McCulloch says school improvement not finished

The school funding lawsuit might be over as far as Gov. Brian Schweitzer is concerned, but fixing the system is not.

"We're not done. It's not completed. That's what Gov. Schweitzer keeps saying," state school Superintendent Linda McCulloch said after addressing the Montana Ambassadors at their annual meeting Friday in Whitefish. "That's what I like to hear."

The Montana Quality Education Coalition has put a bookmark between the 2005 and 2007 legislative sessions, McCulloch said.

"They're saying, 'We're a long way from saying we're done, but we're not saying nothing was done.'"

The coalition will not go back to court this year, McCulloch said, but will wait to see what happens in the 2007 legislative session.

Schweitzer recently angered the coalition when he said the state has already taken measures that satisfy the requirements of the court-ordered school funding fix.

In a special session in December, the Legislature set aside $71 million for schools to meet those requirements.

At Friday's meeting, McCulloch outlined the issues school districts will address with that money.

These include helping at-risk students, closing the achievement gap between American Indian and white students and promoting Indian Education for All.

In addition, the legislative infusion will provide a $2,000 allocation for each education professional in each district. This includes people such as counselors and librarians in addition to teachers, McCulloch said.

Because of the lawsuit, legislators spent a great deal of time debating the definition of "quality education." But Montana schools already have a reputation for quality, she said.

As an example, she cited results of the National Test for Educational Progress students took in 2000. In science, Montana fourth-graders finished second in the United States. Montana eighth-graders finished second in the world, trailing only Singapore.

Quality will continue to be a focus as Montana seeks to be more competitive on a global scale, she said.

"We cannot achieve a first-class Montana economy with a second-class education system," she said.

Reporter Kristi Albertson may be reached at 758-4438 or by e-mail at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com