Duncan takes sides in state, local education debates
By Michele McNeil/Education Week
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan—who often reminds folks that, as a local school superintendent, he did not appreciate interference from Washington—continues to insert himself in state and local debates. Sometimes he's asked, sometimes he's not. And some of the issues he's gotten himself involved in are far more political than others. On Monday, Duncan appeared via webcast in Washington state to support Gov. Chris Gregoire's plan to consolidate education functions into a single Department of Education under the governor's control. Under her proposal, the state's separately elected superintendent of public instruction would be required to collaborate and coordinate with a new governor-appointed education secretary. (more...)