| H o w w e t a k e b a c k o u r c h i l d r e n ' s e d u c a t i o n -- o n e p e r s o n , o n e q u e s t i o n , o n e s c h o o l a t a t i m e. |
| P E Y T O N W O L C O T T |
How we take back our children's education: one person, one question, one school at a time. |
| FAIR USE NOTICE: This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of education issues vital to a republic. We believe this constitutes a "fair use" of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C., Chapter 1, Section 107 which states: the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright," the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond "fair use" you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. |
| ATTENTION EDUCATORS AND ADMINISTRATORS: Every attempt possible has been made to verify all sources and information. In the event you feel an error has been made, please contact us immediately. Thank you. |
| Copyright 1999-2007 Peyton Wolcott |
| Link to TEA online check register: |
| Conservative Commentary - TEA Inspector General Report released June 15, 2007; Texas Commissioner of Education Robert Scott cleared by Auditor General Nov. 16, 2007, sworn in by Gov. Rick Perry Dec. 2, 2007 |
| Meet Michael J. Donley, TEA's Inspector General By Peyton Wolcott Updated Friday, July 13, 2007/10:00 am |
| What do we know about Michael Donley? Because he doesn't return phone calls or emails--mine, at least--all we have is his work product, the June 15, 2007 contracts review "rough draft," and the fact that he served on the TEA task force |
| Michael J. Donley |
| Signature and 7-10-07 date (left) added to May 17, 2006 (right) application almost 15 months later--after my public records request. |
| Dear readers: Can you find any education law experience listed above? I couldn't. |
| And we have his employment application. Even though Donley's employment application was date stamped as received by HR on May 17, 2006, a date did not appear by his signature for almost another 14 months--on July 10, 2007 (below)--which date exactly coincides with the day after my July 9, 2007 public records request to see it. In fact, we do not know for certain on which date Michael signed the application--whether he signed it when he submitted it undated in May 2006 or he signed it earlier this week when the date was added; as before, Donley has not responded to queries. |
| "For every action there will be an equal and opposite reaction," Sir Isaac Newton observed, and this has seldom been truer than with the public education spectacle we've observed here in Texas these past few weeks. |
| Robert Scott, interim commissioner |
| Long-time TEA executive Robert Scott has served Texas education for several years now; quietly, working behind the scenes, he has brought about the substantive changes for which many grassroots conservatives have been clamoring, one example being TEA's $28 million budget reduction a while back (have any of those folks been missed?); also, all of TEA's 2006 checks are now online. And in response to Robert Scott's actions--true to Newton's law--the "education blob"--what I call Education, Inc.--has, with Shirley Neeley finally out the door, in the past two weeks launched an unprecedented witch hunt. Those forces committed to maintaining the corrupt status quo in public education do not welcome Robert Scott with open arms. This is a good thing. It's a sign he can do something of real value for our schoolchildren and our parents and our taxpayers. If Education, Inc. thought for a nanosecond he would continue the old inept and corrupt ways, they wouldn't be bothering. I believe that with Rick Perry as governor, Don McLeroy as State Board of Education chair, and Robert Scott as commissioner, Texas public schools have a very real chance of coming back out of the abyss into which we've sunk. Our kids can't read and they can't multiply without a calculator. We are poised for a real education miracle. It's time. |
| "Do not leave questions blank." |
| Unsigned (until July 10, 2007) portion of TEA Inspector General Michael J. Donley's employment application: |
| "Current/Final Salary: $80,000." (Three months work as a summer associate still in law school.) |
| Boxes not filled in. |
| NOTE: This is the only employment listed for the three-year period in law school. |
| The "Leaving Date" is not filled in, although the narrative "Summary of experience" is in the past tense: "I excelled..." |
| "Employer addresses must be complete...." |
| How is it possible to manage teams without supervising anyone? |
__
_
| "Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of applications...." |
| "Omission of information may be grounds for....termination." |
| "This application must be signed." |
| "Indicate your understand- ing and acceptance by signing in the space provided." |
| No address. |
| "Fill out application form completely." |
| "Be sure to sign when completed." |
| "These instructions must be followed exactly." |
| TEA Inspector General answers questions By Peyton Wolcott Tuesday, July 17, 2007/12:07 am |
| "The official record of your employment history...." |
| "same information in the same format...." |
| Mr. Donley states that he believes he provided ade- quate information to the Human Resources Division prior to his hiring. He said he did not sign his job application until July 10, 2007. Mr. Donley said the $80,000 figure listed on the job application is an annualized salary figure. Mr. Donley said he and James Catazaro had not met prior to Mr. Catazaro’s job interview at TEA. Mr. Donley did not meet Commissioner Neeley until he joined the TEA staff. |
| Yes, Michael J. Donley has now ans- wered some questions. Yes, he still has not answered other questions. For now, on the record, TEA's inspector general has sent the following responses via a TEA spokesperson: |
| Questions to Harvester Pope, TEA's HR director, still unanswered a week later: |
| Texas Gov. Rick Perry names Don McLeroy new State Board of Education Chair By Peyton Wolcott Updated Wednesday, July 18, 2007/12:52 pm |
| Don McLeroy (L) of Bryan at July 2006 SBOE meeting; (L to R) SBOE members Cynthia Thornton and Pat Hardy, attendee |
| Gov. Rick Perry has named Don McLeroy (R-Bryan) as chairman of the State Board of Education for a two-year term. McLeroy has served as vice-chairman of the state board and a member of the Bryan Independent School District Board of Trustees. McLeroy will serve a two-year term on the board. McLeroy has close ties to social conservatives throughout the state. With McLeroy at the helm, expect the board to continue work already underway on expanding the charter school movement, making more rigorous the content of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills, and toughening the standards for the state's testing program. "We've got to have top-notch standards," McLeroy said. "That's the key and our Number One Priority." McLeroy said he plans to get to work right away on the rewrite for the English Language Arts portion of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills and aims to make them rigorous, measurable and grade-level specific. McLeroy has served on the board since 1998. |
| In announcing yesterday that he'd named Don McLeroy chair of the State Board of Education, I believe that Gov. Perry has made the correct decision for Texas schoolchildren, parents and taxpayers. Don has proven with both his professional and his private life that he is committed to improving education for Texas school children. Speaking personally, I want to say that after dealing with education executives and officials for many years now, Don's modesty is refreshing and speaks well of his character. So modest in fact is Don that I just recently discovered his website, by accident. Here's hoping this quote (below) is prophetic of Don's dynamic SBOE leadership. |
| o Why did Shirley Neeley hire Michael J. Donley as her Inspector General (one of only two executives reporting directly to her over whom she had hire/fire ability) without doublechecking to make sure he'd properly filled out his employment application? o Why would a recent (2004) Harvard Law grad not fill out all the details on his employment application at TEA? o And why on God's good Earth didn't Donley at the very least date and sign the application when he turned it in back in May 2006? o Don't they coach their students to pay attention to crucial details like signatures and dates at Harvard? |
| NOTE: In response to numerous reader requests I have moved all of the red commentary boxes out of the signature box below so that you can read all of the statements Donley was supposed to have read and signed off on in May 2006 but didn't. |
| TEA's interim commissioner Robert Scott and Newton's third law of physics By Peyton Wolcott Friday, July 13, 2007/2:44 am |
| 1. What are the procedures in TEA's Human Resources for assuring that the State of Texas Application for Employment for a newly hired employee is completely filled out at the time of employment, including checking to make sure the application has been signed and dated by the new employee? Regarding the employment history portion of the application, what about boxes which are incomplete? Mr. Donley has filled in some boxes but not others. Did anybody in HR question "$80,000" for three months of work while a summer associate still in law school? 2. A handwritten notation in the top right corner of the first page of Michael Donley's resume attached to his application states "Cost center = 102.000" (my best interpretation of the handwriting) and "100% indirect" -- what does this mean? Does "Sept 11" mean hire date was September 11, 2006? Would "Dir I" mean "Director One"? Whose handwriting is this? Yours or Mrs. Neeley's or someone else's, and if the last, whose? 3. Until July 31, 2007, did employees reporting directly to former Commissioner of Education Shirley Neeley* as with the instance of Inspector General Michael J. Donley perhaps have different procedures and methodologies applied the supervision of their applications as opposed to other employees who did not report directly to Mrs. Neeley? 4. Although Michael J. Donley's application bears an HR received date of "May 17, 2006," Mr. Donley's signature is dated "7-10-07." Can you clear up this point for me: Did Mr. Donley sign his application in May 2006 and submit it without both a signature and a date, or did he submit it in May 2006 with an undated signature or did he both sign and date it on July 10, 2007? [NOTE: This question has been answered by Mr. Donley but not by Mr. Pope.] We are certainly all human, and indeed it is 100% impossible to cover all details all of the time. * Reference: TEA org chart, dated June 15, 2007. |
| Still wondering: |
| Too many decisions in the past such as those involved in the writing of our original subjective touchy-feely fake-consensus-driven TEKS standards directly benefited Texas school administrators and Education, Inc. including lobbyists like Sandy Kress (at far right); along these lines I've been listening this past week to tapes from a crucial 1997 SBOE meeting on which I'll be commenting soon. In the meantime, here's Gov. Perry's press release: |
| Don has a moral compass which helps him know when to compromise and when to stand uncompromisingly on principle. He understands how important it is to rewrite the education standards for our public schools, and he is determined that students must master basic skills before they can be expected to do higher-level thinking . . . . Don has the ability to work well with all types of people, is fair-minded, and is very wise. He is humble and does not revel in the limelight in order to feed his ego. |
| which exonerated at least 590 Texas schools of TAKS cheating charges (what would our world be like if all offenders were invited to self-investigate?). |
| Excerpts from "Clear Thinking" By Don McLeroy |
| "The schools of the present day are being ruined by the absurb notion that education should follow the line of least resistance, and that something can be 'drawn out' of the mind before anything is put in." -- J. Gresham Machen (1923) "A body of facts accumulates and makes it possible for people to solve many more prob- lems than they could ever hope to handle suc- cessfully solely by their own thinking processes." -- Hy Ruchlis (1962) |
| The key to clear thinking is a mind filled with knowledge and facts. |
| Rudolf Flesch in The Art of Clear Thinking (1951) states, "Here is your definition of thinking: It is the manipulation of memories." But what are memories? Memories are the recordings of knowledge, facts and experiences in the mind. Minds cannot function in a vacuum. |
| Don quotes two more authors: |
| Filling the mind with knowledge and facts is, in fact, the special task given to education. Thus, the most amazing orthodoxy which dominates the educational establishment leviathan today is the slighting of facts and knowledge for emphasis on problem-solving and critical thinking. Problem solving and critical thinking are secondary skills. Before one can think and solve he must first have something to think about. Surgeons must be drilled and saturated in the facts of anatomy before they problem solve with a scalpel. Yet today there is a real bias in the public schools to de-emphasize knowledge and facts. For a child, the years before puberty are the golden time to learn, to be exposed to myriads of facts, to be trained in arithmetic, grammar and spelling. In spite of this, each of these areas have been a battleground at the state level where the dogmatic orthodoxies have been challenged by the back-to-the-basics advocates. What we need in our schools is a real commitment to filling our children's minds with knowledge, facts and experiences; this is the school's job; no one else is going to do it; it is what parents expect. Clear thinking will be the result. |
| More from Don's site: |
| TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY INSPECTOR GENERAL REPORT QUESTIONS & ANSWERS By Peyton Wolcott Updated Thursday, July 26, 2007 - 9:10 pm |
| DECODING EDU-JARGON! TEKS Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills; these are the miserable standards (written a decade ago under then-education commissioner Mike Moses' leadership) on which the TAKS (Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills) tests are based. Why do I say "miserable"? The TEKS as written under Mike Moses are subjective, touchy-feely and non-grade specific. SBOE State Board of Education; they can elect their own vice-chair and secretary but governor appoints chair. SUBJECTIVE There are no clear-cut answers. CONSTRUCTIVE Rather than "wasting" valuable classroom time drilling students daily in the multiplication tables, a third-grade teacher using the constructivist approach would instead assign her third-graders a project entailing constructing a poster. TOUCHY-FEELY Public education is no longer knowledge-based; feelings have become paramount. ELAR English Language Arts and Reading. RINO Republican In Name Only (pronounced "Rhino"). |
| RECENT TEXAS EDU-LEADERSHIP TIMELINE Aug. 1, 2003 Deputy Education Commissioner Robert Scott named Interim Commissioner by Gov. Rick Perry. Jan. 12, 2004 Governor Rick Perry appoints then-supe Shirley Neeley as Texas Commissioner of Education; Robert Scott remains at TEA as Chief Deputy Commissioner (announcement below). Aug. 22, 2005 Gov. Perry signs EO 47 requiring all Texas public schools, using the NCEE formula, to spend at least 65% of their monies in the classroom. Neeley schedules meetings to invite Texas supes to dilute the formula. June 2006 First Dallas Morning- News coverage of "rampant" TAKS cheating. Jan. 2007 Gov. Perry does not reappoint Neeley to a second term. Feb. 2007 Deputy commissioner Scott puts TEA's check register online. Feb. 2007 Neeley launches internal inquiry based on anonymous internal complaints into TEA's contracting practices. June 15, 2007 Gov. Perry tells Shirley Neeley she won't be reappointed. June 15, 2007 TEA Inspector General Michael Donley's "final" report on TEA's contracting practices released; appears to target Scott. June 20, 2007 Shirley Neeley resigns effective July 1, 2007 June-October 2007 Rumors abound re Neeley's replace- ment, with President George Bush's friend, Texas edu- lawyer lobbyist Sandy Kress (called NCLB's architect), likely front-runner. Oct. 16, 2007 Gov. Perry appoints Robert Scott as Texas Commissioner of Education Nov. 16, 2007 Texas Auditor John Keel's office releases final report clearing Robert Scott _________________ Compiled 11.19.07 |
| TEA's Inspector General Report; date: June 15, 2007 What were the E&O's in this report? (Answers below) The folks behind it Shirley Neeley: Did she fill out a TEA conflict of interest form re her school architect Significant Other/now husband/ who has done business at schools she singled out for support? Examples: Education foundations for both Eanes ISD and Manor ISD. Michael J. Donley: Why did Shirley hire a 2nd year law school grad to head an important division-- without getting a signature on his employment application? (More below) James Catazaro: What in his background gave Donley & Neeley confidence in his ability to produce a well-researched report? (More below) |
| Last month we read published accounts of the Texas Education Agency Inspector General's report dated June 15, 2007. Most were published in a curious void, the equivalent of reading about someone standing up in a crowded theater and yelling, "Fire! Fire!" -- without any follow up as to whether there was or was not a fire or even any smoke, or whether the person doing the yelling was competent to yell "Fire" or was instead hauled off afterwards in a straightjacket. Some accounts referred to theatergoers' reactions, such as "TEA's internal strife grows." But no one looked at the persons -- and as it turns out there were multiple persons -- who stood up and yelled, "Fire! Fire!" Here are some areas I wish folks would look into: |
| Neeley (L) with Eanes supe at edu-foundation gala in Austin |
| Donley |
| TEXAS AUDITOR CLEARS ROBERT SCOTT OF TEA INSPECTOR GENERAL CHARGES For the record, now moving forward. . . By Peyton Wolcott Sunday, November 18, 2007 - 11:53 a.m. |
| Gov. Perry Appoints Dr. Shirley Neeley Texas Education Commissioner, Robert Scott to Continue as Chief Deputy Commissioner AUSTIN – Gov. Rick Perry today named Dr. Shirley Neeley, superintendent of Galena Park schools, as commissioner of education. Robert Scott will continue his role as chief deputy commissioner. The commissioner of education oversees the public education system of Texas in accordance with the Texas Education Code. Neeley has been a teaching professional since 1971 and associated with Galena Park ISD since she began as a sixth grade teacher in 1975. She has been superintendent since 1995. Neeley, a graduate of the University of Houston, earned a master’s degree from Prairie View A&M University, and a doctorate from the University of Houston. “Dr. Neeley is a results- driven education leader who sees challenges as opportunities, and who has proven that success in our schools is not predicated on the wealth of a community, but the commitment of the educators, parents and students in that community,” Perry said. “Dr. Neeley’s focus on high standards and classroom excellence, her refusal to accept the status quo or conventional wisdom, and her proven track record of success make her the ideal Texan to lead the Texas Education Agency.” “Dr. Neeley is a proven leader, a tremendous administrator and an experienced educator. She will bring the same commitment to educational excellence that she has shown in Galena Park to the Texas Education Agency,” said Sen. Mario Gallegos. “Gov. Perry has chosen a great individual to be the next education commissioner.” In announcing Neeley and Scott, Perry said his goal is to make meaningful and measurable reforms in Texas schools while redefining the way Texans pay for public education. To help reach the goal of better schools, Perry said he supports placing existing and new dollars into a fund that provides incentives for Texas schools to achieve greater educational excellence and efficiency. “I support results-based performance funding incentives rather than a blanket increase to the current funding formulas that lacks accountability,” Perry said. “Like most taxpayers, I believe we must demand that education dollars be spent wisely and efficiently.” “In the coming weeks, I will unveil new proposals that will reward schools that lower their dropout rate, successfully prepare students for advance placement exams and college boards, and make measurable strides in increasing the percentage of new dollars spent directly in the classroom.” Under Neeley’s leadership, Galena Park ISD has been rated an exemplary district for the past two years. The district has a student population that is 66 percent economically disadvantaged and 88 percent minority. Nineteen of Galena Park’ s campuses have achieved a rating of either recognized or exemplary. The number of students taking the SAT or ACT has doubled under her tenure while Galena Park’s dropout rate is among the lowest in the state. Additionally, the number of students taking advanced placement courses and advanced placement tests continues to rise in Galena Park. More than 80 percent of Galena Park graduates enroll in higher education. “I am asking Dr. Neeley to do on the state level what she has done in Galena Park, which is to create a culture of educational excellence, and a focus on educational efficiency, so more students graduate from high school prepared for college and success in life,” Perry said. Robert Scott, will remain at TEA in his role as chief deputy commissioner. He has served as interim commissioner since June 2003. Scott served as a senior education advisor to Governor Perry since 2001. He previously was a division director at the TEA. Scott received a bachelor’s degree and law degree from the University of Texas. “Robert Scott is an innovative education leader who has helped me develop a number of policy initiatives over the past few years, including a dropout prevention program, the math and science initiatives, and my high school completion initiative,” said Perry. “With Dr. Shirley Neeley and Robert Scott on board, I believe Texas has one of the best education leadership teams in the country.” |
| Gov. Rick Perry announces Shirley Neeley as Commissioner of Education 01.12.04 |
| Robert Scott Texas Commissioner of Education |
| PERSPECTIVE Dallas Morning News bloggers re Shirley Neeley's ouster (06.20.07) |
| Re: Breaking.... Well, in her mind, the TAKS cheating scandal may not have had anything to do with her departure. But I'm not so sure that the guv would say the same thing, if he were being totally transparent. And if that's not the main reason, it's certainly closer to the truth than Shirley Neeley suggests. Truth is, the truth hurts sometimes. Posted by James Ragland at 11:01 AM --------------------------- BREAKING: Shirley Neeley resigns Shirley Neeley, the state's commissioner of education for the past three-plus years, is resigning. Gov. Perry informed her over the weekend that he would not be reappointing her to a new term, so she decided to step aside early. "I can compare my situation to a superintendent when a school board decides to take no action or not to extend their contract," she wrote in a letter to Texas Education Agency staff. "Anyway you look at it, the message is clear: When it is time to go, it is time to go." Dr. Neeley also had a brush with health problems earlier this month, when she had surgery to remove a leg melanoma. She specifically said her departure is not related to our recent stories on cheating on the TAKS test. While some may speculate that my departure as commissioner is based on the negative media clips regarding the entire testing integrity issue, nothing is farther from the truth. There will never be a 100% guarantee that cheating in some shape, form or fashion will not occur, but I believe with all my heart that Texas has taken a very bold stance that is second to none. To do this right and make sure every decision was research based and vetted by important stakeholder groups, I clearly believe the outcome was worth the time and effort. Posted by Josh Benton at 10:55 AM |
| Same day, Josh Benton listed the following possible replacements for Shirley Neeley, in this order: |
| Michael Hinojosa David Anthony John Folks Sandy Kress Kent Grusendorf Robert Scott |
| PW UPDATE NOV. 18, 2007 It's interesting that of the above list, three are public school superintendents; as of just this past week, all three have posted their districts' check registers online. |
| There's a wonderful haiku by the 18th century Japanese poet Issa that goes something like this, "Ask directions of the man pulling radishes and he points the way with a radish," meaning no matter how we might try to report news as impersonally as possible, the news we report and how we report it still goes through our very unique individual filters. Regarding the release earlier in the day of Texas Auditor John Keel's report exonerating Robert Scott of the charges triggered by predecessor Shirley Neeley's release of a negative TEA report--dated the same day she learned Gov. Perry would not renew her appointment as commissioner--The Houston Chronicle's Jane Elliott's headline Friday night reads, "Cronyism found in TEA contract offers / Auditor reports some done without competitive bids, but insufficient evidence for case," although a search of the auditor's report turns up no mention of "cronyism" or "cronies" or any such. Where perchance did that reference come from? Similarly, Terrence Stutz of The Dallas Morning News left reads with a like impression, mentioning in the first paragraph that, "the state auditor said some agency transactions over the last few years have been conducted at 'less than arm's length.' " Of all the accounts published regarding Texas Auditor John Keel's report released this past Friday, Donna Garner's is the most specific and indicates a close examination of the report: |
| For the Record By Donna Garner - Saturday, November 17, 2007 Just to make sure that there is no confusion about what the Texas State Auditor's report said and did not say regarding the new Texas Commissioner of Education Robert Scott, let me clarify a few things which are either in the report, not in the report, or which have surfaced in the last few months: 1. Under the Texas Education Code (TAC) (Section 8.051), the Texas Education Agency (TEA) has the right to use Education Service Centers (ESC's) to implement directives (passed by the Legislature). The TEA does not have to go through the competitive bidding process for these ESC services. |
| Donna Garner |
| 2. The TAC (Section 8.053) also allows the ESC's to contract with public or private entities for services, but the ESC's are definitely required to go through the proper competitive bidding process. The TEA and all 20 of the ESC's have been under these same SB 1 rules since 1995. 3. When Ex-Commissioner of Education Shirley Neeley first came into her Commissioner's position in 2004, she hired her friend, Jimmy Wynn, to help her make the transition. Because of his widely known position, Wynn soon became known as the voice of Shirley Neeley. When Wynn recommended that the Waco ESC hire his ex-wife (Emily Miller) as a contractor, the Waco ESC did so, assuming Neeley was behind it. Without talking directly to Shirley Neeley or to Robert Scott (Deputy Commissioner) and without going through the proper bidding contract procedure, the Waco ESC hired Wynn's ex-wife, Emily Miller. 4. Ms. Miller was chosen by the Waco ESC to review and recommend changes to the way the TEA and the State Board of Educator Certification conducted the hearings process. Deputy Commissioner Robert Scott had made the decision to give the initiative to an ESC because he believed a more objective and impartial entity than the TEA was needed, and he chose the Waco ESC for the job. However, there is nothing in the State Auditor's report to indicate that Deputy Commissioner Robert Scott ever talked to the Waco ESC to recommend Emily Miller for the job. In fact, there is nothing in the report which says that Scott even knew Ms. Wynn had been chosen for the job. 5. Not in the State Auditor's Report is any reference to the case of mistaken identity which was verified in Jason Embry's Austin American-Statesman article on July 6, 2007. Embry reported that when Emily Miller was negotiating her ESC contract, she thought the person on the other side of the e-mails was Deputy Commissioner Robert Scott when in actuality it was the Waco ESC Rob Scott who ironically had been a TEA employee years earlier. This explains Ms. Miller's confusion over the two Rob (Robert) Scotts. 6. A contract issue which is mentioned in the State Auditor's Report involves the Commission on College Ready Texas (CCRT). The Texas Legislature appropriated $1.5 Million under HB 1 (79th Legislature, 3rd Called Session) for the CCRT to assist the state leaders to implement college-readiness standards into the K-12 curriculum; and the TEA was given statutory authority to carry out this initiative. Again, the TEA was not required to bid out this contract if they decided to give the initiative to an ESC. The Austin ESC was chosen, and by law this ESC should have bid out the contract. Instead, the ESC asked Jimmy Wynn for suggestions of individuals who should be hired for this project, and those people were hired. 7. Another contract issue in the State Auditor's Report relates to State Funding Technical Assistance. The TEA Chief Operating Officer (NOT Deputy Commissioner Robert Scott) recommended that the Austin ESC hire an ex-TEA staffer who evidently had broad experience in matters of school finance. The Austin ESC chose this person without going through the correct legal channels of the bidding process. 8. Another contract in question by the State Auditor's Office is the one relating to the Gates Honor State Grant. This contract also went to the Austin ESC; Christi Martin (a former senior policy advisor at the TEA) and Jimmy Wynn recommended Shirley Neeley's ex-speech writer for the job. The Austin ESC never went through the legally required bidding process, and the person recommended by the TEA was hired. The State Auditor's report says nothing about Deputy Commissioner Robert Scott being involved in this matter at all. 9. What the State Auditor's Report does say is that all of the individuals who worked under the various ESC contracts did their jobs for which they were paid and fulfilled their contract agreements. 10. The State Auditor's Report ends with some practical recommendations for strengthening controls over contracting and subcontracting at both the TEA and the ESC's, and newly appointed Texas Commissioner of Education Robert Scott says he will be glad to put these into place. 11. Commissioner Robert Scott has already implemented new transparency procedures at the TEA. He has put the TEA's check register online and has made the fiscal information on the Agency's website much more accessible and easy to use, placing dropdown boxes with actual school district names instead of confusing numbers. Commissioner Scott has demonstrated humble yet assertive leadership in his dealings with the elected Texas State Board of Education members, and he has already begun to restructure the TEA so that it will work more efficiently. Good things are happening now in Texas education, and it will be important for Texas citizens to become more involved as we all strive to make sure our Texas public school children receive a quality education. |
| Robert Scott (L) with CCRT chair Sandy Kress; attendees (R) at Nov. 14 SBOE meeting in Austin |
| A closer look at TEA Inspector General Michael Donley's employment application |
| HOME |