The Fourth Amendment gives us the right to decline warrantless searches, but is it a right if the government can charge you with a crime for exercising it? Continue reading…
North Dakota’s Public School Enrollment Has Increased 18 Percent in a Decade, but Spending Has Increased More Than 67 Percent
Education is a priority for North Dakotans, which is why our state spends a lot on it. With a population of just over 760,000, North Dakota has no fewer than 11 institutions of higher education. Even after dramatic post-oil-boom spending cuts, we’re #8 in the nation when it comes to per-student spending on higher education.…
DPI Spokesman Calls State Auditor “Unprofessional” and “Ridiculous” While Defending School Bus Inspection Language on Website
Yesterday state Auditor Josh Gallion’s office released a report focusing on the Department of Public Instruction and school bus inspections. “State Auditor Joshua Gallion today released an audit of the North Dakota Highway Patrol which shows from July 2016 through June 2018, the agency was not following internal policies for school bus inspections, was inaccurately…
Republican Lawmakers Introducing Bill to Allow Make up of Snow Days With Virtual School Days
As we head into another one of North Dakota’s notoriously unpredictable winters, school closures because of inclement weather will be much on our minds. But with school closures come make up days, which see schools opening when they’d be normally closed in order to meet state requirements for instruction time. It’s a drag, but a…
Podcast: SBHE Chair Says Burgum’s Proposed Cuts to University Budgets Are Achievable, “We Will Live Within the Budget”
Superintendent Don Morton spoke about Governor Doug Burgum’s proposed 10 percent cuts to the North Dakota University System on the radio show today. “Every organization has room to find efficiencies,” Morton told me, acknowledging that the universities “let programs grow” in the past which perhaps shouldn’t have. “I really like Doug’s approach,” Morton continued. “Let’s…
Video: Superintendent Baesler Says Burgum Skipping His Own Education Summit Was “Less Than Ideal”
Yesterday I wrote a post about some grumbling resulting from Governor Doug Burgum skipping a summit of education leaders he had convened in order to meet with the Trump administration in Washington D.C. on the topic of infrastructure. Last night on his television show Chris Berg asked Superintendent Kirsten Baesler, who was appearing live from…
Justin LaBar: Common Core Is Not Gone in North Dakota
As elected representatives from across the state of North Dakota assemble for the 65th Legislative Assembly, I have a message for many of them. When it comes to the Common Core State Standards, it appears you have been duped. “By whom?,” you say. By our very own Superintendent of Public Instruction, Kirsten Baesler. It seems…
Kirsten Baesler: A Vision for North Dakota’s Schools
In North Dakota, we have a proud tradition of local control of education. We elect our school board members and put our trust in them. We have a chance to reinvigorate this tradition as we go about the task of implementing a new federal education law, called the Every Student Succeeds Act. This law gives…
Supt. Kirsten Baesler: How to Improve Education in North Dakota
In May I announced that the Department of Public Instruction was beginning the process of revising North Dakota’s academic standards for math and English. These new standards will replace the standards adopted in 2011 based on the Common Core. Since May, two committees comprised of North Dakota teachers have met and completed the first draft…
Justin LaBar: This Teacher Does Not Want Common Core Or Kirsten Baesler
As I listened to an interview with North Dakota’s Superintendent of Public Instruction, Kirsten Baesler, on Joel Heitkamp’s show, I realized that Ms. Baesler is either delusional or a liar. Maybe both. On Tuesday, the Bismarck Tribune reported in an article titled, “North Dakota to Write Standards Replacing Common Core,” that Baesler said, “We will…