The central concern at the Sept 24, meeting of NE TURN - how to be proactive in the context of federal education policy initiatives - as four states in the northeast region are recipients of either Race To The Top (Massachussetts, New York, and Rhode Island) or State Incentive Grants (Maine).

This was the first meeting of NE TURN since the formal approval of the Ford Foundation grant.  It was hosted by Dennis Shirley, Professor of Education at Boston College, in his role as the Principal Investigator for what is referred to as the TURN Incubation Project - to develop regional networks. Dr. Shirley and two graduate assistants provided planning and logistical support.

Also a first, the team from Portland, ME, included both union leaders and administrators - In addition to the local president, the superintendent, 2 principals, and 5 teachers participated.

Mary McDonald, Co-Director of the Great Lakes TURN and Core Service Director for Union Reform for the Consortium for Educational Change, served as both facilitator and resource person.  She was able to relate the experiences of the Great Lakes region, where a number of locals are already implementing local action plans affecting teacher evaluation.

The morning was devoted to a check-in where local leaders shared recent struggles and successes (details will be available on the meeting notes page).

Jo Anderson, Senior Advisor at the U.S. Department of Education was the featured presenter.  His task was to engage NE TURN members in a conversation about ESEA Reauthorization and to address questions and concerns related to teacher quality and teacher assessment. Anderson's central premise is that the Department of Education does not accept the status quo and expects to shake up the education system so reform goes deeper than just tinkering at the edges.  He asserted that there is room to do things differently.

NE TURN leaders provided evidence that they are already doing just that... 

• Kathleen Skinner, Director of the Massachusetts Teachers Association’s Center for Education Policy and Practice announced that the MTA has just been designated an Education Management Organization by the US Dept of Education. Thus, the teachers union is now in a position to provide school turnaround services, or in Ms Skinner's words, "Get into the game of leading change.” 
• Rianna Good from the Boston Teachers Union Pilot School (a teacher-led school that was brokered at the bargaining table, 7 years ago). She discussed the six years of effort involved in getting the school off the ground, the leadership structure, external partnerships, and the resulting innovations.
• There is strong support for teacher-led schools in Portland, Maine. The ELL school is already teacher led. The Portland team (mentioned above) made the trip to Boston a day early to visit the BTU Pilot School. The superintendent sees teacher leaderhsip as a social justice issue. 

The day ended with focused discussions in three groups:

1. Teacher Evaluation - Mary McDonald facilitated a conversation on teacher evaluation systems and shared lessons from Great Lakes TURN.
2. Teacher-Led Schools - BTU Pilot School teacher Rianna Good answered questions about their leadership structure and issues related to start-up. 
3. NE TURN Next Steps - Regional Coordinator, Maureen Logan, captured ideas for future meetings and other regional activity.