By Angela Hatton
Frankfort, KY – Kentucky state officials want to replace federal No Child Left Behind accountability standards with new state standards. Governor Steve Beshear sent a letter to Education Secretary Arne Duncan today requesting a waiver from the NCLB accountability model. State Education Department spokesperson Lisa Gross says Senate Bill 1, which passed in 2009, forced Kentucky to develop new state standards. Gross says those will go into effect this year.
"The Governor is requesting that instead of having a two-tiered system, which is what we had in the past we've reported schools' standings under the state accountability system, and we've also reported their standings under No Child Left Behind. The Governor is asking that we are able to use just one system for that purpose."
Gross says Kentucky is the first state to request a waiver. Secretary Duncan has called on Congress to revamp NCLB. Duncan has said if the federal government does not move forward, states should be allowed to implement changes this fall. Kentucky has requested a quick response on its request because many schools resume classes in early August.