HGSE Faculty Help Prepare Govern-Elect Patrick

Posted: December 5, 2006

PatrickMassachusetts Governor-elect Deval Patrick has chosen four HGSE faculty members as part of his transition team in education.

Senior Lecturer Tom Payzant and Lecturer Paul Reville will advise Patrick on K-12 education, while Professor Fernando Reimers and Visiting Professor Richard Freeland will serve on the higher education team.

"The people who have been chosen to serve as leaders and members of the various transition working groups bring a great deal of geographic and intellectual diversity to our team and will be instrumental in helping Governor-elect Patrick shape his policy positions," said Richard Chacon, Patrick's communications director. "Governor-elect Patrick has and will continue to seek the best ideas from all citizens of this Commonwealth, as he begins the effort to bring people back into civic life, to re-engage their interest and to get some fresh, new ideas about how we tackle challenges and take advantage of opportunities."

Patrick, who was elected on November 7, has 15 transition working groups that focus on a variety of issues ranging from housing to finances to education. He will officially take office on January 4.

The job of the transition team is to help build on the priorities made to citizens during the campaign, continue community outreach, and provide an opportunity for people around the state to offer ideas and express themselves, Payzant said.

While each faculty member was limited in the amount of details they could disclose, Reimers said they will work to design a series of reform recommendations for the Governor-elect regarding education in the state based upon a series of consultations with education professionals and community meetings.

Last week the higher education team unveiled draft recommendations, which tackled issues regarding making higher education affordable and accessible for all residents and higher education playing a more prominent role in state policy, Freeland said.

Each faculty member said they were honored to be chosen as part of the team.

"I was flattered and delighted to have this opportunity to serve in this capacity," Payzant said. "The fast pace of the work is a bit daunting, in terms of short time allotted to accomplish a lot, but I'm interested in making sure Massachusetts has the best education to offer all children and youth in the Commonwealth."

Reimers too said that he was pleased to have the opportunity to serve the state and Governor-elect and expressed confidence that Patrick is taking a "consultative and participatory approach to engaging citizens in developing plans to improve Massachusetts."

"It's encouraging that Patrick sees Harvard and our school as a source of perspective," Reville said. "I hope there are other ways we and other faculty can provide assistance and support as we move into an exciting era of education reform."

Each faculty member has a wealth of experience and knowledge to contribute to the transition team. Payzant, before joining HGSE this summer, previously served as superintendent of Boston Public School for 11 years and as assistant secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education for the U.S. Department of Education under the Clinton administration.

Reville, president of the Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy, conducts research, convenes policy-makers, and advocates solutions to the state's preK-12 educational challenges. Reville also directs the education and policy management program at HGSE.

Reimers, the director of the Ed School's international education policy program, researches education policies that support teachers in helping low-income children succeed academically. Reimers also brings an abundance of knowledge regarding international education and is currently serving on a National Academy of Sciences panel evaluating the impact of Federal programs to support the internationalization of higher education institutions. He also co-chairs the Global Education Advisory Board to the Massachusetts Department of Education.

Freeland, former president of Northeastern University, has held a variety of positions at colleges including director of office of education planning, assistant to the chancellor at UMass Boston, and vice chancellor for academic affairs at the City University of New York.