Julie Madsen, M.D. will make a difference!

It isn't often that you "hit it off" with someone you meet for the first time.

That's exactly what happened when I met Julie Madsen today. She's an emergency room physician who is running for the West Ada School District Zone 5. That's essentially the Eagle area, as you look at the Trustee zone map.

Julie shares my educational values -- respect for teachers, greater parent involvement, support for the Idaho Constitution.

She's a strong advocate for public education and has children in the West Ada School District. As we got acquainted, we "hit it off" when we agreed that the new "Career Ladder" law will turn out to be a one-way ladder -- DOWN for Idaho teachers.

What's not great about this trumped up "reform"?

First, it barely increases starting teacher pay.

Second, it makes it difficult for teachers to earn pay increases.

Third, it makes it difficult for Idaho school districts to recruit new and promising teachers.

Why would any teacher want to come to Idaho where they would have to "start over" in a "residency" program. West Ada County superintendent Linda Clark touted this concept -- the "residency" as something education should borrow from the medical field.

The problem with Clark's comparison is public schools are not training physicians who experience a highly disciplined, mentored clinical training. That's not going to happen with teachers who are often working in a poorly equipped school with a principal who knows even less about instruction.

Of interest to me, as a former superintendent, is why Clark didn't begin this "reform" idea with administrators. So much has been written about the principal as instructional leader, as school culture archietect. Yet, Clark's reform agenda does not include principals.

Interesting oversight.