Massachusetts Governor-elect Charlie Baker has appointed a nationally known advocate for charter schools to be the state’s top education official.
Baker and James Peyser, are long-time friends who served together in the Weld administration. Peyser was chairman of the state Board of Education under Republican Gov. Paul Cellucci. As education secretary Peyser will oversee the implementation of the controversial Common Core education standards, a change Baker has questioned.
" Basically, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts four years ago bought into Common Core without knowing what it was or what it was going to look like or how it was going to work. Now, the people have had a chance to look at it, make a choice about whether to go one way or the other. I'd like to have a pretty robust discussion about that," Baker said during an interview last month.
Peyser told the Boston Globe his priorities are to close achievement gaps, strengthen vocational and technical schools, and make college more affordable.
