Executive Director's Report

Today, I see momentum for the kinds of improvements that we have been talking about for the last two years. I see momentum changing congressional priorities. I see momentum for children and families finally becoming the top priority of the 110th Congress.

This is a new year, a new Congress (with 65 new members) under new Democratic leadership and new committee chairs in both houses. And when Nancy Pelosi, the new speaker of the House, surrounded herself with children when she picked up the gavel for the first time, I had hope that there was a change in the air.

Their unrestrained enthusiasm in pushing our agenda for children was contagious. They filled the room to listen intently as Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) spoke with real passion about NCLB. He promised to move quickly on a bill that would help our schools respond to the challenge of providing a good education to all students and closing the achievement gap.

Though Kennedy has been in the Senate for 43 years, he spoke with the passion of a senator embarking on his first reauthorization campaign. The FRN members in the room loudly cheered him on.

Other members of Congress displayed equal enthusiasm in addressing NSBA’s chief concerns with NCLB -- assessments, annual yearly progress measurements, and sanctions.

Rep. Dale Kildee (D-Mich.), the new chair of the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education, Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska), Rep. Mike Castle (R-Del.), and Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) all expressed the need to fix NCLB so it helps improve performance for all students.

I was with the New York delegation of school board members when they met over breakfast with Sen. Hilary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.). It was clear from the conversation between the senator and board members that improving our public schools will not take a back seat to Clinton’s presidential campaign. She commented that throughout her recent travels she was overwhelmed by consistent concerns about the impact NCLB is having on schools.

We were pleased to also have Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings address the capacity crowd. Spellings outlined the progress schools have made in reading and math by 9-year-olds. She also discussed the Bush administration’s proposal for vouchers as part of its NCLB plan to an audience she knew opposed the idea. (I admire her courage!)

During the follow-up Q&A, the secretary learned that FRN members are smart, passionate, articulate spokespersons for public school children. They pointed out to her the impact NCLB is having on local school districts and their strong desire to change the law in a way that will increase academic performance. Several board members asked if some of the law’s more onerous sanctions could be changed as outlined in the NSBA-inspired legislation now working its way through Congress.

The momentum is shifting our way. This is our opportunity to put NSBA’s legislative agenda on center stage. This is our opportunity to keep asking members of Congress to sign the Pledge to America’s Schoolchildren. We are at 151 signers and the list continues to grow. This is our opportunity to send a grassroots message (that’s your voice!) to members of Congress to let them know how and why NCLB needs to be improved.