SBOE Out of Control

by: algiles

Wed Jul 18, 2007 at 04:57 PM CDT

Our educational system is one of the most important things in our society. Gov. Perry and the right-of-center Rs continue to politicize the State Board of Education, instead of focusing on ensuring the provision of the highest quality education that we can have for our schoolkids. Instead of appointing someone who has a balanced, moderate perspective and policies for education, Perry has appointed someone known for promoting ideology, instead of facts and tools to make Texas one of the states that leads in education excellence. And now we find out that another member of the State Board, David Bradley, is being investigated by the AG's Office. I see this in the Quorum Report [http/www.quorumreport.com]. Let's have some ethical and honest behavior in those that are leading the education of our children.

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SBOE Out of Control | 1 comments

SBOE is so under the radar of the average voter (0.00 / 0)

How many of us can name the SBOE that represents our area? I had to look up mine. Ken Mercer.

Here's the rest of the SBOE if you want to look them up.

Perry recently promoted Don McLeroy, as the chair of the State Board of Education. According to a recent press release by Texas Freedom Network here's his record:

Since his election in 1998, Mr. McLeroy, a Bryan dentist, has dragged the Texas State Board of Education into a series of divisive and unnecessary culture war battles:

He voted in 2001 to reject the only advanced placement
environmental science textbook proposed for Texas high schools even though panels of experts - including one panel from Texas A&M - found the textbook was free of errors. In fact, Baylor University used the same textbook.

In 2003 Mr. McLeroy led efforts by creationism or "intelligent design" proponents to water down discussion of evolution in proposed new biology textbooks. He was one of only four board members who voted against biology textbooks that year that included a full scientific account of evolutionary theory.

In 2004, Mr. McLeroy voted to approve "abstinence-only" health textbooks that failed to include any information about responsible pregnancy and STD prevention, despite state curriculum standards requiring that students learn such information.

The governor's appointment comes just as the state board is considering revisions to the state's curriculum standards - or Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) - for the sciences. These science TEKS will include the previously controversial subjects of environmental science and evolution, both issues McLeroy has publicly declared himself at odds with the
scientific community.

The Texas SBOE is getting to be like the one in Dover, Pa. that became such an embarrassment, that the voters finally kicked them all out. We need a similar kind of movement in Texas. People have no idea how much power these people have, and their views are so skewed to the right. They call it "being conservative" but it's really a code word for their attack on a good reality based public education.

by: sonia @ Wed Jul 18, 2007 at 18:00:23 PM CDT