BOSTON – A week after announcing his new vision for education reform, Gov. Deval Patrick yesterday announced he has tapped three people to oversee the implementation of his plan.
Two education executives and one from information technology – Boston Public Schools Supt. Tom Payzant, Wheelock College President Jackie Jenkins-Scott and EMC Corp. Chairman and CEO Joseph M. Tucci – will co-chair the new Readiness Project.
“We need a team of the brightest leaders and thinkers in education, in business and in local communities to work through the challenges and the solutions we face as we usher in a new era in education reform,” Patrick said in a statement. “Tom, Joe and Jackie are terrific leaders with the experience and ingenuity we need to accomplish our goals.
“We know where we are headed,” the governor added. “The job of this team will be to implement that vision.”
The Readiness Project is charged with developing “a 10-year strategic implementation plan that will secure the Commonwealth’s position not only as a national education leader but also as a global education leader,” the governor’s office said.
Among the points it is charged with addressing are how to extend universal education and care beyond kindergarten to the Bay State’s 3- to 4-year-olds; expand time for teaching and learning; improve teacher licensing and certification; enhance teacher mentoring and professional development; bring curricula into alignment throughout the school system; support charter, pilot and traditional schools as “cooperative components of a comprehensive system”; improve the MCAS standardized testing and introduce additional means of gauging student learning; extend universal education by another two years; and, perhaps most challenging, fund the education system adequately, equitably and reliably.
“So many important things flow from access to a first-rate education – the ability to acquire and extend knowledge, the habit of life-long learning and the readiness to compete and meet life’s endless challenges,” Tucci said. “Together,” he added, “we will build on the substantial foundation created by Massachusetts’ successful Education Reform Law to create our state’s next-generation education system, with the aim of producing tomorrow’s inventors and innovators and advancing the Commonwealth’s reputation as a global leader in education.”
A leadership team – to be composed of national and local leaders of stakeholder communities, such as early education, K-12 education, community colleges, higher education, human services, work force development and the business community – is now being named. It will be given the job of synthesizing recommendations “into a concise, coherent strategic plan,” the governor’s office said.
A full implementation plan, with benchmarks, cost projections and timelines, is due on the governor’s desk by March 31.
“By focusing on the connections between all segments of the education system and between education and the broader community, we can be assured of the Commonwealth’s continued leadership in the years to come,” said Jenkins-Scott. “More importantly, we can assist every student toward the lifelong goal of economic success, health and well-being that we know a first-rate education can provide.”
For additional information on the Readiness Project, including Gov. Deval Patrick’s June 1 podcast, visit the governor’s page at www.mass.gov.
Rhode Island's Market Has Changed. Developers, Builders, Investors and Sellers Must Change With It.
By Emilio DiSpirito IV License Partner | Engel & Völkers Oceanside Leader | The DiSpirito…
Learn More
