The Stampede by the Nation’s School Districts to Opt Out of No Child Left Behind

From the Washington Independent:

A school board in Virginia has voted unanimously to leave No Child Left Behind, which would mean joining a bevy of other boards across the country in sending a resolution to Sec. of Education Arne Duncan asking for the request.

The petition is a joint effort by The American Association of School Administrators and the National School Boards Association to “urge—absent Congressional reauthorization—immediate regulatory relief for the 2011-12 school year, and any efforts to rescind or modify current regulations and alleviate undue pressure on the nation’s schools.”

The letter continues:

We urge the Department of Education to exercise their regulatory authority to relieve school districts from the constraints of current statutes, keeping schools from being held hostage while Congress moves forward with complete reauthorization. We request that this relief be straight regulatory relief, not waivers. Schools deserve straight regulatory relief, and not the additional requirements or conditions that often come with waivers. We specifically support suspension of additional sanctionsunder current AYP requirements, effective for the 2011-12 school year. (Schools currently facing sanctions would remain frozen; no new schools would be labeled as ‘In Need of Improvement’ or subject to new or additional sanctions.)

Over 900 school districts have signed onto the proposal

900 is a lot.

The joint effort by associations which represent school boards and school administrators is not insignificant. The massive number of school districts which have opted out of No Child Left Behind dwarfs the eight state level education heads whom want the strict guidelines maintained to support their own reform efforts.

No wonder Arne Duncan is looking to take control of future NCLB decisions. He realizes that the number of districts opting out is growing and has reached mutiny status.  The Independent story is the first of its kind that focuses on the massive number of school districts which have been prompted to act. Popular Republican governors have been able to dodge such opposition thus far. Will they be able to continue hiding from the issue as congressional authorization of NCLB  continues to stall?

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