EdAction
Maple River Education Coalition PAC
105 Peavey Rd, St 116 
Chaska, MN  55318 
952-361-4931
http://www.EdAction.org
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April 1, 2001

Workforce Central Planning bills sail through House & Senate committees

A fundamental restructuring of our education, workforce and economic system is sailing through House and Senate Committees with few questions raised and bipartisan support.

SF 501 now has a companion bill introduced in the House last Thursday. It is HF 2331, authored by the Rep. McElroy, Chairman of the Jobs and Economic Development Finance Committee. HF 501 sets up the state as a major venture capital agency.

SF 1745/ HF 1859 was heard in both the House and the Senate last week. Rep. McElroy (651-296-4212) is also author of HF1859. SF 1745/ HF 1859 centralizes a workforce system under one new Department of Economic and Workforce Development.

SF 1760 sets up the bureaucracy for managing a central planning economy and workforce. All of the regional workforce centers come under one umbrella and "performance standards" are developed. But Section II K of the Unified Plan contract with the federal government, already signed by our Governor last year, reveals that the standards are already written. There you will find the Performance Standards that SF1760 requires the Jobs Skills Partnership Board to create by January 15, 2002. (See Section II K of the Governor's Unified Plan)

What kind of facade is this anyway? Are our elected legislators allowing themselves to be used as nothing but pawns to create something already in place? Senator Dave Johnson of Bloomington is the author of SF 1760 (651-296-9261).

SF 1760 was amended in a Senate Committee to include bringing independent job training agencies under the state plan by providing "job training grants." It was grants from the federal Goals 2000 and School-to-Work programs that forced all schools in Minnesota into compliance with the radical federal redefinition of education. Independent job skills training agencies that do not accept the "free" state money will not be able to compete with agencies who accept state money.

Thank you for the calling and writing. A sample of the responses you are getting:

"The Governor's reorganization doesn't start any new programs and has nothing to do with our schools. The purpose is to make our adult workforce programs more effective and ultimately less expensive." Rep. Dan McElroy, Burnsville.

Recommendation # 2, recommendation #4 and recommendation #5 of the Governor's Workforce Development Plan relate directly to students, careers exploration for youth and alignment of education with business. (See the plan)

Government diagram of the new system

In addition, state publications freely use the graphic that portrays education reform, workforce restructuring and economic restructuring as the three components of one new system. School-to-Work is at the connecting center of those three circles.

What an incredible thing! Legislators are diving pell-mell into a central planning system modeled after the floundering Japanese and German economies, and no one is putting on the brakes!

"I like School-to-Work," says one conservative legislator who has opposed the Profile of Learning. "Tell me what's wrong with a planned workforce system."

In her book, "Cloning of the American Mind," Bev Eakman states:

"Operating under the false assumption that America lacks, or will lack, skilled workers, the creators of these initiatives want to exchange America's former practice of allowing the individual to determine his own future and make his own mistakes for a restrictive an bureaucratic system that locks youngsters into a vocation early on and provides them with just enough skills and knowledge to perform only those tasks appropriate to that vocation... Everyone has a 'skill,' but people are not 'educated' in the larger sense of that term."

We need legislators who will look at the big picture.  We don't need elected officials who look at one bill at a time as if it is unrelated to the whole. Every single state representative and senator must be discussing what they are doing.

Tell them you oppose School-to-Work.
Tell them you oppose a centrally planned workforce system.
Tell them to stop every bill that puts this system further into place.

One more bill that passed the House Education Committee last week is HF 1850/SF 2093, authors Rep. Abeler and Sen. Pappas. HF 1850 sets up a three year pilot project for districts approved by the Commissioner to "use alternative models for delivering education by expanding the flexible learning year program. The project is intended to explore effective alternatives for delivering education." (See the bill)

This is more school-to-work, structuring schools to work at a job, do service in the community and get skills certificates.

Last Wednesday, a state sponsored School-to-Work conference in Mankato featured a speaker who explained to the teachers, administrators and counsellors present that education restructuring is entirely about preparing workers for jobs. The purposes of equation were defined as follows:

1. essential skills (minimum reading, writing and math)
2. identify and reenforce work values
3. link the classroom with work
4. encourage non-paid work
5. assist in further training.

Never was there a hint that it is the role of our schools to transmit the history of our freedom, the history of our country, the great literary works of our heritage that opens our minds and hearts to greatness. Never was there a hint that geography of the world or nation, the knowledge of great scientific discoveries or the history of ideas is necessary base for our citizens to be a self-governing people.

Nothing but careers and job-skills was considered worthwhile for our children.

Please talk to your elected officials. They must hear from all of us, not just on particular bills, but on the big picture they seem to be too busy to understand.

EdAction - 105 Peavey Rd, Ste 116, Chaska, MN  55318 
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