Innovative initiatives for North Dakota such as teacher performance pay and pre-kindergarten programming may be before the state Legislature next year.
In the past two legislative sessions, policymakers passed landmark education bills. Next year, legislators could tackle what may be pegged as progressive policies for the state.
"One of the big ones right now is pay for performance," Lt. Gov. Jack Dalrymple said on Monday. "Anything in that area would be considered a major breakthrough."
Dalrymple heads the state Commission on Education Improvement, a group of educational leaders and legislators charged with developing recommendations for education legislation.
The commission met on Monday in Fargo to discuss progress in developing initiatives.
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While there is still a lot of work to be done, North Dakota Education Association Executive Director Greg Burns said he's certain teacher compensation will be addressed in the final report.
"The current system does not seem to make sense to a lot of people," Burns said of the salary schedule school districts use to pay teachers based on education and experience. "The status quo isn't sufficient."
While much still has to be worked out, there's a consensus for supporting programs that are implemented locally by individual districts and that reward teachers on multiple factors, not just one, such as student test scores.
Dalrymple said legislators could be receptive to the concept.
"I do think there's interest in North Dakota for some pay for performance approach," he said.
However, he said, state funding for pre-kindergarten isn't likely to emerge next year.
Instead, there may be support for expanding early-education programs proven to work, such as "Gearing Up for Kindergarten."
The school readiness and parent education program started in Cass County four years ago served nearly 300 families statewide last year.
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As one of 12 states without state-funded pre-kindergarten - dubbed the "dirty dozen" by early-education advocates - expanding the program could be one way for North Dakota to step up efforts, Dalrymple said.
A full report with the commission's recommendations is expected by September.
"It's beginning to gel," he said. "We're making good progress."
Readers can reach Forum reporter Kelly Smith at (701) 241-5515
