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Granholm
Moves MEAP Back to Education
Gongwer News Service, October 20, 2003
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With the delays
of the last Michigan Educational Assessment Program test scores
release still fresh in the public's mind, Governor Jennifer
Granholm did Monday as she had earlier promised and issued an
executive order moving administration of the statewide test back
to the Department of Education.
With the move, in Executive Order 2003-20, Ms. Granholm told
reporters the state will "have a rigorous plan in place to make
sure this doesn't happen again."
Because administration for the test will be brought back
in-house, "We will not be using the contractor for future
implementation of this test," Ms. Granholm said.
The comments will affect just Enterprises Computing Services
Incorporated, which oversaw the application of the test. A
second company, Measurement Incorporated, that actually scored
the tests is not affected by the decision, a spokesperson to Ms.
Granholm said.
By keeping administration of the test within the department,
there can be greater oversight of its application, Ms. Granholm
said.
"I'm going to do everything I can to make sure that does not
happen again," Ms. Granholm said.
Only in the last several weeks have the test results from the
MEAP tests given last winter become available to the students,
their parents and the public-months after they were expected.
Schools only got a first look at the results in late August, too
late for most to implement any changes in their curricula based
on the results.
The problems with getting the test results led to a series of
legislative committee hearings, with threats of subpoenas being
issued against ECS if executives did not testify at the
hearings.
Ms. Granholm herself said she was furious at the delays, and
since awards of the Michigan Merit Scholarship are based on the
MEAP scores that she signed legislation extending the deadline
for high school students to apply for the scholarship until
November 15 from its normal September 15 deadline.
The executive order reverses a decision made by former Governor
John Engler in 1999 to move MEAP out of the Department of
Education and put it in the Department of Treasury. The move was
made in part because Treasury would administer the Merit
Scholarship that was set up with tobacco settlement funds.
However, it also was no secret that Mr. Engler opposed the State
Board of Education and the department, and took a number of
steps to diminish its authority.
The move in the executive order will not affect administration
of the Merit Scholarship, which will remain in the Department of
Treasury, Ms. Granholm said.
The order will take effect in 60 days, unless blocked by the
Legislature. Senate Republican leaders, at least, have indicated
in the past they think the move is logical.
If the move takes effect, some 21 persons will move from
Treasury to the Department of Education.
A spokesperson for ECS, located in Georgia, could not be reached
for comment.
Henry Scherich, president of Measurement Incorporated, located
in North Carolina, said he had heard "rumors" that the move
would take effect, but had not heard anything official. "It
seemed unusual it was in the Department of Treasury, but that's
the business of the state of Michigan," he said.
This week, Mr. Scherich said, tests are out to state high school
students taking the MEAP retest to qualify for the Merit
Scholarship and his company is fully prepared to conduct the
scoring of that test.
Some legislators are talking about scrapping the MEAP altogether
in favor of a standardized test used by other states to meet
requirements under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, and Ms.
Granholm said she was open to the possibility of changing the
exam and is watching the discussions "with great interest."
"MEAP has got some good points," she said, but she was "very
intrigued by the notion" that the state may be able to have
grade level expectations aligned by other tests.
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FIA Seeks Comment on Family Assistance Grant
Gongwer News Service, October 20, 2003
For more articles like this
visit
https://www.bridges4kids.org.
The Family
Independence Agency is seeking comment on its plans for using
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) public assistance
funds as part of its renewal of the federal grants.
Currently, the purposes of the TANF grant are:
to allow children to be cared for in their own homes or in the
homes of relatives;
to end the dependence of needy parents on government benefits by
promoting job preparation, work and marriage;
to prevent and reduce the incidence of out-of-wedlock
pregnancies; and
to encourage the formation and maintenance of two-parent
families.
No substantial revisions have been made to the plan since its
last renewal in 2001. The deadline for public comments is
December 5, 2003. The revised plan will be submitted to the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services by December 10.
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