Podcast appearances and mentions of john merrow

How did California slide into such a deep school funding hole, and how can we climb our way back up? These are among the questions we take on in this latest adventure with special guest Gary Hart. As a former state legislator, longtime Senate Education Committee Chair, and Secretary of Education, Gary offers the critical perspective of someone who was “inside the Capitol building” during a truly pivotal time in the early life of Ed Funding.He began his career as a classroom teacher before serving two decades in the state legislature at a time (1974-1994) when so many key events in school funding unfolded. What led to the dramatic disinvestment in California’s schools, beginning in the 1970s? Rising real estate values, bad economic times and a major change in the state’s demographics all contributed, according to Gary. He also reflects on whether there’s anything he wishes he might’ve done differently while in office to help change the downward trajectory of per-student funding. And what about Proposition 98? Former Sen. Hart takes some exception to characterizations that legislators and governors “manipulated” the Prop. 98 constitutional guarantee for schools, causing it to become more of a “ceiling” than a “floor” for per-student funding. “Ballot box budgeting,” he says, “is not a good system.” We also explore the sometimes shifting borders between how prescriptive the state used to be in telling local school districts how to spend their funds, and the relatively recent move towards more local control. As our adventure continues, Gary takes on the mountain that California faces to increase school funding to the levels needed to support all students. A more stable state revenue system must be identified, he says, especially so the state is not so disproportionately reliant on income taxes. Finally, we consider whether, at the end of the day, increasing school funding comes down to whether or not those currently serving in Sacramento truly have the political will to take it on.More ResourcesFor a terrific history of California’s school funding slide, we recommend the 2004 documentary, “From First to Worst” a production of the Merrow Report by award-winning journalist John Merrow. You can find it online.Ed100.org is a excellent free resource with concise, engaging online courses that help people understand complex education issues. Ed100 has an entire chapter on school funding, including a great lesson about Propositions 13 and 98.About Gary HartGary served in the California State Legislature as an assemblymember and senator for 20 years, representing Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. In his role as chairman of the Senate Education Committee (1983 to 1994), he wrote important education legislation concerning school finance, class-size reduction, and charter schools. He also served as the Secretary of Education for Governor Gray Davis. In addition, he has served on the board of directors for the Public Policy Institute of California for more than ten years, including as chair. In 1995, he founded the California State University Institute for Education Reform, a policy center focusing on elementary and secondary school issues. In 2001, he established the Program in America and California Explorations (PACE), an honors program at Kennedy High School in Sacramento. He obtained his MA in teaching from Harvard University and his BA from Stanford University.About CASBOThe California Association of School Business Officials is the premier resource for professional development and business best practices for California's school business leaders. CASBO is dedicated to promoting excellence and professionalism in all aspects of school business.

Would California schools actually be better off if Proposition 98 had never come into being? Why is it still so important to understand? And where do we go from here to fulfill the initiative’s promise of bringing state spending per student to the top ten among states? On this show, we’re big believers in the axiom that to get where you want to go, you need to understand where you’ve been. That’s why we’re making a special journey this episode into the recent history of school funding in California. Think of these as Ed Funding’s formative years. Our special guest Kevin Gordon, President of Capitol Advisors, helps us explore this history, including the mother of all state ballot measures, California's Proposition 98. The measure sought to lift California school spending to among the top ten states in the nation, but for many reasons, we’re still not there. When it appeared on the statewide ballot in 1988, Prop. 98 barely passed – by less than one percent of the electorate. What led up to the measure, and what impact has it had on education in the 30-plus years since, both good and bad? Kevin takes us through the politics as well as the intricacies of this notoriously complicated measure. To help break it down, Kevin also takes our “60 Second Challenge” to explain the basic mechanics of how Proposition 98 works.More about Proposition 98Approved by California voters in 1988, Prop. 98 established a minimum guarantee for school funding in the state constitution. It was intended both to be a floor that funding would never fall below, and a formula for ultimately growing funding over time to the top ten among states.“The problem,” Kevin says, “is as soon as it got implemented, the legislature was always trying to figure out, what does it take just to do the minimum – and once they do the minimum, check the box, we’re done. And that’s what happened: it became a funding cap instead of a funding floor.”Proposition 98 began 30 years of what the State’s Legislative Analyst Office later referred to as, “A plethora of tests and rules that govern the minimum guarantee.” Read the Legislative Analyst Office report, “A Historical Review of Proposition 98” from January 2017.More ResourcesFor a terrific (albeit sobering) history of California’s school funding slide, we recommend the 2004 documentary, “From First to Worst” a production of the Merrow Report by award-winning journalist John Merrow. You can find it online.Ed100.org is a free resource with concise, engaging online courses that help people understand complex education issues. Ed100 has an entire chapter on school funding, including a great lesson about Propositions 13 and 98.Edsource provides timely, useful and accurate information about a range of major education issues, including school funding. More about Kevin GordonWidely viewed among the top education advocates in California, Kevin is the President and a founding partner of Capitol Advisors Group. He formerly served as Executive Director of CASBO, and as the Chief Lobbyist and Assistant Executive Director of the California School Boards Association (CSBA). He also served as Chief of Staff to Congressman Robert T. Matsui and as a legislative advocate for the California Building Industry Association (CBIA). He holds a master's degree in public administration from the University of San Francisco. About CASBOThe California Association of School Business Officials is the premier resource for professional development and business best practices for California's school business leaders. CASBO is dedicated to promoting excellence and professionalism in all aspects of school business.

Drew Perkins talks with John Merrow in a repeat appearance about his new book, "Addicted to Reform: A 12-Step Program to Rescue Public Education"

During an illustrious four-decade career at NPR and PBS, John Merrow -- winner of the George Polk Award, the Peabody Award, and the McGraw Prize -- reported from every state in the union, as well as from dozens of countries, on everything from the rise of district-wide cheating scandals and the corporate greed driving an ADD epidemic to teacher-training controversies and America’s obsession with standardized testing. Along the way, he taught in a high school, at a historically black college, and at a federal penitentiary.Now, Merrow distills his best thinking on education into a twelve-step approach to fixing a K–12 system that he describes as being “addicted to reform” but unwilling to address the real issue: American public schools are ill-equipped to prepare young people for the challenges of the twenty-first century.This insightful book looks at how to turn digital natives into digital citizens and why it should be harder to become a teacher but easier to be one. Merrow offers smart, essential chapters -- including “Measure What Matters,” and “Embrace Teachers” -- that reflect his countless hours spent covering classrooms as well as corridors of power. His signature candid style of reportage comes to life as he shares lively anecdotes, schoolyard tales, and memories that are at once instructive and endearing.John Merrow recently retired as education correspondent for the PBS NewsHour. He founded and until 2015 was the president of Learning Matters, a nonprofit media company. In 2012 Merrow became the first journalist to win the prestigious McGraw Prize in Education. He lives with his wife in New York City and his books include Choosing Excellence, Declining by Degrees, and The Influence of Teachers.The evening is introduced by Dr. LaMarr Darnell Shields, a social entrepreneur, author, “Ubuntu” teacher, inspirational speaker, and educator who loves to create and build with purpose. As the Co-Founder and Senior Director of Education and Innovation at the Cambio Group, and former professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Education, Dr. LaMarr Darnell Shields has dedicated his life to inspiring adults and youth alike to pursue a higher purpose, achieve sustainable value for long-term success, and cope with adversity in order to create opportunities in their personal, professional and spiritual lives. As the Special Advisor to the Blue Ribbon Commission on Educational Equity, recipient of the 2015 Social Innovator Award, and 2016-2017 Open Society Institute Fellowship, Dr. Shields has been studying, writing about, and implementing change in schools and non-profit organizations for years.Writers LIVE programs are supported in part by a bequest from The Miss Howard Hubbard Adult Programming Fund. 

During an illustrious four-decade career at NPR and PBS, John Merrow -- winner of the George Polk Award, the Peabody Award, and the McGraw Prize -- reported from every state in the union, as well as from dozens of countries, on everything from the rise of district-wide cheating scandals and the corporate greed driving an ADD epidemic to teacher-training controversies and America’s obsession with standardized testing. Along the way, he taught in a high school, at a historically black college, and at a federal penitentiary.Now, Merrow distills his best thinking on education into a twelve-step approach to fixing a K–12 system that he describes as being “addicted to reform” but unwilling to address the real issue: American public schools are ill-equipped to prepare young people for the challenges of the twenty-first century.This insightful book looks at how to turn digital natives into digital citizens and why it should be harder to become a teacher but easier to be one. Merrow offers smart, essential chapters -- including “Measure What Matters,” and “Embrace Teachers” -- that reflect his countless hours spent covering classrooms as well as corridors of power. His signature candid style of reportage comes to life as he shares lively anecdotes, schoolyard tales, and memories that are at once instructive and endearing.John Merrow recently retired as education correspondent for the PBS NewsHour. He founded and until 2015 was the president of Learning Matters, a nonprofit media company. In 2012 Merrow became the first journalist to win the prestigious McGraw Prize in Education. He lives with his wife in New York City and his books include Choosing Excellence, Declining by Degrees, and The Influence of Teachers.The evening is introduced by Dr. LaMarr Darnell Shields, a social entrepreneur, author, “Ubuntu” teacher, inspirational speaker, and educator who loves to create and build with purpose. As the Co-Founder and Senior Director of Education and Innovation at the Cambio Group, and former professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Education, Dr. LaMarr Darnell Shields has dedicated his life to inspiring adults and youth alike to pursue a higher purpose, achieve sustainable value for long-term success, and cope with adversity in order to create opportunities in their personal, professional and spiritual lives. As the Special Advisor to the Blue Ribbon Commission on Educational Equity, recipient of the 2015 Social Innovator Award, and 2016-2017 Open Society Institute Fellowship, Dr. Shields has been studying, writing about, and implementing change in schools and non-profit organizations for years.Writers LIVE programs are supported in part by a bequest from The Miss Howard Hubbard Adult Programming Fund. Recorded On: Tuesday, December 5, 2017

John Merrow, former education correspondent for the PBS NewsHour, shares insights from his new book "Addicted to Reform: A 12-Step Program to Rescue Public Education."

Is America addicted to education reform? My guest today, John Merrow, says it’s time for America to enter a 12-step program to fix its K-12 public education system. John argues that the countless reforms he’s reported on for over four-decades have addressed the symptoms of the problems facing American education and not the root causes. John Merrow began his career in 1974 on National Public Radio before becoming an Education Correspondent for PBS NewsHour and the founding President of Learning Matters, Inc. Now retired, John is an active writer on TheMerrowReport.com. His new book is entitled Addicted to Reform: A 12-Step Program to Rescue Public Education, which will be published by The New Press on August 15. Be sure to check out the e-book which features videos from John’s illustrious career.

Drew Perkins talks with veteran education journalist John Merrow about the origin of charter schools, how to get policymakers to affect real change, how he thinks our schools should really look and his upcoming book.

The Spring Cubberley Lecture feature REBIRTH: New Orleans, the latest educational documentary by John Merrow, President of Learning Matters. Merrow and Professor Prudence Carter discuss the file and its implications for evaluating school reform.

John Merrow, education correspondent for PBS NewsHour, reflects on why this is both the best of times and the worst of times in education journalism.

In this edition of the Harvard EdCast, John Merrow, education correspondent for The PBS NewsHour and president of Learning Matters discusses education reporting, the influence of teachers, and changes in over 35 years covering education in the media.

Podcast: Mike Petrilli talks with author John Merrow about his book—and what he’s learned from the countless hours he’s spent as a reporter in America’s classrooms.

UC Davis faculty participants discuss John Merrow's film "Declining by Degrees: Higher Education at Risk" and how it relates to UC Davis, with Andy Jones leading the discussion.

John Merrow's keynote presentation from Thinkbank 2.0, Academic Festival at Teachers College, Columbia University