By Bob Plain in Rhode Island’s Future
Deborah Gist declined share
her dissertation with legislative leaders, after North Kingstown Senator Jim
Sheehan, a teacher, asked her to do so in a letter last month.
Gist replied to Sheehan,
saying, “I hope you will read my work with interest with the embargo is lifted
in June 2014.”
She also said, in fact, her
dissertation did not speak to policy issues in Rhode Island, as Sheehan
suggested in his letter.
You can read Gist’s letter to Sen. Sheehan here. And his Nov. 13 letter is below:
It was with great interest that I read an
article appearing on the RIFuture.org website, “Public can’t read Deborah Gist’s dissertation on
RI.” I am
curious, first of all, about the accuracy of the article. Specifically, has
your dissertation, “An Ocean State Voyage: A Leadership Case Study of Creating
an Evaluation System with, and for, Teachers,” been “embargoed” until
September, 2015? Second, if the report is accurate, I would be interested in
knowing why this is the case.
Given the import of the ideas and
concepts within your thesis on the current educational reforms in Rhode Island,
I believe it would be highly beneficial for the members of the General
Assembly, and specifically the members of the Senate Committee on Education and
the House Committee on Health, Education and Welfare, to have access to this
important work.
I believe informing the policymakers of
our state about your vision for Rhode Island education is necessary and
appropriate as the General Assembly moves toward another legislative session
that will once again focus on the education of our populace. While you have
annually presented an address to the legislature and have also testified many
times at various committee hearings, I believe your thesis is another important
piece of your vision that should be shared with the General Assembly.
I therefore request that you provide a
copy of your thesis to the Senate and House leadership, who may then share that
document with legislative members.
I eagerly await your response and thank
you for your serious attention to this request.
Sincerely,
James C. Sheehan
Senator – District 36
Narragansett, North Kingstown
Senator – District 36
Narragansett, North Kingstown
Bob Plain is
the editor/publisher of Rhode Island's Future. Previously, he's worked as a
reporter for several different news organizations both in Rhode Island and
across the country.
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See more at: http://www.rifuture.org/gist-wont-share-dissertation-with-legislative-leaders.html#sthash.niC9OAJQ.dpuf