Perdue’s legacy: Did he leave schools better than he found them?
In his last state of the state address this morning, Gov. Sonny Perdue warned against education compromises that “nibble around the edges” and championed his plan to move to performance pay for teachers
He cited courageous education efforts during his tenure, citing as an example his IE2 law, which stands for Investing in Educational Excellence. The law allows school systems to petition for greater flexibility in exchange for a commitment to higher performance.
I am not sure why Perdue deemed this law courageous. His initial charge to his Governor’s Education Finance Task Force – which held more than 75 public meetings and had discussions with 105 school systems – was to transform how we fund schools in Georgia.
But the big recommendation of the task force was granting systems greater flexibility in spending state dollars if they surpass higher academic bars. I thought the recommendation was a cop-out because the task force found it too politically volatile to overhaul the fundamental way that Georgia funds schools.
Perdue also made a pitch for his performance pay, saying that teachers overwhelmingly told him that they want their compensation aligned with “the mission of our schools.” He said a reform of the pay system was necessary to draw the brightest people to teaching. “Let’s do it for our teachers, let’s do it for our students and let’s do it for all the people of Georgia,” said Perdue.
As a legacy, Perdue said he wants to leave the state in better shape than he found it – Did he do so in education?
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81 comments Add your comment
Rural Education
January 13th, 2010
12:15 pm
I’ll be the first to answer; the “fisherman” has been the worst thing to ever happed to education in Georgia. Can’t wait for him to “float off” into the sunset.
john konop
January 13th, 2010
12:18 pm
The system has definitely declined. But I would lay the major blame on Kathy Cox our elected state school czar. Kathy Cox was in charge of implementing and designing the most ill thought out plan in the history of GEORGIA education.
We need new leadership yesterday!
Mac
January 13th, 2010
12:21 pm
That would be a resounding no. If IE2 is what he is crowing about he is even worse than I thought! What a horrible piece of work that law is!
Attentive Parent
January 13th, 2010
12:37 pm
Both Governor Perdue and Kathy Cox have been willing to promise anything to the feds in return for additional revenue.
We have seen this with the proliferation of the NSF funded math and science partnerships where the state agreed to push certain textbooks and the inquiry approach to math and science in order to decrease the achievement gap the quickest and most effective way-capping high end achievement. The only MSP still in effect when Governor Barnes left office was the local one with the Atlanta Public Schools.
Sonny and Kathy were willing to bind school systems all over the state starting in 2003.
Now they are doing something similar with Race to the Top. Perdue and Cox seem willing to implement anything if it will bring in more revenue.
What kind of Republican vision is federalizing education priorities?
what's right for kids???
January 13th, 2010
12:46 pm
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! THAT is the best joke I’ve heard this year! …Did Sonny leave schools better than before…. Maureen, you card!
ga
January 13th, 2010
12:46 pm
until the issue of corporal punishment is totally abolished – we will continue to keep the masses stupid. This failed policy has come to light Under Governor Perdue, and yet he’s done nothing about it.
john konop
January 13th, 2010
12:47 pm
Attentive Parent
All good points!
Katie
January 13th, 2010
12:57 pm
Did he leave it better than he found it? Not only no, but HELL (excuse me), no. When he cut National Board stipends, he showed us who he really is. He screwed (excuse me) the most accomplished teachers in the state due to his own political biases, and now he wants to repeat himself by tying pay to test scores. I love this profession and have given 24 years of my life to it, but I just told one of my students she needs to re-think her career choice.
Perdue has destroyed what was left of education in this state. I hate to say it, and my daddy may rise from the grave, but I’ll probably vote for a Democrat next time. YIKES!
Uncomfortable facts
January 13th, 2010
1:02 pm
The party of personal responsibility and respect for the rule of law did nothing to hold those students responsible who continually disrespect the rule of law in the classroom.
It’s called rearranging the deck chairs of the Titanic.
FLtransplant
January 13th, 2010
1:02 pm
Georgia’s payscale as compared to the state of Florida is wonderful. Both GA and FL are right to work states, but the teacher association that I participated in was so much stronger in FL. There is no way in GA or anywhere else that the governor should be able to dictate in midstream that a policy is now void. Specifically, I refer to teachers not being fully compensated for receiving “leadership” degrees if they are not in a leadership position. “Leadership” degrees are not earned overnight, and if a teacher enters a college program expecting to be compensated after completing the program; it is wrong for the state of Georgia to change the rules in midstream.
On another note, there is no such thing as a leadership degree.
Follow the Money
January 13th, 2010
1:15 pm
I’m definitely voting for a Democrat next time.
That said, let’s look at Perdue and Cox’s legacy (b/c they’re really inter-twined in this CF). Austerity cuts have gutted the public school system and higher education in the state AND we’re still no better off in the national rankings than when they started. That’s where the rubber meets the road in my eyes. I could continue to list the damage done to math and science through inquiry/fuzzy approaches or the fallacy of the 21st century classroom, but instead I’ll just end it with this thought: thankfully, he’s outta here and she will soon be gone as well.
retired
January 13th, 2010
1:46 pm
Nothing is going on in Ga schools that is not going on in every state in the south east and probaably most of the nation. You only have to look at TN to see more problems and less money. No staate benefits for teachers, much lowere salary, except in big cities, larger class size. And even with compulsory attendence till 18 dropout rate is not much better. TN is also making the same changes as Ga as far as pay in order to give the federal goverenment more control of our lives.
retired
January 13th, 2010
1:48 pm
And if you think a demo will do better….TN has a democratic governor. Roy Barns was a democratic governor. Labels do not matter. I would like less taxes, more local control, and more local accountability over achievement.
Don't Forget
January 13th, 2010
1:50 pm
It was the teachers who got Sonny elected. They were more worried about their paychecks (threatened by Roy Barnes) than the quality of education in Georgia.
E. Cobb Parent
January 13th, 2010
2:10 pm
Attenative Parent and John Knopp are accurate with their statements. As for voting democrate, I’ve listed to Dr. Farohki and she isn’t any better than Kathy Cox. Perdue may be responsible for the money but Kathy Cox is the person behind the fuzzy math, one track in high school, whole language/guided reading – I want someone that understands education and I don’t want to hear anymore about closing the gap. That is code for hold down the higher performing areas so everyone else can catch up.
Uncle Commode
January 13th, 2010
2:12 pm
Considering what he had to work with, lazy teachers, uneducated non-caring parents, schools being treated as gossip-mills by the adminstration, indifferent students, lazy custodians, bus drivers with criminal records, I would say Sonny has done an excellent job!
Bruce
January 13th, 2010
2:36 pm
No.
GW
January 13th, 2010
2:41 pm
Education….Kathy Cox held it while Sinny neutered it.
Buh-bye
January 13th, 2010
2:42 pm
I don’t care what he leaves…
JUST LEAVE, SONNY.
fulldawg
January 13th, 2010
2:49 pm
Sonny started off right but lost focus when the the Federal No Child Left Behind came into play. He became one of those who would rather create a second set of schools and leave the public schools unattended. Kathy Cox has played right along into it with her blinder fully attached. BTW if you want to see Ms. Cox vacuuming her own office because of budget cuts go to the DOE’s Facebook page. Please note her office is larger than many teacher’s classrooms (if they even have one).
gl
January 13th, 2010
2:56 pm
If anyone believes that Gov. Purdue has done anything but damage education in Georgia they are uninformed.
john konop
January 13th, 2010
2:57 pm
Uncle Commode
We have many dedicated teachers and administrators. Like any large organization they need improvement and that never ends. But the Kathy Cox gang blaming everyone for THEIR screw ups is getting old. In my business the buck stops with me.
LMartin
January 13th, 2010
2:59 pm
Sonny deserves an “F” in education for being a fat, floundering, farce of a leader. I can’t wait until the doors of the governor’s mansion slam shut behind you!
Cutty
January 13th, 2010
3:03 pm
He cut education funding, while making sure his Go Fish program moved forward…. ‘Nuff said.
highschoolteacher
January 13th, 2010
3:05 pm
Some politicians look to be master surgeons and go about issues with their scalpel, Sonny went at education with a jagged hacksaw.
BobinBuford
January 13th, 2010
3:19 pm
Let’s not forget his furlough days for teachers. Meanwhile, we have Cagle talking about cutting capital gains taxes so all his rich buddies keept their money, and cutting the budget. Look for more furlough days for teachers next year. That’s the Republican way – sc!ew the teachers.
Cobb Taxpayer
January 13th, 2010
3:19 pm
Perdue and Cox have both been diasters for public education in Georgia – The children need real leaders and a teacher pay/performance plan that makes sense. The state’s longivity and degree pay scale has been shanghied by some mediocre to poor colleges ( in the state of Georgia and out) that grant masters and doctors like candy on the corner- based on paying the tutition, little to no entrance requirements, little real knowledge transfer, zero exit requirements, and worst yet a pay raise that has nothing to do with additional responsibilties or performance – long long overdue ! Where have Perdue and Cox been for 7 plus years ?
ActualEducatedTeacher
January 13th, 2010
3:26 pm
“ga” Do you really think that ending corporal punishment is the answer to our problems?? Stop being so liberal.
@ActualEducatedTeacher
January 13th, 2010
3:28 pm
I am not sure the issue falls into either a left or right category…..hmm, so why make it one?
bart
January 13th, 2010
3:52 pm
Perdue and Cox have both been terrible for public education in this state, as have many of the Republican legislators who are openly hostile to “government” schools. It will take years for our schools to recover, if they ever do.
Kitty
January 13th, 2010
3:53 pm
Teacher’s are whipping boys and have been fostering blame for many, many years. Do you people really know where public education is going? DOWN THE TUBES! There will come a time, not in the too distant future, when public education will be for the less-than-elite; all others will send their children to private school. It’s because of the bureaucratic red tape it takes to teach.
I am a teacher and students in my class ALWAYS progress, but there are some who may not make AYP, but again, they have progressed. Most of these children have a common denominator: many do not even have their BASIC needs met — such needs as food, heat, proper clothing, blankets, etc. Then there are others who do not have love and belonging — fathers change by the week, many mothers are totally out of the picture, not to mention those who are barely eeking out a living and just flat out don’t have time to participate in their child(ren)’s lives. I personally, yes, with my own money try to get books into their homes, make sure they have coats, mittens, scarves, blalnkets etc. It’s becoming the norm.
I went to school when “parents cared,” “children would mind,” and the teaching profession was respectable.
There’s more: pay raises for merit. I know that my students learn, and I also know that there are some students who may NEVER make AYP — does that mean I am doing a poor job? I work 10-12 hour days and come in on weekends — and so do MOST of my peers. WE ARE NOT LAZY. The corporal punishment jibe — GET REAL! Corporal punishment has not been administered where I come from in many, many years — and I have worked in a system where it was employed. Many of today’s generation fear nothing, respect little, and are being programmed for the handouts that they receive constantly.
p.s. Cobb Taxpayer “longevity” NOT “longivity”
Jennifer
January 13th, 2010
3:55 pm
IE2 courageous ? If that is his crowing achievement in education, that is downright pitiful.
Talk about a complete waste of effort, time, resources, and money. A whole bunch of paper between agencies that like to look busy and important. A document that contracts a district to absolutely squat, solidifies and increases the achievement gap for our brightest African American and Hispanic students for the next 10 years, and absolutely neglects the special education needs of students.
He has got to be kidding. Go fish..Sonny for a long, long time….and take a few folks with you.
Ben
January 13th, 2010
3:55 pm
What legacy???????
William
January 13th, 2010
3:57 pm
The only thing that will satisfy all the liberals is a complete socialist state lead by them. The liberals will give themselves huge paychecks with bonuses and gripe about the service they receive.
Since we are receiving so much stimulus money, I say pay the teacher $200k for four years and lets see how brilliant our kids become. I am all for it. I really want to see!
Larry
January 13th, 2010
4:01 pm
By no standard, objective, subjective, or just made up, can education be deemed to be in better shape in Georgia than 8 years ago. It was the teachers who turned against Roy Barnes in 2002 and it was the teachers who paid the ultimate price in furloughs, pay cuts (or lack of COL raises), and an utter lack of support for that decision. The Federales focus on testing over actual teaching has failed our children in every significant way. Bravo, Sonny and Kathy. You get the big FAIL award.
really? seriouslyl?
January 13th, 2010
4:02 pm
Game on, William. In fact, let’s see YOU teach for four years and see if you could do just as well. Right in line behind you, buddy.
Sonny Purdue wouldn’t know good Education practices even if they fell on him. Until the Go Fish project faces budget cuts, I don’t think he has any right cutting any state employee’s salary.
Sonny's Fan
January 13th, 2010
4:08 pm
I love Sonny’s Big Deal. Oh wait, I thought this was about bbq.
Carter is a Fool
January 13th, 2010
4:08 pm
Katie at 12:57 is correct.
He lied and broke contracts. He slapped the best teachers with a politically motivated pay cut and now is ready to get the rest of the teachers even after he leaves. Kathy Cox is incompetent just not a criminal link Shrinko.
I may have to vote for a Democrat as well. The thought riles me, but when they attempt to cut my throat repeatedly — Enough is Enough.
David S
January 13th, 2010
4:19 pm
If he had closed them all and forced parents to finally take real responsibility for their children’s education, that would have left them better than he found them
As is, same old, same old. Thank goodness for the private and homeschoolers. Somebody at least has to show the others the right way.
Reality
January 13th, 2010
4:20 pm
Perdue tried to steal teacher retirement – it didn’t work. And now, he wants everyone to think that his idea of teacher ‘pay for merit’ is anything else except a way to reduce and steal teacher pay? Give me a break!
This republican liar needs to STFU and disappear.
EDUCATIOR
January 13th, 2010
4:22 pm
NO DISCIPLINE—NO LEARNING!!!!!
The students say now, and correctly—-WE RUN THESE SCHOOLS!!!!!
If the children won’t do the necesary work to get a diploma, we have now implemented programs to make them get a diploma….all this computer learning stuff to take a failing grade to a passing grade….not sure this is kosher, sort of like giveaway, Adminstration is only concerned about DID YOU PASS AYP”….WE WILL SELL OUR SOULS TO PASS AYP….
Tired of BS
January 13th, 2010
4:28 pm
Education nationwide sucks. It’s not the governors, it’s the teachers and the unions. Educators by and large are not from the intelligent gene pool and it is reflective in their attitudes toward their students. If teachers really gave a rip about their students, really cared about teaching, really cared about the future of our young people, they themselves would take the first step toward improvement. Don’t blame the governor for lousy teachers, unfortunately the intelligent folks chose different careers.
I don’t say this lightly. My kids years in public school were filled with more lousy teachers than I can count on both hands.
GA Citizen
January 13th, 2010
4:33 pm
Sonny Perdue has all but destroyed education in Georgia. Pay-for-performance is the final nail in the coffin.
EDUCATIOR
January 13th, 2010
4:34 pm
GREAT QUOTES FROM ABOVE HERE THAT TELL IT ALL::::
I went to school when “parents cared,” “children would mind,” and the teaching profession was respectable. and there actually were some parents who were involved in their kids lives enough to know what they were doing in school….it is totally accepted within the “kid” culture now to fail courses, not do homework, go to school only to socialize and get the free breakfast and lunch….it is amazing what we have let happen to our public schools……
JONAH
January 13th, 2010
4:37 pm
THIS SORRY GRINCH TRIED HIS BEST TO STEAL OUR RETIREMENT…..GLAD TO SEE HIM GO…HE BACKED THE UGA PRESIDENT AND BOARD OF REGENTS WHEN THEY PUT THE SCREWS TO ATHLETIC DIRECTOR VINCE DOOLEY…..IN ALABAMA IF THAT HAD HAPPENED WITH BEAR BRYANT THEY WOULD HAVE PULLED THE GOVERNORS PANTS DOWN….STILL CAN’T BELIEVE HE GOT AWAY WITH THAT…..ADAMS IS HATED BY ALL TRUE UGA PEOPLE….
catlady
January 13th, 2010
4:37 pm
Depends on what you mean by “better.” If you mean lower staff morale, poor achievement, wasted money, more supervisors, larger classes, poorer programs, nonexistent data sharing capabilities, more grade inflation, curriculum decided by cure du jour, higher tuition, more money for private schools, more consultants, worse behavior–then yeah, he’s leaving it “better.”
South GA
January 13th, 2010
4:55 pm
It’s sad and scary how the Governor, Legislature, and cronies have battered public education since Sonny took office. Now they intend to finish killing it in this session. When the Governor’s response to this crisis is a proposed new teacher salary schedule and the Lt. Gov. wants to cut Capital Gains taxes, it’s not hard to figure that they don’t understand the problem. The problem is revenue, and the solution is a total rewrite of Georgia’s tax code, from top to bottom. No one in Atlanta with clout has the guts to do it, and education and all other public services will continue to suffer until it is done.
Tony
January 13th, 2010
5:43 pm
Gov. Perdue has been one of the worst enemies of public education I have ever seen in my career as an educator. The goal of the politicians during the last 10 years has been to wrest control of schools away from local boards of education and give it to the state. Funding schemes like IE2 are simply one more way to do that.
During the last 8 years, schools have been underfunded by billions of dollars. The state has also limited local boards’ ability to raise taxes to meet the local expectations, too.
This is not leadership. It is cowardice. IE2 started with the committee to develop a new plan for funding schools. The starting point was going to be the core staff for an “ideal” school. Once the cost was determined it scared the boys to death, so they came up with another plan. That’s how IE2 was born.
The bottom line is that the current republican leadership in Georgia does not want to pay for a quality education for every child in the state. Proof of this came in the lawsuit against the state from the consortium of counties. When the counties claimed the state was not meeting the “adequate” educational needs mandated by the constitution, the state’s lawyers tried to claim that a 3rd grade education was “adequate”. Really?
No. Governor Perdue has nearly destroyed our public schools in Georgia.
Speaking of BS...
January 13th, 2010
5:51 pm
“Tired of BS” – YOUR BS is becoming more and more the standard these days. Opionions and slander like you spew, that stop potentially capable people from sacrificing a more lucrative career to make a difference and teach. I assume by your all-incompassing summation of every professional that teaches “are not from the intelligent gene pool and it is reflective in their attitudes toward their students” that you have met, observed and evaluated every teacher across the country and based on your obvious qualifications came to that conculsion. I also assume that your little darlings are perfect and it was all the stupid teachers fault. I guess by your high opinion of yourself that we should just get rid of all the teachers and let you step in and save education, yourself.
ken
January 13th, 2010
6:46 pm
Yes, BS apparently thinks he’s got all the answers. Pour some chlorine on his gene pool. Teachers are treated like dirt in GA.