Alabama voters to decide on abolishing elected school board

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama voters will decide next week whether to do away with the elected state school board and replace it with an appointed commission tasked with coming up with an alternative to Common Core curriculum standards.

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has championed the change, called Amendment 1 on Tuesday's ballot. Supporters say it will ensure education experts are making education policy decisions. Critics call it a power grab that would strip citizens of their ability to directly vote on those in charge of education.

The current State Board of Education includes eight members who are elected from districts, plus the governor, who serves as board president.

If approved by the voters, the amendment would have the governor appoint all nine members of the proposed Alabama Commission on Elementary and Secondary Education, including one from each of seven congressional districts and two at-large members. Once confirmed by the Alabama Senate, commission members would serve six-year staggered terms.

A state education secretary would be appointed by the commission, replacing the current superintendent of education, who was voted in by the state school board. The secretary also would have to be confirmed by the Senate.

Ivey is urging people to vote yes, arguing that Alabama's continually low test scores are due in part to its system of education governance.

“I'd invite everybody that is concerned about their child's education and the future of the state to get involved and be for something very positive that could improve education. Why would you not want to improve a system that is broken?" Ivey said in an interview this month.

The current system was put in place 50 years ago, after voters approved a change to the Alabama Constitution to switch to an elected...