Even as we meet here in Denver to celebrate measurement scholarship and practice, we know that many of our members have faced serious challenges to their research and livelihood due to recent funding and staffing terminations at the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) and the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). This has included termination of contracts, layoffs at many education research firms, uncertainty about existing and pending grants, and inability to answer questions about future data access and quality due to reductions in force among IES staff.
NCME stands for our mission: advancing theory and applications of educational measurement to benefit society. Recently, we were given the opportunity to join a challenge to the administration’s actions as they relate to federal data access and quality.
The NCME Board of Directors convened to evaluate this option. We discussed the need to uphold our scholarship, data access, and data quality, which is core to our mission. We also considered possible risks to the organization and to our members. The Board voted to move forward with the case.
The complaint was filed this morning by lawyers at the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) on behalf of NCME and the National Academy of Education (NAEd), a nonpartisan organization that advances high-quality research to improve education policy and practice. It contends, among other claims, that the administration’s reduction in force and contracts effectively eliminates the agency’s ability “to conduct, develop, and widely disseminate scientifically valid research in education,” and "to collect and analyze education information and statistics in a manner that meets the highest methodological standards," as required by federal law. This violates the Administrative Procedure Act, as this is contrary to the statutes governing IES and its Centers.
Protecting measurement data and measurement research is not a partisan issue. NCME members publish viewpoints and scholarship on a wide range of issues. What unites us in this organization is our common pursuit to advance measurement science and practice to benefit society. Towards this pursuit, we take this action.
We welcome your questions and comments about this decision and any additional input on actions we can take in support of our mission.
Sincerely,
Andrew Ho, President
Rich Patz, Executive Director
National Council on Measurement in Education
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