WASHINGTON, D.C.-U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said during an interview on Thurs. that while the Obama administration has waived some No Child Left Behind Act standards to 10 states for developing educational initiatives that include additional resources for at risk children and provisions to enhance educational outcomes for African-American students, teacher merit pay plans like the one proposed by Ohio Gov. John Kasich and Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson in an effort to dismantle teacher tenure are not something required for Ohio and other states to qualify.
"That is not a requirement," said Duncan to the question posed by The Kathy Wray Coleman Online News Blog.Com and Cleveland Urban News.Com.
Jackson and Kasich are working hand in hand as a Democratic mayor and Republican governor to ditch teacher tenure and seniority and institute a merit pay system for Cleveland schools through their request for state legislation to seal the deal, though Black state legislators from Cleveland said that the mayor of the predominantly Black major metropolitan city, who controls the largely Black city schools via state law, had not discussed his plan with them.
Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson
Ohio State Rep. John Barnes Jr. (D-Cleveland)
"I am waiting on a complete copy of the plan," said state Rep. John Barnes Jr. (D-12), a Cleveland Democrat "My focus is on developing academic programming that will take our young people from the classroom to a job and at the same time makes sure that the rights of working people are protected."
The mayor's controversial educational plan, which he unleashed this week to Cleveland City Council, Cleveland Teachers Union officials and select others as his blue print to improve educational quality, includes sweeping reforms such as revising the collective bargaining agreement with both teacher tenure and seniority eliminated, and using public monies funneled to the school district to expand charter schools.
Duncan congratulated the 10 states selected to receive additional resources from the federal government along with getting a reprieve from the federal no child left behind legislation, Republican pushed legislation that sets requirements like standardized testing for federal funding that teachers unions across the nation generally oppose.
The waivers, which Congress approved with support from President Obama, will relieve the selected states from some of the most rigorous demands of no child left behind including using methods other than test scores to judge student achievement, and highlighting other core subjects beyond science and math for focused improvement.
Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oklahoma and Tennessee were the 10 states in the first round with the deadline for applications for the second round on Feb 28. All that applied for the first round were chosen, except New Mexico.
"I want to applaud the courage and commitment of these 10 states,"said Duncan, adding that their educational plans include multiple evaluation tools to assess student achievement, strategies to increase graduation rates and decrease drop out rates, measures to track student success after high school graduation, and community outreach provisions.
Cleveland Ward 8 Councilman Jeff Johnson said that while he supports efforts by the Obama administration to strengthen urban sector schools, he opposes Jackson's merit pay plan, particularly since it was crafted without community input and any involvement by the leadership team of the Cleveland Teachers Union.
"I can understand why people are upset with the mayor,'" said Johnson, who said that even if a merit pay venture were implemented there should be a minimum level of achievement that teachers must reach and a sliding scale based upon the students they teach, one that takes into account the fact that Black teachers and new teachers are often saddled with problem and low achieving students.
Johnson said that seniority on a job should play a major part in teacher pay.
Cleveland Teachers Union President David Quoke could not be reached for comment.
LuCille Short, a Cleveland schools grandparent who leads Focus on Education, an organization that teaches parents about Cleveland Board of Education regulations and policies, said that she supports merit pay, to a degree.
"I support it with checks and balances," said Short.
