Bill to alter formula for A-F school ratings going to House floor

What began as one lawmaker’s idea to make school ratings more accurate  now has a head of steam.

The bill to change the formula that determines A-F grades for 830 public schools cleared the House Education Committee 6-4 on Friday.

It now goes to the floor of the House of Representatives, having already been approved by the Senate.

The spsonsor, Sen. Howie Morales, D-Silver City, said the existing grading formula is inaccurate and unfair.

He received plenty of support Friday. Among those endorsing his bill Friday were the Coalition of School Administrators, the Albuquerque Teachers Federation and the Artesia and Santa Fe school districts.

Opposition came from Republican Gov. Susana Martinez’s administration. An employee of the state Public Education Department said the state’s waiver from the federal No Child Left Behind Act would be in jeopardy if a change were made.

Morales said this was not case. Claims about the waiver were being used “somewhat as a weapon” by a department that wants to have its own way, he said.

Morales said the waiver would be strengthened by a statistically sound grading system for schools. The existing one is flawed, and that actually is a threat to the waiver from No Child Left Behind, he said.

When review monitoring begins, the education department would not be able to justify its grading model because it is inaccurate, Morales said.

Under Morales’ bill, A-F grades for schools would remain. But the method of determining those grades would change. He says the current model is too dependent on standardized tests and does not accurately gauge how well a school is doing.

Four Republicans on the House Education Committee voted against Morales’ bill. Six Democrats supported it.

Of the pending vote by the full 70-member House of Representatives, Morales said: “I’m confident it’s going to go through.”

That would send the bill to Martinez for a signature or veto.