Drafting SC Kids for Global Work
by Bob Dill

The European Socialist system of school to work

There is good reason why the SC Department of Education did not want input from the general public when they held two meetings in the Upstate to "solicit public comment" on the report of the "Governor's Workforce Education Task Force."

The state plan described in the daily newspaper as a restructuring of high school curricula, is actually a repackaged, enhanced version of the socialist "School to Work" program conjured up by Secretary of Education Riley and President Clinton's Secretary of Labor.

The scheme was made "voluntary" by federal law, and was watered down by alert lawmakers when it reached South Carolina a few years ago.

For the STW scheme to be successful, it is essential that the school to work laws in South Carolina be enhanced, strengthened, the population manipulated and the ultimate goals disguised, in order for the final socialist plan to be fully implemented in the Palmetto State.

The smooth, clever "King of School to Work," Willard Daggett has been chosen by Governor Hodges and Education Superintendent Tennenbaum to be the lead "snake oil salesman." Daggett will "evangelize" the radical school to work "cult," that will attempt to sell the repackaged school to work proposals to an unsuspecting legislature and the general public desperate for solutions to two decades of failing public schools.

Governor Sanford, Lt. Gov. Bauer and Speaker Wilkins would be well served to do some independent study of Mr. Daggett and the Hodges committee proposals before they take any action to implement the proposals. Implementation would certainly jeopardize a second Sanford term as Governor when the public realizes what will be happening to their children under the socialist School to Work proposals.

A series of 5 meetings held across the state by Daggett, who bills himself as the "President of the International Center for Leadership in Education," are designed as an "invitation for input on the Direction and Strategic Foundation for Steps to Prosperity proposed by the Hodges committee. The proposal made public week, contains 10 recommendations.

1.    Replace the 1994 South Carolina School-to-work Transition Act with New Legislation.
2.    Reorganize Curriculum around Clusters of Study.
3.    Retool Educator Preparation and Professional Development.
4.    Seamlessly Connect P-12 Education, Postsecondary Education, and the Workplace.
5.    Revitalize Career Guidance and Counseling. (Translation: doubling the number of counselors in schools to herd students into the career programs at an early age.)
6.    Establish Alternatives for At-Risk-Students. (Definition: At-risk-students are students the government/educators decide are at risk).
7.    Integrate Character Education into All Schooling.
8.    Streamline and Focus Resources.
9.    Conduct Extensive Outreach. (Definition: Use every liberal group and media outlet to spread the positive propaganda).
10.  Assure Accountability. (?).

Who is Dr. Willard Daggett?

Dr. Willard Daggett founded the International Center for Leadership in Education after "serving in various management positions at the New York State Education Department."

Dr. Daggett is a virtual expert on everything having to do with education, ranging from facilities design to curriculum. He will speak to any group on those subjects who are willing to pay him $7,000 to $10,000 a day, according to Investors Business Daily.

Investors Business Daily, in the October 22, 1999 issue alleged that Education Consultant Willard Daggett lies about his resume, gives false information, and charges an exorbitant amount for his speeches - - triple what most education scholars charge. Much of Daggett's income comes from tax dollars. It has not been announced who is paying for his 5 presentations in South Carolina.

Daggett was "honored" with the Gerald Bracey "Rotten Apple Award" in Bracey's 5th annual report titled, A Critique of Criticisms of Public Education.

Education expert Bracey said he presented the Rotten Apple Award to Daggett because Daggett "gave on Oscar-Winning performance" from a study that could not be found. "He's full of c -- as a Christmas turkey," Bracey concluded.

Despite his critics, Daggett is highly respected by the education establishment and some politicians of both the Republican and Democratic parties.

Daggett was teamed up with William Spady to implement Outcome-Based-Education across the country until OBE became known for what it is. One of their "critical issues" was "Building Community Support for Change." Now that Governor Hodges has had OBE and School-to-Work disguised and repackaged, Daggett is back to build community support for the old product in a new package.

Willard Daggett was the featured speaker at Governor David Beasley's "Governor's Rural Summit" Confronting the Future" on March 3 and 4, 1997.

"I am upset and disillusioned at the direction the Governor has taken on the issues of education," said Patty Stoner, founder of Parents Involved in Education, at the time.

Stoner explained that Daggett and William Spady, the Father of OBE" were claiming to be "experts on implementing OBE" throughout the country.

"Willard Daggett has led Polk County, NC schools in the implementation of Outcome Based Education along with integrating it with Tech Prep Curriculum," Stoner said.

She explained that Daggett advocates "that education decisions should be made by locally formed commissions not elected school board trustees. He espouses that memorization of facts is mindless and should be classified as "lower order thinking:". He disapproves of letter grades."

"Daggett believes it will require massive retraining and restructuring of education to meet new outcomes based curriculum. He is walking directly in line with others in the national reform movement, such as Mark Tucker, Ira Magaziner, David Hornbeck and Lauren Resnick," said Stoner. "They all desire that the American education system be modeled after the German system; which is a seamless web that extends from cradle to grave.
"The German system is coordinated by a system of labor market boards, where curriculum and 'job matching' is handled by
counselors.
"These national reform gurus plan to restructure our schools by bypassing all elected officials on school boards and state legislatures and flood our schools with federal dollars with federal regulations attached.
"They all promote the 'careers' legislation that would create a computer database, into which school personnel will be able to scan all information about every school child and his family; identified by the child's social security number, which includes academic, medical, mental, psychological, behavioral and the school counselors recommendations for future employment.
"All of this will convert the school system into job training to serve a managed workforce. Is this why the 'Rural Summit' is sponsored by the SC Department of Commerce and the SC Department of Education? Are we seeking the merging together of education and occupation for total government control?" Stoner asked.

The predictions of Patty Stoner six years later have materialized in the final days of the administration of Governor Jim Hodges.

The extent to which South Carolina will buy into this plan to transform South Carolina children into model socialist workers in 2003 will depend on the willingness of elected officials and salaried bureaucrats to resist the lure of federal and tax-exempt foundation dollars in the form of lucrative grants.

Published in The Times Examiner 12-11-02, Publisher & Editor-in Chief Bob Dill, Greenville, SC