Our Annual Meeting Speaker (June 2016) will be…
Lawrence M. Krauss, prominent physicist, author, and commentator!
CESE is pleased to announce that Dr. Krauss will be the keynote speaker for CESE's 2016 Annual Meeting, slated for the afternoon of Saturday, June 25th 2016, at a venue still to be determined. Stay tuned for details - you won't want to miss this one!
CESE Founder Dr. Marshall Berman, 1939 – 2015
Dr. Marshall Berman
Dr. Marshall Berman passed away on October 25, 2015 in Louisville, CO, at the age of 76. Marshall was a devoted father, scientist, educator, and leader. He is survived by his partner Jan Harkins, his sons Brandon and Brian Berman, his daughter Brenna Berman, his sister Rhoda Berman, and four grandchildren.
Marshall was born on June 16, 1939 in Detroit, MI, to his parents Martin and Esther Berman. He was valedictorian of his high school class and graduated with a B.S. with Distinction in Physics from the University of Michigan. He went on to receive his Ph.D. in Nuclear Physics from Wayne State University.
In 1966, Marshall married Nancy Thomadsen and shortly thereafter moved to Albuquerque, NM, after accepting a position at Sandia National Laboratories where he worked for 32 years on nuclear reactor safety, managed a variety of defense research projects, and served as Executive Director of the Innovation Initiative for the U.S. Council on Competitiveness. He raised his family in Albuquerque and enjoyed excelling in hobbies including photography, landscaping, and woodworking.
As Marshall neared retirement at Sandia, he was elected to the New Mexico State Board of Education and served on the board for four years. He was passionate about changing science education standards for the children of the State of New Mexico and went on to be the founding president of the Coalition for Excellence in Science and Math Education (CESE), devoting his time to help ensure the integrity of New Mexico’s education system. He was also an early and active member of New Mexicans for Science and Reason and served a term as president of the New Mexico Academy of Science.
A memorial service will be held Saturday December 12, 2015, at 1:00pm at the First Unitarian Church (3701 Carlisle Blvd NE, Albuquerque, NM 87110). All are welcome to attend and celebrate Dr. Berman’s life (please RSVP here).
In lieu of flowers, please consider making a tax deductible donation to CESE via mail Steve Brügge, CESE Treasurer, 803 Maverick Trail SE, Albuquerque, NM 87123.
Dr. Marshall Berman campaigning for the State Board of Education, 1998. Below: L-R Sen. Harrison Schmitt, Dr. Richard Nygren, Dr. Al Narath, Dr. Marshall Berman, Dr. Laura Crossey, and Rev. Clyde Stansfield.
The "Darwinist Swat Team", L-R Marvin Moss, Marshall Berman, Eugenie Scott, Kim Johnson, Mark Boslough, Jesse Johnson, and Harry Murphy.
Pro-science dinner, L-R: Jesse Johnson, Marilyn Savitt-Kring, Dave Thomas, Nancy Shelton, Ken Miller, Jerry Shelton, Marshall Berman, Lisa Durkin and Kim Johnson.
At the Rio Rancho School Board, upon victory against a flawed "Intelligent-Design-Friendly" science policy (April 2006)
Marshall and Brian "Fox" Ellis (Darwin performer)
Marshall Berman talks shop with Genie Scott and Kim Johnson.
New Slate Elected at CESE 2015 Annual Meeting
Lisa Durkin
A new slate of officers for the year 2015-2016 was nominated and elected at CESE's Annual Meeting (June 27th, 2015). Leading CESE for the next year is new president Lisa Durkin.
Jessica McCord
The vice-president/ president- elect for this year is Jessica McCord. Steve Brügge will continue as treasurer, and Marilyn Savitt-Kring is staying on as secretary. Other CESE board members are Marshall Berman, Cindy Chapman, Terry Dunbar, Patty Finley, Jack Jekowski, Jesse Johnson, Kim Johnson, Becky Reiss, Dave Thomas, and Ken Whiton. Jerry Shelton asked to change his status to board member emeritus, which gives him all privileges except voting rights.
CESE thanks outgoing president Patty Finley for a fine year of service at the helm.
Jerry and Nancy Shelton were honored with plaques commemorating their years of service to CESE.
At the meeting, which was held at the home of Buzz and Patty Finley, long-time CESE supporters Jerry and Nancy Shelton were given plaques honoring their years of service with CESE.
Earlier in June, CESE treasurer Steve Brügge was also given a CESE plaque on the occasion of his retirement from teaching.
In addition to the certificate below, Steve also got a copy adorned with salutory comments on his teaching, from an online Albuquerque Journal story.
Steve Brügge's award
Jack Jekowski (left) and Kim Johnson (middle) present a CESE award to treasurer Steve Brügge
CESE Annual Meeting set for Saturday, June 27!
You are cordially invited to CESE's Annual Meeting!
We will meet at the Los Lunas home of Buzz and Patty Finley on Saturday, June 27th, at 1:30 PM. The Business Meeting will be followed by an open discussion on the Impacts of Education Reform.
From Albuquerque & points north: South on I-25 to Los Lunas exit (Hwy 6). East on NM Hwy 6 to Los Lentes Rd (McDonalds at corner). North on Los Lentes Rd. to 2000 block (about 1.5 miles); Turn right onto Macario Lane, cross irrigation ditch and curve right. House is first behind adobe wall, 912.
On Google Maps: 912 Macario Ln, Los Lunas, NM 87031.
Please RSVP to Marilyn Savitt-Kring, at 505-856-6654.
See you there!
Another New Beacon Already?!?
That's right, there's another brand-new edition of the CESE Beacon!
The February 2015 Beacon (Vol. XVIII, No. 2) is online.
Contents Preview: Editor’s Message – Kim Johnson. – Part II of the Beacon version of the briefing on NM educational performance and new teacher evaluation protocol (growth based portion) given to the Legislative Education Study Committee and the Legislative Finance Committee Joint Meeting in August 2014.
CESE and NMSR are Sponsoring a lecture by Dr. Michael Shermer
The Coalition for Excellence in Science and Math Education (CESE) and New Mexicans for Science and Reason (NMSR) are pleased to sponsor a lecture by Dr. Michael Shermer on Saturday, February 21st, 2015, 1:30PM, at the First Unitarian Church, 3701 Carlisle Boulevard Northeast, Albuquerque, NM 87110.
Dr. Shermer will be signing copies of his new book, "The Moral Arc of Science - How Science Has Bent the Arc of the Moral Universe Toward Truth, Justice, Freedom, & Prosperity."
The arc of the moral universe bends toward truth, justice, freedom, and prosperity thanks to science-the type of thinking that involves reason, rationality, empiricism, and skepticism. The Scientific Revolution led by Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton was so world-changing that thinkers in other fields consciously aimed at revolutionizing the social, political, and economic worlds using the same methods of science. This led to the Age of Reason and the Enlightenment, which in turn created the modern secular world of democracies, rights, justice, and liberty.
About the Speaker
Dr. Michael Shermer is the Founding Publisher of Skeptic magazine and editor of Skeptic.com, a monthly columnist for Scientific American, and an Adjunct Professor at Claremont Graduate University and Chapman University. Dr. Shermer's latest book is The Believing Brain: From Ghosts and Gods to Politics and Conspiracies-How We Construct Beliefs and Reinforce Them as Truths. His last book was The Mind of the Market, on evolutionary economics. He also wrote Why Darwin Matters: Evolution and the Case Against Intelligent Design, and he is the author of The Science of Good and Evil and of Why People Believe Weird Things. Dr. Shermer received his B.A. in psychology from Pepperdine University, M.A. in experimental psychology from California State University, Fullerton, and his Ph.D. in the history of science from Claremont Graduate University (1991). He was a college professor for 20 years, and since his creation of Skeptic magazine he has appeared on such shows as The Colbert Report, 20/20, Dateline, Charlie Rose, and Larry King Live (but, proudly, never Jerry Springer!). Dr. Shermer was the co-host and co-producer of the 13-hour Family Channel television series, Exploring the Unknown.
Updated version of CESE Method Now Online (February 2015)
We have an update to the briefing given to the Legislative Education Study Committee and others here. Please note that there have been changes to the graduation data (page 8) and an addendum added (page 34) addressing the percentage of teachers evaluated at or above proficient.
The New Beacon is Here!
The January 2015 Beacon (Vol. XVIII, No 1) is online!
Contents Preview: Editor’s Message – Kim Johnson; Special reprint of letter that went viral on NM teachers; Part 1 of the Beacon version of the briefing on NM educational performance and new teacher evaluation protocol (growth based portion) given to the Legislative Education Study Committee and the Legislative Finance Committee Joint Meeting in August 2014; Announcement of guest speaker - Michael Shermer for February 21, 2015.
You can browse previous issues of the Beacon here.
Use caution with teacher evals
Kudos once again to CESE Past President Ken Whiton for another stirring editorial in the January 29, 2015 issue of the Albuquerque Journal (link). Ken's latest op-ed is titled "Use caution with teacher evals."
Here follows Ken's letter. Well said once again, Ken!
As it has with many other aspects of modern life, our federal government has increasingly interfered in individual states’ education policies, usually with disastrous results.
Now, under President Obama’s “Race to the Top,” the U.S. Department of Education is requiring New Mexico’s Public Education Department to use a Value Added Model, or VAM, based on student growth when evaluating teachers.
Supposedly, this method measures the contribution of a teacher to a child’s learning, which makes sense until you consult experts in the field.
The American Statistical Association has found the VAM to be unreliable, at best. Research conducted by another group contracted by the U.S. Department of Education found that one in four teachers who are actually average in performance will be erroneously identified for rewards or punishments by VAMs.
Our children and their teachers deserve better than an evaluation regime based on this level of error, especially when a “poor” evaluation can destroy a qualified teacher’s career.
Unfortunately, Education Secretary-designate Hanna Skandera has chosen to base 50 percent of a teacher’s evaluation on these same unreliable VAM scores, which is the maximum allowed by the U.S. Department of Education. And yet, she has already lowered Santa Fe’s VAM percentage to 35 percent. Why isn’t she treating all our school districts equally?
If the method Skandera is supposed to use is as bad as the American Statistical Association says it is – and who would know better? – why use the maximum amount of an unreliable method to evaluate teachers? Shouldn’t we want to make the best of a bad situation by using the smallest percentage possible, rather than the largest?
My second point: The U.S. Department of Education is also now allowing states more time to make the required changes in their public education systems. The goal is to avoid problems, to make certain reform is done correctly and to ensure teachers are evaluated accurately.
Skandera should take the same care and consideration and do what our most qualified educators across our state are asking: Give us more time.
If other states can negotiate with the U.S. Department of Education, why can’t New Mexico?
We must comply with “Race to the Top.” But when its requirements are making a quality education for all our children harder to provide, we should be looking for ways to lighten that load.
Skandera should reduce the effect of the thoroughly discredited VAM on teacher evaluations for the entire state to the amount already set for Santa Fe schools. And, give our students and educators the extra time the U.S. Department of Education is allowing for states to implement these large changes.
Let’s take the time to get it right, for our children’s sake!
Presentation on the CESE Method is now On Line!
CESE has received many requests for copies of the presentation on "Data Quality and Methods for School Grades and Teacher Evaluations" that was given to the LESC/LFC committees and other groups of professionals concerned with public education.
We are pleased to announce that the latest version of the presentation is available here for download and perusal. The document is just under 5 Megabytes in size; it is a PDF version of CESE's Powerpoint presentation, augmented with notes as necessary. Questions about the presentation should be directed to CESE past president/ current board member Kim Johnson, who has spent months developing this briefing. Kudos, Kim!