FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 8, 2007

CONTACT: Henry Duvall (202) 393-2427                                                         

Statement of Michael Casserly, Executive Director, Council of the Great City Schools, on Announcement of New Plan for Education Standards

On this anniversary of the No Child Left Behind Act, the Council of the Great City Schools applauds Senator Christopher J. Dodd and Congressman Vernon Ehlers for their plan aimed at raising and reconciling state academic standards with more rigorous national standards in science and mathematics. 

The nation cannot expect to raise student performance and remain economically competitive when each state sets its own standards, its own definitions of proficiency and measurement criteria.

The current patchwork of state standards leads to different schooling from community to community. We cannot allow students to move through the nation’s schools gaining widely varying levels of knowledge, skills and preparedness. Now is the time for states to adopt a common definition of proficiency and tether state standards and tests to a national benchmark. This will sharpen America’s competitive edge and help ensure that all students graduate from high school ready for the demands of postsecondary education and work.

Recently, the Council of the Great City Schools – a coalition of more than 60 of the nation’s largest urban school districts that educate nearly 8 million students – became the first group of education officials to join a growing number of opinion leaders that have already endorsed the development of national standards in the critical areas of math and science, as well as reading. The plan offered by Senator Dodd and Congressman Ehlers today is a bold step toward re-establishing America’s ability to compete successfully in the global economy. We urge other members of Congress to support their initiative.

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