Madmallard
.223 Rem
A state Senate bill to fix the selection process for the Board of Regents isn’t likely to become law — or even get much attention — any time soon. Unless, that is, Gov. Cuomo is finally ready stand up for New York state’s students.
The bill, sponsored by Sen. Kenneth LaValle (R-C-I, Long Island), would require each house of the Legislature to separately OK new regents. Under current rules, lawmakers select them in a joint session, i.e., a vote by all 213 members of both chambers at once.
The problem? Democrats have long held an overwhelming edge in the full Legislature; they now hold 137 of the total seats. Which means one party — and really just one man, the Assembly speaker — single-handedly picks the board that oversees all education policy in the state.
That’s plain nuts: It means a board that should represent a broad range of expertise instead is limited to those potential regents acceptable to the most left-wing part of state government, the Assembly Democrats — and to the special interests with the most sway in that chamber.
Notably, Speaker Carl Heastie had to win the teacher unions’ backing to become speaker. And his picks for the Regents have turned the board decisively against any policy that might make things tougher for the unions — even if it’s plainly better for students.
That has meant a steady watering down of tests and scoring systems that might expose incompetent teachers — even doing away with time limits on exams. Betty Rosa, the new Regents chancellor, justifies it all as opposing what she and the teachers unions call “high-stakes tests,” which supposedly just ruin the whole educational process.
The regents now also bow to politically correct lunacy that would shock any honest educator: This month, notably, they actually scrapped the literacy-test requirement for teaching-job applicants.
LaValle’s bill, giving each house equal say (and veto power) in regents selection, might not be the perfect fix. For one thing, the Republican lawmakers who now run the state Senate aren’t beyond kowtowing to the unions, either, so giving them a bigger say is no guarantee of truly pro-kid regents.
For another, the bill leaves the governor out of the process, though he’s the one state official most accountable to voters at large.
And the speaker won’t give up power without a fight: The Senate needs the governor on board for reform to have any hope.
New York’s lunatic way of running education | New York Post
The bill, sponsored by Sen. Kenneth LaValle (R-C-I, Long Island), would require each house of the Legislature to separately OK new regents. Under current rules, lawmakers select them in a joint session, i.e., a vote by all 213 members of both chambers at once.
The problem? Democrats have long held an overwhelming edge in the full Legislature; they now hold 137 of the total seats. Which means one party — and really just one man, the Assembly speaker — single-handedly picks the board that oversees all education policy in the state.
That’s plain nuts: It means a board that should represent a broad range of expertise instead is limited to those potential regents acceptable to the most left-wing part of state government, the Assembly Democrats — and to the special interests with the most sway in that chamber.
Notably, Speaker Carl Heastie had to win the teacher unions’ backing to become speaker. And his picks for the Regents have turned the board decisively against any policy that might make things tougher for the unions — even if it’s plainly better for students.
That has meant a steady watering down of tests and scoring systems that might expose incompetent teachers — even doing away with time limits on exams. Betty Rosa, the new Regents chancellor, justifies it all as opposing what she and the teachers unions call “high-stakes tests,” which supposedly just ruin the whole educational process.
The regents now also bow to politically correct lunacy that would shock any honest educator: This month, notably, they actually scrapped the literacy-test requirement for teaching-job applicants.
LaValle’s bill, giving each house equal say (and veto power) in regents selection, might not be the perfect fix. For one thing, the Republican lawmakers who now run the state Senate aren’t beyond kowtowing to the unions, either, so giving them a bigger say is no guarantee of truly pro-kid regents.
For another, the bill leaves the governor out of the process, though he’s the one state official most accountable to voters at large.
And the speaker won’t give up power without a fight: The Senate needs the governor on board for reform to have any hope.
New York’s lunatic way of running education | New York Post