MO SRM1

Dr. Chris Nicastro was appointed Commissioner of Education in July 2009 and is accused of failed leadership, dishonesty, and disregard for her position's responsibilities.

The Commissioner altered a fiscal note for Initiative Petition 14-024 (Tenure Initiative) by changing "Potential For Significant Unknown Costs" to "Costs Unknown" to downplay impacts on local school districts, while the Department simultaneously requested $30 million for testing and exam development.

The Commissioner allegedly misled legislators about accreditation decisions for Normandy School District (promised 3-year protection but revoked accreditation after 2 years) and Kansas City School District (promised provisional accreditation if APR scores met standards, but denied it despite Kansas City meeting the same standards as St. Louis).

The Commissioner attempted to award a lucrative CEE-Trust contract without competitive bidding and "transferred" contract language into bid specifications after being directed to conduct legitimate bidding, despite a Massachusetts-based agency offering services for one-third the cost.

The Senate remonstrance recommends the Commissioner resign immediately or be terminated by the State Board of Education due to creating an environment of distrust that undermines education policy credibility.