Frequently Asked Questions on Regional Education Associations (formerly Joint Powers Agreements) For Education Leadership in North Dakota
These are some of the questions most often asked by school district leaders about joint powers agreements as a tool for meeting school district and state interests for future education leadership in North Dakota:
What effects will the REA have on our current specialty partnerships and coop arrangements?
None. The REA can accommodate the current partnerships and coop arrangements and provide opportunity for their coordination and improvement to meet local school district needs, with less administrative effort.
References:
Who has experience with REAs in North Dakota?
• The Mid-Dakota Education Council (MDEC) (around Minot),
• The Roughrider Education Services Program (RESP) (around Dickinson),
• The Northeast Education Service Cooperative (NESC) (around Devils Lake),
• The South Central Education Cooperative (SCEC) (around Jamestown and Valley City) and the Missouri River Educational Cooperative (MREC) (around Bismarck) have made significant use of the joint powers agreement tool to meet education service goals, serving over 60 school districts, 45% of K-12 students and 50% of the land area of North Dakota.
For more area information about the REA experience, contact:
• Dave Looysen (Minot, 857-4400),
• Dean Koppelman (Dickinson, 456-0002),
• Martin Schock (Elgin/New Leipzig, 584-2374),
• Jim Dunnigan (Medina 486-3121)
Newness:
Are REAs new or old tools?
REAs have been used between school districts before for specific partnerships and subjects. REAs have not been used, until recently, by education leaders to position themselves for providing comprehensive and strategic education services.
Governing Powers:
What powers do individual Governing Board members have?
On behalf of their school district, any Governing Board member may decide to support the idea and participate in its implementation, support the idea for the REA without participating in its implementation, or veto any action by the REA as a whole on that subject. All Governing Board members work to support the services of the regional education association to all the students in the area.
Challenges:
How can a REA assist education leaders in meeting education challenges?
REAs can provide the mechanism to address together the current challenges of enrollment, teacher recruitment and retention, curriculum development, No Child Left Behind (NCLB), school buildings and funding. Current REAs are planning and coordinating their combined approach to the implementation, reporting and remediation steps for NCLB accountability. REAs are focusing now on the coordination of curriculum development planning and inservice education programs.
Avoidance:
Is the REA a strategy for school consolidation avoidance?
No. The REA is a supplemental tool available to education leaders for providing education services for the sustainable future. The REA does not replace or compromise the use of other tools, including consolidation, annexation, reorganization and dissolution. The REA can be used together with these tools or it can provide a framewor to address important issues in a different way that can more effectively serve the local community identity values of educatio leaders.
State Education Leader goals:
Can the REA contribute to meeting state education leader goals?
REAs are beneficial for the long-term improvement of education services. REAs are compatible and helpful with any other initiatives for improving the administration of education or can become the central model for these improvements. REAs can assist education leaders in efficiently and effectively meeting the standards and requirements of No Child Left Behind and state standards. REAs can increase the efficiency of public fund usage for education services. REAs can contribute to the overall adequacy of education services within regions of the state.