Empowerment Schools

Governor Gibbons has proposed eliminating the 1/5 service credit incentive and putting the money into an empowerment school pilot program.  The program would cost $60 million--$45 million for implementation and $15 million for merit pay—and would empower only 100 schools statewide.

The Nevada State Education Association has researched the empowerment program the Governor proposed in his State of the State speech; it originates in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.  We have met with the former school superintendent of the Edmonton School District who started the empowerment program.  We have also spoken with the current president of the teachers association in Edmonton.

• Empowerment schools in Edmonton are very similar to site based decision making—schools decide how to spend their own budget within a given framework.  NSEA supports “empowerment” when based upon bargained contracts.
• There is no merit pay in Edmonton, yet Governor Gibbons and his staff insist that the Edmonton Empowerment plan be used to implement merit pay for teachers. 
• There is open enrollment in Edmonton.  Students are guaranteed enrollment for the school in which they are zoned, but parents may change schools if space is available.
• The Clark County School District is already piloting empowerment schools.  It is responsible to evaluate how this program is raising student achievement before piloting a different empowerment program.  A report on the Clark County empowerment schools should be ready for the legislature later this session.
• NSEA opposes doing away with the 1/5 service credit incentive program.