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Larry Lee

Larry Lee

Survey says: No one trusts the Governor, State Superintendent, School Board

Education Matters By Larry Lee At this writing, nearly 700 have responded to the survey we posted on Friday, March 17, 2017. Results basically track the last survey made in December which showed little confidence among educators in State level entities charged with helping public schools. You can see all results here. Respondents were 69 … Continued
March 23, 2017

Fake news, alternative facts

Education Matters By Larry Lee Just to prove they understand “alternative facts,” the Alabama Federation for Children sent out a news release and a study proclaiming that the Alabama Accountability Act is saving taxpayers millions of dollars. The report, done by Auburn University Montgomery, contends that every time we divert money from the Education Trust … Continued
February 17, 2017

Big splash to UWA

Education Matters By Larry Lee At its heart, education is more about hand-to-hand combat than about ballyhooed plans and initiatives. Sure, we love the big splash, but at the end of the day it’s all of the little splashes that make a difference. And that’s what just happened at the University of West Alabama, tucked … Continued
February 2, 2017

More questions on “smear sheet” investigation: Who knew what when?

By Larry Lee Education Matters More than 40 years ago, the late Tennessee Republican Senator Howard Baker asked during the Watergate hearings, “What did the President know and when did he know it?” I was reminded of that yesterday, January 18, 2017, as I listened for nearly two hours while Senators Gerald Dial, Quinton Ross, … Continued
January 19, 2017

Something fishy about “failing schools” list

By Larry Lee The State Department of Education just released the latest “failing schools” list, an annual ranking is required by the infamous Alabama Accountability Act. The Legislature decreed that the bottom six percent of all public schools are “failing” and should be identified annually. So lists were distributed in June 2013 and January 2014, … Continued
January 17, 2017

The irony of righteous indignation

Education Matters By Larry Lee When State Superintendent of Education Mike Sentance told the State School Board Dec. 8, that the Office of Inspector General of the US Department of Education had determined that the State’s high school graduation rate was inaccurate, reaction was swift and true to form. Members of the Legislature who consistently … Continued
December 16, 2016

More deception and the tie that binds

By Larry Lee Education Matters In the waning days of the Presidential election we heard Donald Trump talk a lot about a “rigged” election.  We have now learned that he may have been describing the state board of education’s recent search for a new state school chief. After two days of asking questions, the legislative … Continued
November 21, 2016

Doing it for the kids

By Larry Lee Education Matters “I did not know the rules.” These words won’t leave my head. Round and round, “I did not know the rules.” The reply given by state school board member Mary Scott Hunter to State Senator Gerald Dial when asked in a Nov. 10 committee meeting if she knew the Ethics … Continued
November 14, 2016

Dial Committee Meets Again as The Plot Thickens

By Larry Lee Education Matters The committee set up by Senators Gerald Dial and Quinton Ross held their second session Nov. 10 to question State school board members and others in the on-going effort to determine how an anonymous “smear sheet” discrediting Jefferson County school superintendent Craig Pouncey became public knowledge. Pouncey, a former chief … Continued
November 11, 2016