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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 14, 2009
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Sen. Orie Statement on Revised Keystone Exam Proposal

The Senate Education Committee held a hearing today on the State Board of Education's revised Keystone Exam (high school graduation testing) proposal.  Senator Jane C. Orie (R-40), prime sponsor of SB 281 (which would require legislative approval of all new graduation requirements) issued the following statement after the hearing:

"While I support high academic standards and accountability, I have not been shy about raising objections to the Governor's scheme to mandate high stakes testing -- originally called Graduation Competency Assessments and now the Keystone Exams.

Joe Torsella, Chairman of the State Board of Education, has made some progress on this issue, but the truth is more work needs to be done.  I urge the Administration to once again, step back, reach out to all the groups that have expressed concerns and find out where agreement is and start from there.  This process is too important to be rushed -- as this latest version was produced in only one month and without negotiations.

Twenty-two education groups and over 200 school boards opposed the original Graduation Competency Assessments.  Seventeen education organizations formed the Coalition for Effective and Responsible Testing to put forth an alternative proposal.  Despite the latest proposal being called a "consensus," there are still many unanswered questions and a 'red flag' goes up when none of these groups has come out supporting it.

At a time when we face a $3.2 billion deficit, I can't support a new program, particularly when all the costs have not been laid out.  Despite the claim that this revised proposal has savings, there are new costs such as the 'Alternative Pathways' concept."

CONTACT:

Nate Silcox
(717) 787-6538