State tax collections fall short again: A report by the Kansas Association of School Boards

State tax collections fall short again

The state again fell short of tax collection estimates — this time $10.5 million for the month of August.

The shortfall exacerbates the state’s budget problems and public school funding makes up approximately half of the state budget.

July, the first month of the fiscal year, was $14.3 million short of projections; in June, the state was $34 million short and in May, $76 million.

During the last fiscal year, revenues fell short nearly every month and Brownback ordered nearly $100 million in spending cuts, including cuts to higher education, health care and children’s programs, and delayed pension and school payments.

Concerning the August totals, Kansas Department of Revenue Secretary Nick Jordan, said, “Individual income taxes beat estimates for the second month of the fiscal year, which is encouraging, but corporate, sale and use tax receipts continue to lag pulling down the overall totals.”

He said sales tax receipts have been hit hard by slumping oil and agricultural prices.

Jordan said Gov. Sam Brownback’s administration has assembled an external review team of accountants and bankers to review the way the state estimates revenue. The group will present its findings to Brownback in October.

2016 State Education Report Card: A Media Release by the Kansas Association of School Boards

2016 State Education Report Card Media Release

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mark Tallman, mtallman@kasb.org;  785.608.4506; 785.243.3600

Scott Rothschild, srothschild@kasb.org;  785.221.4245; 785.273.3600

Kansas ranks high, spends low; concerns on the horizon

The Kansas Association of School Boards is releasing new research showing that while the state’s overall education rank remains high, it has slipped in some key areas. These changes have taken place while other states have increased their school funding much more than Kansas.

The report focuses on educational outcomes reflected by the State Board of Education’s Kansans Can vision; workforce educational needs; and the standards set by the Kansas Supreme Court for constitutional funding.

“This report is an early warning that Kansans can’t be complacent about our historically high levels of achievement,” said KASB’s Associate Executive Director Mark Tallman. “If the state wishes to retain its high rank ‐‐ and improve it to truly lead the world in the success of each student ‐‐ policymakers and other leaders must acknowledge the role funding plays in educational achievement levels not only in Kansas but nationwide.”  

Kansas now ranks 10th in the nation in overall student outcomes while ranking 29th in total revenue per pupil. Each state that ranks higher than Kansas spends more per pupil. In addition, 37 states have increased funding more than Kansas since 2008. During that period, Kansas teacher salaries have not kept pace with most other states.

Kansas has better educational outcomes on average than its peers ‐ those most like Kansas in terms of student characteristics, adult populations and urban/rural balance ‐ and spends less per pupil. However, peer states have generally been improving faster and increasing funding more than Kansas.

Although Kansas has improved on most education measures, especially educational attainment by young adults, declines on national fourth and eighth grade reading and math tests could indicate future problems if corrective action is not taken.  

The full Report Card and Supplement can be found at www.kasb.org/reportcard2016

The Fiscal Year 2017 Budget Won't Work - A blog by the KS Center for Economic Growth

The Fiscal Year 2017 Budget Won't Work

By Kansas Center for Economic Growth Senior Fellow Duane Goossen

The FY 2016 budget did not work, and it's already clear that FY 2017 will not work either. Mid-fiscal year budget cuts are quite likely ahead.

It's the same problem that has existed since unaffordable income tax cuts were implemented. Kansas does not have nearly enough revenue to pay even a constrained set of bills. We're broke.

Look at the "official" or approved version of the FY 2017 budget (from FY 2017 Comparison Report, page 12). Note the large imbalance between recurring revenue and expenditures. And that's after the governor cut expenditures from the total that lawmakers approved last May. Medicaid providers - doctors, hospitals, nursing homes - have had their payments chopped by 4 percent to save about $57 million, and higher education funding was hit for $31 million. With those cuts incorporated, the official version shows an ending balance of $96 million, a positive number at least, but far below the statutorily required 7.5 percent of expenditures. (7.5 percent of expenditures in this budget equals $470 million.)

But the official version will not hold! The imbalance between revenue and expenses will grow, and the ending balance will go negative without more budget cuts or other remedial action.

First of all, the official version assumes a beginning balance of $40 million. That did not happen. Rather, the state had to stop paying bills at the end of FY 2016 in order to keep the general fund balance just above zero.

Second and most important, the estimate of recurring revenue in the official version comes from the April Consensus Revenue Estimate (CRE). We now know that the April CRE overestimated FY 2016 tax revenue by $106 million, which means the FY 2017 estimate will almost certainly be revised downward when the forecasting group meets in November. Revenue was already short by $15 million in the first month of FY 2017. If the FY 2017 revenue assumption is lowered by $106 million to match what happened in FY 2016, the general fund will immediately be insolvent, triggering more expenditure cuts.

Third, the official version counts on one-time income of $48 million from the privatization or sale of the Kansas Bioscience Authority (KBA). Quite likely that figure is overly optimistic.

On top of all that, the state pushed payment of $75 million of school finance bills from FY 2016 into FY 2017 in order to get out of FY 2016. That expenditure shift does not show up in the official version, but if it did, the expenditure total would be $75 million higher. How will that $75 million be dealt with? We don't know, maybe through more cuts, or maybe $75 million in FY 2017 bills will be pushed to FY 2018. Remember, the state also deferred $96 million in KPERS payments to get out of FY 2016 and promised to pay those bills in FY 2018 with interest.

Kansas lives on the financial edge, unable to move confidently into the future. Income tax cuts caused this. When lawmakers convene in January, they must build a budget for FY 2018, but without changes in tax policy, it too is destined to fail.

 

Welcome Back to Kingman and Norwich Schools

The summer is nearing an end once again and I hope it’s been a time of rejuvenation for all of you as it was for me. Ending the 2015-2016 school year only a few months ago was a troubling time. The Supreme Court ruled the school finance formula unconstitutional and gave the legislature until the end of June to fix it or schools could be closed. Fortunately, a legislative compromise was found and signed into law and districts are moving forward preparing schools for the upcoming school year. Your support of the schools made a huge difference and is appreciated. Thank you for your continued support of USD 331 schools.

On behalf of the USD 331 Board of Education, faculty, and staff, I want to welcome ALL students and parents to USD 331 and Kingman and Norwich Schools. We all hope the upcoming school year will be fun, challenging, and a period of great growth for our students. Many teachers continued their professional learning to develop new skills over the summer. Custodial and maintenance staff cleaned, repaired, and updated facilities and other staff made additional preparations to make the upcoming school year a great one for our students. Enrollment has been completed and teachers and staff will return for additional in-service professional learning. Returning students will be returning to move up a grade and, as always, new students and families will enter USD 331 schools for the first time as school begins for grades K-12 on Wednesday, August 17^th. The USD 331 faculty and staff are excited to meet their students for another school year.

What is new this year? The past couple of years the Commissioner of Education, Dr. Randy Watson and staff from the Kansas State Department of Education went across the state to numerous communities to get input from parents, patrons, and business people on what they saw as important in education. From that data, the Kansas State Board of Education developed a vision for the state and developed student outcomes and those are being implemented beginning this school year. The five outcomes are 1) kindergarten readiness, 2) increasing graduation rates, 3) increasing the percent of students completing a credential or pursuing postsecondary education, 4) development of and individual plan of study focused on career interest, and 5) social/emotional factors relative to student success measured locally. In addition to the USD 331 Board of Education beginning the process to update the District Strategic Success Plan to incorporate the state vision, below is a list of how USD 331 staff will meet these outcomes?

1.     Kindergarten Readiness: Teachers in preschool will meet with other early childhood teachers (K-2) and begin discussion on what skills students need in order to be prepared for kindergarten. State Screening tools already available will be utilized along with local assessments to determine kindergarten readiness and the information and process will be shared with parents. Research clearly demonstrates the connection of kindergarten readiness to a successful school career.

2.     Graduation Rates: Though USD 331 already graduates more students than the state average, it’s not 100% and 100% is the district’s goal. For the past few years, an adult learning center has been implemented in the district. To serve students who struggle in the traditional school, a virtual school also is available to the students of USD 331. The virtual school tools have also been used the past few summers to help students who did not complete their courses throughout the school year to make them up over the summer. Online tools have been expanded to assist students this year in driver’s education and health opening other curricular opportunities and choices. Other outcomes listed below should also help increase graduation rates as the goal will always be 100%.

3.     Postsecondary Education and/or Credential: The district has data available identifying USD 331 graduates who enrolled in a postsecondary institution, if they received a technical credential, associate degree, and even a bachelor or graduate degree. This is important data to analyze and share with the community. The district works with individual students to help them attain career pathway completion and technical credentials and will continue looking at ways to expand. The high schools are scheduled to attend a college and career fair in Hutchinson in November that showcases postsecondary and future career options. Parents are encouraged to attend with their child or children.

4.     Individual Plans of Study: Beginning at the 6^th grade, students will begin to explore their interests and how those relate to future careers. Each year, students will add to an electronic portfolio tied to their interests and possible career choices. Teachers have already received training on the state-approved tool (Career Cruising) to assist students. Parent-Teacher conferences will continue to evolve into a review of interest/career counseling and connect current and future courses to those student interests.

5.     Social/Emotional Success: All schools have already implemented character education and bullying prevention and provide counseling to students. From those programs, character traits will be connected to success in students’ educational career and to future success in post-secondary education and careers.

In addition to working to ensure USD 331 students meet or exceed the outcomes above, there will be a new English Language Arts/Reading series introduced at the elementary level and updates in the math curriculum. Project Lead the Way (PLTW) science and engineering curriculum will continue to be taught from elementary through high school with an expansion of a middle school course at Norwich and Environmental Sustainability course at Kingman High School. The district goal for PLTW is to both meet a vital need for engineers and related careers and to build a science curriculum built upon a “hands on” and problem-solving context. Curriculum updates in all courses will be examined and updated throughout the year.

All staff, too, will continue work on professional learning goals and develop new skills to improve instruction, build positive student and parent relationships, and provide the best education available. The staff is committed to preparing citizens ready for college and careers and assisting each student to rise to his/her potential. We welcome our students and parents and will work hard to help every student succeed. Thank you for entrusting your child to USD 331 Kingman-Norwich.

Sincerely,

Robert G. Diepenbrock, Superintendent of Schools

Bus Safety Key as Students Head Back to School August 17th!

Bus safety key as students head back to school this month from the Kansas State Department of Education Bus Safety Division

TOPEKA — As students head back to school in August, there will be an influx of bright yellow school buses on the roads. This is a great reminder that it is important to keep children safe while traveling to and from the bus stop and while getting on and off the bus.

“School buses remain the safest way to transport students to and from school, but keeping our kids safe when getting on and off the bus is everyone’s responsibility,” said Keith Dreiling, state director of the School Bus Safety Unit. “Parents must review safety tips with their kids, bus drivers must follow protocol and the motoring public must stop for school buses displaying flashing red lights and stop arms.”

Yellow flashing lights on a school bus indicate the bus is preparing to stop, and red flashing lights signify vehicles must come to a complete stop on both sides of the street so children can safely cross to the bus.

In April 2016, 2,163 Kansas school bus drivers reported in a single day nearly 1,000 instances of motorists illegally passing a school bus. Motorists, students and their parents must remain vigilant, particularly before and after school when children are walking to bus stops or boarding and exiting buses.

There are 480,000 school buses on the road across the United States that provide public transportation for 26 million students every day. In Kansas 4,246 school bus drivers transported 227,778 students more than 69 million miles during the 2014-2015 school year, Dreiling said.

Parents are encouraged to speak with their children about school bus safety. The following tips can help facilitate the conversation:

•          Stay alert. Don’t listen to music, text or play games on a mobile device while walking to the stop.

•          Follow traffic signals and laws. Cross the street at corners, using traffic signals and crosswalks. Never run into the street or cross between parked cars.

•          Leave early. Be at the bus stop at least five minutes before the bus is scheduled to arrive. Early arrival prevents children from running across a street to catch the bus as it pulls away from the stop.

•          Stand back. When the bus approaches, stand at least five big steps away from the curb, and line up away from the street. Avoid the driver’s blind spot.

•          Stand still. Wait until the bus completely stops, the door opens and the driver says it is okay before entering the bus. Do the same for exiting the bus. Be careful that clothing with drawstrings and book bags with straps don't get caught in handrails or doors.

•          Never walk behind the bus. Children should walk where the driver can see the child and the child can see the driver. Walk at least 10 big steps in front of the bus.

•          Watch for motorists. Even though motorists are required to stop when a bus is making pickups or drop-offs, make sure children look both ways before crossing the street.

Let’s work together this school year to keep our children safe.

KASB Blogs: High School Graduation Rates, Implications & New Georgetown U. Report

High school graduation rates rise, but economy demands more

The Kansas State Board of Education met in a work session this week to examine state graduation and dropout rates and their impact on its Kansans Can vision.

Kansas State Department of Education staff presented data showing that while state high school graduation rates continue to rise, a high school diploma alone will not be sufficient to equip Kansas students to achieve and maintain middle-class status and pay.

In fact, a recent report by the Georgetown Center on Education and the Workforce (SEE BELOW) noted that by 2020 -- just four years from now -- 71 percent of Kansas job-seekers will require some sort of postsecondary education and training in order to compete for jobs in the post-Great Recession economy.

The report, “America’s Divided Recovery; College Haves and Have-Nots,” found that 99 percent of job growth since the great Recession has gone to workers with at least some postsecondary education.

As the Kansas economy struggles to regain its post-recession footprint, the Georgetown study -- and its implication for the state’s education system -- begs further examination and discussion by state policymakers. 

New report shows shift to college jobs and earnings; Kansas schools respond

A new national report from the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce (Georgetown Center) found that 99 percent of job growth in the United States since the Great Recession has gone to workers with at least some postsecondary education.

Kansas Education Commissioner Dr. Randy Watson told the State Board of Education this week the study underscores the importance boosting both high school graduation and college participation, two outcomes of the board’s “Kansans Can” initiative.

The report, “America’s Divided Recovery: College Haves and Have-Nots,” says that out of the 11.6 million jobs created in the post-recession economy, 11.5 million went to workers with more than a high school education and 8.4 million went to workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher, while employment of workers with a high school diploma or less only grew by 80,000 jobs in the recovery.

“The modern economy continues to leave Americans without a college education behind,” said Anthony P. Carnevale, director of the Georgetown Center and lead author of the report. In the report, “college” refers to any postsecondary education, including technical certificates and two-year associate’s degree.

Kansas Association of School Boards spokesperson Mark Tallman says Kansas schools have been responding to this trend. “According to the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 60.1 percent of Kansans aged 18-24 have some college education, including any postsecondary hours, a technical education certificate, an associate’s degree or higher; up from 51.9 percent in 2005. In 2014 Kansas ranked seventh in the nation in percentage of 18-24-year-olds participating in postsecondary education.”

The percent of 18-24-year-old Kansans who have completed a four year degree rose from 9.7 percent in 2005 to 10.3 percent in 2014. “Keep in mind that only about one-third of Kansans in that six-year age group - those who are 23 and 24 years old - could earn a four-year degree within that time period,” said Tallman. “This means the percent of Kansas who could have earned a four-year degree and did so within six years of graduation rose from about 29 percent to over 34 percent. Kansas ranked 19th nationally in the percent of 18-24-year-olds with a four-year degree.”

However, even with these improvements, Tallman says Kansas will still struggle to meet previous projections from the Georgetown Center, which said by 2020 about 71 percent of Kansas jobs will require some training beyond high school and 35 percent will require a four-year degree or higher.

Improving the rates of high school graduation and postsecondary participation and completion has been a key focus of the Kansas State Board of Education’s “Kansans Can” initiative. A second focus has been working with each student to develop an individual plan of study based on career interests.

Commissioner Randy Watson noted that the Kansas State Board of Education was already deeply engaged in increasing the percent of students with some type of post secondary credential. “The State Board of Education vision for education - ‘Kansas Will Lead the World in the Success of Each Student’, drives their belief that all students should be moving toward completing some type of education beyond high school.”

The recession and recovery have hastened a long-term change in the composition of the American workforce. In 2016, for the first time, workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher are a larger proportion of the workforce (36 percent) than those with a high school diploma or less (34 percent). Workers with more than a high school diploma but less than a bachelor’s degree, who are typically employed in middle-skill occupations, comprise the remaining 30 percent of the workforce.

Nationally, the report found that workers with at least some postsecondary education now make up 65 percent of the total employment, and works with a four-year degree now earn 57 percent of all wages.

KASB research of U.S. Census Bureau data shows that 64 percent of Kansans over age 24 have some postsecondary education, but earn 73 percent of wages; and 32 percent of Kansans over 24 have a four-year degree and earn 44 percent of all wages in the state.

Occupational and industry shifts have been major drivers of change in the labor market. Production industries, such as manufacturing, construction and natural resources, shifted from employing nearly half of the workforce in 1947 to only 19 percent in 2016. On the other hand, industries that employ managerial and professional workers such as healthcare, business, financial, education and government services accounted for 28 percent of the workforce in 1947 and have grown to encompass 46 percent of the workforce today.

The largest occupational group in the American economy, routine office and administrative support jobs, lost 1.4 million jobs during the recession and recovery, primarily because of automation and the rise in digital information storage. These occupations were a primary source of jobs for workers with a high school diploma or less, in many cases, so the decline of these jobs has hit less-educated workers particularly hard.

Other key report findings include the following.

In the recovery, graduate degree holders gained 3.8 million jobs, bachelor's degree holders gained 4.6 million jobs, and Associate’s degree holders (and those with some college education) gained over 3 million jobs, compared to workers with a high school diploma or less, who added only 80,000 jobs.

About 5.8 million high-skill jobs in the recovery are going to workers with a B.A. or higher, whereas low skill jobs are the only area of growth for workers with a high school diploma or less.

Among industries, consulting and business services added the largest number of jobs in the recovery (2.5 million), while manufacturing added the second most (1.7 million). Manufacturing, however, still has 1 million fewer jobs than it did before the recession began. Construction added 834,000 jobs during recovery, but is still 1.6 million jobs short of it  pre-recession employment — the largest gap among all industries.

Management added the largest number of jobs of any occupation since the recession began (1.6 million), while healthcare professional and technical occupations added the second most jobs (1.5 million).

“While it’s reassuring to see the economy back on track, we can’t ignore this tale of two countries with vastly different economic realities for those with and without a college education,” said Tamara Jayasundera, senior economist at the Georgetown Center and co-author of the report. “Fewer pathways to the middle class for those with less education will continue to reshape the labor market and American culture as we know it.”

Teacher Pipeline Shrinking: A Blog by the Kansas Association of School Boards

Teacher pipeline shrinking, task force tells State Board of Education

The pipeline of teachers in Kansas has decreased significantly over the past few years, a blue ribbon task force on the teacher shortage reported Tuesday to the State Board of Education.

The number of teacher education majors in public and private colleges in Kansas decreased 31 percent, from 7,752 in 2011 to 5,379 in 2014. The number of teaching degrees completed dropped 16 percent during that time from 2,271 to 1,901.

"That gives us the most concern," said Ken Weaver, who is dean of The Teacher's College at Emporia State University, and co-chair of the task force.

Rudy Perez, principal of Norton High School, who also served as co-chair said the challenges to increasing the number of teachers are low salaries, criticism of the profession and the instability of education funding.

Perez said the teaching profession "is getting pretty beat up." He said some of his staff members have difficulty persuading their own children to consider teaching as a  profession.

The task force recommended continued study of the teacher shortage issue and to involve local leaders to develop incentives to recruit and retain teachers. The group also urged the creation of a public relations campaign to tell inspirational stories about teaching.

In 2015-16, 220 of 286 school districts reported no vacancies, the task force said. Of the 277 vacancies unfilled for that school year, those vacancies were clustered in the southwest region, Kansas City, the northeast region and Wichita, the group said.

Of the 2,789 teachers who left the profession last year, 1,123 were due to retirement, while 500 provided no reason.

Weaver and Perez emphasized that the state needs to gather more data on why teachers were leaving and continue studying the issue to develop ways to get more people interested in teaching.

Education Board Chairman Jim McNiece called the report "a great start" adding the subject of teacher shortages may be studied further at a future board work session.

Four members of the KASB board were members of the task force. They included Lori Blake of Southeast Saline USD 306, Margaret Nightengale of Ulysses USD 214, Betty Arnold of Wichita USD 259 and Pam Robinson of Blue Valley USD 229.

(KASB released a report last August on how Kansas teacher salaries, education and experience compare to other states.)