Common Core Waiver Sought
State seeks federal waiver extension after Common Core standards repeal
BY TIM TALLEY, Associated Press
When lawmakers adopted legislation this year repealing Common Core education standards, they cited concerns that the federal government was attempting to influence Oklahoma’s public education policy.
Now, the state’s top educator is asking the U.S. Department of Education for a one-year extension of a 2012 waiver from No Child Left Behind guidelines, which she says has headed off even more onerous federal intrusion in Oklahoma’s schools. But that waiver — and its resulting federal money — may have been jeopardized when Gov. Mary Fallin signed the bill repealing the English and math standards in June.
“Losing this flexibility would be akin to erasing incredible progress toward helping Oklahoma children build success — not just in the current school year, but for an entire generation and beyond ” Schools Superintendent Janet Barresi wrote in the Aug. 8 letter. “When I took office in 2011, Oklahoma had only just left the starting line in the race to more effective schools. Now in 2014, we are well around the track and rapidly advancing toward the finish line ”
If Oklahoma loses the waiver, it would place restrictions on 20 percent of about $500 million annual federal funding for local school districts that serve more than 681,000 students, according to state education officials. It was not immediately known when the federal education department will decide on the waiver.