RESOLUTION TO PROTECT OKLAHOMA’S EDUCATION SYSTEM

RESOLUTION TO PROTECT OKLAHOMA’S EDUCATION SYSTEM Whereas, Many Oklahomans are concerned 1 about the implementation and use of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), aka Oklahoma Academic Standards 2,3; Whereas, The State of Oklahoma applied for, and was granted, a waiver by the federal government from the No Child Left Behind 4 (NCLB) requirements in return for participation in the Common Core State Standards Initiative including Common Core aligned-assessments, teacher and school accountability measures, and the implementation of  a State Longitudinal Database System (SLDS) with federal grant 5 money to collect, store and share data on public school students from pre-school through twenty years of age; Whereas, Many conservative groups6 have come out against CCSS along with both Oklahoma’s U.S. Senators7; likewise, twenty states across the nation have called a halt to, or plan to fully repeal CCSS8; the Republican State Parties in Utah9, Georgia10, South Carolina11, Kansas12, California 13 and Florida14 have passed resolutions against CCSS; Whereas, The Oklahoma Republican Party, as stated in the 2013 Oklahoma Republican Party Platform15,  “oppose[s] participation by Oklahoma in the Common Core State Standards because it transfers control of local schools away from the parent 16 and local school boards and gives more power to the State”  and;  and; Whereas, The Republican National Committee17 in April of 2013 passed a resolution rejecting Common Core State Standards because it devalues the individual student with a  “one size fits all”  approach  approach to education, and therefore be it RESOLVED, The State Committee of the Oklahoma Republican Party stands in opposition to Common Core Standards (by any name) and strongly urges the 2014 Oklahoma Legislature to honor and comply with Governor Mary Fallin’s Executive Order 2013-40 18 signed December 4, 2013 and take concrete action to stop or delay the implementation of CCSS and cease participation in NCLB waiver requirements pertaining to CCSS; RESOLVED, The State Committee of the Oklahoma Republican Party urges the Secretary of Education and the State Legislature in the 2014 Session to honor and comply with the second directive in Governor Fallin’s  Executive Order 2013-40, declaring that the  “State of Oklahoma will be exclusively responsible for deciding the assessment methodology to be used to measure student performance”  and  and encourages OSDE to contract with an in-state testing vendor not affiliated with PARCC or Smarter Balance; Resolved, The State Committee of the Oklahoma Republican Party urges the Secretary of Education and the State Legislature in the 2014 Session to honor and comply with Governor Fallin’s Executive Order 2013-40  “to safeguard against any threat of federal intrusion”  and  and to honor and comply with its fifth directive declaring that Oklahoma Academic Standards will  “not  jeopardize the the privacy of any Oklahoma Oklahoma student student or citizen”, therefore ceasing the use of state and federal monies in the funding, continued development, and usage of the State Longitudinal Database;

Resolved, The State Committee of the Oklahoma Republican Party strongly requests that the Republican State House and Senate Committee Chairs receiving bills concerning the repeal or delay of CCSS and/or any part pertaining thereto (including but not limited to the analysis of CCSS and any part of the NCLB waiver requirements) to hear these bills and allow a Committee vote; Resolved, The State Committee of the Oklahoma Republican Party directs the State House and Senate Republican Floor Leaders to hear any bills concerning CCSS and/or any part pertaining thereto that pass out of Committee, and that these bills be slated for hearing and vote by Legislators, so honest debate can occur and Oklahoma citizens are represented by the vote of their elected legislator; and Resolved, The State Committee of the Oklahoma Republican Party directs each County Chair or Vice Chair, to hand deliver this resolution to each duly elected Republican Legislator for their County and the State Chairman to hand deliver this resolution to the Governor and State Superintendent of Public Instruction and to publish this resolution on all Oklahoma Republican online resources within 30 days of passage of this Resolution. Chief Sponsor: Cyndi McArtor, Delaware Delaware County State Committee Committee Member

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http://www.scribd.com/collections/4384797/Testimonies-From-Parents-Teachers-Oklahoma-Common-CoreInterim-Study-11-5-2013 2  National C3 Standards Nearly Identical to OAS Social Studies Standards http://restoreoklahomapubliceducation.blogspot.com/2013/10/liar-liar-pants-on-fire-bringing-osde.html 3  Next Generation Science Standards (national science standards) Virtually Identical to OAS Science Standards http://restoreoklahomapubliceducation.blogspot.com/2013/12/next-generation-science-standards-vs.html 4 Oklahoma’s  NCLB Waiver Application http://www2.ed.gov/policy/eseaflex/ok.pdf  5 Oklahoma’s  State (federal) Longitudinal Database Grant http://ok.gov/sde/state-longitudinal-data-system-grant 6 Groups Against the Common Core and Other Nationalized Standards http://restoreokpubliceducation.com/node/791 7  Eight Senators Join Grassley In Fighting The Common Core: http://caffeinatedthoughts.com/2013/04/eightsenators-join-chuck-grassley-fight-to-defund-common-core/ 8 Map (lower right) http://truthinamericaneducation.com/ 9  Utah http://www.utahnsagainstcommoncore.com/utah-gop-anti-common-core-resolution-passes/ 10  Georgia http://truthinamericaneducation.com/common-core-state-standards/georgia-gop-state-central-committee passes-anti-common-core-resolution/ 11  South Carolina http://www.scgop.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/SCGOP-Res-CommonCore.pdf 12  Kansas http://kansansagainstcommoncore.wordpress.com/2013/09/14/kansas-gop-passes-common-coreresolution/ 13  California http://truthinamericaneducation.com/common-core-state-standards/california-gop-denouncescommon-core// common-core 14  Florida http://education-curriculum-reform-government-schools.org/w/2014/01/florida-republican-caucus-passesresolution-opposing-common-core/ 15  Oklahoma GOP Platform http://www.okgop.com/about/ 16  Stop Common Core Illinois http://stopcommoncoreillinois.org/home-school-private-school/ 17  RNC Anti-Common Core Resolution http://truthinamericaneducation.com/common-core-state-standards/rnc passes-anti-common-core-resolution-at-their-spring- meeting/ 18 Executive Order 2013-40 http://newsok.com/oklahoma-gov.-mary-fallin-issues-order-supporting-commoncore/article/3911147