In being proactive rather than reactive, before the commissioner of education releases the “Failing School List” for Maine, I would like to express my concerns with the state plan in regards to the federal legislation of “No Child Left Behind.” I will break the document down into five areas.

1. This document gives the Maine Education Assessment Test considerably more clout as an assessment tool than it has had in the past.

2. This document gives the commissioner of education more control over local school boards. There’s lost local control, with a federal threat of punishment standing behind the commissioner.

3. This document leaves a lot of questions unanswered in regard to who, what, how, how much and who’s how much. It definitely defines why and that is “No Child Left Behind.”

4. This document is clearly a controlling accountability piece, not a knowledge-based document. “I don’t care what you know, all I care about is how did your school do on the Maine Education Assessment Tests (MEA’s).”

5. This document expects everyone to hit the target with some unanswered questions concerning the other underfunded mandate – Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

As Sen. Susan Collins, who sent me a copy of the state plan, said: There seems to be a lot of unanswered areas in this application. I encourage everyone get a copy of the state plan June 5, 2003, revision from the Maine Department of Education and decide for yourselves. We all have to live with it.

John T. Butler Jr., Lewiston

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