Kristin Maguire upsets the apple cart

Many current South Carolina board members and educrats have decried Kristin Maguire, the newest chairman to the State Board of Education, because she home schools her children. One board member said, “What does a woman who home schools her children know about South Carolina public schools?”

My guess is: more than most public school parents. I wonder why she home schools: there could be many reasons, but my guess is that they all stem from her doing a concerned parent’s job of researching the education available to her child and making the best decision. She obviously found something in the public school system she was wary or concerned about, and I have to applaud her for stepping beyond her own backyard and caring about other people’s education. She knows probably better than most teachers the state standards and has firsthand experience on how a teacher meets those goals. I imagine it helps her see the ways that the education complex hinders teachers from making those benchmarks of achievement.

I also think that kind of motivation is essential for a healthy board of education, and many who have worked with Maguire have lauded her ‘semper paratus’ and are able to look past ideological differences.

If you want to take a gander at Missouri’s BOE spread, it’s here: http://dese.mo.gov/stateboard/stateboard.html