Yesterday, an anonymous reader commented: EVERY voucher/tax credit proposal in Utah since 2002 or so has had a means-testing component to it so how can you say that the Utah Taxpayers Association’s comment bore only passing resemblance to previous legislation? It’s a fair question. Yes, tuition tax credit bills in the past few years have [...]
The Utah Foundation Breakfast last week was certainly interesting, but not terribly helpful. Half of the presenters were there primarily to push their political interests, some ignoring the purpose of the summit as I understood it. Paradox Lost If your keeping an eye on the public education debate in the state, you know that the [...]
I was chatting with a colleague when he ask why university enrollment was declining. My unresearched, off-the-cuff answer was, “The economy is doing well.” After spending some quality time with my good friend Google, I can more confidently say I’m partly right. Here’s a list of likely reasons; we’re not being hit with just one, [...]
Grant Harkness recently questioned the concept of paying math and science teachers more than their peers in other subject areas. His criticism centers around the perceived prioritization of math and science over English in the curriculum. His arguments misdiagnose the problem: it’s not that Math teachers are more important than English teachers. It’s that they’re [...]
Yesterday, Provo voters approved both a bond and property tax leeway. (Daily Herald; Deseret News). I’m pleased. The proposed uses of the bond and leeway are reasonable. Also, I spoke with members of the Provo Board of Education and the district superintendent prior to the election, and am assured the bond is necessary. It was [...]
Rep. Steve Urquhart has published a piece focusing on the Governor’s veto of HB 151, which would have allowed higher education to charge students up to $30 per credit for concurrent enrollment ($90 for most courses). To define the discussion, concurrent enrollment (CE), means classes taken in the high school for which college credit may [...]
Last week I mentioned some of the ways I approach proposed rules/legislation when evaluating my position. Again, these indicators are 1) being overly specific, 2) being individualized, 3) the absence of consequences and 3) the violation of locality. (Again, IANAL) Embracing generality I argued against laws attempting to cover every eventuality through specific language. The [...]
My comments on this topic are too long for a single post. This is part one of a multi-part discussion, which will eventually be compiled into a single essay. (IANAL) As the legislative session opens, I wanted share some observations on law, discuss what makes good law, and explore ways to identify poor laws. In [...]
There is, I believe, consensus among the education community that the most important influence on student performance is teacher quality. It would be difficult to find a parent who wouldn’t want the best and brightest teachers in their children’s classrooms. We have some amazing educators in Utah, but we don’t have enough of them. The [...]
It’s been a couple of weeks since the last Board of Education meeting. Chairman Burningham presented a resolution supporting Governor Huntsman’s efforts to expand kindergartens to full-day programs. While I believe the governor is well-intentioned, I disagree with the premise of full-day kindergartens. It’s true that the achievement gap we’re facing in Utah schools becomes [...]
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