Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, January 14, 1994 TAG: 9401140232
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LAURA WILLIAMSON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Del. Richard Cranwell, D-Roanoke County, said he, Andrews, and other members of a legislative subcommittee agreed Monday on the broad outlines of a plan to begin closing the spending gap between the state's rich and poor school districts.
"I think the fact that Hunter and I have agreed to make a good-faith effort helps some, but that doesn't guarantee success," said Cranwell, who led last year's failed effort to put more money into rural and inner-city schools.
Andrews, D-Hampton, promised after defeating Cranwell's measure last year that he would work on the issue this year. During a meeting Monday of a subcommittee of the Commission on Equity in Public Education, the Senate majority leader went even further and made the motion to approve five recommendations that could cost the state up to $100 million annually.
It is unclear what, if anything, Andrews might gain from the agreement. He could not be reached Thursday for comment.
Cranwell said he didn't perceive Andrews' actions as a change of heart, but conceded it was "the first time that he and I have been able to agree" on how to resolve the disparity problem.
"I don't think anything changed anybody's mind," he said. "I think we were all focused on those areas."
The goals agreed upon by the subcommittee, which later were ratified by the full task force, would:
Lower student-teacher ratios statewide to 22-1 in kindergarten through third grade and to 18-1 in schools that have high numbers of poor students. By 2000, the task force recommends lowering class sizes in poor schools to 16 students for every teacher.
Increase programs for low-income 4-year-olds.
Expand access to educational technology.
Increase parental support and community involvement. For example, all parents would be required to come to school to develop individual discipline plans for their children.
Extend the life of the task force for another year.
Del. Marian Van Landingham, a member of the subcommittee, said Andrews pushed particularly hard for lowering class sizes in the early grades.
"He was the one that spoke out first," she said. "He said, `You've gotta get these kids early to stop dropouts later.' We had a whole laundry list of things we thought would help. . . . He led the discussion."
Van Landingham, D-Alexandria, said the subcommittee estimated that implementing its recommendations would cost $50 million to $100 million. Task force members asked the state Department of Education to come up with more specific amounts.
Cranwell said further details would emerge next week, when legislation to implement the recommendations will be drafted. He said some of the recommendations, such as reducing class size, would appear as amendments to the state's "standards of quality." The standards outline minimum education requirements for all Virginia schools.
Codifying the recommendations by changing the standards of quality ensures the state will continue to provide more money to schools on an annual basis, Van Landingham said.
An agreement between Andrews, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, and Cranwell, who chairs the House Finance Committee, bodes well for passage of the commission's recommendations, she said.
"Of course, if you've got the money-raisers in both houses committed to putting money into this, then you're in a wonderful position," she said. "That means that hopefully the revenues will be available when we find out how much we need."
Whether Gov.-elect George Allen would support spending an additional $100 million on education, however, remains to be seen. Allen's spokesman could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Van Landingham said she would not presume "at this point" that the General Assembly could override an Allen veto if he opposed the measure. But she remained optimistic that the problem would not arise.
"I certainly think the Allen administration knows there's a disparity problem. If we've gotten this much togetherness, you'd think they'd want to applaud it."
One person who does applaud the agreement is Ken Walker, superintendent of schools in Halifax and South Boston and chairman of a coalition of the state's poorest school districts. The Coalition for Equity in Educational Funding has sued the state for failing to provide an equal education to all students. The case is pending before the Virginia Supreme Court.
"I think that's a positive step," Walker said. "But I don't know whether that will address all the issues."
Reducing class sizes in the lower grades - especially in schools with high numbers of poor children - certainly would help, he said. But he questioned the suggestion that every child should have an individual discipline plan.
"A plan for every child invites the possibility of loading the system down with additional paperwork," he said.
Walker said he'd like to see more details about what the task force plans to do. He'd also like to see the state change its school spending formula to lower the financial burden on localities and increase state spending on education.
Cranwell, long a champion for disparity issues, would not say whether he planned to introduce additional bills this year that would target the school spending gap.
"There's always a few things floating around out there," he said. "You'll just have to wait and see."
Keywords:
GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1994
by CNB