Kathleen Shanahan — Jeb Bush loyalist, Charlie Crist transition vice-chair and appointee to the State Board of Education, McCollum ‘supporter’ and Rick Scott transition advisor — has a few things to say, and by ‘a few’ I mean plenty.
During a live chat on redefinED, an interface operated by Ron Matus and Step Up for Students, Shanahan was asked to illuminate guests with her thoughts on Common Core, Gov. Scott, Florida’s education agenda, and more.
In grading Scott’s performance on education so far, Shanahan gives him an “incomplete” and suggests that through his focus on jobs and economic development, he is still in the process of learning the value of a strong education system.
“His clear and directional leadership is needed to continue to advance Fla’s success,” Shanahan wrote after asking and getting confirmation that all comments are public. “If he continues to seek political cover in creating more noise and not enough clarity he will not gain anyone’s support in his re-election effort.”
Shanahan continued, “The teachers are excited about Common Core, the parents need to be educated on why this is the best next step for their kids to succeed and Gov, Scott can lead that effort or sit back and listen his way to complete confusion. I also think the Legislature needs to be engaged and support Common Core implementation.”
While pushing for greater leadership on Common Core, Shanahan did acknowledge that Scott’s Executive Order provided a valuable piece when it comes to data mining — at least as it relates to parents being able to see and believe.
When asked what would happen if Crist were elected, Shanahan worries of Florida could see setbacks.
“I do not think Charlie Crist, if he is the Democrat nominee for governor, based on his supporters would be able to support these programs in their entirety,” she wrote.
But would she still serve on his Transition Team? That’s to be seen.
