Augusta Insider asks Maine gubernatorial candidates their view on charter schools.

Peter Mills reponds:

The Democratic Party in Maine is out of touch with goals of the Democratic administration in Washington. I put in a bill request this fall entitled “An Act to Require the State to Comply with Federal Educational Criteria to Qualify for ‘Race to the Top’ Grant Funding.”

The bill request was rejected by the Democratic majority on the Legislative Council. As a result the Education Committee will be deprived of any opportunity even to talk about how to qualify for these funds.
Arne Duncan, Obama’s Commissioner of Education, has made it clear that there will be winners and losers among the states in competing for a share of the $4 billion in competitive funds made available by the Recovery Act. Duncan says, “We will award grants to the states that have led the way in reform and will show the way for the rest of the country to follow.”

The window of opportunity to apply for these funds closes on June 1, 2010. As things presently stand, Maine cannot compete because the state fails to comply with any of the major criteria for an award:

* The Obama administration requires that a state authorize charter schools without any limit on the number. Maine has never permitted any charter school to exist.

* The Obama administration requires that assessment systems be in place to track the progress of students and evaluate teachers. Maine’s assessments are ineffective to measure student growth or teacher performance.

* The Obama administration requires that assessment results be returned promptly so that teachers and schools may quickly adjust classroom work based on the assessments. Maine’s MECAP tests are typically not returned until the following school year long after the test is given.

* The Obama administration requires that the state take steps to transform its lowest-performing schools by remaking the school from top to bottom with new leaders and new teaching. Maine has over 700 schools. Because Maine has no formal way to evaluate the effectiveness of its schools, the state has never in anyone’s memory intervened to close down a failing school.