Politics and k-12 Governance: Post Election Possibilities and Pitfalls
On Oct. 9, Mike Petrilli asked his readers what a big blue wave would mean for education. In the same post, he called it “laughable” to think Democratic governors would rush to join the new Federal Scholarship Tax Credit before the election.
That same day, Governor Kathy Hochul opted New York in but, in fairness to Mike, he had already counted NY in because of her earlier statements. Hochul said she would join “if, and only if, all schools and students, including those in our public schools, could benefit,” and added, “I’m not going to leave money on the table.”
Hochul’s decision was consistent with what Rick Hess predicted in Education Next. School choice is popular with Democratic voters, he argued, so Democrats will regulate it rather than repeal it.
Mike may be right about other governors not opting in before the midterms. Some new ones may simply leave their predecessors’ opt-ins in place and rumors and hearsay suggest other Democratic governors will opt-in before the January deadline but they will be face significant political headwinds. In my home state of New Jersey, Governor Mikie Sherrill, who is still undecided, will now have to take into account all the millions of North Jersey dollars that could flow into New York if she chooses to stay out. Those losses would compound in the southern part of the state, where I live, if Governor Shapiro opts-in Pennsylvania.
Petrilli worries that reform does better when Republicans win, and he isn’t wrong about how hard it is in some blue states. I think he overlooks, though, that while there are some real red state success stories, most red states are lagging behind in reading and math achievement along with their blue-state counterparts. Outside of the Southern Surge, most red-state leaders are pushing vouchers and ESAs, not evidence-driven reform.
But Petrilli also wrote that “blue-state reform doesn’t have to be worse, just different.” I agree. Here’s a few thoughts on what “different” could look like.
1. Keep the opt-ins and build the public side
House Democrats Bobby Scott (D-VA) and Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) are cosponsoring a bill to repeal the tax credit. A similar bill has been introduced in the Senate by Mark Kelly (D-AZ) and has 35 Democratic cosponsors., Even with a Democratic Congress, however, those bills would face a presidential veto which Congress would never be able to garner enough votes to overcome. Meanwhile, 31 states, including Democrat-led Colorado and New York, have opted in or are on track to.
The better move for a new Democratic governor in, say,Ohio or Georgia, is to keep the opt-in and help build scholarship organizations focused on public-school students. Those organizations could fund tutoring, summer learning and special education services. Hochul’s announcement got the message right. Now someone must do the work behind it.
2. Make reading about kids, not labels
Petrilli notes that passing a science-of-reading law in Massachusetts was hard enough to win an award. It shouldn’t be. Teaching children to read using what the research shows works is not a right-wing idea. Democratic governors should adopt proven curricula, train teachers in them, screen students early, and tell parents plainly how their children are doing. Even though Massachusetts’ win wasn’t easy it was ultimately successful and that may bode well for other states, including in those states that have passed laws but need to strengthen them.
3. Fewer tests, better information
A new bill from Bonamici would examine state testing “with an eye toward eliminating unnecessary assessments.” Cutting redundant district tests is fine. Weakening the annual statewide tests that let parents compare schools is not. The goal should be results that reach teachers and families in time to act on them, not a year later, and data that is comparable and can be disaggregated within a state across all publicly funded schools.
