On the morning of October 3rd, 2017 the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension committee, also known as H.E.L.P., held a hearing which they titled The Every Student Succeeds Act: Unleashing State Innovation. Based on the title of the hearing, one might expect to get an earful of innovative ideas from education leaders who have […]
In the regular session of 2012, the Louisiana Legislature passed and enacted HB-974, also known as Act 1. Gov. Bobby Jindal signed it into law. The bill made dramatic changes to teacher tenure, evaluation, and compensation, and also limited powers of local school boards while giving superintendents more autonomy. The bill was challenged in court […]
Let’s face it. Politics reside in our classrooms whether we like it, or not. In the Spring of 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). If I had to pinpoint when politics entered the classroom, I’d say it was the moment Johnson laid down that pen. Though […]
On June 26th, The Advocate published its article, State Plan to Revamp Public Schools Wins Compliments from Two Groups, giving praise to Louisiana’s new ESSA plan which was submitted to the U.S. Department of Education on May 3, 2017. The State’s plan has received accolades from national groups for its “ambitious goals” to improve public […]
Over the last couple of months, I have been in constant contact with both the governor’s office and the senate in regards to the appointment of Superintendent of Education, John White. There is a general agreement that appointive positions are intended to be temporary extensions of the current administration. It isn’t uncommon for someone to […]
On Monday, May 8th, I delivered the petition shown below to the office of Senate President, John Alario. The petition, signed by 1045 citizens from every corner of Louisiana, was copied to Governor John Bel Edwards; Senate Education Committee Chairman, Dan Morrish; Senate Government Affairs Chairman, Karen Carter-Peterson; the Senate Counsel; the Advocate and NOLA.com. […]
In January 2012, Chas Roemer offered a contract for employment as superintendent of education to John White, on behalf of BESE. The contract included a $275,000 salary, and a provision allowing White to continue to serve in that capacity, even after the contract terminates on January 11th, 2016, until the succeeding BESE appoints someone to […]
In reading through the official transcripts of the Constitutional Convention, the debates surrounding education were pretty intense. The legislative body moved back and forth over the decision of whether to make the superintendent elective, or appointive. As a related debate, setting forth minimum requirements for a superintendent bubbled to the top of discussions, over and […]
Do you remember your earliest years in school and receiving your first invitation from a classmate to attend their birthday party? What about the first time you discovered that a classmate had a birthday party and invited your classmates but didn’t invite you? It is generally the first experience that children have with exclusion. The […]
When John Bel Edwards won the gubernatorial runoff election in November 2015, teachers and parents across the state of Louisiana sat on the edge of their seats in anticipation of the exit of State Superintendent of Education, John White. Edwards, after all, was very vocal about his desire to see White replaced by a “Louisiana […]
