Parents and educators concerned about Common Core educational standards for New Hampshire students can bring their concerns to the State Board of Education (BOE) at its next meeting, June 8, 2017. Encourage board members and Commissioner Frank Edelblut to review academic standards, including Common Core’s English and Math standards and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).
The June 8 BOE meeting will be at the Department of Education offices (Londergan Hall) on Pleasant Street in Concord at 9 a.m. Testimony may be submitted in writing, and there will be a brief public comment period early in the meeting.
The May 11 BOE meeting featured various school administrators and even a representative of the Business and Industry Association (BIA) – which bills itself as “New Hampshire’s Chamber of Commerce” – promoting Common Core standards and urging Board members not to review or replace those standards.
Ann Marie Banfield, Cornerstone’s education liaison, was at the May meeting to deliver a different message: students deserve better. She later left a message on social media for concerned parents: “If parents want to see improvements to the academic standards, it’s important that they attend a State Board of Education meeting and make a statement.”
Earlier this year, the BOE voted to deny Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut the ability to revisit NGSS in an effort to analyze the standards and possibly make improvements to them. Banfield later testified to the BOE:
“The Common Core Standards and the Next Generation Science Standards are low-level standards that will teach children some academic content, but will not give them the quality they need, if they have higher aspirations. Several states had superior science standards prior to Common Core. New Hampshire students are being shortchanged when our Commissioner is denied authority to review higher quality science standards for our children.”
Cornerstone testimony to BOE on Common Core English and Math standards
Cornerstone testimony to BOE on Next Generation Science Standards
Contact information for Board of Education Members
Email for Commissioner Frank Edelblut: Frank.Edelblut@doe.nh.gov
