Innovation is key to policy reform, ISBE chairman says

The chairman of the Illinois State Board of Education plans to use his new position on a federal policy committee to advocate for practical changes to education legislation, including allowing states more resources and flexibility under No Child Left Behind.

Jesse Ruiz, a Chicago attorney and former law student of President Obama's at the University of Chicago, sat down with the Daily Herald recently to talk about his work on the National Association of School Boards Government Affairs Committee - the group responsible for education policy recommendations and getting lawmakers up to snuff on the priorities of various states.

Q. President Obama recently announced that he is asking for a 6 percent increase for education in his 2011 budget - a $4.5 billion increase in discretionary spending. Much of this is contingent on renewal of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (known as No Child Left Behind). Coming from a state that saw more schools than ever fail to meet rising benchmarks this year, what kinds of changes will you be suggesting?A. Frankly, (states) need latitude and more resources. Some of this stuff is not rocket science. States need more authority to step in, when districts are not performing as they should be. NCLB was good in theory ... but it was always heavy on stick and light on carrot. Hopefully with that increase, we need to provide a little more carrot and resources. We can.Q. Illinois school districts are facing a lot of problems right now - in addition to the failing test scores, they're seeing huge rises in foreclosures, and are millions behind in receiving state aid payments. What perspective are you bringing to the table? A. You really do see the world form our own vantage point. The one benefit we have, Illinois is one of the larger states. There are no reps from New York or California on this committee. I made some heads spin earlier when I said we had over 800 school districts. The complexity that we're dealing with and the diversity of various districts - rural, suburban, urban, affluent, poor - I want to make sure all of those are represented.Q. How will you specifically advocate for suburban districts?A. There are 12 guiding principles of this committee. Among them, equity of education, balance in government, teacher quality, secondary school reform. Each district is different from one another. That's where we have to listen and learn from our constituents. Some improvements - helping develop new assessments at the state level, for example - will benefit every one of the state's 869 districts. For every community, we need to make sure we can be as customized to their needs as we can.Q. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said recently that he'll be seeking advice from local education officials in creating parameters for a district-specific competition of Race to the Top. He mentioned that the competition would not be just for districts looking to supplant funds during a tough budget year. Do you have any ideas for how this competition should be designed to help cash-strapped districts but not cater to them?A. One thing I really like (about this competition) is we're forced to think about the bottom 5 percent of schools. What are the issues districts can tackle? Reading programs, extended school days, wraparound services that aren't part of a traditional routine. There's a number of things districts could do. The key is to tie that to data. Prove that it's working, and the dollars are working.Q. Much of Race to the Top is centered around streamlining standards, teacher evaluations and procedures. Do you think a one-size-fits-all approach can really work?A. Arne Duncan's coined this phrase that I really like. "Strong on goals. Loose on means for meeting those goals." You've got to set forth the rigid standards, high-level standards, and let folks innovate. As a lawyer, nobody ever sits around here and tells me how to go about my clients' problems. As long as I help them accomplish their goals, and it comes in budget, they should be happy.