ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - A usually routine legislative vote to re-elect members of the New York state Board of Regents could be complicated by disagreement over the state rollout of the new Common Core standards for the public schools.
Four incumbents on the 17-member board are up for re-election on Tuesday.
But lawmakers, facing their own elections this year, are feeling heat from parents and educators over Common Core, the academic standards adopted by 45 states and the District of Columbia to improve students’ college and career readiness.
New York’s implementation of Common Core, which began in 2010, came under fire especially by teachers who say they weren’t given sufficient material and guidance to teach the new standards resulting in dismal passing rates for Common Core-aligned tests. Gov. Andrew Cuomo also has criticized the rollout, saying testing on it is premature and scores should not be counted against students.
The Board of Regents oversees state educational policy, and each person seeking a spot needs a 107-vote majority from the Legislature to win a seat on the board. State laws say if no one gets the majority vote, the incumbent remains in office until the Legislature passes a law to resolve the situation.
Democrats in control of the Assembly typically control the vote but because of vacancies only have 99 seats.
Senate Democratic Conference Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said she will not be voting for the incumbents because they didn’t recognize the need to reevaluate the Common Core implementation, which she said was flawed. Four other Democrats say they also are voting for challengers.
The Assembly last week passed a bill that would delay portions of Common Core for two years. The bill prevents schools from using Common Core-based test scores on teacher evaluations and prevents schools from using the scores to decide whether a student will advance to the next grade. The bill was sent to the Senate, where it has no sponsor.
Some Republicans tried to amend the bill to establish a panel on whether to use the testing standards but they were defeated when lawmakers said it could jeopardize the state’s nearly $700 million federal Race to the Top grants.
Senate Republicans, who usually boycott the vote, will be attending.
Regents are elected to five-year terms. Up for re-election Tuesday are at-large members Wade Norwood and James Cottrell who represent the entire state; Christine Cea, who represents Staten Island; and James Jackson, who represents the Albany area.
The Independent Democratic Conference; Assemblywoman Deborah Glick, who chairs the higher education committee; and Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan, who chairs the education committee, did not immediately return calls Monday for comment.
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