9486 in the collection
Lawmakers to Business Roundtable: "Pay Attention"
Ohanian comment: When might the press start asking why the Business Roundtable plays such a role in the education of their children?
Requiring all Indiana high school students to be tested in algebra costs money.
So does requiring new academic standards to be mailed to every parent.
These initiatives -- approved by Indiana's Education Roundtable -- carry a price tag.
And state lawmakers, in a subtle but strong message to this advisory group, want the Roundtable to pay more attention to how much education reform costs.
Buried deep in the state's new two-year, $22.8 billion budget -- approved by the General Assembly in April -- is a provision requiring the Roundtable to attach a price tag to all of its recommendations. Any idea that's expected to cost at least $500,000 must undergo an independent fiscal analysis by the nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency.
Given the state's budget crisis, Sen. Connie Sipes, D-New Albany, thought it wise to make sure the Education Roundtable considers the financial impact of its decisions. The state's 293 school districts netted minimal funding increases in the new budget, which will spend more than $6 billion in taxpayer money over two years to educate nearly 1 million public school students.
An elementary school principal, Sipes brought the idea to budget negotiators late in the legislative session. She had concerns that the Roundtable's efforts to expand testing might cost too much money and shift teachers' focus to testing rather than teaching.
"I think the Roundtable has quite a bit of influence, and I want to make sure we're using our money in the best possible way," said Sipes.
Created by law in 1999, the Roundtable is charged with making recommendations to the State Board of Education and the General Assembly on how to improve education for Hoosier children. The 34-member panel includes educators, policymakers and business leaders.
But the Roundtable holds far more power than that of an advisory body.
The Roundtable has been a focal point for education reform in Indiana. It has spearheaded the effort to raise classroom standards and expand standardized testing to all grades. The Roundtable has worked to implement a new law that seeks to hold schools accountable for student achievement. And now, the Roundtable is talking about a bold but costly proposal to educate an estimated 300,000 preschoolers in Indiana.
This P-16 plan, which emphasizes education from preschool through college, could cost taxpayers up to $1 billion a year.
Stan Jones, Indiana's commissioner for higher education, who helps lead the Roundtable, said the group is always aware of the cost of education reform. And, he said, it's up to the State Board of Education and General Assembly to implement and pay for the ideas.
In addition, State Board of Education administrator Jeff Zaring said his board considers the price before approving any initiative.
Still, legislators want the Roundtable to take on extra financial scrutiny.
Sen. Luke Kenley, R-Noblesville and a budget negotiator, pointed to the Roundtable's recent recommendation to require all students to complete algebra by ninth grade and be tested on the subject.
"That might require another math teacher. That costs money," said Kenley, who also leads the Senate Education Committee. "They need to evaluate that."
— Michele McNeil Solida
Education plans often too costly
Indianapolis Star
June 2, 2003
http://www.indystar.com/print/articles/2/047560-9282-009.html
INDEX OF OUTRAGES
Pages: 380
[1] 2 3 4 5 6 Next >> Last >>
