Though Gov. Robert Bentley proposed eliminating funding for a program that covers high school science lab supplies, Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, chairman of the Senate Finance and Taxation Education committee, said he's seen no explanation why the program should be eliminated.

Orr said he is inclined to leave money in place for Science in Motion, a program that sees 33 education specialists deliver science lab materials to Alabama high schools in a van.

Teachers and supporters of the Alabama school program have been burning up social media trying to convince lawmakers to save the program's $1.6 million in funding.

Orr said he has heard a lot of concern about the program in emails and phone calls from students and teachers across Alabama. He said it is likely that his fellow lawmakers are also hearing from their constituents.

The state's education budget process has only just begun, Orr said, and he plans to talk with fellow Senators and with House education budget chairman Rep. Bill Poole, R-Tuscaloosa, before any decision is made to restore funding to the Science in Motion program. Orr said he had not received an explanation justifying cutting 100 percent of the program's funding.

Gov. Bentley's communications director, Yasamie August, said funding for the program wasn't removed. Instead, funding was moved to a category known as "other current expense," or OCE, where school districts have more flexibility in how to spend the money. The proposal was the result of conversations with the state department of education, August said, where state department officials said districts need more flexibility.

Moving that funding into OCE effectively defunds Science in Motion. Science in Motion was created in 1994 and became the high school science part of the Alabama Math Science and Technology Initiative (AMSTI) in 2000. The program is housed in 11 colleges across the state. Those 11 colleges, known as in-service centers, each serve a geographic area.

State funding is used to employ one specialist in each subject area of physics, chemistry, and biology for each of the 11 in-service centers across the state. That's 33 specialists around the state.

What we do. This is one delivery for one school in our service area. This is one weeks worth of labs for seven different... Posted by Roger Birkhead on Friday, February 10, 2017

According to the Jan. 31, 2017, legislative report, in fiscal year 2016, Science in Motion delivered $430,000 in supplies and $82,000 in equipment to 136,684 students in 352 schools. Reports indicate 132 of Alabama's 137 school systems were served, but the report didn't name which school districts weren't served.

At the February work session, Alabama superintendent Michael Sentance told state board of education members he wants them to consider moving away from the current models of training teachers through the 11 in-service centers in programs in reading, math and science and instead create centers for each of the subject areas.

Sentance told board members that continuing to do things the way they are currently being done is only going to produce the same achievement results for students and that the model of helping teachers needs to be revamped.

He presented the idea of changing to a center-based model over the next three years.

Each subject area would be housed at one of Alabama's research universities chosen through a competitive grant process, Sentance said. External reviewers would choose the recipients.

Regardless of whether the state moves in that direction, Sentance said the board must continue to find ways to fund the types of lab supplies and science equipment provided to high school science classrooms statewide through Science in Motion.

The state department of education is currently working with three separate committees of educators and other stakeholders to formulate strategic plans for improving science, math, and reading instruction. When the committees were formed in the fall, Sentance said he hoped to have those plans in front of the board for consideration in March or April.

Orr said he had spoken with state department officials about the possibility of moving to the new model, but has not seen any concrete plans and doesn't expect that to be a part of the 2018 budget.

Alabama Sci In Motion-deleted from the '18 budget. Contact your legislator! We (students &teachers) NEED ASIM! @ALSciTeachers #SaveASIM — Keshia Williams,Ed.S (@KeshiaKaryotype) February 10, 2017

The education budget starts in the Senate this year. Orr said his goal is for the Senate to send the budget to the House for consideration not later than the first week of April.