Report Draws National Attention

A new report authored by Erekson and published by the Texas Faculty Collaborative for Social Studies created a small firestorm in the media, claiming state and national headlines during the same week in November 2011 that Americans voted in the general election, Rick Perry said “oops” in a Republican primary debate, Penn State fired Joe Paterno, and Herman Cain and Justin Bieber responded to critical allegations. After a liberal political activist organization wrote a press release that tacitly distorted the nature of the report, the story spread like wildfire through liberal media outlets until it escalated into a “damning,” “slamming,” and “ripping” attack by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board on Texas governor and presidential candidate Rick Perry. Thankfully, more sensible journalists soon waded in to remind the public that the report provides numerous clear recommendations for addressing two daunting challenges facing K-16 history educators in the state of Texas–dozens of overlapping educational standards and a crisis in K-12 college preparation. [Click here to learn more]