Board of Regents to tap new chancellor
ALBANY -- Betty Rosa, a former Bronx schools superintendent, is expected to be tapped next week as the next chancellor of the state Board of Regents amid a changing time on the board and in the state's education policies.
Rosa will replace long-time chancellor Merryl Tisch who led the state's policy-making board through rounds of new testing standards and tougher evaluations for teachers.
Rosa is expected to be tapped by the 17-member Board of Regents at its meeting next week. T. Andrew Brown, a Rochester board member, is considered a likely pick as vice chancellor.
"I anticipate when we gather later in March the members of the board will elect Betty," said former Assemblyman James Tallon, a board member who represents the Southern Tier.
The board has been going through a transition that has dovetailed with the fight over tougher standards for teachers and students pushed by state and federal officials.
Rosa is among a group of new Regents members who have supported students opting out of standardized exams amid protests to the new stringent standards. Last April, 20 percent of students opted out of the Common Core-aligned tests for third through eight grades -- an unprecedented amount in the state. Groups that have supported the opt outs have backed Rosa's ascension.
Wade Norwood, a board member from the Rochester area, said that whomever is the next chancellor needs to keep the board united. There was no immediate comment from Brown on potentially serving as vice chancellor, while Norwood said he's not interested in the position.
"I think that the strength of the Board of Regents is that we’ve always been well served by a chancellor who can build that consensus among us and can respect and respond to the differences that exist within the body," Norwood, a former city councilman, said. "And I think we will do so this time."
The Wall Street Journal first reported Sunday on Rosa's likely election as chancellor.
Under new Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia, the Board of Regents is undergoing an overhaul of state standards put into place in 2013. The state has delayed for two years counting the exams to evaluate teachers and cut down on the length of the exams, as well as eliminating time constraints.
Also, New York plans to unveil a revamped -- and likely renamed -- version of the Common Core education standards next year. Even Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who had pressed for the tougher standards, has softened his stance, saying he supports changes to the system.
"I think everybody is looking for high standards in a system that has accountability and engages students and their parents in a reasonable way," Tallon said. "The question is how do you get there, and that’s what is going to be part of the conversation."
On Tuesday, a joint session of the state Legislature will elect three new members to the Board of Regents, Luis O. Reyes and Nan Eileen Mead from New York City and Elizabeth Smith Hakanson from central New York.
The New York State United Teachers union praised the three picks, saying it looks "forward to working collaboratively with them as we seek to end the harmful over-testing of students; help create new and better standards; and work toward developing a fairer and more meaningful evaluation system.”
The selection of Regents members has drawn criticism. For example, Tisch and outgoing vice chancellor Anthony Bottar will vote next week for their successors.
Also, the Democratic-led Assembly controls who gets elected to the board. While the whole 213-member Legislature votes, Democrats have the most votes.
The Republican-led state Senate on Monday voted to change the process, saying it would lead to more transparency.
One bill would require a concurrent resolution from both houses of the Legislature to select the Regents, giving each house equal power. Another bill would require the board to release more details by its decisions.
“I have long advocated for more fairness and transparency relative to the Board of Regents," Sen. Kenneth LaValle, R-Suffolk County, said in a statement.