For Immediate Release: January 11, 2016

Contact: Shane McHugh, shanepmchugh@gmail.com

MURRAY CALLS FOR EDUCATION REFORM
Assemblyman Dean Murray (R,C,I-East Patchogue) participated in a press conference
today highlighting the Next Step in educational needs of children in New York State.
We cannot continue to jeopardize our childrens education. Restoring funding to our
schools and eliminating the culture of excessive testing needs to be a top priority, said Murray.
State assessments should not be the only method for gauging educational performance. Our
school districts, teachers and students have suffered under Common Core for far too long.
The Assembly Republican Conference is advocating for the following education reform
measures:
Eliminate the Gap Elimination Adjustment (GEA) and delineate a definitive plan for the
full phase-in of Foundation Aid;

Repeal the current teacher evaluation system and empower the Board of Regents to
establish, with requisite input from education experts, school administrators, parents and
teachers, a teacher evaluation system to be implemented statewide;

Create new state learning standards with the help and guidance of teachers, school
administrators, parents, and education experts;

Ensure all state assessments are age/developmentally appropriate and of the highest
quality;

Increase the transparency of the states testing program and protect teachers and students
from the negative effects of state assessments until major reforms are made; and

Provide increased flexibility for our students by providing them with multiple pathways
to success and our local school districts by giving them the freedom and resources to
develop curriculum locally.

In an effort to address the many problems with the curriculum, Gov. Cuomo created a
Common Core task force which released a report in December that included recommendations
on how to address the broken education system. Many of these recommendations mimicked the
Republican conferences APPLE plan.

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