The , which was a major force behind the stepped up federal accountability in the No Child Left Behind law, has tapped former U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings to serve as the new head of its education programs.
In case you鈥檝e been living under a rock, Spellings was a key architect of the NCLB law when she served as President George W. Bush鈥檚 domestic-policy adviser. As secretary of education, she introduced substantial new flexibility into the law and also racked up some major international frequent-flyer miles.
Spellings, who will be replacing Arthur Rothkopf, has already been as a senior adviser to Thomas J. Donohue, the chamber鈥檚 president and CEO.
It鈥檚 hard to say whether having her as frontwoman will help the chamber鈥檚 cause. On the one hand, she鈥檚 still well respected by many folks on Capitol Hill and in the policy community, and is seen as an effective deal maker. Plus she鈥檚 funny, a great communicator, and as as it gets. On the other hand, the NCLB law is a pretty tarnished brand and Spellings is as closely associated with it as anyone out there鈥� except maybe her former boss.