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HISTORY The BOE was established in 1837 and is the oldest State Board Of Education in the United States. Then Governor Edward Everett had recommended the establishment of a board of education in his address to the 1837 legislature's opening session. His brief argument ran as follows:
The legislature's Committee on Education, led by Senate chairman Josiah Quincy, Jr. and House chairman James G. Carter , sponsored a bill which was initially soundly defeated in the House. Largely as a result of efforts by Mr. Carter, the bill was eventually passed. Horace Mann , President of the Massachusetts State Senate at the time, was appointed the board's first Secretary.Martin, George H. (1915). ''The Evolution of the Massachusetts Public School System: a historical sketch.'' New York and London: D. Appleton and Company. COMPOSITION The BOE is composed of nine members. Six members are appointed by the governor, one member is a public school student elected by his or her peers, and the Chancellor of Higher Education and the Commissioner of Early Education and Care are ex officio members. The nine voting members are: "the chairman of the student advisory council established under this section; the chancellor of higher education; the commissioner of early education and care; 1 representative of a labor organization selected by the governor from a list of 3 nominees provided by the Massachusetts State Labor Council, AFL-CIO; 1 representative of business or industry selected by the governor with a demonstrated commitment to education; 1 representative of parents of school children selected by the governor from a list of 3 nominees provided by the Massachusetts Parent Teachers Association; and 3 members selected by the governor." [http://www.mass.gov/legis/laws/mgl/15-1e.htm] The chairperson of the BOE is appointed by the governor. The secretary of the BOE must be approved by a two thirds vote and serves at the Board's pleasure as the Chief Executive Officer , the Chief State School Officer for Elementary and Secondary Education, and the Commissioner of Education. The Commissioner attends BOE meetings, but does not vote. He is responsible for managing the Massachusetts Department of Education and receives a salary which is determined by the Board. [http://www.mass.gov/legis/laws/mgl/15-1f.htm] ADVISORY COUNCILS A number of Advisory Councils, created by Chapter 15: Section 1G of the General Laws of Massachusetts, support the Board with research, recommendations and - in the case of the Student Advisory Council - is represented by a voting member of the Board. The advisory councils include: Adult Basic Education Arts Education Braille Literacy Community Service Learning Educational Personnel Educational Technology English Language Learners/Bilingual Education Gifted and Talented Education Global Education Interdisciplinary Health Education and Human Services Life Management Skills and Home Economics Mathematics and Science Education Parent and Community Education and Involvement Racial Imbalance Special Education Massachusetts State Student Advisory Council Technology/Engineering Education Violence Prevention Vocational-Technical Education STUDENT MEMBERSHIP The Massachusetts BOE is unique in that one of its nine members is a Massachusetts public school student. Legislation was filed in 1971 by Governor Francis W. Sargent which created the position. By this same legislation, the CURRENT MEMBERS S. Paul Reville, Chairman, Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy, President Ann J. Reale, Vice-Chair, Commissioner of Early Education and Care Christopher R. Anderson, Massachusetts High Technology Council Harneen Chernow, SEIU Training & Upgrading Fund Thomas E. Fortmann, Mathematics Consultant Ruth L. Kaplan, Massachusetts Parent-Teacher Association Representative Patricia F. Plummer, Chancellor of Higher Education Roberta R. Schaefer, Worcester Regional Research Bureau Zachary S. Tsetsos, Student Advisory Council, Chairman David P. Driscoll, Commissioner of Education FORMER MEMBERS Horace Mann - First secretary of the board (1837) Abigail Thernstrom John Silber Jody Kelman Jeff DeFlavio Dr. Stanley Z. Koplik James Madden James A. Peyser Emily Levine Dr. Judith Gill Henry M. Thomas, III Trevor Frederick Jonathan Urbach REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS http://www.doe.mass.edu/boe/edboard.html http://www.doe.mass.edu/ |
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