A GSCS Note - Education Agenda Slows Down in Trenton

While the Statehouse progresses through the Budget season for Fiscal Year 2012-2013, the legislative education agenda has slowed down. Although education committees were on schedule to hold hearings this past Monday,May 14th, those meetings were canceled.  The Senate Education Committee is now scheduled to hold a meeting this coming Monday, May 21, while the Assembly Education committee does not anticipate holding a meeting until next month, likely June 14.

Tenure legislation is one major education concern that is impacted by this slow down.  Compounding this issue is the question of evaluation reform - which has been tied to tenure reform - will the evaluation pilot and program timelines correspondingly be slowed, or not?

As it is, GSCS has been concerned about the timing of putting new evaluations systems in place.  With the promise of a new "rudder" for tenure in the future, shouldn't systemic evaluations overhaul be synchronized with the anticipated changes brought on with the new tenure system, rather than being launched solo?  For example,  how could a new evaluations process work when under current law the personnel renewal decisions deadline is May 15, yet testing results - an integral part of the proposed assessment program - are not available until the fall?

While Senate Education Chair Teresa Ruiz has a bill that has been debated for more than a year, Assembly Education Chair Patrick Diegnan has developed his own bill on tenure that has yet to be heard.  Meanwhile, the Governor is pressing the legislature to pass a bill on tenure as soon as possible. 

Mixed timeline and characterization messages on this potential legislation abound:

(Governor Christie) "And I want to make one thing very clear to the legislature: Do not send me watered-down, BS tenure reform.  If you send me weak tenure reform, I will veto it and send it right back to you."

(Senator Ruiz) "I don't intend on putting a BS tenure bill forward," she said. "This will not be symbolic, but true tenure reform." 

(Assemblyman Diegnan) "I still support tenure, and the consequences of doing away with it entirely would be disastrous," he said.  "I haven't changed my opinion on that."
(All quotes above from NJ Spotlight.com,  5-16-12)

Stay tuned with GSCS . . .