THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 23, 1995 TAG: 9503230543
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JON GLASS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 71 lines
Eight months after it began debating whether to accept millions in federal dollars to improve Virginia's public schools, the state Board of Education remains reluctant to take a stand on Goals 2000.
Virginia is one of only six states that have not applied for the federal money, intended to help state and local school systems develop plans to meet eight national education goals. The broad goals call for such results as safer schools, more parental involvement, higher student achievement and improved teacher education.
While local school administrators, teachers and parent groups across Virginia have urged the board to go after the money, members have been unable to reach a consensus. The state could receive slightly more than $14 million over the next two years.
The problem, board President James P. Jones said Tuesday, lies not in a disagreement over the goals but over the federal government's role.
Gov. George F. Allen, as well as many of the conservative voters who elected him, are skeptical of taking the money for fear of losing control over what is taught in local classrooms.
Because the governor has final say over whether the state applies for the federal money, the board's reluctance is based in part on political realities.
``Had the governor been enthusiastic about Goals 2000, then I think the board would have voted on it some time ago,'' said Jones, who favors the state's participation. ``It is, to me, unfortunate that this issue has become so politically polarizing.''
Jones said that the state's poorest school districts would benefit most because they are least likely to have money to make improvements sought by Goals 2000.
At the urging of the Allen administration, board members have voted at least twice since July to delay consideration of the issue, saying they hoped to learn from states that had chosen to participate.
Last November, the board voted to settle the matter in March. But now that the time has arrived, Jones has taken the issue off the agenda for today's meeting. His reason: Congress, now ruled by a Republican majority, could substantially alter, if not eliminate, the Goals 2000 program. Some Republicans have proposed dismantling the U.S. Department of Education.
Last week, the GOP-led House approved budget cuts that slashed the current year's funding of Goals 2000 by 40 percent.
The bottom line, Jones said, is that Virginia ``will not be harmed'' by waiting a little longer. The state has until the end of June to apply for the money.
The push for national standards was driven in part by concern that the country's students were becoming less competitive with those of other industrialized nations.
Federal education officials stress that the goals, adopted by Congress last spring, are voluntary standards, offering a framework for states to develop strategies to meet the goals.
Allen, while not ruling out the state's participation, has given little indication that Virginia will sign on.
``I don't trust the federal government very much,'' Allen said during a recent call-in program on National Public Radio. ``Once you get addicted or reliant on federal dollars, they want to start calling the tunes.''
A panel he appointed to recommend ways to improve education, the Commission on Champion Schools, plans to finish its work by summer. The state Board of Education next week will begin public hearings on proposed new learning standards, including a hearing at 7 p.m. Monday at Maury High School in Norfolk.
KEYWORDS: VIRGINIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION GOALS 2000 by CNB