Tag: Birmingham Board of Education
Gunn, Smith, Tate, Others Claim Victory in Birmingham Runoffs
Voters made final selections for the City Council and Board of Education in Tuesday’s runoff election.
Birmingham’s Municipal Election Wraps Up With Runoff Tuesday
Three seats on the Birmingham City Council and three on the Birmingham Board of Education are at stake.
Three Birmingham School Board Members Reelected, Three Races to Be Decided in Runoffs
Incumbents Sherman Collins Jr., Derek Billups and Leticia W. Harvill are headed back to the Birmingham City Board of Education; runoffs are needed in Districts 2, 8 and 9.
Birmingham BOE Candidates Talk Issues in the Run-Up to Tuesday’s Election
Getting parents involved in the education process and preparing students for life after school are two topics frequently addressed by the candidates.
Birmingham Council OKs New Districts Despite Dissent
The Birmingham City Council approved the redrawing of its district boundaries Tuesday to comport with data from the 2020 census, despite some councilors’ misgivings that the move will disenfranchise some voters.
Municipal law requires the redrawing of district lines after each federal census, which happens every 10 years. The goal of the redistricting is to balance the city’s population roughly equally among the nine districts, which each elect representatives to the City Council and school board.
But two councilors objected to the plan. Councilor Darryl O’Quinn said redistricting now basically invalidated the votes of thousands of residents whose districts changed. And Councilor Valerie Abbott objected to major sections of her area being shifted out of her district and other areas being added in. Read more.
Birmingham Council Sets April 19 Hearing and Vote on New Districts Despite Disenfranchisement Concerns
The Birmingham City Council has set an April 19 public hearing on its proposed redistricting plan, which will likely culminate in a vote despite concerns from some councilors that the timing of the redistricting’s implementation could be interpreted as voter disenfranchisement.
Municipal law requires the city to draw new district lines after each federal census, which happens every 10 years, to make sure that population is roughly balanced among the nine districts, which each elect representatives to the City Council and the school board.
Due to delays caused by COVID, the council didn’t receive the 2020 census results until earlier this year, even though there was an election in fall 2021. Some councilors, such as Councilor Darrell O’Quinn, expressed concerns over the timing of the new map’s implementation. For the changes to be made so early in a four-year term, O’Quinn said, “would essentially nullify (voters’) participation” in the 2021 election. Read more.
Birmingham Asks Public to Consider Proposed New Council and BOE District Lines
The Birmingham City Council is considering the approval of new City Council and Board of Education district lines, redrawn to take into account population shifts shown by the 2020 census.
City law mandates that districts be redrawn after each census to make sure that Birmingham’s population is evenly distributed among them. Each district elects a member of the City Council and the school board. The proposed changes would be in effect for the next two municipal elections, in 2025 and 2029.
The council held a public hearing March 29 to hear residents’ thoughts on the new district maps, and tweaks could be made based on those comments.
The proposal would shift territory out of relatively overpopulated districts — Districts 1 and 2, for example — and into underpopulated districts — Districts 4, 6, 8 and 9. Read more and see the full proposal.
3 Things to Watch for in the New Birmingham School Board
This week, the Birmingham City board of education welcomes six new members — a mix of former educators, business professionals and education advocates — making more than half the board new.
With an extra $185 million in federal pandemic relief funding, the new board will have a lot more money to address issues in Birmingham City Schools than previous boards. Those issues include still dealing with COVID-19 and learning loss in the classroom as well as student mental health.
The school board works with the superintendent and oversees the $160 million budget. Its members are often the first point of contact for parents, teachers and students with issues or concerns. Here’s what incoming, returning, and outgoing board members told WBHM they’re watching for from the newly elected school board. Read more.
Board of Education President Criticizes Woodfin’s Plan to Cut Funding for Birmingham Schools
Though she insisted that she was “absolutely not here in my professional capacity,” Birmingham School Board President Daagye Hendricks addressed the Birmingham City Council on Tuesday, calling Mayor Randall Woodfin’s proposed FY 2021 budget “egregious” for cutting funding to city schools.
This year’s city budget is nearly $50 million smaller than last year’s budget, thanks to a sharp decline in the city’s business tax revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the $412 million budget’s many proposed austerity measures — which include funding cuts for external organizations and furloughs for hundreds of city employees — is a reduction of $1 million in city funding to Birmingham City Schools.
Read more.
Budget Blows to Birmingham Schools and Transit Being Cushioned, Other Groups are Not as Lucky
Mayor Randall Woodfin defended some controversial cuts in his proposed FY 2021 budget Tuesday, arguing that, despite a significant drop in city funding, both Birmingham City Schools and the Birmingham-Jefferson Transit Authority would continue to operate as usual. Much of the money they lost will be made up by funds from elsewhere.
Many other groups, including the library system, zoo and Railroad Park, are facing much bigger consequences. Read more.
