Bill would undo another that forces parent input

By Emily Richmond

Wednesday, April 1, 2009 | 2 a.m.

Two years ago the Legislature required that school counselors meet individually with incoming ninth graders to draft a four-year academic plan, which must be signed by students and parents.

Assemblywoman Bonnie Parnell, D-Carson City, was the bill’s lead sponsor.

The intent was to help high school students set educational goals, make them more aware of the academic expectations that awaited them and give parents an opportunity for greater involvement in the planning process.

Now Parnell wants to remove the parental signature requirement, citing a number of phone calls she received from guidance counselors. Some have struggled to get parents to complete the paperwork and are worried that schools would be out of compliance with the statute as a result, Parnell said. She wouldn’t identify the districts in which the guidance counselors worked.

Assembly Bill 505 would drop the parental signature requirement.

The Clark County School District will continue its policy of requiring parents to sign off on the academic plans even if the Legislature drops its demand, said Kim Boyle, director of guidance and counseling.

Although she’s heard from a few counselors who had difficulties making contact with parents, Boyle said there’s no indication of a widespread problem.

“Working collaboratively with parents is an important part of the plan for us,” Boyle said. “We don’t consider it a burden.”

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It’s been 15 years since Thomas Pfundstein’s daughters were students at Las Vegas High School, but his dedication to the campus hasn’t wavered.

As senior executive director of the Southern Nevada Painting and Decorating Contractors of America, Pfundstein knew whom to ask for help when Las Vegas High needed a touch-up. Volunteers donated the manpower and supplies to repaint the exterior of the school and the quad.

Pfundstein’s efforts earned him the title of “unsung hero” and a spot among this year’s inductees in the Nevada Education Hall of Fame, which is overseen by the Nevada Public Education Foundation.

Joe Petrie, assistant principal in charge of activities and athletics at Las Vegas High, said Pfundstein probably logs 20 volunteer hours per week.

“Tom just wants to help out the kids — he doesn’t want recognition,” Petrie said. “We put up a sign over the scoreboard in the gym saying ‘Thank you.’ He came in on a weekend and tried to take it down.”

This year’s other “unsung heroes” are Doris Arnold, assistant to Nevada Superintendent of Public Instruction Keith Rheault, and Clark County Parks and Recreation’s Gang Intervention team. Also honored at a ceremony Thursday in Carson City: retired Washoe County Schools Superintendent James Hager; Assemblywoman Debbie Smith,

D-Sparks; education lobbyist Dottie Merrill; and educators Jesse Hall, Shirley McLees, Carol Medcalf and John Moddrell.

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Nevada lawmakers want to continue a pilot program requiring public schools to measure the heights and weights of a representative sample of students and forward the results to the State Health Division.

The data is being used to calculate each student’s Body Mass Index, or BMI, considered by physicians and researchers to be an important indicator of overall health, and to better track childhood obesity.

But lawmakers aren’t requiring that the results of the in-school exams be shared with parents, citing concerns about cost and potential privacy issues.

In fact, there’s already a way for the Clark County School District to share such information — ParentLink, an online system that allows families to track homework assignments and grades, and to communicate with teachers.

Phil Brody, Clark County’s assistant superintendent for technology, said it wouldn’t be difficult to adapt ParentLink so school nurses could log the results of the BMI exam, and the cost would be minimal.