• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

State Contract With Test Firm Raises Eyebrows of Legislators

Posted on: Thursday, 20 October 2005, 18:00 CDT

By Amy Jeter, The Virginian-Pilot, Norfolk, Va.

Oct. 20--Legislative leaders on Wednesday questioned the Virginia Department of Education's award of a $139.9 million contract for standardized testing and called for further investigation of the deal.

Del. Vincent F. Callahan Jr., R-McLean, said he was concerned that Pearson Educational Measurement won the six-year contract despite quoting a price that was more than $35 million higher than the other bidder's.

He also said he had doubts about the quality of Pearson's work after learning that the company once erroneously gave failing test scores to 8,000 Minnesota students, a problem that kept 50 seniors from graduating and prompted the company to offer $7 million as a settlement.

Pearson, which previously subcontracted to score Virginia's online testing, also erred in scoring English online retests this summer, telling 60 students that they'd failed again when they'd actually passed.

"The additional $35 million struck me and many on the committee as seemingly unnecessary or unwarranted spending," Callahan, the chairman of the House of Delegates Appropriations Committee, said Wednesday in a written statement. "The settlements and performance issues further underscore our unease."

Pearson was awarded the contract over San Antonio-based Harcourt Assessment, which has provided exams since the inception of Virginia's Standards of Learning testing program in 1998. The new contract began this month.

Pearson, based in Iowa, contracts in 20 states and scores the U.S. Department of Education's test known as "the nation's report card," according to a company spokesman.

Wiley C. Rowsey, procurement director for the state Education Department, said Wednesday that a six-member panel rated Pearson higher in the areas of qualifications, project management, and scoring and reporting, which led to a higher overall rating.

"Under the Code of Virginia, you make the award to the firm that made the best proposal," Rowsey said. "Well, who made the best proposal? Pearson."

On Wednesday, Callahan and House Speaker William J. Howell, R-Stafford, also questioned the state superintendent's involvement with Pearson.

The company invites all state school chiefs and other leaders to a meeting about education issues, said Charles Pyle, a spokesman for the Virginia Department of Education.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jo Lynne DeMary attended at least once, and the company paid about $1,400 in costs, including airfare, Pyle said. He did not know if DeMary participated in similar activities sponsored by other companies, and the superintendent could not be reached.

Pyle said business matters were not part of the Pearson meeting and that DeMary was not involved in deciding the testing contract.

"She played no part in their deliberations," he said.

Callahan said he will first request state Education Department documents related to the deal and that he hoped to refer the inquiry to the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission.

He said he was displeased with testimony from Education Department officials at a Monday meeting of the Appropriations Committee because they didn't mention the recent problems with Virginia tests.

"They didn't volunteer the information, which I found a very serious thing on their part," Callahan said.

Pyle said the situation had been reported in the media and that Assistant Superintendents Lan W. Neugent and Daniel S. Timberlake were ready to respond to questions about it.

"They're there to provide the information requested by the committee, and if they don't have it, to get that information," Pyle said.

"They were prepared to answer every question asked."

-----

To see more of the The Virginian-Pilot, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.pilotonline.com.

Copyright (c) 2005, The Virginian-Pilot, Norfolk, Va.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

For information on republishing this content, contact us at (800) 661-2511 (U.S.), (213) 237-4914 (worldwide), fax (213) 237-6515, or e-mail reprints@krtinfo.com.

PSO,

Source: The Virginian-Pilot

More News in this Category