EdCal EdCal v48.23 3/19/18

ACSA leaders will be voting on the next association vice president at the Leadership Assembly , coming up in May . The office of vice president places the holder in position to assume the ACSA presidency in two years , as the line of succession ascends from vice president to president-elect , then to the presidency .

Two ACSA members who had previously announced their candidacies have withdrawn from the race . Craig Wheaton is choosing to focus all his efforts in an election bid for Tulare County Superintendent ; and Mary Ann Dewan has accepted a new position as County Superintendent of Schools for the Santa Clara County Office of Education . Both members expressed their regrets , and their continued devotion to serving ACSA in other capacities .

Below are the statements of the two current VP candidates : Rob Martinez and Ron Williams .

Ron Williams Superintendent , Victor Valley UHSD

The Association of California School Administrators plays a vital role to all who have chosen to dedicate themselves to public education . Today , as federal and state laws challenge the bedrock of our profession , ACSA ’ s legislative advocacy , professional training , and leadership are more important than ever . I offer 30 years of proven public education experience at the local ,

Robert Martinez Assistant Superintendent , Fairfield-Suisun USD

When I started in the Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District , I came with a heart , mind and soul that was focused on keeping children at my core . I worked with amazing school administrators who supported me in seeing the big picture , to think and act thoughtfully , to be innovative and creative , and maintain my passion to build education sys-

Williams Martinez See WILLIAMS , page 3 See MARTINEZ , page 3

ACSA ’ s Leadership Assembly ratified , and the state Board of Directors adopted the association ’ s 2017-18 Legislative Platform , which follows .

ACSA-TICAL webinar . A new entry in the “ Leading Digitally ” series co-sponsored by TICAL and ACSA is scheduled for March 29 , 3:30-4:30 p . m . “ Are Online Courses Harming the Students Who Need the Most Help ?” looks at reports that online education is hurting less proficient students , who are most in need of skilled classroom teachers , and whether online learning can level the AP playing field for rural kids . Members of the TICAL cadre will tackle these issues and invite you to share your thoughts . Moderated by Michael Simkins . Panelists include : Susan Brooks-Young ; Janice Delagrammatikas ; Butch Owens ; Gabe Soumakian and John White . Register at http :// bit . ly / tical01 .

Protesters gathered outside the hotel where U . S . Attorney General Jeff Sessions appeared in Sacramento to announce a lawsuit against California ' s recently enacted sanctuary laws .

A week ago , U . S . Attorney General Jeff Sessions came to Sacramento . The visit was to announce that the Trump administration would be filing a lawsuit over three new immigration laws California recently passed and to express displeasure at California ’ s declaration of itself as a “ Sanctuary State .” He even reminded California “ there is no secession .”

Gov . Jerry Brown called the visit and announcement a political stunt . He even went so far as to accuse Sessions of trying to placate President Trump in order to save his job .

Aside from the national and state implications , there are local concerns as well , since school districts have many students who are either immigrants or whose families are immigrants , and the

Periodicals

Dated Material

Trump administration ’ s hard line on immigration has raised the stress levels of students and families .

In response , ACSA President-elect Holly Edds and Past President Ralph Porras made a video statement to give ACSA ’ s position on the issue as it applies to California ’ s K-12 schools .

Porras noted that first and foremost , ACSA stands strong and steadfast in its support of all California ’ s students , including those who fall under the protection of the state ’ s sanctuary laws or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals , DACA .

“ The United States government ’ s lawsuit against California is a direct attack on California families and

See

SANCTUARY , page 5

Legislative platform 2017-2018

{ Ratified by the ACSA Leadership Assembly , February 15 and Adopted by the Board , February 16 , 2018 }

Introduction

The mission of the Association of California School Administrators calls on the organization to be bold and authoritative advocates on behalf of its members . ACSA aims to be at the forefront of student advocacy and education policy issues at the state and federal level . The organization ’ s Legislative Platform plays a significant role in guiding the ACSA Governmental Relations staff in steering the course for improvements and progress in public education and school administration .

ACSA ’ s Legislative Platform , adopted every two years , establishes the advocacy priorities for the organization , with the underlying premise of supporting what is best for students . The Legislative Platform , developed by the Legislative Policy Committee , is approved by the Leadership Assembly and ratified by the ACSA Board of Directors . By establishing advocacy priorities , the Legislative Platform guides the work of ACSA Governmental Relations staff and informs lawmakers of the organization ’ s highest education priorities . While the ACSA Legislative Platform is intended to identify major advocacy priorities for the organization , the absence of any par-

See PLATFORM , page 2

ACSA ’ s Middle Grades Education Council has a rich history of participation , and its March 8 meeting in Sacramento was no exception .

Fifteen of the 19 region representatives were in attendance to hear Melanie Schoeppe , director of the Improvement and Accountability Division at the California Department of Education , discuss the new California School Dashboard .

Notable information shared by Schoeppe included the following :

• There will be no action taken for now on state test participation rates under 95 percent . Though rates will be noted , color codes on the Dashboard will not reflect lower participation .

• California Assessment of Student

WLN event . The Regions 2 , 3 and 4 Women ' s Leadership Network Event will take place the evening of April 23 in McClellan . Registration deadline for the event is April 13 . The event will feature speaker Anese Cavanaugh , and honors for Superintendent Louise Bennicoff Johnson , ACSA Past President Lillie Campbell and Superintendent Donna Becnel . For registration and more information , contact Patches Kolb at patches . kolb @ gcccharters . org , or ( 916 ) 286-5103 .

CalPERS event . CalPERS is hosting a two-day Benefits Education Event ( CBEE ) in Redding March 23-24 to educate members in an 11-county area about programs and benefits available to them . The same program is offered each day , 8:30 a . m . to 4 p . m . There are approximately 35,000 active members in Butte , Colusa , Del Norte , Glenn , Humboldt , Lassen , Modoc , Shasta , Siskiyou , Tehama and Trinity counties who can benefit from this event . Whether new to CalPERS , in midcareer , or close to retirement , CBEEs help with such issues as retirement and health benefits , supplemental savings plans , and long-term care coverage . Find out more at www . calpers . ca . gov .

Performance and Progress student-level data is not currently available on the Dashboard .

• The State Board of Education planned to take up social-emotional learning indicators at their next meeting .

In addition , council members presented best practices , an activity that is in line with one of the council purposes : “ To strengthen a network for communication among middle grades administrators .” The meeting topic was “ preparing for California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress ( CAASPP ) administration .”

Julie Johansen , Region 1 principal of Fortuna Middle School , shared her school ’ s initiative to engage students and get buy-

See MIDDLE , page 4