Jones shares state education board highlights

Our September State Board of Education public meeting was held at the Leadership Center in Aurora. State Board of Education meetings are typically held on the first Thursday and Friday of most months of the year. Thursday is a workday during which committees meet. The four committees are the Executive, Rules and Regulations, Budget and Finance, and Planning and Evaluation. I serve on the Budget and Finance and Planning and Evaluation committees. Much discussion takes place during the workday to prepare board members for decision-making at Friday's public meeting.

With the meeting being held in Aurora, state board of education members were given the opportunity to tour nearby Hampton Public Schools. Superintendent Holly Herzberg, staff and student representatives provided us an inside look at the amazing things happening in the school. A few things catching my attention were the high quality facilities in which the community generously invested, the Hawk Herd and their thriving preschool. During Friday's public meeting, Hampton staff and students shared their Hawk Herd story. Hampton has agriculture facilities at the school where students raise crops and livestock. Part of the program includes a farm-to-table system whereby the beef raised is served twice a week in their cafeteria. Hampton Public Schools is certainly on the moooooove!

The Lexington Public Schools yearbook team was also recognized at our September meeting. They recently won several state and national awards for their yearbook publications including the Nebraska High School Press Association: Cornhusker Award, and the National Scholastic Press Association: first place best of show/pacemaker, finalist/All-American rating. I must say, yearbooks have come a long way since those of the 70's) Congratulations Lexington!

Noting the importance of attendance, a resolution was adopted to recognize September as Attendance Awareness Month. During the 2022-23 school year, approximately 69,000 Nebraska students were chronically absent, meaning they missed at least 10% of school days. Recognizing the impact on student learning, the NDE is leading the "Nebraska Every Day Counts!" campaign, and has updated resources for parents, teachers and administrators. This may be accessed via their website.

Are you wondering 'Where's the beef of our SBOE meeting?' I'm not sure where to begin this month so I will list several items on the agenda for you to read online if you so choose. The details of these agenda items, and many more, may be found on the NDE website.

- Two projects addressing family engagement and literacy.

- Review of potential deficit budget items.

- Approval of school districts' requests for exclusions to the budget limitation within the provisions of TEEOSA

Frequently Asked Question: "Where can I find the test scores for the students of my local school district?" This information can be found by going to the Nebraska Department of Education website. On the right side of the Page you will find a number of links. Click on Nebraska Education Profile. As it states, this is your one-stop location for Nebraska education data. Enter the name of the desired school district and wah-lah! You will find information such as district classification, demographics, performance scores, per pupil expenditures, and much more.

Per SBOE policy, two of our yearly public meetings are held outside of Lincoln. Our next board meeting is scheduled for Oct. 6 in Gering. If you are unable to travel to the western border of Nebraska, live video coverage will be provided on the NDE website.

For NE Kids,

Sherry Jones - District 6

[email protected]