MORGANTOWN — The House Education Committee approved bills on Wednesday to change school calendars, offer a new Business+ PROMISE Scholarship and provide an additional year of cursive handwriting instruction in elementary school
School calendar bill
HB 2433 originated as a bill to change county school calendars to begin no earlier than Labor Day and end no later than Memorial Day. The committee adopted an amendment offered by the lead sponsor, John Kelly, R-Wood, to change that range to Sept. 1 and May 31.
The new calendar would take effect for the 2021-22 school year. It won’t apply to schools using balanced calendars. The bill allows county boards to apply for a waiver to use a different calendar.
Delegate Paul Espinosa, R-Jefferson, former Education chair and now majority whip, opposed the bill. He said that in 2013 the Legislature passed legislation to allow county boards increased flexibility to account for weather disruptions and other issues.
“No matter how you slice this, it’s basically removing flexibility school districts have today,” he said. It could also affect the 32 counties that have adapted their calendars to end their first term before the Christmas break. Current law allows boards to alter their calendars, so this bill is redundant and unnecessary.
He cited various education performance statistics where West Virginia ranks at or near the bottom; this bill won’t help that by potentially reducing some schools’ classroom days from 180 to 165, he said.
Delegate Buck Jennings, R-Preston, also opposed it. It’s not unusual for snow close school for a week or three there, and the board has learned to adapt. This removes that flexibility.
Kelly said, this bill, and a previous version last year, arose from concerns parents, teachers, families and some school boards had about school years beginning in August and interfering with fairs, festivals, vacations and tourism. Some school boards have not listened to those concerns, he said.
Delegate Cindy Lavender-Bowe, D-Greenbrier, said her district hosts the sate fair and the August school start has been an issue.
The bill passed 18-3 and goes to the full House.
Business PROMISE+
HB 4143 creates the Business PROMISE+ Scholarship (pronunced promise plus).
It allows West Virginia businesses to donate at least $10,000 to the Business PROMISE+ Scholarship Fund and sponsor students who are eligible for the regular PROMISE Scholarship.
Qualifying student would identify businesses compatible with their interests and name their top three. The business would interview and choose a student or students to sponsor. Each student could receive up to $15,000 but no more than the business donated.
The business would receive a tax credit equal to 50% of its donation. The student would be obliged to work summers at the business and then remain working in West Virginia for the number of years the student received the scholarship – though not necessarily at the sponsoring business.
Delegate Lisa Zukoff, D-Marshall, noted two flaws in the bill. It doesn’t specify whether the summer work is paid or unpaid, and it doesn’t bar business owners from sponsoring their own children in exchange for a tax break.
The bill could be amended in House Finance or on the floor, but chair Joe Ellington, R-Mercer, also suggested those issues could be addressed in agency rules that are approved by the Legislature.
It passed unanimously in a voice vote and goes to Finance.
Cursive writing
HB 4089, sole sponsored by Delegate Rodney Pyles, D-Monongalia, requires cursive writing be taught in grades 3-5.
Sarah Stewart, with the Department of Education, told members that policy adopted in 2016 now requires cursive be taught in grades 2-4, so this bill would simply add a year.
She said there was a stretch of years before 2016 when cursive was optional and many students didn’t learn it. Lavender-Bowe said her 16-year-old twins never earned it in school.
Other teachers on the committee said their students were unable to read cursive documents or cursive on the chalkboard or overhead projector, or sign their names. Many of the nation’s historical documents are in cursive and kids who fell in that gap can’t read them.
Pyles is not on the committee but Stewart told members that he named the bill the Gertrude Martin Act after his third grade teacher at Wiles Hill School.
It passed unanimously and goes to the House floor.
Tweet David Beard @dbeardtdp Email dbeard@dominionpost.com
