Republican Positioning

On Monday, September 10, as the nearly seven hour House hearing on the NCLB discussion draft came to a close, the Republican strategy on No Child Left Behind became clearer with the issuance of a letter by the former Chairman of the House Committee on Education and Labor, original author of NCLB and current House Republican Leader John Boehner (OH).

Boehner’s letter, addressed to the current Chair George Miller (D-CA) and Ranking Member Howard “Buck” McKeon (R-CA), expresses his concern that the draft bill “appears to back away from the key education reform principles of No Child Left Behind” and lays out his conditions of support for a reauthorization bill. Those conditions do not match what is now in the draft language.

They are as follows:
1. Flexibility and local control: Allowing, as Representative McKeon has proposed in HR 2577, states and local school districts to transfer up to 100 percent of their funds among the various federal education funding streams and provide states with additional flexibility in the design of their accountability systems.
2. School choice: Any bill must not restrict current education choices for parents in any way; it should expand such options.
3. No new testing: The emphasis needs to be placed on ensuring the current system by which states measure Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for the tests they are already required to implement is fair and effective in ensuring accountability for student achievement.
4. No loopholes in accountability: Reject any proposal that would amount to a loophole for chronically underachieving schools to evade identification as a school in need of improvement or avoid restructuring.
5. No national test: Such language would be enormously problematic for many members of the House Republican Conference. National standards and national assessments would also be highly problematic and would represent an improper meddling of the federal government into state and local curriculum decisions.
6. Teacher quality: The bill should include reforms that encourage states to establish pay for performance systems that compensate teachers based on their performance in the classroom and how effective they are in helping students learn and succeed.
7. Streamlining federal education programs: The draft legislation circulated by the Committee creates at least three new programs within Title I -- and, if history is any guide, many Members will be lining up to seek the inclusion of many more new programs as the bill moves through the committee process.

The letter’s position was buttressed by Rep. McKeon’s statement on the No Child Left Behind reauthorization hearing in which he also affirmed his support for the law’s core principles of “accountability, flexibility, and parental choice.” “Any proposal that backs away from these principles will be met with my steadfast opposition,” wrote McKeon. Then he assured his constituents of his willingness to resist a bill that does not match Republican objectives. “The concerns we have heard are valid, and I offer my assurances that they will not fall on deaf ears. In the coming weeks…I will redouble my efforts to ensure that any bill reauthorizing the No Child Left Behind Act adheres to its core principles.”

This press release, in conjunction with the letter from Minority Leader John Boehner, suggests that Mr. Miller will find little support among the Republican Party for the draft discussion as currently written. Given that he may also lack the support of the Unions, as described in the hearing summary above, he will have to proceed in a very calculated manner in the coming weeks.

Resources:
“McKeon Statement on No Child Left Behind Reauthorization Hearing,” Committee on Education and Labor, Republicans, Press Release, September 10, 2007, http://republicans.edlabor.house.gov/PRArticle.aspx?NewsID=243.
“Boehner: No Child Left Behind Act Reauthorization Draft Backs Away From Key Education Reform Principles,” Republican Leader John Boehner, September 10, 2007, http://republicanleader.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=73491
Author: DAD