IBM exec and co-chair of NC Common Core review commission says he is a supporter of the standards

At the first meeting of the Academic Standards Review Commission, which is tasked with reviewing and potentially replacing the Common Core State Standards, co-chair and Gov. Pat McCrory appointee Andre Peek told N.C. Policy Watch upon the meeting’s conclusion Monday afternoon that he is a supporter of Common Core and has been “since its inception.”

Peek, an executive at IBM, said “I do realize it’s [Common Core] a divisive issue for our state, though. But I don’t know the details of why…so through the efforts of this commission we’ll get to the facts…and how to change it to be more effective for our state,” adding that any changes made will be based on fact and not just a feeling of “we don’t like it.”

Peek will co-chair the Academic Standards Review Commission along with Jeannie Metcalf, who sits on the Winston-Salem/Forsyth State Board of Education.

Metcalf, who is an appointee of Senate leader Phil Berger and has no background in teaching, told N.C. Policy Watch last month about her qualifications to serve: “I’ve read lots of magazines and I go to lots of meetings…and so I got myself a self-guided education in curriculum standards in North Carolina and how they’ve changed over the years.”

For a full run down of the first meeting of the Academic Standards Review Commission, look for my story tomorrow morning over at www.ncpolicywatch.com