The Boston Globe which I consider one of the ntion’s most liberal urban daily newspaper, second only to its parent The New York Times is beseeching in today’s editorial President elect Obama to select a somewhat hard line Secretary of Education.

While it acknowledges Linda Darling Hammond, Obama’s out front educational specialist as an outstanding academic, it suggests she may too close to the educational establishment, read as teachers unions.

The question is whether he’ll pick someone who is willing to ruffle feathers in the educational establishment or go with a highly credentialed regular from that group.
Somewhat in between are some urban school superintendents like Michelle Rhee in Washington, D.C., Joel Klein from NYC, Arne Duncan of Obama’s hometown of Chicago, and Michael Bennett of Denver. All four have shaken things up in their districts.

While writing this entry I came across a New York Times article from Saturday that raises these same issues. I guess the parent and child are working together on this one.

Stand up for ed standards
December 15, 2008

AS A CANDIDATE, Barack Obama stood up for education reform, even when it meant alienating teachers unions opposed to his embrace of public-funded charter schools and merit pay for teachers. Now, as president-elect, he needs to show he meant it by appointing an education secretary wedded to reform - not one inclined to settle for low standards.

Reformers were rattled when Obama named Linda Darling-Hammond, a Stanford education professor, to head his transition team on education. They see Darling-Hammond as too cozy with unions and the education establishment. That may be a simplistic take on a respected academic. But her expertise does rest in building systems that support effective schools, not shaking up sclerotic educational bureaucracies.

The nation needs an inspirational, impatient secretary of education who isn't afraid to step on toes. Recent improvements in the nation's schools are the result of relentless attention on standards and accountability. Students in Massachusetts and other high-performing states respond well to rigorous statewide exams, which they must pass in order to graduate. Some teachers might not like "teaching to the test," but they are getting quite good at it, including in some urban districts. At their best, the tests are closely aligned with curriculum standards and measure students' grasp of basic concepts and higher skills alike.

The nation needs an education secretary whose heart belongs to the standards movement. Names now in play include New York school chancellor Joel Klein; Washington, D.C., chancellor Michelle Rhee; and Chicago school chief Arne Duncan. There is a strong argument for choosing an urban educator who understands the achievement gap between minority and white students. If the toughest fights ahead will be in the nation's poor districts, it makes sense to choose a leader who knows the terrain.

There are other good approaches. Former Boston school superintendent Thomas Payzant, who served as an assistant secretary for education in the Clinton administration, says that the time could be right for a governor or former governor to assume the top education post. It falls to the states and local communities, says Payzant, to implement the standards imposed by the federal No Child Left Behind policy. So why not appoint someone who understands those challenges firsthand? Obama has stated that he is not averse to having Republicans in his Cabinet. So he should also look at Governor Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota, a strong proponent of education reform.

There is no shortage of good candidates for the post, and no excuse for backsliding to the days of low standards.