During March 2010, Congress enacted two new laws which overhaul the United States health care system. These two laws are often referred to as Health Care Reform. For employers, the new laws represent the most significant changes to their health benefit plan since the passage of ERISA.
Many provisions of Health Care Reform are already in effect. The purpose of this bulletin is to summarize key changes that become effective in 2013, 2014 and 2015. It is based upon federal regulations and other guidance published as of July 29, 2013.

Additional Plan Changes Employers will be required to make several additional changes to their health plans to comply with Health Care Reform. The changes include the following:

1. Limit on Medical FSA Contributions
For plan years beginning in 2013, a participant is not permitted to contribute more than $2,500 to the participant’s medical flexible spending account (FSA) under an employer’s Section 125 cafeteria plan. An employer is required to amend its Section 125 plan to include this limit no later than December 31, 2014.

2. Waiting Period
For plan years beginning in 2014, health plans may not impose a waiting period of longer than 90 days for newly-eligible full-time employees. Because coverage must be effective no later than the employee’s 91st day of employment, a plan provision which permits a full- time employee to become a participant in the health plan on the first day of the month after
90 days of employment will not comply.

3. Automatic Enrollment
Employers with more than 200 full-time employees will be required to automatically enroll newly-eligible individuals and reenroll existing employees. No regulations have been issued regarding this requirement. The requirement will not take effect until after the regulations are issued.

4. Cap on Maximum Out-of-Pocket Limits
For plan years beginning in 2014, the maximum out-of-pocket limits for all nongrandfathered plans cannot exceed the maximum out-of-pocket limits for high deductible health plans offered in connection with an HSA. These limits during 2014 will be $6,350 for single coverage and $12,700 for two-person or family coverage.

School Security Protocols Evolving

Following a recent in district security meeting with our local Chief of Police and the Special Security Liaison for the schools, I was struck by the ever changing and evolving protocols related to security in our schools.  In particular, a new movement afoot Nationally for "Lock Down" procedures that includes "Fighting Back!"  Being a former military man this resonates with me and is more in line with my beliefs as I feel our duty and responsibility to our children goes beyond simply hiding with them and waiting for the threat will pass.

As an administrator I understand and support the need for planning, drilling and keeping order during any crisis.  In most cases the established protocols are effective and should continue be carried out as noted in the following article that appeared in 2007:

Back to Lockdown Basics

Schools have been using lockdown protocols with success for the past 30 to 40 years. Acts of workplace violence, emergency room shootings, K-12 and higher education shooting rampages demonstrate the need for our campuses to have this lifesaving capability.

by Michael Dorn - Also by this author

July 01, 2007 | Comments (0) | Post a comment

A public high school in the Asheville, N.C., region had just conducted a lockdown drill in the early 1970s when the need arose to implement an actual emergency lockdown. A mentally ill individual began shooting beverage cans he had placed on the trunk of a car and had to be shot and killed by local police in the front school parking lot. Though clearly a bad situation, lockdown procedures protected students and staff from the dangerous intruder.

While this traditional type of Lock down works for certain situations, many believe it leaves our students, faculty and staff in a defenseless position, which I agree. Fighting back may be the difference between surviving or simply becoming another statistic.  This new protocol is labeled the ALICE method:   ALICE is an acronym for Alert, Lock down, Inform, Counter, and Evacuate.

Marietta Police Department Patrolman, Patrick Gragan recently gave the same information to their local high school stating, "The most important part about Alice is the E, evacuate, put distance between you and the problem," explains Gragan.

Typical classroom in lockdown mode

Inform does away with code words but more so is about telling everyone what is happening at all times and where the shooter is.

Counter is about distracting and actively stopping the shooter.

When looking back at tragic events such as Columbine, we see that the lock down procedures actually lead to higher casualty/death rates as the procedures yielded defenseless unmovable targets.

PTO Risk and Insurance

School Business Administrator's fulfill many roles associated with titles that have entered the mainstream in the private sector such as, Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Chief Operations Officer (COO), and Chief Information Officer (CIO).  In addition to these functions a growing area of our responsibility is that of risk avoidance working in partnership with a district Risk Manager to protect against potential liability ranging from use of facilities to storm preparation and disaster recovery.

One particular aspect of this growing concern is related to PTO/PTA activities involving our schools and support groups.  Perhaps the biggest fallacy is that of insurance coverage afforded to PTO/PTA's through the school district.  While Some PTO/PTAs are protected under the school's blanket policy, that is not the case for many activities.  According to the Risk Manager the first line of defense is to have specific events and actions reviewed by the district and in fact approved by the Board of Education in the minutes of a regular meeting.  This recognizes the activity as a "Board Sponsored Event" and minimizes attempts by the carrier to disallow or challenge afforded levels of coverage consistent with the policy.

Very few School Districts in the country provide coverage for PTO activities. In fact, it is a well known and proven method of loss control for the School District to require all groups using School District facilities carry at least $1,000,000 of General Liability and name the School District on the PTO policy as an Additional Insured. Of the few School Districts which do actually insure some PTO events, it is only with prior approval for a specific event. Also, the School District coverage will not extend to any PTO activities off campus.

 

Keep in mind that of the more than 15,000 public school districts, less than 5% provide insurance coverage for PTO activities and then only over and above a very large deductible such as $500,000 or $1,000,000 which the School District, as a municipality, can afford to pay and which the PTO cannot. (source: RV Nuccio & Associates, Inc.)

That said, some events such as those serving or providing alcohol are prohibited by Board policy and place individuals within the PTO/PTA organization at risk of personal assets including their home.  For that reason it is recommended that PTO/PTA secure direct coverage for specific events called, "Event Insurance" that provide coverage to include 'Liquor Liability'.

A recent policy obtained by our High School PTO for such an event, "Dine Around" dinner fund raiser afforded that group General Aggregate Insurance in the amount of $3 million for only $93.75.  As a BA, I call that a serious return on investment (ROI).

(QPA) Credits at NJSBA Conference

Just announced by School Boards - "We are pleased to announce that several programs taking place at Workshop 2013 have been approved for continuing education credit for Qualified Purchasing Agents (QPA). Please make note of the following approved for QPA credit."

• Best Practices in Existing Building and Operation Maintenance, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 9:00 - 10:00 a.m.
• Create Funding through School Bus Ads, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 9:30 - 10:30 a.m.
• Costing Out the Labor Agreement, Tuesday, Oct. 22, 10:00 - 11:30 a.m.
• Costing Out the Labor Agreement, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2:00 - 3:30 p.m.
• Analyzing Salary Guides, Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2:30 - 4:00 p.m.
• Analyzing Salary Guides, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2:00 - 3:30 p.m.
• Kindergarten Wrap Around Fee-Based Program, Thursday, Oct. 24, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
• Money in the Trash, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 4:00 - 5:00 p.m.

If attending these sessions, please get scanned in so that we can provide proof of attendance to the Certification Unit of the Department of Community Affairs.
For more information on Workshop, visit www.njsba.org/workshop.

The Purpose of EthicsTraining

The following article was recently published by the Alternative Press, a local paper serving out community following a recent Board of Education Meeting.  

 

Bob Faszczewskihttp://thealternativepress.com/

Friday, September 20, 2013 • 4:01pm

Content Options

SUMMIT, NJ - When does a parent cease being an advocate for his or her child?  The answer may be when they assume responsibility for policies affecting all of the school children in a community.  The assumption of responsibility for policies affecting the entire school community comes when a citizen becomes a member of the board of education.  (see the above link to read more on this article)

While this training is mandatory in New Jersey, it goes beyond explaining critical issues such as confidentiality, conflicts, chain-of-command, claims and commitments such as attendance at Regular Board Meetings; it provides clarity and awareness for Administrators and Boards of Education to hold their members accountable and enforce appropriate behavior.

In New Jersey, school board  members must undergo the training sessions but they may choose to do them privately or in public.  Failure to comply can result in removal from the board. 

Removal may also happen if a Board Member misses three or more Regular meetings in a twelve month period according to attorney Anthony P. Sciarrillo of the Westfield firm of Lindabury, McCormick, Estabrook & Cooper.  This action must come from the School Ethics Commission.  Interestingly this is not the case for missing Workshop meetings.

The School Ethics Commission is a nine-member body with the power to issue advisory opinions, receive complaints, receive and retain disclosure statements, conduct investigations, hold hearings, and compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of documents as it may deem necessary to enforce the School Ethics Act.   School Ethics Commission Members are appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the Governor.  The Commission is established in the New Jersey Department of Education.

The attorney noted that certain board matters, such as negotiations, personnel, contracts and litigation are protected from public disclosure while they are under discussion and the board must hold such discussions in private sessions in order to protect the confidentiality of parties involved.  He said board members are bound to protect this confidentiality even after they leave a school body.

What's So Affordable about the Affordable Care Act?

The real irony here is the word "Affordable" as it certainly does not take into account the facts surrounding the impact on small businesses over 50 employees and certain industries such as public education, which in many states like New Jersey is funded by the taxpayer. 

FAQ on Notice of Coverage Options

Q: Can an employer be fined for failing to provide employees with notice about the Affordable Care Act's new Health Insurance Marketplace?

A: No. If your company is covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act, it should provide a written notice to its employees about the Health Insurance Marketplace by October 1, 2013, but there is no fine or penalty under the law for failing to provide the notice.

The notice should inform employees:  About the Health Insurance Marketplace; that, depending on their income and what coverage may be offered by the employer, they may be able to get lower cost private insurance in the Marketplace; and that if they buy insurance through the Marketplace, they may lose the employer contribution (if any) to their health benefits
The U.S. Department of Labor has two model notices to help employers comply. There is one model for employers who do not offer a health plan and another model for employers who offer a health plan or some or all employees:

THIS GUIDANCE IS TAKEN FROM THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR'S WEBSITE:
http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/faqs/faq-noticeofcoverageoptions.html

• Model Notice for employers who offer a health plan to some or all employees
• Model Notice for employers who do not offer a health plan

In many instances, the cause and effect in education will result in reduced hours for substitutes and aides along with added administrative and clerical time on implementation, monitoring and compliance.

Eligibility is triggered at 30 Hours or more per week

or an avg. 130 Hours a month;

 for a minimum of 120 days in a year

 

Add to this very little clear information with a myriad of links, time lines, scenarios and unanswered questions that are left to interpretation with a healthy dose of threats and fines...

Below is an article that appeared in the Suffolk News Hearld:

Schools weigh Affordable Care Act cost

suffolknewsherald.com/2013/07/02/schools-weigh-affordable-care-act-cost/

Annual fees approaching $180,000 and the possibility of penalties is the cost of the new health care law on Suffolk Public Schools, its finance director says.

Major Change in Local Code Review Signatures

NJASBO has been lobbying for elimination of duplicative and cumbersome steps in the paperwork side of school facilities projects for the past five years since the inception of RODS I in 2008.  Our work through the RODS committee has streamlined the application and filing process that improved life for all districts.  Now another welcomed break through outlined in the notice below is the newest step forward to aid in stream lining the process to act on certain projects without the unnecessary pre-approval from DCA:

From: Codes and Standards Information [mailto:cstandards@dca.state.nj.us]
Sent: Friday, September 06, 2013 12:19 PM
To: Codes and Standards Information
Subject: Change in Process for Review of Plans for Projects as Schools

 

Dear Construction Officials,

 

In the past, only projects involving "educational adequacy" had to be submitted first to the Department of Education (DOE) for review and then to DCA for plan review or for approval for local review.  These were projects of some consequence, those impacting instructional space. Intervening changes, significantly the passage of the Educational Facilities Construction and Financing Act, caused all projects undertaken at public schools to be reviewed by DOE and then forwarded to DCA for approval for local review.  This includes the replacement of boilers, roofing projects, etc.   There is no compelling reason to require that boards of education continue to come to DCA for permission to take these plans to the local construction official for review.   Accordingly, attached please find a letter stating that local enforcing agencies may perform plan review for school projects (other than new construction or SDA projects) without the prior written approval of the DCA.  These projects will be treated the same as other projects subject to local review, thus eliminating one small, bureaucratic step in the process.  This streamlining was undertaken with the cooperation of staff at the Department of Education.  The Department of Education will be returning approved plans to the design professionals for submission to the local enforcing agency.

 

Corrections to the language of the rules (NJAC 5:23-3.11A) and of Bulletin 00-3 will follow in due course.  The Act supports review by appropriately classified municipal code officials.  (See NJSA 52:27D-130.)

Validating Payroll to Budget



Staffing is one just one of many critical tasks performed throughout the year at every district with a significant upsurge in the summer.  There is perhaps no greater impact on budget than the outcomes of these staffing decisions and as such require effective communication and coordination between the Superintendent and or Director of Human Resources and the Business Administrator.  This is necessary to gauge the effects on budget from the hiring decisions by validating payroll to budget. 

Sample Excerpt Comparison from Excel Spreadsheet consisting of over 60 positions

To ignore this crucial analysis puts the budget at risk; opening the school year blind only to find out in the months to come whether you're under or over budget.  Remember, salary and benefits command upwards of 70% of all budgets.

Many people outside of Education see summer to be a time slow to no activity for schools, they could not be more wrong!  Summer comes with a plethora of challenges in a compressed time frame for all within central office requiring such tasks as curriculum revision, staffing, grants management, training, professional development and many other functions.  While all offices remain busy, it is the Business Office that must oversee and undertake a variety of assignments that are critical to the successful operations of a district that begin in June with end of year purchasing, budget close out ("Roll-overs" vs. Accounts Payables), project management and construction, facility cleaning and preparations, transportation, and my favorite, the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report... aka. the Audit.  All of this in addition to the regular day to day responsibilities of meetings, correspondence, phones and email, despite the fact that on any given day someone is on vacation and that someone is the one needed to resolve or accomplish one of those tasks.

If it sounds like a lot to juggle your right; however, that is what BA's do and they do it well with a lot of help from their staff, other district administrators, colleagues and a strong support system through their professional associations.  In New Jersey that group is the New Jersey Association of School Business Officials (NJASBO) currently led by John Donahue, Executive Director and Derek Jess, Immediate Past President and Tom Fanuka, President.

While every aspect of summer operations is important and all require detailed analysis, oversight and leadership - the focus of this post is on validating payroll to budget.  It is as simple as keeping track of the employee changes in real time as they happen instead of waiting months to see where you actually are.  While simple, it requires coordination of data and input from personnel in payroll, benefits and human resources as well as direction from key administrative personnel.  Many of us begin this task at budget time somewhere between October and December with November's payroll a typical starting point.  The analysis includes comparison of salaries budgeted (encumbered) vs. actual (payroll) employees to determine true availability of cash balance in each of the salary account lines.  This analysis carries through each program and function of the district to include leave replacements, resignations, non-renewals, retirements and new programs/additions.  Keep in mind, the budget for September 1 to pay all employees was finalized back in March/April almost 5 months prior.  A lot can and does change in personnel during this time and the larger your district... the larger your budget and the opportunity for major variances.

Often hiring decisions net new employees based on upward changes in enrollments or new program demands that result in new positions not even in the budget which can be anywhere from $70,000 to $90,000 on average including benefits that must be covered from other line items or absorbed by other personnel gains such as "breakage" resulting from a senior person leaving and a lesser experienced person being hired.  Keep in mind this must all be accomplished within the current 2% CAP.

Bottom line..... Don't Wait to find out your short!  Plan ahead by working with your team to monitor your true position prior to September.  Often this means crunching numbers before they are in the system or your departments are ready for this task; however, a better estimate allows for a more informed position in other decisions related to budgetary resource availability.

ABSOLUTE VETO of S-1191

GOVERNOR TAKES ACTION ON S1191

ABSOLUTE VETO

NJASBO actively pursued this veto by personally meeting with counsel from the Governor's office to explain the negative cost inefficiencies of this proposal.

S-1191 would have allowed the establishment of county-wide purchasing system for certain school district services in certain counties; offer employment protections for certain food or custodial service employees; and regulate subcontracting by districts and public higher education institutions.

Votes needed to override an absolute veto:  27 in Senate and 54 in Assembly.

NCLB Title I Waiver Request

WAIVE THE PROVISION THAT PROHIBITS AN SEA FROM GRANTING TO AN LEA A WAIVER OF THE CARRYOVER LIMITATION MORE THAN ONCE EVERY THREE YEARS!

This has been an ongoing battle cry from the trenches of many State Department of Education Offices as once again the professional individuals with direct management and oversight responsibilities recognize we are in a far better position to ensure the necessary funds are appropriately applied to impact student learning, growth and academic achievement.
 

In an attempt to obtain additional information on the status of this request through our own state department (NJDOE), I received confirmation on the status of the ESEA Waiver allowing districts to carry over greater than 15%, once every three years through notification from the Federal Government approving New Jersey’s request.

A letter released from Deborah S. Delisle, Assistant Secretary for the US Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education granting approval which means that districts can request a waiver to carry forward more than 15% even if that district received a waiver in the last two years (2012 and 2011).

According to the NJDOE, additional information will be released on the timelines in the Final Expenditure Report notification to districts. 

This is obviously an important triumph with particular significance for districts left with large balances. 

Getting Optimum Use out of the iPad for Business

In May of 2012 I started blogging about the iPad and whether it would find its place as a staple in our classrooms for students. 

 

The Business of Education: iPad - The next big thing in classroom ...

May 15, 2012

Lately, I find myself drawn into conversations about equipping students with iPads whenever discussions turn to technology issues. Schools across the nation are reaching for the iPad as the next big thing in classroom ...

 

The Business of Education: iPads.... The Cost of Adding The Next ...

Jan 28, 2013

Back in May I published a quick article on my Blog about the newest push in adding technology to the classroom... the iPad. While discussions were taking place across the country and perhaps throughout the world in ...

 

Since then more and more districts including our own in Summit are adding these marvels of technology to the classroom as part of a necessary tool for growth and development much like the calculator in the late 70's and 1980's.

 

Stored Documents for easy recall

But alas... I must confess I have not only been convinced the device is worthy of integration into the educational programs, I am taken in a big way with the flexibility, portability and encompassing power for multi-use functions that although will not replace the lap top or PC, has become a daily necessity for my professional and private life!

 

Perhaps the best example of this is the devices ability to take documents and drawings on the road with use of ibooks book shelf.  By utilizing the various "collections" available at your own creation, the app gives you the ability to separate like items and shelf them for quick reference from anywhere in the field or at meetings.

 

In order to accomplish this all you need to do is open an email with an attachment (PDF) then send it to the book shelf by hitting the upper arrow selection on the top right of the device.  Once on the book case you move, re-arrange and delete by using the edit key.

 

Once you become familiar with this option it will become a "go-to" app in no time at all!  I recently downloaded RFPs for construction management companies that allows me to review and read at my leisure just like one using the Nook or Kindle. 

Time for The BOSS to VETO S1191/A3960

According to the State Legislative website, S1191 "Allows establishment of county-wide purchasing system for certain school district services; offers employment protections for certain food or custodial services employees; and regulates subcontracting by districts and public higher education institutions."

The reality is the bill kills the very concept of "Competitive Bidding" and the ability of each district to customize and craft an appropriate Request For Proposal (RFP) for services that are unique to their district and tailored to the individual needs as set forth in the bid specifications.  This promotes the very concept of competition and ultimately the balance between best price and quality service.  If approved by the Governor, this legislation would end that concept at the expense of true savings along with a diminished level of service as the "one-size-fits-all" bid specifications would be applied to all districts impacted by the law.  Likewise this will result in unsustainable wage concessions.

Once again, one must consider where the support for such legislation stems and whose best interests are served.  The primary sponsor's of the bill are all Democrats who favor the special interest prime benefactors of such legislation... the unions.

Lesniak, Raymond J.   as Primary Sponsor Sarlo, Paul A.   as Primary Sponsor Mosquera, Gabriela M.   as Primary Sponsor Diegnan, Patrick J., Jr.   as Primary Sponsor Greenwald, Louis D.   as Primary Sponsor Quijano, Annette   as Primary Sponsor Giblin, Thomas P.   as Primary Sponsor Sumter, Shavonda E.   as Primary Sponsor

As stated in my March 24th Blog:  "This is a great case of where select individuals in the Assembly and Senate have an extreme disconnect from the actual operations of a school district and the ability of management in this cases School Business Administrators in partnership with Boards of Education to effectively oversee and administer services in a fiscally responsive manner providing cost savings to resident tax payers."

This hypothesis is further borne out in the latest vote which  has the minority "No" vote cast by all Republicans.  (see below)

ABU  6/17/2013  -  r/Aca  -  Yes {8}  No {4}  Not Voting {0}  Abstains {0}  -  Roll Call

	Prieto, Vincent (C) - Yes	Schaer, Gary S. (V) - Yes	Brown, Christopher J. - No
	Bucco, Anthony M. - No	Burzichelli, John J. - Yes	Coutinho, Albert - Yes
	Fuentes, Angel - Yes	Johnson, Gordon M. - Yes	O'Scanlon, Declan J., Jr. - No
	Watson Coleman, Bonnie - Yes	Webber, Jay - No	Wimberly, Benjie E. - Yes 

NJASBO 2013 Annual Spring Conference in AC

DO AC!  If you are looking for real professional growth and opportunity centered on the Business of Education, then you should make plans to DO AC IN A BIG WAY!

Among the various workshops, presentations, networking and speakers will be a presentation put together through the collaboration of my Director of Technology, Doug Orr and me on "How to Prepare Memorable Presentations!"

If you are ever tasked with public presentations on any subject you should stop by on Wednesday for one of the two presentations:  1:45 & 3:00 PM.

The Cost of School Security

The following paper was written and presented by Lauren LoPorto in the Montclair State University School Finance Class that I taught this past semester.  This paper is one of many that I have chosen to highlight on this blog as it is contemporary and directly related to the issues in financing public education.

The Cost of School Security

Montclair State University

Lauren LoPorto - ELAD 622 

Professor Pepe 

Review of Material Covered

Allen, J. (2012, December 21). Part one: A columbine survivor’s perspective on sandy hook. Examiner.com. Retrieved from http://www.examiner.com/article/a-columbine-survivor-s-perspective-on-sandy-hook

 

Karissa Marcum, a Columbine survivor, now 28, describes her tale of the horrific day she and her sister experienced as high school students. Marcum shares her sadness for the senseless murders committed at Sandy Hook and discusses her opinion on gun control.

Carson, D. (Writer) (2012, October 11). To survive a shooting, students learn to fight back. NPR. [Audio podcast]. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/2012/10/11/162712905/to-survive-a-shooting-students-learn-to-fight-back

The controversial strategy known as A.L.I.C.E. Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evaluate is defined and explained in this podcast. The program creator believes training children as young as 5-years-old to, “fight back” against an active shooter is an effective strategy. This is a controversial approach but many believe we need to change our thinking about how potential victims should respond, and that a shift toward more active resistance in crime situations is happening. He supports this idea by explaining before September 11, passengers were advised to comply with hijackers, and that self-defense instructors used to tell women to go limp to survive a rape.  

Candoli, C., Guthrie, J.W., Hack, W.G., Hart, C.C., & Ray, J,R. (2008). Modern School Business Administration: A Planning Approach. Boston, MA: Pearson  

The text describes the need for school security and the level of crime increase due to a number of factors including drugs, gangs, and vandalism. The most successful school security personnel have a close working relationship with building administrators and students they serve.  

Kennedy, M. (2012). Today’s school security. American School & University, 16-22. 

This journal article summarized the lessons learned from the school shooting massacres including Columbine and Virginia Tech. The measures taken by schools and universities today have been intensified to ensure public safety. Finally, prevention is discussed by identifying problems and why the role of violence prevention programs at schools is beneficial. 

Terkel, A. (2012, December 21). Columbine high school had armed guard during massacre in 1999. Huffinton Post. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/21/columbine-armed-guards_n_2347096.html 

The gun control debate ensues and many politicians are using school violence to promote their stance both for and against gun control. Those invested in pro-gun laws are pushing for armed guards at every school to make them “safer.”  

Toppo, G. (2009, April 19). 10 years later, the real story behind columbine. USA Today. Retrieved from http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-04-13-columbine-myths_N.htm 

This article summarizes the events that occurred on April 20, 1999 when Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris terrorized and murdered their classmates before turning the guns on themselves. Not only did the boys have guns, but they planted bombs that thankfully failed to explode. Also discussed are some of the security steps put in place since Columbine. 

Trump, K. (2009). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://www.schoolsecurityblog.com/ 

Ken Trump is the President of a National School Safety and Security Services firm. His School Security Blog is a “news and opinion blog for educators, safety professionals, parents, media, and others who are passionate and concerned about K-12 school safety, security, and crisis/emergency preparedness.” I read over a dozen of his posts and posts by guest published on his website: schoolsecurityblog.com. While most posts are one-sided, his contributions to this issue are informative and valuable.  

Thesis 

The safety and security of our schools should be a top priority; but what strategies are truly effective and what measures are schools taking to prevent violence from happening in their town?

Issues and Strategies Identified 

“A tragedy of unspeakable terms,” were the words spoken by Connecticut Governor, Daniel Malloy. On December 14, 2012 twenty-six children and educators were killed when a disturbed man shot his way into an elementary school. The Newtown school shooting has brought attention to school security back up to the surface. Administrators, teachers, parents, and even students are now wondering the same thing; how safe are our schools? With the economy on the brink of a recession, and Federal and State aid being rerouted in order to pay for new mandates, many schools have been challenged to maintain their budgets with less. Schools everywhere, especially in New Jersey, have been forced to make weighty cuts and have reduced levels of security as a result. Should the security of our schools and the safety of our children be a top priority? The obvious answer is yes, but how this is achieved and at what cost is up for debate.

Launching a Title One School-Wide Program

The following paper was written and presented by Alice Keller in the Montclair State University School Finance Class that I taught this past semester.  This paper is one of many that I have chosen to highlight on this blog as it is contemporary and directly related to the issues in financing public education.

Issues in School Finance: Launching a Title One School-Wide Program

Alice Keller
Montclair State University

Thesis

            The federal government provides grant funds to public school districts that can only be spent according to narrowly defined purposes and cannot be reallocated to other accounts within the budget.  In the case of Title One funds, they must be used for targeted assistance services to support students who fall below the district target on state assessments.  At WWW Middle School, there is a large percentage of students just barely reaching the target who could also benefit greatly from the programs funded by our Title One grant.  This year, WWW Middle School is applying to become a Title One School.  If the school is granted permission to switch from targeted assistance to a school-wide program, the administration will have the power to use the funds to support “any students that we believe could utilize support to grow and get better” (Director of Secondary Education, personal communication, April 16, 2013). The district believes that this change will be crucial in increasing student achievement across the school and avoiding being labeled as a “school in need of improvement” and being subjected to interventions by the state. 

Review of Title I Grant Funding

In 1965, Congress passed the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which was “specifically directed to supporting public education for low-income students” (Guthrie, Hart, Ray, Candoli, & Hack, 2008, p.211). The ESEA established grant funds that are distributed to public schools, and “historically, the bulk of ESEA funds have been dedicated to ‘Title One,’ which seeks to support students in poverty” (Guthrie et al., 2008, p. 211).  Schools receive Title One grant funding based on the number of students who qualify as economically disadvantaged as indicated by their “Free or Reduced Lunch” status (Director of Secondary Education, personal communication, 2013).  These funds are considered “fund 20” restricted special revenue funds, which must be used for specific purposes and cannot be reallocated (Pepe, personal communication, 2013).  Funds also come with accountability to the federal government, which mandates the “use of standards and assessments to determine if schools receiving federal money were attaining concomitant student achievement gains, and a system of rewards and sanctions for states, districts, and schools receiving funds and that could not demonstrate improved results” (Guthrie et al., 2008, p. 211).  Under No Child Left Behind, schools receiving Title One funds have been required to meet AYP or else undergo a series of mandated reform measures. 

For the 2012-2013 school year, WWW Public schools received $536,152 in Title One funds, which is roughly 1% of the total $51,216,516 revenue reflected in the budget (Board of Education, 2012).  Of this, WWW Middle School received $147,962, based on having 411 students or 62.4% of students considered to be “economically disadvantaged” (State of New Jersey, 2012).  The breakdown of how these funds were spent to support our at-risk students is outlined in Appendix A and will be discussed in the following section. 

Recently Published Article in AASA School Adminitrator

Streamlining Central-Office Staffing BY LOUIS J. PEPE

http://www.aasa.org/content.aspx?id=27768

At a time of serious budget cuts, it is incumbent for those of us at the executive level to ensure we have the necessary personnel to accomplish our school district’s mission. Absent clear, thoughtful practices for staffing, we run the risk of impeding progress in our schools. We also risk a far more serious situation, resulting in breakdowns in operational efficiency and service or procedural violations that will be cited in annual financial audits.

Simultaneously, we need to be mindful of opportunities to reduce expenses through attrition by redistributing workloads and eliminating unnecessary or obsolete tasks and positions. Our school district, which serves 4,100 students in central New Jersey, has conducted a thorough assessment of existing practices, procedures and services, which allows us to budget resources to support supervisors and administrators while ensuring classrooms, buildings and grounds are clean, safe, secure and conducive to learning.

Staffing Cuts - To increase efficiency in the district’s central operations in cost-effective ways, we developed recommendations for creating, eliminating and retaining positions. This review process requires effective communication, support and teamwork through collaboration of cabinet-level administrators and the superintendent.

The district’s management group effectively applied this process over the past three years, yielding reductions of two full-time positions with benefits to part-time posts with no benefits and elimination of a part-time engineer/environmental technician. We also eliminated two full-time secretarial positions, one in the office of the superintendent and another in special services.

Notably, these personnel reductions took place during a time frame when student enrollment continued to grow and the district opened two new primary centers. The latter additions brought the district’s facility count to nine schools, including five elementary schools, one middle school and one high school.

Dispassionate Analysis - Simply eliminating positions for cost cutting demands a closer look at the opportunity costs associated with such rash decisions. Downsizing as a quick fix to reduce personnel costs has irreparable consequences, as positions eliminated often cannot be restored easily by school districts facing reduced state and federal aid, tax-levy caps and anti-public-spending sentiment.

Today’s mind-set of doing more with less has become a reality of concern over maintaining existing programs and services. However, consider the alternative — using strategic planning for expansion and retention of quality staffing levels to meet the needs of current and future operations. In this regard, public education is a business that requires proper planning for effective management.

A favorite book on this topic is Dwight Gertz and João Baptista’s Grow to be Great: Breaking the Downsizing Cycle.

These authors say: “Managers must move beyond the current wave of downsizing, restructuring and reengineering.” Contrary to current management fads, they contend organizations must grow to be great, adding, “Managers now involved in downsizing must consider long-term goals for growth alongside short-term measures for slimming.”

As managers of a school district, we must prepare adequate analysis, absent emotional responses, to support legitimate recommendations to sustain and benefit the operation of schools. This process begins with an administrative analysis of current staffing and assignment of responsibilities related to each aspect of the central office.

Start by reviewing the various responsibilities and areas of operation with members of the administrative team. All staffing decisions must include the capacity to reassign, train and maintain the necessary administrative oversight for these various functions. Each staff position must be considered along with all active positions within the group and the wider operation based on efficiency, cost justification, support benefit and current workload of the particular office and central office as a whole.

March 7, 2013 Board of School Estimate Budget Presentation

S1191/A3960 - Establishment of more county-wide control in the area of school district services

This is a great case of where select individuals in the Assembly and Senate have an extreme disconnect from the actual operations of a school district and the ability of management in this cases School Business Administrators in partnership with Boards of Education to effectively oversee and administer services in a fiscally responsive manner providing cost savings to resident tax payers.

S1191/A3960 - Establishment more county-wide control in the area of school district services

03/21/2013 Received in Assembly and referred to Assembly Education Committee.  THIS BILL WILL HAVE A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON SCHOOL DISTRICTS.  YOU ARE URGED TO CONTACT YOUR ASSEMBLY REPRESENTATIVES AND INDICATE THAT YOU OPPOSE THIS LEGISLATION.

 SENATE BUDGET AND APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO SENATE COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR

SENATE, No. 1191

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  MARCH 4, 2013

       The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee reports favorably a Senate Committee Substitute for Senate Bill No. 1191.

      This substitute bill permits counties to establish a county-wide purchasing system to provide custodial or food services, or both, to school districts within the county. This simply grows county government which in some counties has proven ineffective in their ability to maintain tax stability and more importantly decrease taxes through reductions in spending.   These contracts would be awarded to contractors using the competitive contracting process set forth in the “Local Public Contracts Law,” P.L.1971, c.198 (C.40A:11-1 et seq.).  If a county establishes a county-wide purchasing system and a school district in the county is currently using a private contractor for the service, the district will be required to participate in the county-wide contract.This position eliminates the board’s ability to consider alternative service selection based on other criteria beyond price alone.  Where district’s are currently and effectively operating within a profit margin beyond break-even it usurps the rights of management to evaluate continuation of the existing company or consider going out to look at the market through a competitive request for proposal (RFP) or public bid.  The county established program should be a viable consideration amongst other companies, thereby preserving the best price and service through fair and open competition.
 

      In addition, a district that is using its own employees to provide custodial or food services will be required to participate in a county-wide contract if it determines to privatize the service Again, loss of considerable options.  Prior to participating in the county-wide contract, however, the district will be required to meet certain criteria, including holding a public hearing on the proposal to participate, providing a period during which the public will have the opportunity to submit comments on the proposal, and providing written responses to the comments This is contrary to effective management as the requirement serves as a barrier to consideration of outsourcing and complicates an already difficult public policy decision.  Ultimately, the decision should rest with the elected representatives at the local level as the decision impacts the community – not the county.

   A district in these circumstances will not be permitted to participate in the county-wide contract during the term of an existing collective bargaining agreement with employees who will be affected by the participation in the county-wide contract, and after the term of the agreement, the district may participate only after:

      (1)  providing written notice to the majority representative of employees in each collective bargaining unit affected by participation in the county-wide contract and to the New Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission; and

      (2)  offering the majority representative the opportunity to consult with the district to discuss the decision to participate in the county-wide contract and the opportunity to engage in negotiations over the impact of participation  This would be a major setback to the collective bargaining process for school districts as they would lose significant bargaining leverage at the table by favoring unions and the status quo in ineffective districts.  Why would custodial members ever consider agreement to outsourcing of their jobs? 

Each employee replaced or displaced as a result of the district’s participation in the county-wide contract would retain all previously acquired seniority and would have recall rights whenever the district’s participation in the county-wide contract terminates.

      Any administrator whose position is eliminated due to a countywide purchasing system will receive terminal leave pay pursuant to N.J.S.A.40A:65-19 of the "Uniform Shared Services and Consolidation Act."

      The substitute also provides protection for food or custodial services employees employed on school district premises during a transition to employment by a successor contractor, which is defined in the substitute as a contractor that has been awarded a food or custodial services contract.  Under the provisions of the substitute, a successor contractor must offer employment during a 90-day transition employment period to all service employees providing food or custodial services employed by the predecessor employer, whether that predecessor employer is a school district or another contractor providing food or custodial services for the school district. The successor contractor is prohibited from discharging, without just cause, a retained employee during that transition period, and must perform a written performance evaluation for each retained employee at the end of the transition period. In many cases this is the reason for considering the outsourcing in order to separate ineffective employees from the district.

 Employees whose performance was satisfactory, must be offered continued employment by the successor contractor.  This provision would apply in the case of participation in a county-wide contract for food or custodial services, in the case of a district privatizing these services, or in the case of a change from one private contractor to another private contractor for these services.

      The substitute includes a provision that applies to all subcontracting by any of the following employers: any local or regional school district, educational services commission, jointure commission, county special services school district, county college, State college, public college or university under the authority of the Secretary of Higher Education, or board or commission under the authority of the Commissioner of Education or the State Board of Education.  Under this provision, during the term of an existing collective bargaining agreement covering its employees, the employer is prohibited from entering into a subcontracting agreement which affects the employment of those employees.  Following the term of a collective bargaining agreement, the employer is permitted to enter into a subcontracting agreement only if the employer provides similar notice and opportunity to negotiate over the impact of the subcontracting agreement as described above in relation to the decision by a school district to participate in a county-wide contract.  As in that case, each employee replaced or displaced because of a subcontracting agreement would retain all previously acquired seniority and would have recall rights when the subcontracting terminates.

FISCAL IMPACT:

      This bill is not certified as requiring a fiscal note.  This may be the case; however, it will have a sever negative fiscal impact on districts who are currently managing these services effectively and at a cost savings with the outside companies.