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Board
of Education meets with Governor Mike Rounds
Governor Mike Rounds met with the South Dakota Board of
Education for an hour March 16. The Governor’s appearance highlighted the
board’s regularly-scheduled March meeting.
Governor Rounds reviewed details of the $65 million earmarked
for education during the 2004 Legislature. He also discussed with the board
the school aid funding formula, and the proposed school sparsity factor
(subsequently defeated). He also announced
South Dakota is the only
state selected to pilot the USDOE’s Summer Reading Achievers’ Program
this summer. He expressed his interest in making sure that the state has a
solid comprehensive plan for teaching every child to read well; he believes
that the department needs to evaluate the current reading programs (SD Reads,
Reading First, Title I) to determine if there are gaps, overlaps and/or
contradictions in current services and strategies.
The federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 was also
a topic addressed by the Governor; he reiterated his belief in the major
concepts and spirit of the Act, noting that additional changes to the Act were
likely forthcoming, especially regarding small schools and the process of
identifying schools for improvement. Rounds informed the board of his intent
to make recommendations for the improvement of the Act to the members
of the Congressional delegation.
Governor Rounds and board members discussed the importance of
improving educational opportunities for
South Dakota’s Native
American students and efforts underway to work toward the goal. The Governor
affirmed that a second annual Governor’s Teacher Leadership Conference will be
held again this fall in Pierre. |
