• Dale – Texas experience – pure bids resulted in very competitive rates
• Negotiated $$ amounts – full pot of insurance costs goes to local association & they buy their own. Total compensation formulas are starting to emerge. Co-pays are growing, thereby driving associations & employees to look past MESSA. (new high in out-of-pocket)
• Health Services Account (HAS) established to defray tax implications
• Self-funded optical & dental – usually, always cheaper to the district.
• Choice (MESSA) – it is a PPO & can be used to leverage more dollars for salaries
• Partial self-funded – see Midland Public Schools – significant cost reduction for hospital networks

• Choices 2
• Caps - % or dollar amount
• Self insure dental & vision
• HAS & HRA
• Work with the agent that does not have a vested interest
• Work with other districts to self insurance health
• Have MESSA eliminate services such as ambulance. That could be covered by a separate pool
• Increase deductible

• McBain: 5% of premium SET/SEG (BCBS)
• Holt: creative – 7 yr. contract 2% total per year cap which can be used any way the group decides
• Grand Ledge: $250 (TriMed) or $500 (CARE) per month per plan
• Menominee ISD: sliding scale based on increase
• Westwood Heights: board pays 100% but will not again

• Use a neutral, “third party” expert to do a thorough study for all groups (Grand Ledge Board paid for it – Jay Rosen)
• Leave Uniserv director out of the process (Holt – 4 year contract attained
• Small districts – superintendent should not directly negotiate – hire external resource
• “Grassroots” initiatives to Marshall community support to influence the legislature from a local perspective – move on to county level
• share the data with employees and they become empowered with that knowledge
• “125” PLAN” – cash in lieu of health care – promote more among staff

1. Dissemination of information on health insurance district by district
2. Get Chamber & Businesses to be partners in this effort with us
3. Needs to be a statewide effort. Too time consuming on a district by district basis
4. need legislation that is well written
5. keep MASA members informed on a regular basis as to status of Health Insurance study & legislation
6. MSA needs to give us facts on insurance costs & comparisons

1. Declining enrollment – decreased funding - cutting staff & programs – dipping into fund balance
2. Negotiations - no money to offer – many agreements still outstanding
3. Strategies
   - buy outs – no replacement
   - layoffs – reduced staffing (e.g. media specialists, social workers, support staff – every other day cleaning, counselors, increased class size)
4. Prioritizing cuts – need to map out cuts
5. How much fund balance do districts need to keep? Justification important
6. Process for making cuts – steps districts use to involve staff in making recommendations
7. meeting to educate community & staff about the issues
8. cost containment – joint district initiatives (energy, fuel, transportation, waste management)
   - Suggestions: MASA set-up statewide website data base about District by District information (negotiations, who is paying for healthcare, strategies that work – shared ideas)
9. Letter to each staff stating total compensation they receive
   - Suggestions:
   MASA – put together PR packages for superintendents to use – common issues – common front
   MASA/MASB – joint messages

• Consolidate with a higher foundation district
• Involvement of community? PTO council for input, study session, whole board meeting dedicated to finance: all committees to report
• Administrative team is prioritizing to bring to administrative council
• Town hall meeting in past not successful attendance
• Strong fund balances create conditions to allow cuts
• As much parent input as possible – through advisory committees
• Wear them down
• Meet with executive council – interactive discussion to just informing
• Budget scenarios
• MSBO – software program
• Dilemma of telling the story to teachers
• Meeting with leadership groups monthly (don’t depend on leadership)
• Contracted services: transportation, food services, maintenance (creates furor in community)
• Privatization could work if conditions are right (custodial services)
• Could use the bids to negotiate future contracts

• School of Choice – only option to increase option “pac man” destroy other districts
• Grant writing – matching dollars needed. Not flexible
• Consolidation and outsourcing – cooperative programs can run into problems with MEAP and student count numbers. Great example of outsourcing – grounds and snow removal.
• Partnerships – using partnerships with local gov’t to help provide services. Local districts combine/consolidate staff – example, Kalamazoo County Schools joining together and having one “payroll”
• Transportation – county leadership to help coordinate steps to have districts cooperate with special education/vocational programs. Reduce athletic trips. Bidding out fuel each time tank is dry. One district had a $900 savings.
• Employee Creep – Keep track of the number of staff positions that creep up in districts. Eliminate excess staff.
• Health insurance – increasing the amount of cash in lieu.
• Cooperative purchases with other districts
• Negotiations – Bargain total compensation based on each unit’s total percentage of budget. For example, teachers are 59% of budget – they get 59% of new dollars. MESSA – continue to work with employees to share responsibility.
• Special education services – Northville – significant reduction of Special Education services (13% to 5.35%) because of early elementary program. Haven’t added staff (Bob Sorenson, Northville).
• Don’t pay teachers for non-instructional jobs. Contract out with cheaper employees.
• Some districts closed school for 1 more week at winter break to save $
• Summer check – no air conditioning for empty business/classrooms unplug refrigerators throughout the district.

Finance
Facilitator: Chris Wigent
Recorder: Cheryl Hannenburg

• Look at all day, every day kindergarten
• Contract services – administrators
• Satellite bussing
• Board votes on the budget not the specifics/issues
• PowerPoint presentation to all staff members
• Give options that people don’t want …payless Fridays….
• Consolidate vendors from building to building
• Vendors sponsor things for kids
• Maximize all grant opportunities
• Revenue generation – build a fund development capability through the alumni! Sell rooms – name after people/businesses
• Educational Foundation
• Pay on health premiums – have a dollar cap
• Cooperative T1 services – internet access
• Remove all overloads assignments
• Look at ISD – offering AP’s, etc. Use MVHS, interactive TV.
• Cooperative bids thru ISD
• Sub-contract substitute services
• ISD serves as business manager for district
• “0 bases” budgeting concept
• ISD – internet provider for local districts

1. program evaluation
2. prioritize programs/services
3. make reducations
4. tight projection process
5. be sure you truly understand when your district hits the wall financially (5%, 10% fund balance?)
6. then develop budget plan and strategies to deliver program and services

Board/Superintendent Relationships
Facilitator: Milli Haug

1. hold informal work sessions once a month
2. weekly updates – e-mailed every Friday
   a. include “rumor mill” corrections
   b. gives seeds for future thought
3. make sure they can get along with one another
4. no committee meetings because some think others get more information
5. e-mail is wonderful (time saving)
6. spend a lot of time with new board members orientating them to their role
7. all board members get answers to a question raised by one board member. May point out a micro-managing board member
8. careful, weekly updates are FOIA-able
9. don’t make flip-ed (stupid) remarks
10. good board members trust each other
11. take the work of their committees
    a. approve committee recommendations without a lot of discussion
12. community rallies around good board members
    a. police and clean up the board
13. quietly recruit potential board members to run for open seats
14. host a board retreat for social and goal setting
    a. establish superintendent’s annual goals
    b. have a mid-year retreat to check on progress of board goals
15. keep goals simple and few
    a. can’t be spread too thin
16. Answer all questions. Give all board members the information.
    a. Builds trust with the board member asking the questions
    b. Board my begin to police their own by reacting to the request for frivolous information

Board/Superintendent Relationships
Facilitator: Mark Haag
Recorder: Jim Ryan

Relationship can be different than the predecessor’s
Methods

1. communications
   • on a regular basis
   • respond quickly on problems
   • Friday flyer
   • Make it a 2-way dialogue
   • Can use paper, email
   • Be aware of FOIA
   • Weekly-type flyer
   • Confidential communication
   • Hot spot memo
2. Telephone usage
   • Call before the Board meeting to see if they have questions
3. Email
   • Almost a daily email
   • Secondary issue around the Open Meetings Act and the dialogue the Board is having
   • Respond to each other rather then to the Supt & that is the concern or a Board member responds to the supt & copies the other 6
   • Caution on this when you use email
   • There is a balance with the open meetings act that can get close to fall off
   • The challenge is a 1-on-1 discussion vs. a group discussion
4. Board orientation/training
   • ISD may have regular Board member training
   • Board certification from MASB is a possibility
   • Board goals and Supt. goals
   • Hold 1 hour conversations with each member of the leadership team for new board members
   • Can do some strategic planning to help the board understand what the goals are and where the district is heading
5. Committees
   • Use them to meet before the meetings to keep them informed
   • Post these committee meetings
   • Communicate to 2 or 3 at a time
   • 1 board meeting per month, plus committee meetings
   • do have community members, parents, and board members on some committees
   • board committees are advisory in nature
6. Workshops/retreats
   • Some hold them twice a year
   • Usually held in the district
   • Have used facilitator
   • Tough to go away
7. Social events
   • Held at the supt’s house
   • In the summer and at holiday
   • Spouses
   • Don’t post this as a meeting; it is a social event
   • Board recognition monthly dinner off-site
   • New teacher reception where the Board is invited
   • Dinner theater at the high school
8. Evaluation
   • Self evaluation for the Board done by the Supt
   • Action reporting on the goals set by the Board for the supt
   • Strategic Plan can help here
   • Lots of communication involved in this process

Legislative Issues
Facilitators: Kathy Merry & Dick Syrek
Recorder: Dick Syrek

• Supt/Parent Advisory Council – have parents write letters
• Have parents go to Lansing
• Legislative breakfast meeting (per month) with superintendents – Saginaw County
• Video tape board meetings with emphasis on budget problems. Gets to more community members
• Parents for Education (Oakland County) – 5 parents per district that meets
• Tri County Alliance: ask legislature to pledge support to place education first. Report card grade based on votes on important education bill.
• As you talk to legislators, make it personal.
• Business Education Committee: issues are discussed in letters written to legislators as needed.
• Have local legislators attend board meeting for discussion on education issues

Creating High School Learning Communities
Charming & delightful hosts Rick Repicky and Janice Brown

K – Central - $500k federal grants. Adults being responsible for their own learning

Question for discussion: What is your interest & knowledge about small learning communities?
Responses:
1. teacher resistance to initiatives that restrict –
2. ISD – looking at high schools differently via series of summits
3. kids – size; relationships between teacher & student – make curriculum relevant – treat me with respect – How will we know if we’re successful – natural flow from curriculum to PLC’s. We have to improve the learning; 9th grade critical.
Grant from K-zoo freshman academy: 120 kids. Half day common; planning time is significant; looking for ways to deliver a consistent message; kids notice the levels of sincerity of the academy staff. Southfield – implemented academies – not sure of current status

Strategic research inquire – some kids simply take more time; nothing below algebra or 8th grade composition; provision of time & direction for staff; develop common standards & assessment; primarily blocked at the table; you have to train all year; development of teacher leaders is a natural outgrowth of PLC & learning. Superintendent’s role? Learning for all – whatever it takes.

For things the Fed to K-zoo:
1. clone the four teachers they saw – nurture the best
2. maintain the vision
3. get the story out
4. get the rest of the teachers to buy in

Job embedded professional development is key to success – it’s a systems approach
What’s the role of ISDs?

Regions on the Move
Facilitator: Dan Pappas

1. frequent meetings – monghly
2. high interest speakers – in person via teleconference
3. luncheons with retired superintendents – holiday time
4. honoring community members - i.e. Champion for Children
5. Public Service announcements/videos – re: regional supts.
6. meeting – between regions involving a social activity – golf
7. “shout and share” period at each region meeting
8. let people know what we do at region level (and state)
9. new superintendents – welcome activity
10. “welcome wagon” type package for new supts

NCLB
Facilitators: Theresa Saunders/Camille Short
Recorder: Camille Short

Changing demographics
• Special Ed – major concern; #1 on list
• Demographics not necessarily changing
• Need to be more attentive to modify issues
• Need to be able to follow child
• Parents feeling teachers are communicating “blame” for not making AYP
• Against theory of inclusion – general ed teachers wanting to exclude special ed teachers
• Increased pressure to put students in center-based programs; local administrators don’t want local program

How are we helping staff?
• Staff sees it as absurd – with diversity of special needs, giving same assessment doesn’t make sense

Grassroots efforts
• Educational piece needs to be clear with parents and staff
• Turning “blame” on special ed population
• Need for criteria for subgroups to be % rather than concrete number (30)
• Accommodations need to be continued through assessments
• Goal – criteria for giving MI-Access/MEAP; districts have excused too many students
• IDEA authorization – good ideas
• Need to mobilize delegation to promote amendment to law; need reality check.
• Solution? Alternative assessments; don’t penalize for everyday accommodations
• Media not producing proper explanation
• Have legislators visit classrooms – many have never been exposed to severely handicapped; bring them up to speed as to what is rally taking place in classrooms; include parents in discussion

Ideas to take back
• Advocate with legislators & media
• Need to see aligned curriculum
• Advocate to align with rational percentage of special ed population (higher than 1%)

Highly Qualified for Special Ed
• We rely on house standard (test, grade credits, portfolios, etc.)
• M.S program Wayne State & Grand Valley – Carolyn White

Cooperative Efforts/Shared Services
Facilitator: Dan Reattoir
Recorder: Tom Langdon

Greg Webster (Bear Lake/Brethren):
• small ISD, saw need for consolidation 10-15 years ago
• mid-90’s saw opportunity to consolidate w/Onekama, that was shot down by legislature and Onekama decided to still carry on cooperative issues.
• Bear Lake & Brethren started writing grants, so that led to Bear Lake & Brethren sharing the superintendent duties (6 years ago)
• Still do grants together, share tech. director, hot lunch paperwork, transportation, but most remarkable is the shared partnership in business managing.

Scott Belt (Port Hope)
• Distance learning
• Share services with Harbour Beach
• Bussing to tech center
• Football program
• FFA

• These cooperative issues must be addressed, but not too quickly to upset the community
• If we don’t do it, it will be forced by Lansing
• i.e. consolidation of districts – LEA easier than ISD (millage)
• with shared business services, superintendent must communicate so that long-range forecasts are considered
• special ed is an area to be considered, especially transportation
• trust is critical in all of these issues

Cooperative Efforts/Shared Services
Recorder: Jack Wallington

• share travel to cooperative programs – to ISD programs
• combined text purchases
• shared mechanic services for transportation services
• back-up buses supported through ISD or pooled back-up buses
• business/financial coordination (shared staff), common business software
• centralized sup calling system
• contracted services for subs – no retirement costs
• AP/dual enrollment classes coordinated. Distance learning
• Regionalizing curriculum
• Shared administrative services
• Technology – shared services – tech support
• Hire employees through ISD to avoid overtime with non-exempt employees when they do other extra duty employment
• Share staff for alternative ed
• Pool purchasing power

Decisions of Integrity
Concern that there are not conversations regarding ethics in administrative classes and workshops. Would like to see this topic addressed in new superintendent meetings/institutes.

Performing, modeling, expecting leader to behave in a ethical manner is critical to creating schools and classrooms that function in this same manner and therefore – the next generation of moral workers will be influenced and impacted by our activities. In addition the future view of education and educators depends on high morals at the top.

Concern: it only takes a single story to paint all educators with a negative view. Therefore, each of our decisions impacts all the rest of us. An example of an area in which superintendents could benefit from conversation is how to talk to people to run/participate in schools and elections without looking like or participating in the endorsement of local board candidates.

Final note: the opportunity to talk with peers has been the very positive and powerful component of the conference
Idea: this is so important. A topic like this would make for great case study learning.

New Generation of Teachers
Facilitator: Marlene Davis
Recorder: Char Myers

Senior teachers = earn respect of district (working late, getting job done)
Vs.
New teachers = “I get respect because I’m here” surprised at amount of work outside work day

• New teachers bring new ideas/methods that may be discounted by veteran teachers – net new
• New teachers – bolder, self-confident but haven’t been taught the “politics” of schools – competent instructors but couldn’t get along in the school culture
• Veteran teachers were “compliant” (coaching, being a committee member) vs. new teachers wanting to be paid for extra work
• Change in society expectations – playing together as kids: figuring out how to get along with others – huge impact by technology
• Need in teacher preparation at university level: team building, handling conflict, interpersonal communication, student discipline or collaboration with unions
Idea:
• breakout session or keynote
1. Psychology of the New Generation of Teachers
- Their outlook
- “blending” the new with the old
- as administrators what is our role
• suggest that we begin dialogue w/universities regarding the “attitudes” of new teachers & how to address it