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Penland appointed to state commission By DAMIAN MANN Medford school board member Peggy Penland has been appointed by Gov. John Kitzhaber to Oregon's new Quality Education Commission, responsible for suggesting how much the state should budget for education. Although the appointment still awaits Senate confirmation later this year, Penland already has begun working under a governor's executive order. Penland, who sought out membership in the commission, looks forward to tackling the complicated issues concerning what it costs to run the educational system of Oregon. "The naysayers of the (funding) model said we were kind of building a Christmas tree and we kept putting these ornaments on," she said. The commission's last funding model, which determined that $5.2 billion was needed to operate Oregon's schools, was used by the governor during the current biennial budget. Previously, the commission operated at the behest of the governor, but the Legislature this year made it a permanent governmental organization. Penland, 42, of Medford said she frequently has been challenged by legislators who maintain the funding model contained too many unnecessary expenses. School districts also have been criticized for caving into teachers unions' demands over salaries and benefits, partially resulting in cutbacks to staff and programs. But Penland counters, "The problem is so difficult as a school board member when you are dealing with the enormity of paying good people for your kids. It's an immense quandary that you're in. Do you want to have strikes? Do we want the best, or do we want a warm body?" Penland said her job, along with the other commissioners, will be to determine how much it costs to provide quality education while appeasing legislators' concerns about excessive expenses. Education will be entering a precarious financial era with the governor's warning to all state agencies to prepare for a 2 percent cut in revenues because of a faltering economy. "Even if it can't be fully funded, the citizens of Oregon need to tell them (the legislators) what quality education costs," said Penland. Apart from funding, the commission also will refine notions about what quality education means. Previously, it had been determined that the typical English as a Second Language program should only require two years to train a non-native speaker to become proficient in English. But, Penland says, this runs counter to national studies that show ESL programs normally run seven years. Penland is also a member of the Oregon School Board Association and the Coalition for School Funding Now. She anticipates the commission will prepare its quality education model in spring 2002. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.