For Immediate Release

Portland School Board Member and Standardized Testing Critic to Speak in Eugene

Portland School Board member and outspoken standardized testing critic, Steve Buel, will speak in Eugene at North Eugene High School on Wednesday, September 24 from 6:30-8:00 p.m.

A veteran 40-year public school teacher, Buel was elected to the Portland School Board in 2013.  He recently drafted a Board resolution to advocate for the suspension of new state Common Core standards for three years. 

A founder of Oregon Save Our Schools,  http://oregonsaveourschools.blogspot.com/  Buel has advocated tirelessly for an analysis of the origins of current standardized testing as well as the financial and curricular costs of high-stakes testing, including the new federal and state Common Core mandates. 

Biography info: http://www.pps.k12.or.us/departments/board/845.htm

“There’s a lot of destructiveness in the Common Core, and I wanted to try to minimize that as much as I possibly can within the school district,” said Buel.

Buel is also an advocate for parents and students considering the option of opting out of standardized tests.

Some quotes from Buel’s Facebook blog:

            “We restrict teachers from teaching then hold them responsible for the outcomes.”

            “We blame our response to federal and state mandates on the federal and state        mandates instead of on our response to them.”

            “We have an (school district) administrative culture which rewards loyalty as opposed       to initiative and true leadership.”

Buel’s Eugene presentation will focus on:

1) The origins and ramifications of the Common Core State Standards.

2) The story behind the Portland School Board resolution on Common Core testing.

3) The legalities of opting out of standardized tests.

Buel’s Eugene appearance is sponsored by the Community Alliance for Public Education (CAPE), a community-based coalition of teachers, parents and community members committed to the schools our students deserve.

For more information, contact:  Larry Lewin             larry@larrylewin.com