In Minnesota, as in Washington, the Senate has the duty to confirm appointments made by the executive branch. But unlike Washington, D.C., Minnesota’s confirmation process used to be about the resume and qualifications of the nominee at the beginning of their term.
Used to be? Until 2004, that is, when Steve Kelly, Chairman of the Senate Education Committee used the confirmation process to conduct a two-year job review of Commissioner Cheri Pierson Yecke because he disagreed with the policies she was successfully promoting on behalf of Governor Tim Pawlenty.
No one with a straight face could argue Yecke was not qualified to be commissioner. A native Minnesotan, she was a former teacher with classroom experience. She had a Ph.D. in education policy. She had already served as commissioner of education in another state and was a high ranking official at the federal Department of Education. Minnesota had never seen anyone more qualified to run the state education department.
But her confirmation was not about her qualifications. Kelly didn’t even bring up her confirmation until halfway through Pawlenty’s first term in office. He then held two hearings spanning six hours of testimony about the Pawlenty education agenda and her part in getting it accomplished. The hearings turned into a "witch hunt" lead by Kelly.
The DFL-controlled Senate denied her confirmation at 3:00 in the morning on the last day of the legislative session, while the public was sleeping.
Governor-elect Dayton won the election, and he deserves to appoint a commissioner of education who shares his values, but former Senator Kelly’s conduct must not be rewarded with a Senate confirmation of his own. Republican Senators like David Hann, Gen Olson, and Geoff Michel who had front-row seats to the unfair scrutiny applied to Yecke should send a signal now to the Dayton administration that a Kelly nomination would be dead on arrival.
Showing posts with label pawlenty. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pawlenty. Show all posts
4/21/2010
Tim Pawenty: Education Governor, 2010
I started this blog in 2003 when I was appointed to Governor Tim Pawlenty's Academic Standards Committee, under the leadership of then-Education commissioner Cheri Pierson-Yecke. That newly-appointed Commissioner Yecke restored her department's name to Education from the "Department of Children, Families, and Learning," and replaced the fuzzy, process-oriented Profile of Learning with the more knowledge-oriented state academic standards, is a testament to the sweeping, high-velocity changes made possible by the 2002 elections. In 2002, Pawlenty beat DFL candidate Roger Moe by eight points, with 80 percent of Minnesotans voting. Republicans held an 82-52 majority in the state House, while the DFL held a slim 35-31 majority in the Senate. Since then I have documented on this blog Pawlenty's persistent advocacy for meaningful education reforms.
Under a year to the end of his administration, Pawlenty this week unveiled another sweeping education reform agenda. Some of his initiatives are new, some are dusted off from previous legislative sessions, and some are being touted by the governor as an attempt to attract federal education funds, but all are consistent with his ongoing commitment to innovative education reforms. They include:
Expanded Q Comp Minnesota's Quality Compensation for Teachers — Pawlenty's signature education reform includes professional development, teacher evaluations, and a performance-based alternative pay system. In 2010, Pawlenty proposes an extension of the program to include principals and strengthening teacher preparation.
Alternative teacher licensure — providing jobs for mid-career professionals and providing "real world" prospective to classrooms would be a win-win from this proposed new pathway to teaching. If you have any doubts about how well this could work, take a look at a similar approach used by Teach for America.
Easing the expansion of successful charter schools — nationally-proven programs like KIPP (Knowledge Is Power Program) would be encouraged by Governor Pawlenty to expand in Minnesota by streamlining the charter school application process for them.
In a statement, Pawlenty said, "The national education reform landscape is changing and leading reform states are adopting these kinds of changes. Eventually these measures will be enacted here, too. The only question is whether Minnesota will lead or be late to the game."
Under a year to the end of his administration, Pawlenty this week unveiled another sweeping education reform agenda. Some of his initiatives are new, some are dusted off from previous legislative sessions, and some are being touted by the governor as an attempt to attract federal education funds, but all are consistent with his ongoing commitment to innovative education reforms. They include:
Expanded Q Comp Minnesota's Quality Compensation for Teachers — Pawlenty's signature education reform includes professional development, teacher evaluations, and a performance-based alternative pay system. In 2010, Pawlenty proposes an extension of the program to include principals and strengthening teacher preparation.
Alternative teacher licensure — providing jobs for mid-career professionals and providing "real world" prospective to classrooms would be a win-win from this proposed new pathway to teaching. If you have any doubts about how well this could work, take a look at a similar approach used by Teach for America.
Easing the expansion of successful charter schools — nationally-proven programs like KIPP (Knowledge Is Power Program) would be encouraged by Governor Pawlenty to expand in Minnesota by streamlining the charter school application process for them.
In a statement, Pawlenty said, "The national education reform landscape is changing and leading reform states are adopting these kinds of changes. Eventually these measures will be enacted here, too. The only question is whether Minnesota will lead or be late to the game."
4/07/2010
Pawlenty challenges Minnesota to lead rather than "get dragged"
On Tuesday, Governor Tim Pawlenty simultaneously stood up for meaningful education reforms and tried to position the state to win second-round federal Race to the Top education reform dollars.
"The only question in this room is going to be 'Do you want to get dragged there, or do you want to lead to that point?'" said Pawlenty. "I suggest we lead because this is going to happen. It will happen some time in the next 3-10 years."
Sometimes politics makes for truly odd bedfellows. The Pawlenty administration and education reform advocates are finding themselves supporting some of the significant aspects of the Obama administration's Race to the Top initiative, while many Democrats and the teachers unions, strong supporters of candidate Obama in 2008, oppose them, including:
"The only question in this room is going to be 'Do you want to get dragged there, or do you want to lead to that point?'" said Pawlenty. "I suggest we lead because this is going to happen. It will happen some time in the next 3-10 years."
Sometimes politics makes for truly odd bedfellows. The Pawlenty administration and education reform advocates are finding themselves supporting some of the significant aspects of the Obama administration's Race to the Top initiative, while many Democrats and the teachers unions, strong supporters of candidate Obama in 2008, oppose them, including:
- Alternative teacher licensure - allowing non-traditional candidates like mid-career professionals alternative paths becoming licensed teachers
- Pay for performance - linking teacher pay to student performance, even more than Minnesota's current, optional Q Comp program
Conservatives generally and the Pawlenty administration in particular have been advocating for these types of reforms since at least the late 1990s. From the nation's first charter school laws to replacing the process-oriented Profile of Learning with knowledge-based academic standards, to Q Comp, Minnesota has often led the way in education reform, rather than let itself be dragged by Washington, D.C. educrats to improving its public school system.
There is no reason for Minnesota to wait for yet another federal subsidy before implementing more nation- and world-leading education reforms. According to the U.S. and state constitutions, education is a function of the various states, not the federal government. With the right leadership, Minnesota can close the achievement gap, lower costs, and put more control of the schools in the hands of local school boards and parents. That would be change we could all believe in.
6/05/2009
Unalottment: don't let this crisis go to waste
"You never want a serious crisis to go to waste. And what I mean by that is an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before." —Rahm Emmanuel, Obama White House Chief of Staff
In his July unalottment, Tim Pawlenty has an opportunity to put a nice bow on the signature education reforms of his two terms as Minnesota's governor. Although Pawlenty has been reluctant to cut education funding at all this biennium, holding education (mostly the teachers union) harmless will be problematic given that K-12 education consumes 39.1% of the state's $35 billion budget.
As detailed in an e-mail to supporters and their 2010-2011 budget recommendations, EdWatch sees unalottment as Pawlenty's opportunity to cut education programs that are ineffective and "undermine parental authority and autonomy."
Among the items on the EdWatch hit list are some programs that EdWatch has opposed for years:
Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) (Current: $51,850,000, Governor: $44,745,000, EdWatch: $0) - EdWatch reports that ECFE, "according to the Legislative Auditor, shows no evidence of developmental gains for children and only some increase in parental feelings of effectiveness."
Head Start (Current: $40,200,000, Governor: $40,200,000, EdWatch: $0) - This program is widely assumed to be effective, but EdWatch claims that "More than 600 studies show the lack of effectiveness of this program, there are several studies showing emotional harm to participants, and Minnesota already received $189.5 million in federal funds over the last two federal fiscal years for this."
International Baccalaureate (IB) - EdWatch would cut $2.7 million for IB tests and programs. It has long maintained that Advanced Placement (AP) programs are "locally controlled, prepare students better for college, comport with MN academic standards, and are far less expensive." In fact, some school districts have passed in adding IB course in favor of AP for these same reasons.
Kindergarten Readiness Assessment and Intervention Program (Current: $573,000, Governor: $574,000, EdWatch: $0) - According to EdWatch, this assessment "uses very vague and subjective criteria based on very vague, subjective, and politically correct outcomes, The Early Childhood Indicators of Progress. This ridiculous assessment gives fuel to the Nanny State falsely claiming that 50% of Minnesota children are not ready for kindergarten."
The EdWatch recommendations include a total of eight education items and eight health and human services items that are education-related. Governor Pawlenty and Education Commissioner Alice Seagren should seriously consider these proposed cuts as they work through unalottment.
In his July unalottment, Tim Pawlenty has an opportunity to put a nice bow on the signature education reforms of his two terms as Minnesota's governor. Although Pawlenty has been reluctant to cut education funding at all this biennium, holding education (mostly the teachers union) harmless will be problematic given that K-12 education consumes 39.1% of the state's $35 billion budget.
As detailed in an e-mail to supporters and their 2010-2011 budget recommendations, EdWatch sees unalottment as Pawlenty's opportunity to cut education programs that are ineffective and "undermine parental authority and autonomy."
Among the items on the EdWatch hit list are some programs that EdWatch has opposed for years:
Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) (Current: $51,850,000, Governor: $44,745,000, EdWatch: $0) - EdWatch reports that ECFE, "according to the Legislative Auditor, shows no evidence of developmental gains for children and only some increase in parental feelings of effectiveness."
Head Start (Current: $40,200,000, Governor: $40,200,000, EdWatch: $0) - This program is widely assumed to be effective, but EdWatch claims that "More than 600 studies show the lack of effectiveness of this program, there are several studies showing emotional harm to participants, and Minnesota already received $189.5 million in federal funds over the last two federal fiscal years for this."
International Baccalaureate (IB) - EdWatch would cut $2.7 million for IB tests and programs. It has long maintained that Advanced Placement (AP) programs are "locally controlled, prepare students better for college, comport with MN academic standards, and are far less expensive." In fact, some school districts have passed in adding IB course in favor of AP for these same reasons.
Kindergarten Readiness Assessment and Intervention Program (Current: $573,000, Governor: $574,000, EdWatch: $0) - According to EdWatch, this assessment "uses very vague and subjective criteria based on very vague, subjective, and politically correct outcomes, The Early Childhood Indicators of Progress. This ridiculous assessment gives fuel to the Nanny State falsely claiming that 50% of Minnesota children are not ready for kindergarten."
The EdWatch recommendations include a total of eight education items and eight health and human services items that are education-related. Governor Pawlenty and Education Commissioner Alice Seagren should seriously consider these proposed cuts as they work through unalottment.
1/15/2007
Pawently's education agenda preview
Our approach when it comes to early childhood will be to focus on kids who are at risk and disadvantaged. —Gov. Tim Pawlenty
Governor Tim Pawlenty gave a preview of his education agenda to Star Tribune columnist Lori Sturdevant in yesterday's Strib. Presumably, Pawlenty will give a more detailed overview in his upcoming State of the State address.
The stakeholders to whom Scholar has spoken say that these "x% of funding to the classroom" proposals sound good, but it is largely an accounting gimmick: like when you go to the doctor's office, whether insurance pays for it depends on what code they assign to the procedure. A more meaningful reform in this area would be to scrap the UFARS accounting system for a more straightforward, transparent system. Paging Pat Anderson!!
Perhaps the state of Minnesota's slide into cradle-to-grave, nanny state socialism at least won't accelerate during the second Pawlenty administration (statewide smoking ban aside).
Governor Tim Pawlenty gave a preview of his education agenda to Star Tribune columnist Lori Sturdevant in yesterday's Strib. Presumably, Pawlenty will give a more detailed overview in his upcoming State of the State address.
About the best way to improve education: "We'll have a robust set of offerings in education. It will certainly include high school redesign and reform.
"The data are pretty compelling. School performance on average chugs along pretty well in grade school and middle school, and then with the exception of the high performers, it tanks in high school. We're putting a lot of money into a four-year experience that is not producing much academic ROI. We have to find ways for children in the middle, and certainly those who are at risk, to be engaged, passionate, on task, and advancing well in high school. We'll have a significant proposal when it comes to that."
What happened to putting 70 percent of school funds in the classroom? "We are going to do 70 percent whether the Legislature passes it or not. We'll make sure the department [of education] makes sure there's a rigorous, uniform measurement of where the resources go, and make that available to the public in a user-friendly form."
The stakeholders to whom Scholar has spoken say that these "x% of funding to the classroom" proposals sound good, but it is largely an accounting gimmick: like when you go to the doctor's office, whether insurance pays for it depends on what code they assign to the procedure. A more meaningful reform in this area would be to scrap the UFARS accounting system for a more straightforward, transparent system. Paging Pat Anderson!!
And early education? "There's an endless number of things that are good ideas in education. You could construct a list of 75 things that would be really good to do. But it has to be prioritized, in the context of the resources that we have available.
"For example, all-day kindergarten. It's a nice idea, and something we are open to. But if you do it full-blown, it's $320 million a biennium. The data says it helps, but in an era of limited resources, doesn't it make more sense to dial in resources to disadvantaged kids? Our approach when it comes to early childhood will be to focus on kids who are at risk and disadvantaged."
Perhaps the state of Minnesota's slide into cradle-to-grave, nanny state socialism at least won't accelerate during the second Pawlenty administration (statewide smoking ban aside).
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