Oregon Public Broadcasting

Oregon lawmakers control billions in public education dollars. But Oregon has a state school superintendent, who’s largely responsible for crafting the policies that guide that spending.

It’s an elected, non-partisan job. But as Rob Manning reports the race for Superintendent of Public Instruction isn’t getting the same attention as other races.

Education is one of the few issues that everyone has a personal connection to. This week, folks at the Washington County Public Affairs Forum, swapped school stories before hearing from political candidates.

“Dolores Raymond, I went to school in Burns, in that other Oregon, on the other side of the mountains. I got an excellent education.”

“Forrest Soth, Beaverton. My grade school experience was when I found out they had a library.”

“Jean Bernard, Beaverton, I went to school in a little town in Minnesota. I loved everything about school, and skipping second grade was a lot of fun.”

That shared school experience, though, hasn’t led to universal interest in the race for the top school job in Oregon. It’s frustrating to state representative, Ron Maurer. He’s running for state schools’ superintendent.

Ron Maurer: “The department actually deals with about half of the state general fund budget. Education always polls at the top of the most important things that we do in state government. The fact that there’s just been this absolute silence about this race has been quite, quite stunning to me.”

Barring something extraordinary, either Maurer or incumbent Susan Castillo will be elected Superintendent of Public Instruction next month. But the two have only debated publicly once so far – with just one more appearance scheduled.

The three candidates for Metro Council President, for instance, will have debated 20 times, by May 18th.

There’s no shortage of opinions about schools. Chris Leslie complained at the recent Washington County Public Affairs Forum, about a constant push for more school spending. 

Chris Leslie: “We always hear ‘it’s for the children’. I mean, that’s getting a little old, isn’t it?”

Leslie asked the question of a candidate for governor. That makes sense, since the governor can veto the state school budget, and the school superintendent doesn’t even vote on it. As head of the education department, the superintendent tracks school district spending and sets education policy for the state.  

Susan Castillo told Washington County voters that her changes to high school standards should earn her a third term.

Susan Castillo:”As I’ve been state superintendent, we have made progress on improving what we’re doing with the high school diploma, and raising the standards for all children, so that they can be proficient in reading, and in science and in math, as they move on from high school to whatever they want to do next, whether it’s going to college, or going straight into the work place.”

Castillo is quick to say that schools still have to improve. But her opponent, Ron Maurer blames the current superintendent at least in part, for Oregon’s poor showings on a recent national education survey.  Ron Maurer: “Much of that has to do with leadership. We can always point to funding as an issue.  But what I hear are not solutions that are being implemented, what I hear are ‘what we’re thinking about doing, what we’re going to do’ – and not that we’ve successfully implemented any of it.”

Maurer says instead, the state is setting some of the wrong priorities. For example, he says students shouldn’t spend so much time taking state tests.  

Ron Maurer: “If you’re testing them three times a year, there’s no way you can convince me that teachers are not looking at this as teaching to the test. I don’t think that serves the kids well, in fact I think it disconnects the kid from education.”

Castillo, on the other hand, says that Oregon’s on-line testing helps teachers know what’s working, and what’s not.

Susan Castillo: “With that data, we are making progress on being able to focus in more on when kids are struggling, and knowing what to do on intervening and helping them with more support. And often times, it is about more time for them to learn and get to those standards.”

The race for superintendent is non-partisan. But it has partisan overtones. Castillo was a Democratic state senator. Maurer is a Republican representative from Grants Pass.

Take the issue of teachers and guns. At the recent Washington County debate, the question first went to Ron Maurer, then Castillo.

Ron Maurer: “I have not been asked that question before, but I will give you my answer. My answer is if you have a concealed handgun license, then you should be permitted to bring it into school.”

Susan Castillo: “You can’t go see a Trail Blazer game and carry in a weapon. I don’t know why our children wouldn’t get that same kind of protection in school. Guns do not belong in school.”

Castillo says her time as school superintendent has taught her that improving schools in Oregon is not as simple as Maurer would argue. Castillo is a fan of sharing what she calls “best practices” around Oregon. But she says Maurer wants a one-size-fits-all approach.

Susan Castillo: “He doesn’t understand why some things are happening here, but not in others. Well, I do – I’ve had this job for eight years. And it’s real clear that the needs are very different. As a state, we need to be very conscientious about having cookie-cutter solutions about what we’re going to do.”

Maurer counters Castillo’s experience with his own background in education. His resume includes a doctorate in education.  

Ron Maurer: “Oregon’s education system should be led by an educator. I believe that to the deepest parts of my soul. And we can no longer push this into just the politics of it all.”

Whoever wins would serve a four-year term. Dire budget projections and possible major changes to the federal No Child Left Behind Act raise tough questions about the future of Oregon’s schools. It’ll be up to the state schools’ superintendent to help answer them.