SD13 - Report of the SJR 57 Commission on Educational Accountability


Executive Summary:
First established by the 1999 Session of the General Assembly pursuant to SJR 498, the 20-member Commission on Educational Accountability was originally comprised of 11 legislative members, six nonlegislative members, and three ex officio members. The initial mission of the SJR 498 Commission was a comprehensive one; among its directives were to (i) review the Standards of Accreditation (SOA); (ii) monitor the implementation of the Standards of Learning (SOL) and revised assessments; and (iii) develop recommendations for ways to increase the capacity of schools, teachers, and students to meet increasingly rigorous academic standards.

The 2000 Session of the General Assembly expanded the mission of the Commission by adding an additional special task force to examine the need for appropriate alternative forms of SOL assessments for students receiving special education and related services and to continue the work of the Joint Subcommittee on Remediation. The Commission was also directed to continue the work of the Joint Subcommittee on Remediation (HJR 723) and to study the demand for and preparation of classroom teachers (HJR 159/SJR 248). The 2001 Session of the General Assembly continued for one year the work of the SJR 498 Commission on Educational Accountability and its three task forces by adopting SJR 385. The resolution expanded the membership of the Commission to 25 members.

The 2002 Session of the General Assembly adopted SJR 57, continuing the work of the Commission for a fourth year. Assigned to the Commission for study by the Senate Rules Committee were the issues raised by SJR 13 (Puller) and SJR 75 (Ruff). The Commission met once in 2002, on November 14, and received testimony from representatives of the Department and Board of Education regarding the Governor's Partnership for Achieving Successful Schools (PASS) Initiative, the implementation of the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act in the Commonwealth, Update on Standards of Learning Assessments and Implementation of the Standards of Accreditation, teacher shortage issues, and Universal, Voluntary 4-year-old programs.

To date, the Commission has produced three reports: Senate Document No. 52 (2000), Senate Document No. 36 (2001); and Senate Document No. 11 (2002).