Press Room
MSEA Announces Slate of Educator-Endorsed Candidates
MSEA has released its updated list of endorsed candidates for statewide offices, the Senate, and the House of Delegates for the 2014 elections. MSEA had previously announced its endorsement of Lt. Governor Anthony Brown for governor, Senator Brian Frosh for attorney general, and Comptroller Peter Franchot for re-election.
Landmark Common Core Bills Pass Maryland General Assembly
April 2, 2014: Through a series of overwhelming and bipartisan votes, the Maryland General Assembly passed three major bills to address the persistent problems associated with the state’s implementation of Common Core State Standards, the new PARCC test, and new teacher evaluation systems.
MSEA Applauds House Passage of Common Sense for Common Core Bills
The House has made huge strides towards injecting some much needed common sense in Maryland’s implementation of Common Core. On the heels of the Senate’s near-unanimous passage of SB 676, the Senate cross-file of HB 1167, Maryland legislators are recognizing that students and educators need time, resources, and flexibility to get the major changes taking place in our schools right.
New poll: Anthony Brown has commanding lead in gubernatorial primary
A new survey of Maryland voters conducted for the Maryland State Education Association (MSEA) shows that among likely primary voters, Anthony Brown holds a large lead with 48 percent of the vote, followed by Attorney General Doug Gansler with 19 percent, and Delegate Heather Mizeur with 9 percent. GBA Strategies administered this survey of Maryland likely voters, including 426 Democrats likely to vote in the June primary.
MSEA Endorses Brian Frosh for Maryland’s Next Attorney General
MSEA’s Representative Assembly (RA) voted on March 15 to endorse Senator Brian Frosh in the race for Maryland’s next attorney general. Delegates from across the state voted on the endorsement during one of the association’s largest meetings of the year. Delegates also voted to endorse Peter Franchot in the race for comptroller.
MSEA President Betty Weller on Senate Passage of SB 676 on Teacher Evaluations
The Senate’s near-unanimous passage of SB 676 is an important step in the right direction for instilling some much needed common sense in Maryland’s implementation of Common Core. The bill ensures that evaluations cannot include student test scores until at least the 2016-17 school year due to their misalignment and lack of validity.
MSEA President Betty Weller on Maryland’s Proposed ESEA Extension Waiver
We recognize the need for a waiver and are encouraged by the main request of a two-year moratorium on counting state standardized test scores in teacher and principal evaluations. It’s common sense that new, unproven, and unvalidated assessments do not belong in teacher evaluations.
MSEA President Betty Weller on Governor O’Malley’s Budget Proposal
“Governor O’Malley’s strong record of investing in our students and top-ranked schools continues with the budget he introduced today,” said MSEA President Betty Weller. “In Governor O’Malley’s eight years in office, we’ve seen an incredible investment of more than $45 billion in our public schools—and the results have been outstanding."
Teacher survey shows continuing implementation problems for Common Core and new evaluation systems
Maryland’s teachers need more time, support, and resources to successfully implement new evaluation systems and Common Core State Standards, according to a survey of 745 teachers. This survey reflects the on-the-ground perspectives of educators working hard to get these changes right despite the challenges they face.
Maryland State Education Association Endorses Anthony Brown for Maryland’s Next Governor
The Maryland State Education Association’s Representative Assembly (RA) voted to endorse Anthony Brown in the race for Maryland’s next governor. Delegates from every county in the state voted on the endorsement during the association’s largest and most diverse meeting of the year.