The Kennebec Journal

March 5

Educators lukewarm about 'federal blackmail'

BY MATTHEW STONE, Staff Writer

AUGUSTA -- Three bills meant to bolster Maine's position in a federal competition for $4 billion in education reform dollars drew tepid support, and plenty of skepticism, from education lobbyists and reform advocates at a public hearing Thursday.

The bills would:

* strike down a provision in Maine law that bars tying student achievement data to teacher and principal evaluations, opening the door to performance-based pay for teachers;

* allow Maine to adopt a set of national curriculum standards, the "Common Core Standards," being developed by the National Governors Association; and

* let school districts set up so-called "innovative" schools that have more freedom than traditional public schools in choosing staff members and developing curriculum.

Gov. John Baldacci's administration developed the proposals in an effort to improve Maine's position in the Race to the Top, a competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education that rewards states embracing school reforms endorsed by the Obama administration. The $4 billion fund was part of the federal economic stimulus package.

At Thursday's hearing, representatives of the state's principals, superintendents and largest teachers' union cautioned lawmakers against swiftly changing state education policy simply to conform with competition guidelines.

"We resent the national pressure being applied by the federal government to change state laws as a prerequisite to applying for Race to the Top funds," Richard Durost, executive director of the Maine Principals' Association, told members of the Legislature's Education Committee. "If the result was guaranteed funding, we might be more agreeable. In its present form, this is nothing more than federal blackmail."

Others suggested the three proposals didn't go far enough toward bringing Maine in line with the education reforms embraced by the Obama administration.

In recent months, a number of states -- including Massachusetts, Michigan and Tennessee -- have loosened limits on independently run charter schools, made it easier for school administrators to fire ineffective teachers and introduced alternative ways for teachers to earn their certifications as they've prepared their Race to the Top applications.

"All of their efforts are more extensive, more ambitious and far more likely to have a transformational effect on students and schools than what you have before you today," said Stephen Bowen, director of the Center for Education Excellence at the Maine Heritage Policy Center, a conservative think tank.

The Baldacci administration is pushing the "innovative" schools proposal -- rather than a proposal for independently run charter schools -- after repeated attempts at legalizing charter schools in Maine have failed.

While support wasn't strong for the bills at Thursday's hearing, only one of the proposals attracted any opposition.

The Maine Education Association, the teachers' union, voiced its opposition to striking down the prohibition on using student achievement data as a factor in teacher and principal evaluations.

"There is little or no evidence that tying student test scores to teacher evaluations is an accurate or useful way to measure teacher effectiveness," Chris Galgay, the union's president, said.

Others, who said they supported ending the prohibition, raised concerns about developing fair and accurate evaluation systems for teachers and principals.

The hearing came on the same day that the U.S. Department of Education announced that 15 states and Washington, D.C., made the first cut as finalists in an early round of the Race to the Top competition.

Maine is planning to apply by June 1 for funds in the second round of the contest, and could be eligible for up to $100 million, Maine Education Commissioner Susan Gendron said.

Matthew Stone -- 623-3811, ext. 435

mstone@centralmaine.com