Thompson: States Unsure They Can Implement Obama Plans

In 2007, the Center on Education Policy reported that states lacked the capacity to implement NCLB mandates, and sure enough, children are still being left behind.  Since then, most state departments of education have often suffered cuts exceeding 10%, and more cuts are anticipated in the next two years.  Now, the CEP reports that states will invest an unprecedented amount of federal funding to improve 5,000 of the nation’s lowest achieving schools, but only a handful of states say they have the expertise, staffing, and funding to carry out their promised reforms. In "More To Do, But Less Capacity To Do It," CEP concludes that the Duncan Administration's ambitious reform agenda "may hit a wall in 2012." - JT (@drjohnthompson) Image via.