May 2008 Archives

ED in '08's Roy Romer and Sen. Barack Obama have now entered the hugging phase, which brings me to the following question: How nonpartisan can an organization be when its leader and chief spokesman is so partisan?

Before Obama delivered his major education speech at a school outside of Denver on Wednesday, he got an enthusiastic introduction from former Colorado Gov. Romer, and a hug, as pictured in the AP photo above.

Romer, who is also the chairman of the nonpartisan ED in '08 campaign, introduced Ilinois Democrat as the "next president of the United States" and praised him with these words: "This is a man who has an ability to look at problems in a new way. We need that in this country."

Earlier this month, Romer, who is also a Democratic Party superdelegate, announced he was throwing his support behind Obama. At the ED in '08 blogger summit I attended earlier this month, Romer defended this by explaining that he was acting individually and not on behalf of ED in '08, fulfilling his role as a citizen in this democracy. He pointed out that Marc Lampkin, ED in '08's executive director, is a supporter of John McCain for president. (And Lampkin told me separately that he was helping raise money for the senator from Arizona and presumptive GOP nominee.)

But Wednesday, Romer took his role a step further by going out on the campaign trail and championing Obama before the senator made a major speech on education policy in Colorado, considered by many to be a "must-win" state for the Democrats in the general election.

Interestingly—and I'm not sure whether this was on purpose or not—Romer explained at the blogger summit that ED in '08 is "bipartisan." That's a subtle yet distinct difference from being nonpartisan. And sometimes, it's perception that really counts.

ED in '08 hasn't had much success getting the candidates to focus on education during the primary, which has so far focused on Iraq, sky-high energy prices, and worsening economic woes. Perhaps this is part of a larger strategy to get close to the inner circle of the campaigns in hopes of having more influence over the education debate. But how close is too close for a nonpartisan public awareness campaign?

(Photo caption and credit: Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, right, hugs former Colorado Gov. Roy Romer before talking to students and invited guests during a town hall meeting in Thornton, Colo., on May 28. Jack Dempsey/AP)

Posted by Michele McNeil at 11:45 AM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

From contributing blogger David Hoff:

In response to Sen. Barack Obama's education speech yesterday, the McCain campaign is circulating the following sentence I wrote in 2007:

In his eight years in the state Senate and two years in the U.S. Senate, Mr. Obama hasn’t made a significant mark on education policy.

I'd like to remind the campaign that earlier this year I quoted an Arizona superintendent saying this about McCain:

I don’t think he has a strong track record of putting education at the top of his priorities.

Read the Obama story and the McCain story and you can decide who has a better track record on K-12 issues.

Posted by at 11:30 AM | Permalink | 6 Comments | Recommend

Sen. Barack Obama was in Colorado today, talking about education at Mapleton Expeditionary School of the Arts in the town of Thornton. The school is one of 17 small learning environments in the 5,800-student Mapleton School District.

Here, all 44 of the school's seniors were accepted to college—which stands in stark contrast to the dismal dropout rates in many high schools across the country. So Obama used this as an opportunity to talk more about his education plan, including teacher-recruitment initiatives, "fixing" the No Child Left Behind Act, and a $4,000 tax credit to help students pay for college. He also put on his "Obama Knows Best" cap and emphasized the role of parents in student achievement.

But clearly, his choice of schools was telling. The principal, Michael Johnston, founded the school (called MESA for short), which was funded by the Gates Foundation. MESA is a college-prep high school that uses students' interest in the arts to increase achievement in the core subjects of English, mathematics, and science. Johnston is a Teach for America alumnus who spent his tour of teaching duty in the Mississippi Delta and wrote a book about the experience.

In his speech, Obama talked of breaking free of "tired thinking" and making a "truly historic commitment" to education. He spoke of innovation in learning and leaving the old debates of "money versus accountability" and "vouchers versus the status quo" behind. He held up MESA as an example of education done right.

So what exactly does that mean? That was the question from one audience member who wanted all of this rhetoric translated into policy. Put simply, Obama said he'll attach federal money to education innovation.

Posted by Michele McNeil at 2:14 PM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

From contributing blogger Alyson Klein:

So I'm sure you've heard by now that Sen. John McCain held a BBQ this weekend that was largely viewed as a veep audition. At least three of the folks in attendance could help McCain on education issues:

- Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida, who served as that state's commissioner of education under Gov. Jeb Bush. He helped to implement the state's ambitious education agenda, which some conservatives see as a national model. As governor since 2007, Crist has supported performance pay for teachers.

- Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisina, who served on the House education committee when he was in Congress. He sponsored a bill that would have provided vouchers to students displaced by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, allowing them to attend private schools. The bill was ultimately defeated, but some of its provisions made it into the final hurricane aid package. Jindal sponsored the bill with Rep. John A. Boehner, R-Ohio, a key author of the No Child Left Behind Act, who is now House minority leader. Jindal's now pushing a new private school voucher program for New Orleans families.

- Former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, who often touted his support for charters and the No Child Left Behind Act during his failed bid for the Republican presidential nomination.

One policymaker widely viewed as a potential GOP veep candidate wasn't mentioned as attending the barbecue: Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota. Michele has already blogged about his education credentials.

Posted by Alyson Klein at 11:25 AM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

From contributing blogger Alyson Klein:

So apparently it's not just my editor and fan of NBC's "The West Wing" Mark Walsh who noticed that the 2008 presidential election bares an uncanny resemblance to the final two seasons of the multi-award winning drama.

The Washington Post had a piece on the similarities this week. Apparently, it's not a total coincidence, as the TV show's writers had Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois specifically in mind when they created Rep. Matt Santos of Texas, played by Jimmy Smits.

But one major (and lamentable) difference: In the fictional campaign, education was actually a major issue. And teachers' unions' endorsements were pivotal, according to wikipedia and my (admittedly hazy) memory. Santos made his education plan - ending teacher tenure and extending the school day - a cornerstone of his presidential campaign. His Republican opponent, Sen. Arnold Vinick (played by Alan Alda), said he supported ending teacher tenure, but saw an expansion of the federal role in education as an overreach of authority, according to this chart comparing their positions, which appears to have been created by a fan of the show.

At a brokered Democratic convention in the sixth season finale, Santos won the nomination because of the last minute backing of the teachers' unions. They weren't crazy about the plan to end teacher tenure, but threw their support to Santos anyway, at the behest of President Jeb Bartlett.

I'm sure that would have brought the fictional NEA and AFT more than just a seat at the table for any reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, although the show never waded into that. Maybe Reg Weaver and Ed McElroy should dust off their DVDs and take some notes, especially since at the end of the seventh and final season of "The West Wing," Santos won the White House.

Posted by Alyson Klein at 1:30 PM | Permalink | 2 Comments | Recommend

Maybe.

Read union watchdog Mike Antonucci's post here, in which he reveals that the National Education Association's PAC Council approved a "conditional" endorsement of Sen. Barack Obama.

You can't really get more conditional than the NEA's conditions. They're endorsing Obama only if he captures the required number of delegates to win, or if Sen. Hillary Clinton drops out of the race. They don't even appear to be endorsing for the general election, just for the Democratic primary! In other words, they'll endorse Obama only when he's the last Democrat standing. Wow. That's really going out on a limb.

Posted by Michele McNeil at 1:28 PM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

From contributing blogger Alyson Klein:

Now that he's beefed up his education team, Sen. John McCain is actually ... talking about the No Child Left Behind Act. In an interview with Essence magazine, McCain says that the law, while flawed, was a step in the right direction in terms of closing the achievement gap. The whole article is illuminating, especially in terms of McCain's strategy with African American voters.

But here's a salient exchange:

McCain: We also have to act at the federal level, update the No Child Left Behind Act. The No Child Left Behind Act was a good beginning, in my view. Those who want to scrap it completely—I respectfully disagree. But now we have learned the lessons of the first five or six or seven years of putting No Child Left Behind into practice. So let’s fix it, because it’s clear we have a two-tiered system of education in America.

ESSENCE: This will be a priority?

McCain: Absolutely.

McCain didn't offer any details on how he would "fix" the law (here's hoping he does that soon). Still, Swift & Change Able had some suggestions for Democrats in shaping their education message, in response to McCain's rhetoric. (The organization's director is Charlie Barone, a one-time aide to Rep. George Miller, the chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee).

And, in the Essence interview, McCain talked to the magazine about his close friendship with Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., the chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. The two have teamed up on immigration overhaul and other issues. If McCain is in the White House next year, the chances for a bipartisan reauthorization of NCLB will only be improved if Sen. Kennedy's health permits him to remain at the helm of the HELP committee.

Posted by Alyson Klein at 12:22 PM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

From contributing blogger Alyson Klein:

Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, the frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination, planned to introduce a bill today...on education!

The measure, which is sponsored in the House by Rep. Mike Honda, D-Calif., is aimed at better coordinating the myriad of programs geared toward improving math and science education. For instance, it would establish an Office of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education within the U.S. Department of Education.

The political message behind the legislation could be a three-for-the-price-of-one for Obama. It could paint him as an advocate of good government, a proponent of improving teaching and curriculum, and a policymaker with his eye on the all-important global competitiveness issue.

Here’s hoping that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., or Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., decide to get in on some of that action by putting out their own education measures….

Posted by Alyson Klein at 2:30 PM | Permalink | 8 Comments | Recommend

From contributing blogger Alyson Klein:

Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the presumptive Republican nominee, has new rules for lobbyists who work with the campaign. McCain's campaign won't employ registered lobbyists, and volunteer advisers can't work on the subjects on which they lobby.

I'm wondering how that will affect his education policy team, which includes some registered lobbyists. For instance, David Crane, who, according to the Fordham Foundation's Mike Petrilli, heads up McCain's education policy team. He's a registered lobbyist and the president of Quadripoint Strategies. His clients have included the U.S.Chamber of Commerce, according to the liberal-leaning media watchdog group Media Matters.

At least one member of McCain's education policy team, Eugene Hickok, a former deputy U.S. secretary of education under the current President Bush and now a senior policy director at Dutko Worldwide, a government affairs advocacy firm, said he's not sure yet how and whether the new rules will affect him. He's a registered lobbyist who has worked on No Child Left Behind reauthorization issues, but described his work as closer to "policy advocacy" than to traditional lobbying. He said he had to fill out some forms for the McCain campaign this week and is waiting to hear back.

Posted by Alyson Klein at 12:00 PM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

From contributing blogger Alyson Klein:

Kentucky and Oregon hold their Democratic primaries today. And I have to say, I'm sorry we didn't get to the Blue Grass State earlier in the election cycle, when it might have actually mattered more. The state has a storied history of education redesign, dating back nearly two decades with the Kentucky Education Reform Act. And there's a great debate going on there right now about whether to revamp the state's assessments or leave in place the current system, which includes student portfolios.

It's the kind of in-the-weeds, local issue that typically doesn't get addressed in a presidential contest, but if Kentucky had as much influence as say, Iowa, New Hampshire or (this time around) Pennsylvania, the candidates might have felt compelled to talk about it, maybe as part of seeking the endorsement of teachers' unions and other education groups in the state.

That would have given us a good idea of where the candidates stand on using multiple measures to assess student progress under the No Child Left Behind Act, which has been a major issues in the debate over the law's reauthorization. The law's renewal will likely be completed under the next president's watch.

Posted by Alyson Klein at 10:50 AM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

From contributing blogger Alyson Klein:

Sen. Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia endorsed Democratic presidential contender Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois today. Byrd oversees the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, so he'll be working closely with the next president (whoever that may be) on education spending. At this point in the race, the endorsement is mostly meaningful in that it puts another superdelegate into Obama's column.

Still, looking much further down the road, the endorsement could be a positive sign for relations between the appropriations committee and the White House under an Obama administration. That could only help the bottom-line for programs that Obama has championed on the campaign trail, such as improving teacher preparation.

Posted by Alyson Klein at 2:42 PM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

From contributing blogger Alyson Klein:

Presumptive Republican nominee Sen. John McCain of Arizona is (finally) working on an education issue. Well, kind of.

Some U.S. senators, led by Sen. Jim Webb, a Democrat, and Sen. John Warner, a Republican, both of Virginia, are trying to craft a "new GI Bill" that would offer a generous new college access benefit to many veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The bill would pay for four years (!) of tuition at a public university, plus a living stipend and money for books and other supplies, Webb's spokeswoman, Jessica Smith, told me yesterday.

But some Republicans (and conservative Democrats) are balking at the cost, estimated to be about $51.6 billion over 10 years. Over in the House, they've solved the problem, at least politically, by increasing taxes on people earning more than $500,000 a year. That got the support of the conservative Democrats. But the proposal's still gotta get through the Senate, where it's run into problems in part because of its cost and the potential tax increase.

Enter McCain, who, according to this Washington Post story has proposed "a less generous" alternative that would offer the "richest benefits" to service members who have done multiple tours. Naturally, many veteran's organizations prefer the Webb-Warner plan.

Still, if McCain can compromise with Democrats to help get the new GI Bill out of the Senate, it would definitely give him something to brag about on the campaign trail, and on an issue (college access) with which he hasn't been closely identified in the past.

Posted by Alyson Klein at 1:36 PM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

From contributing blogger Alyson Klein:

So the big news is that former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, the one-time Democratic presidential candidate, is expected to endorse Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois for president tonight. In terms of the nomination, this might mean that Edwards' 60-some delegates will go to Obama - a seemingly small number, compared to the 2,026 needed to win the nomination, but every little bit counts in this close Democratic contest.

It might mean that some of the anti-poverty programs that Edwards supported will become part of Obama's platform. That included a number of education programs, such as raising pay by up to $15,000 annually for teachers in high-poverty schools. And it wouldn't surprise me (or anyone) if Edwards were offered a role in Obama's cabinet. According to the Times article, he's interested in attorney general (or even vice-president).

But, if that doesn't pan out... Edwards' passion for workers' and health issues would suggest Secretary of Labor (where he'd oversee JobCorps, a vocational training program aimed at 16 to 24 year olds) or Secretary of Health and Human Services (where he'd oversee Head Start).

And...as long as I'm speculating on cabinet positions...I should mention that Edwards' had some pretty fiery anti-No Child Left Behind Act rhetoric on the campaign trail, even suggesting "ditching" the law at one point. As far as I'm aware, he's never expressed interest in becoming Secretary of Education. But you never know...

Posted by Alyson Klein at 5:58 PM | Permalink | 1 Comment | Recommend

Actually, Campaign K-12 will continue on, but I need a break. Blogging is hard work!

In all seriousness, I'll be out of the office until after Memorial Day, leaving this blog in the capable hands of frequent contributor Alyson Klein, who covers the federal beat here. My colleagues Mark Walsh, who covers the school legal beat, and David Hoff, NCLB reporter extraordinaire, may also make guest appearances.

As for Harry Potter, I'm perhaps one of only a handful on Earth who hasn't read this series. But apparently I should, because the villain of the seven volumes is the inspiration behind a teachers' union campaign to oust Washington State Schools Superintendent Terry Bergeson. Read the Associated Press exclusive story here.

Posted by Michele McNeil at 5:01 PM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

Former Arizona State Schools Superintendent Lisa Graham Keegan offers a very revealing quote in the Arizona Republic, which writes about how she's jumping on board John McCain's presidential campaign full-time.

"Having Senator McCain be in a position to get ready to start talking about education a little bit more fully in his campaign, it's just a great opportunity to be a part of," Keegan said.

In a position? To get ready? To start talking about education? A little bit? More fully?

The election is only six months away!

Mike Petrilli at Fordham's Flypaper seems to see this as a good sign that McCain isn't ready to to cede the issue of education. I guess it is a good sign that the Arizona Republican is almost, but not quite, in a position to get ready to start talking a little bit more fully about education.

Posted by Michele McNeil at 10:41 AM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

ED in '08 Chairman and superdelegate Roy Romer today announced he is endorsing Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois for president. (Hat tip to Flypaper on this one.) Romer, a former Colorado governor and Democratic National Chairman, leads the nonpartisan ED in '08 group that's trying to make education a prominent issue in the election.

To be sure, Romer isn't saying ED in '08 is endorsing Obama. In this ABC News story, he says: "My partner here, Marc Lampkin is a Bush Republican, a McCain Republican, so we are still one Democrat and one Republican who will be working even handedly." (Lampkin is the executive director of ED in '08, and I didn't know he had endorsed a candidate. I'll certainly ask him about that at the ED in '08 blogger summit I'm attending on Thursday.)

But in that same story, Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said the campaign will seek the counsel and advice of Romer on education issues.

Should the chairman of the nonpartisan ED in '08 campaign, which is receiving an unprecedented $60 million from the Gates and Broad foundations, really be advising a Democratic candidate?

Just asking.

Posted by Michele McNeil at 4:59 PM | Permalink | 1 Comment | Recommend

Who else, besides me, is going to the ED in '08 blogger summit? While the substance of the summit is on Thursday, the gathering kicks off tomorrow night with cocktails, appetizers, and a screening of the documentary Two Million Minutes. I'm not quite sure what to expect from this summit, but I'm sure it will be interesting.

On tap is Newt Gingrich, and bloggers Joanne Jacobs, Dan Brown, and Alexander Russo, among others. Yours truly will be on a panel called "Blogging the Election: Breaking Through the Noise."

Posted by Michele McNeil at 4:30 PM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

Here at EdWeek and Campaign K-12, we've been trying to get a list of John McCain's education advisers, but with little success. Thankfully, (insert sarcasm here), someone has leaked the list to the good folks at Fordham.

A few of the advisers are crossovers from Mitt Romney's camp, including former education department officials William D. Hansen and Eugene W. Hickok. And we've known that former Arizona state superintendent Lisa Graham Keegan was on the list. Also filling McCain's education bench is Williamson Evers, who has amassed a list of enemies who may have helped briefly stall his Senate confirmation last year to the U.S. Department of Education.

Officially missing from the list is former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who is likely taking on a more informal, though probably no less influential, advising role.

Posted by Michele McNeil at 1:26 PM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

From contributing blogger Alyson Klein:

One of my beats here at Education Week is the federal budget. And this year, Congress has been unusually sluggish (even for Congress) at getting going on education spending bills. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings hasn't even testified in the Senate yet on President Bush's education budget proposal - an event that usually happens in early spring.

Congress is dragging its feet on appropriations legislation, particularly the controversial bill that finances education, in part because they don't want to go through another veto-dance with President Bush. Democrats are betting if the next president is from their party, they'll get the increases they're looking for.

But if the next president is Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the presumptive Republican nominee ... Democrats might have a tough time. McCain wants to freeze discretionary spending for a year, according to this New York Times article. And it's unclear yet how his proposals to slash spending mentioned in the article would effect education since we don't know much about McCain's policies yet. But from what I've read so far, it's unlikely we would see major increases for Title I and other education programs. It would be nice to get more specificity on those proposed cuts as the general election approaches - but given the nature of elections, that's probably not gonna happen.

Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., the chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, has said that President Bush's unwillingness to boost education spending has poisoned the well on the reauthorization of No Child Left Behind Act. I wonder if that argument - no policy compromises without more money - would hold up through four years of a McCain administration.

Posted by Alyson Klein at 1:37 PM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

Take a minute to read Greg Anrig's comment that further explains his reasoning that conservatives have abandoned the voucher movement. He responded to a blog item I did questioning his recent article in the Washington Monthly.

Anrig makes a good argument. But I still think that while conservatives may have abandoned economist Milton Friedman's idea for vouchers from a strict interpretation standpoint, they've merely shifted their political strategies and are trying to accomplish the same thing without calling it "vouchers."

Checker Finn weighs in with a similar argument here, saying that Anrig has been "overhasty" and that "choice is winning."

But what do you think? Is the fight for vouchers over? Are charter schools the new avenue for conservatives?

Posted by Michele McNeil at 4:26 PM | Permalink | 2 Comments | Recommend

The Century Foundation's Greg Anrig penned a piece in Washington Monthly recently titled: "An Idea Whose Time Has Gone". And the subheadline reads: "Conservatives abandon their support for school vouchers."

If you can't figure it out from the headline, the gist is that the voucher movement is dead or dying, and conservatives have given up hope.

While vouchers aren't explicitly campaign related, the issue is volatile and polarizing enough that it often crops up in state and local races—and even Barack Obama has mentioned the "V" word before.

And while I don't want to argue the merits of vouchers or school choice, I feel compelled to argue that conservatives have not abandoned support for vouchers, and what's more, this idea's time has not gone.

Anrig writes: "In recent months, almost unnoticed by the mainstream media, the school voucher movement has abruptly stalled."

I'm not sure if Education Week counts as "mainstream media," but I just wrote a story stating almost the opposite: "Choice Surges Despite States' Fiscal Woes." Georgia has created a new tax credit for families and companies that donate to private school voucher funds. Louisiana approved a new tax deduction for families that pay private school tuition.

And in another story posted today online, I detail how Florida, in the midst of one of its worst budget crises ever—which has resulted in historic cuts to K-12 funding—managed to find $30 million to expand a corporate tax credit program that grants taxpayer-funded scholarships (aka vouchers) to students.

Furthermore, the controversial political action group All Children Matter, which targets anti-voucher candidates in state and local races, is still very active.

Last year, voters in Utah defeated a proposal that would have created a universal voucher program in their state. What the conservatives have given up on is the word "vouchers." The idea of vouchers is still very much alive.

Posted by Michele McNeil at 12:42 PM | Permalink | 1 Comment | Recommend

A few weeks ago, I profiled the efforts of Brian Griffin, a campaign intern for Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, and other high-schoolers who lent a hand to one of the two Democrats vying in yesterday’s closely watched Indiana presidential primary.

Griffin saw the victory by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York in a broad context. “It was upsetting that we worked so hard here and we didn’t actually see the percentages being higher,” he said, referring to the roughly 2-point margin over Obama. But he added, “You can’t get too upset when you see that she hasn’t actually advanced her cause,” referring to the fact that Clinton appears to have lost ground in the battle for pledged delegates.

Griffin got an excused absence from school yesterday to work for the campaign. Beginning at 4 a.m., he and some of his friends from Plainfield Students for Barack Obama were out hanging signs on people’s front doors, showing the location of their polling place and urging them to vote for the Illinois senator. And he watched the election returns last night at a sports venue in downtown Indianapolis, with some of Obama’s Hoosier state staff.

Griffin’s thinking about going to neighboring Kentucky – which holds its contest May 20 – or making phone calls to voters in states holding upcoming primaries from home. And he’s hoping to get involved in the general election. He thinks that will be easier once he’s in college next fall.

“I’ll definitely work for Barack Obama again, if he ever needs me to,” Griffin said.

Posted by Alyson Klein at 4:44 PM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

Now that Obama seems poised to wrap up the Democratic nomination with a victory in North Carolina and a narrow miss in Indiana, the pundits are starting to examine where Obama goes now.

And if he wants to win, that means Obama needs to start pivoting to the center, some say. Fordham's Mike Petrilli writes on Flypaper about what that could mean for his education policy stances.

As a personal aside, I have to say that I was surprised that Obama did as well as he did in Indiana. I was expecting Hillary Clinton to more soundly beat him, and that's because, of all the candidates, it's obvious that he is the one who most represents change. And if there's one thing Hoosiers don't readily embrace, it's change. One of the most heated battles I ever witnessed as a Statehouse reporter in Indianapolis was when Gov. Mitch Daniels dared in 2005 to suggest Indiana should switch to Daylight Saving Time. (We Hoosiers thought it was silly to change our clocks to get an extra hour of daylight, even if the almost the entire rest of the country did.) After months of passionate, sometimes nasty debate, the bill passed the legislature by a single vote. So now Indiana switches its clocks like everyone else. But people still gripe about the change.

Posted by Michele McNeil at 12:11 PM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, gave a speech today at Wake Forest University designed to outline his judicial views in which he cited a famous legal challenge to the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in schools.

The campaign put out this press release, as well as the text of his remarks. He says that if given the opportunity, he will appoint U.S. Supreme Court justices in the mold of Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr.

McCain cited cases in which he thinks courts have run amok by imposing the judges' personal philosophies, or have failed to properly apply the U.S. Constitution. The only school case in that litany involved the challenge a few years ago to the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance pressed by California atheist Michael Newdow. (Although McCain didn't cite him by name:)

Then there was the case of the man in California who filed a suit against the entire United States Congress, which I guess made me a defendant too. This man insisted that the words "Under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance violated his rights under the establishment clause of the First Amendment. The Ninth Circuit court agreed, as it usually does when litigious people seek to rid our country of any trace of religious devotion. With an air of finality, the court declared that any further references to the Almighty in our Pledge were -- and I quote -- "impermissible." And it was so ordered -- generations of pious, unoffending custom supposedly overturned by one decree out of a courtroom in San Francisco. And now it turns out the same litigant is back for more in the Ninth Circuit, this time demanding that the words "In God We Trust" be forever removed from our currency. I have a feeling this fellow will get wind of my remarks today -- and we're all in for trouble when he hears that we met in a chapel.

At least according to the prepared text, McCain didn't mention that the Supreme Court threw out the ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit against the inclusion of "under God" in the Pledge. The high court, in Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow, held that Newdow lacked standing to bring the challenge on behalf of his daughter. Education Week reported on that decision here.

Newdow is pressing a new suit against "under God" in the Pledge, which Edweek reported on here.

(This is being cross-posted at Education Week's School Law Blog.)

Posted by Mark Walsh at 3:40 PM | Permalink | 1 Comment | Recommend

Today, voters from my home state go to the polls to decide whether they want Democrats Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama to head the 2008 presidential ticket. But as the two were canvassing the state, scouring for votes, something election-related happened over the weekend that could have an even bigger impact on education in the Hoosier State: Veteran Superintendent of Public Instruction Suellen Reed, who has been the state's education leader for 16 years, announced she won't run for re-election.

During my years covering education in Indiana, I got to know Reed—even visiting her farm in rural Indiana, where her mom served me homemade, fresh-from-the-oven muffins. Though a Republican, she got along with the Democratic governors she served with, and often clashed with Republicans (like current Gov. Mitch Daniels.) She ushered in the development of Indiana's statewide standardized test, pushed for and ultimately succeeded in getting more full-day kindergarten in the state, and has visited schools in all of Indiana's 92 counties. She was one of the first state schools chiefs to implement a high-stakes graduation exit exam, in effect for the Class of 2000, and stuck by the requirement even as the parents of special education students sued because they saw it as unfair.

Most times, Dr. Reed acted more like the elementary school teacher that she once was than a veteran politician. Still, she's been one of the Republican Party's top vote-getters in the state, and someone will need to step in to fill the giant hole that will remain when she leaves. In Indiana, the down-ballot statewide offices (like schools chief) are selected at party conventions. And since Indiana voters tend to vote Republican on these less glamorous statewide offices, the candidate who is picked at this year's GOP convention will probably win. Already, the line is forming.

Posted by Michele McNeil at 11:21 AM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend

Reporting on the presidential race, I've focused a lot on the major issues - No Child Left Behind, merit pay, school choice - but the next president will have a significant say in some other issues, such as whether the federal government should help school districts invest in environmentally friendly, or "green," schools.

This past Wednesday, the House Education and Labor Committee passed a bill - on a more or less party-line vote - that would authorize about $6.4 billion a year to help districts construct "green schools." Republicans argued that financing school construction is a local responsibility and that Congress has too many unmet obligations in education already, such as funding for students in special education.

Even if the legislation makes it out of Congress this year, there's virtually no chance President Bush will approve any funding - he vetoed one of last year's education spending bills because in his view it contained too much money.

So, if a federal Green Schools program is going to happen, it'll need the support of the next administration. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., is for it. She's got something about green schools on her Web site. I called the McCain and Obama campaigns yesterday to find out their positions. I'll update when I hear back. Maybe someone out there in the readership has heard one or the other mention the issue on the campaign trail?

Posted by Alyson Klein at 11:40 AM | Permalink | Leave a comment | Recommend