The Push to Proficiency: State Strategies for Meeting the Needs of Schools & Districts
Friday, April 22, 2005
8:30 AM –- 10:30 AM
Massachusetts State House, Hearing Room A1
Boston, MA
Presented by the:
Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy at MassINC
Research sponsor:
Noyce Foundation
Join us for the release of a major research report and a policy discussion
about the state role in supporting low performing schools and districts
Read the event transcript. >
Read the report. >
Presenter
David Driscoll, Commissioner, Massachusetts Department of Education
Robert Schwartz, Chair, Educational Management Audit Council; Lecturer on Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education
Susan Follett Lusi, Education Consultant based in Rhode Island
Research Presentation
Paul Reville, Executive Director, Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy at MassINC; Lecturer, Harvard Graduate School of Education
Moderator
Blenda Wilson, President & CEO, Nellie Mae Education Foundation
Session Overview
Today, large numbers of schools and districts are being identified as low performing. No Child Left Behind legislation mandates that the state provide remediation and support services to these schools and districts. The February 2005 Hancock v. Driscoll decision affirmed the need for a stronger state role and recognized the Legislature's legal obligation to keep education reform moving forward. Improving state supports to low performing schools and districts is the central challenge of the next phase of education reform.
At this event, the Rennie Center will release and discuss findings from a report entitled, “Reaching Capacity: A Blueprint for the State Role in Improving Low Performing Schools and Districts” that was sponsored by the Noyce foundation. The report and its recommendations are based on the Rennie Center’s analysis of statewide interviews with policymakers, Department of Education officials, superintendents, principals, and other key leaders in the education field.
Responding the Rennie Center's research findings, panelists will offer constructive ways in which the state can better support low performing schools and districts. Panelists will discuss opportunities and obstacles to an enhanced state role, considering both the Massachusetts context and national trends.
About the Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy
The Rennie Center's mission is to develop a public agenda that informs and promotes significant improvement of public education in Massachusetts. Our work is motivated by a vision of an education system that creates the opportunity to educate every child to be successful in life, citizenship, employment and life-long learning. Applying nonpartisan, independent research, journalism and civic engagement, the Center is creating a civil space to foster thoughtful public discourse to inform and shape effective policy. For more information, visit us at www.renniecenter.org
About the Noyce Foundation
The Noyce Foundation is dedicated to stimulating ideas and supporting initiatives designed to produce significant improvement in the academic achievement of public school students in grades K-12. Foundation programs focus on increasing conceptual understanding and levels of achievement in the core academic subjects of literacy, mathematics, and science. Long-term improvement in academic performance is the ultimate measure by which the Foundation will judge its investments. For more information about the Noyce Foundation, visit www.noycefdn.org
