Governor announces MFP freeze for 2017-18
UPDATE: At a January 27 meeting of the legislature’s Joint Committee on the Budget, Gov. John Bel Edwards pledged that there will be no cuts to this year's Minimum Foundation Program, family services or department of corrections in a special session slated to run from February 13-23.
Citing state law, and despite please from students and community members, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted to pull the charters of two struggling New Orleans charter schools and one in Baton Rouge.
BESE Report - October, 2016
BESE okays plan for teacher internships
A plan to reconfigure teacher preparation in Louisiana was unanimously approved by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education following a close favorable vote by the board’s Teacher Effectiveness Committee.
BESE Report – January 2016
MFP faces $20 million shortfall this year
Former Lt. Governor and current Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne visited BESE to administer oaths of office to members, but also brought a warning about the state’s dire financial situation.
“I did not create this breeze of hope that’s blowing across our state,
but I did catch it. The people chose hope over scorn.”
-Governor-elect John Bel Edwards
Dear Colleague,
What could be better than a fresh “breeze of hope” blowing across Louisiana during this holiday season?
BESE Report - December, 2015
It’s a conflict that has frustrated parents and school administrators ever since a protest movement last spring prompted thousands of students to opt-out of taking PARCC tests. Federal law requires schools to report test scores and be graded based on them, but no law forces students to take the tests.
In a compromise that was vetted by the Parish Superintendents Advisory Council, but not the Accountability Commission, BESE approved an emergency rule that allows schools in which students to avoid penalties, at least for one year.
For the past eight years, John Bel Edwards has been steadfast in his support for public education. Even when Gov. Jindal’s ratings were above 60%, John Bel was unafraid to say that the Jindal plan was bad for Louisiana. He has been a voice of reason standing against those who led the state to the brink of disaster.
BESE Report – August 2015
Louisiana’s big business lobby is on track to spend an unprecedented amount on races for the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education this fall.
BESE Report – June 2015
What should have been a bombshell announcement that the State Department of Education is underfunding some charter schools with special education students while overpaying others was virtually ignored by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.
LFT President Steve Monaghan says, “It is obscene to say that we can’t meet the obligations we have at the same time that we are giving away billions in tax exemptions.”