Last year at this time then-U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. , touring school districts hit by a hurricane, and dropping by a charter high school in New Orleans to talk to students about a recent turnaround effort.
Now he鈥檚 the president and CEO of the Education Trust, which looks out for poor and minority children. And he鈥檚 got a new side gig, teaching an education policy class at the University of Maryland.
I caught up with King at his offices in Washington and talked to him about some of the changes in Washington over the past year and where he sees things heading.
On the Trump administration鈥檚 civil rights record:
King has some big concerns about some of the administration鈥檚 recent moves when it comes to civil rights enforcement, which he sees as central to the department鈥檚 mission. He specifically cited the administration鈥檚 choice to . He also noted DeVos鈥� comments that historically black colleges were pioneers of school choice. (DeVos later clarified those remarks). And he brought up
鈥淎ll of those things suggest that there鈥檚 not a full commitment to civil rights protection,鈥� King said. 鈥淎nd to me the question would be, what is she going to do ensure that students鈥� civil rights are protected.鈥�
He鈥檚 worried too, that the Trump administration proposed to cut the budget for the Education Departments office for civil rights.
鈥淧art of what makes the local advocate-federal partnership is if you see a civil rights violation and you take it to the feds in the hopes that it will be addressed,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 am worried that infrastructure is not being supported as it should be.鈥�
On state ESSA plans:
King sees 鈥渞eal strengths鈥� in some of the state Every Student Succeeds Act plans turned in this spring and drafts of plans due next week.
But, he says, there are some big question marks and missed opportunities, too. He鈥檚 glad to see that so many states will be incorporating chronic absenteeism and college-and-career readiness into their accountability systems, something he encouraged as secretary. (At least 10 states so far have included chronic absenteeism or attendance into their ESSA systems, .) And he鈥檚 encouraged that some states are continuing to put a focus on academics and aren鈥檛 walking away from working to close the achievement gap, as some feared they might.
鈥淚 am worried about the clarity for parents about school performance ... I鈥檓 very worried about the California dashboard,鈥� he said, referring to the state鈥檚 proposed accountability model, which considers school performance on a host of factors, but doesn鈥檛 come up with an overall rating. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 very confusing.鈥�
And he sees a lack of detail in plans when it comes to how to intervene in low-performing schools, a perennially tricky task. 鈥淚 worry that the interventions will be paperwork, rather than substantive,鈥� he said. He鈥檚 also worried there won鈥檛 be 鈥渕eaningful ratcheting up of interventions"鈥攎eaning that schools that aren鈥檛 getting better would have to try something new, or go deeper.
King had also hoped some states would incorporate a push for socioeconomic diversity and racial diversity into their plans, including as a turnaround strategy for low-performing schools. And that hasn鈥檛 happened.
States also didn鈥檛 go as far as they could have in rethinking how they might use federal funding for teacher quality鈥攊n part because the Trump administration said it wanted to eliminate the program, King said.
Ed Trust and other civil rights organizations have run 鈥淓SSA bootcamps鈥� to educate state-level advocates鈥攊ncluding parents and teachers鈥攐n how they can keep a close eye on the law鈥檚 implementation.
On the Trump administration鈥檚 approach ESSA:
King thinks his successor, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, needs to push states to improve student outcomes under the new law, not just get their plans approved.
鈥淭here is a role in particular that I think the secretary can play in making clear to states that the [goal] of ESSA is not plan approval. It鈥檚 actually improvements in outcomes and closing the achievement gaps,鈥� he said. 鈥淪tates may need to revise their plans ... but they should be doing that in service of this broader goal of equity. And it feels like, a little bit, the message from the department over the last few months has been that ESSA is about plan approval.鈥�
On DACA:
King and four other former secretaries of education young people who arrived in the U.S. illegally as minors, who have been shielded from deportation by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
鈥淚 think there is a strong bipartisan majority in support of the DREAM Act,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f government works like it should, it should happen. On the other hand, we鈥檝e been waiting a long time鈥� for that legislation.
On low-income students taking Advanced Placement classes:
King had some concerns after reading t.
鈥淲hat worried me is, if people read that story and walk away and think to themselves, 鈥極h the problem is too many low-income students of color are in AP classes.鈥� That would be a horribly wrong, and it would be harmful to education equity. What one should take away from that story is that [there is a difference[ between access and success, and that should cause us to ask, well, what does it take to ensure that students have access and then are successful?鈥�
He noted that Education Trust did a . The takeaway?
鈥淚t requires strong academic support, not just starting in that AP class, but in the prior years so that students have the academic skills to be successful. It requires attention to tutoring opportunities and extra support opportunities when students struggle. It requires building a culture that says to students, 鈥榊ou belong here, we want you to succeed, we believe you will succeed, and we will invest in you to succeed through your hard work. You work hard, we will provide you with support.鈥欌��
On heading back to the classroom: King, a former social studies teacher, is jazzed to be teaching again.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to talk through the current education policy debates,鈥� he said, including the transition from No Child Left Behind to ESSA. He鈥檚 trying to give his students, who are pursuing degrees in education and public policy, a sense of both the 鈥渟ubstantive policy context, but also a window into how policymakers think about their work and the need to think through your goals but also to think through the political environment,鈥� as you pursue those goals.
Bonus: If you happen to be taking King鈥檚 class at Maryland, your final assignment will be to read the Baltimore Sun鈥檚 鈥� series by Liz Bowie and Erica L. Green. Then come up with a proposal to address the issues of segregation it describes, and write a speech pitching the plan to the public.
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Photo: Swikar Patel for 澳门跑狗论坛.