[CharterSchools] Business, Education & Civic Groups Urge Jindal, BESE to Stay with Common Core

[charterschools at LACharter.org]

Business, Education & Civic Groups Urge Governor Jindal, BESE  
to Stay with Common Core and Related Testing  
  
We represent a large segment of the business, education and civic communities of Louisiana and  
we are today calling on Governor Jindal to act in the best interests of the children of the state and  
move forward with implementation of all aspects of Common Core. We are parents, grandparents,  
aunts and uncles; we are educators and employers and engaged citizens; and we are voters and  
taxpayers who represent broad citizen support for the Common Core standards and appropriate  
tests for the betterment of both our children and our state.  


Collectively we were shocked by the governor’s recent statements that despite the very strong  
affirmation of Common Core by both the Legislature and The Board of Elementary & Secondary  
Education coupled with widespread citizen support, he is now singlehandedly “committed to  
getting us out of…Common Core.”   


We believe this action would constitute executive overreach that violates every aspect of the spirit  
of the democratic process. It would suggest that the state should be governed not by the bodies  
that constitutionally enact education laws and policies, but by the unilateral use of the executive  
pen.   


Certainly, every governor has been invested with some degree of executive authority, but it should  
only be used as state law clearly states, “to see that the laws are faithfully executed.” It was not  
created to make end runs to void the policies of established constitutional bodies. In the face of  
any executive overreach with a pen, we ask BESE to stay firm and continue to implement  
Common Core standards and related tests.   


It should be stated that in enacting their policies on this important issue the Legislature and BESE  
followed all the rules of democratic principles. The board has taken least eight affirmative votes  
over a four‐year period moving Louisiana gradually into Common Core standards. Every meeting  
was public and in the process members heard many hours of public testimony from parents,  
educators and interested citizens.   


In 2012, the Legislature passed, and the governor signed, legislation requiring that students be  
tested “based on nationally recognized content standards,” alluding to Common Core. This year it  
voted overwhelmingly to support that policy and move forward. Every step was done in public  
allowing for full and comprehensive debate and extended time for public testimony. The public 
and its elected representatives have spoken very clearly and decisively.  We do not believe the  
entire state, nor the students and teachers now using the standards, should be forced to veer off  
in another direction simply so it could be said we veered off in another direction. That is unfair to  
our children, our teachers and our parents and inappropriately disruptive to public education.  


We are now four years into Common Core implementation. Some 4,000 teachers have been  
trained as Common Core experts and are helping their colleagues in their districts effectively teach  
their students.  More than 75 Louisiana educators helped develop the PARCC student test that the  
governor is seeking to stop in Louisiana, and more than 50,000 students have practiced for that  
new test this spring. We believe a unilateral act by the governor to attempt to pull Louisiana out of  
Common Core and related tests would undermine, confuse and delay the teaching of our students  
going forward.     


The governor has spoken frequently about listening to parents. We agree, he should listen to us.  
Because we are also here as parents, grandparents, and families who care deeply for our children.  
We want higher expectations for our children, we want them to be able to perform at the same  
levels as children in other states, and we want them to have the educational opportunities for a  
lifetime of success here in Louisiana. We want that now, not some ambiguous time in the future.  
Pulling out of Common Core only delays and denies our children better teaching and learning. 
 
Finally, as we have said before, high educational standards are critical to the productivity and  
economic prosperity of our state. Governor Jindal has made workforce development a top priority  
and we all applaud that. But quite honestly, his insistence that we pull out of Common Core and  
PARCC runs counter to that. It sends a message to prospective businesses, investors, and workers  
that Louisiana is not committed to improving its low education rankings. And even more  
importantly, it constrains our children's ability to take their rightful place in a workforce that can  
fuel their economic success and create a future of opportunities.   


Common Core is not a federal intrusion into public education in Louisiana or anywhere else. More  
than 40 states are moving forward on their own with higher Common Core standards. We do not  
want Louisiana to be left behind and remain near the bottom. We have a growing economy that  
demands many more highly‐educated and skilled employees. Our entire education system must  
improve to meet those critical needs.    


For these reasons, we ask as firmly and directly as possible that Governor Jindal honor what we  
believe are the appropriate decisions of the Legislature and BESE, put the needs of children ahead  
of any political or narrow special interests, and stay the course on all aspects of Common Core in  
Louisiana. With this approach, it will be clear that in this critical area of education his  
administration is leading an open, transparent and balanced state government that works as  
intended for all the citizens of Louisiana.   
  
Baton Rouge Area Chamber 
 
Black Alliance for Educational 
  Options 
 
Blueprint Louisiana 
 
Bossier Chamber of Commerce 
 
Business Council of New Orleans 
  and the River Region 
 
Cajun Industries, LLC 
 
Center for Development and 
  Learning 
 
Chamber Southwest Louisiana 
 
Citizens for 1 Greater New Orleans 
 
Committee of 100 Louisiana 
 
Committee of 100 Shreveport-Bossier 
 
Council for A Better Louisiana 
 
Cowen Institute for Public Education                                                                                                                     
   Initiatives, Tulane University 
 
Dr. James Madden, Mathematician 
 
Dr. Phillip Rozeman, Cardiologist 
 
Educate Now! 
 
Education’s Next Horizon 
 
Fleur de Lis New Orleans Cuisine 
 
Greater Lafayette Chamber of 
  Commerce 
 
Greater New Orleans, Inc. 
 
Greater Shreveport Chamber of 
  Commerce 
 
ISC Constructors, LLC 
 
Jefferson Business Council 
 
Jefferson Chamber of Commerce 
 
LA PARCC Education Leader, Judith  
  Vail 
 
LA PARCC Education Leader, Kyle  
  Falting 
 
LA PARCC Education Leader, Sheila  
  Banks 
 
La Coste Consulting, LLC 
 
Louisiana Association of Business 
  & Industry 
 
Louisiana Association of Public 
  Charter Schools 
 
Louisiana Association of 
  Teachers of Mathematics 
 
Louisiana Core Advocates Teachers 
 
Louisiana Council Supervisors of        
  Math 
 
Louisiana Science Teachers  
  Association 
 
Monroe Chamber of Commerce 
 
New Schools for Baton Rouge 
 
New Schools for New Orleans 
 
River Region Chamber of 
  Commerce 
 
Robert Evans, Con-Tech International 
 
Shreveport ‐ Bossier Business 
  Alliance for Higher Education 
 
Stand for Children Louisiana 
 
United Way of Acadiana 
 
United Way of Southeast Louisiana 
 
Urban League of Greater New     
   Orleans
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://nine.pairlist.net/pipermail/charterschools/attachments/20140613/61a6f5f7/attachment-0001.html>