OK. Here's the skinny on the FCAT External Advisory Committee. It meets
from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Holiday Inn Select
Orlando-International Airport, 5750 T.G. Lee Blvd. The goal is to
discuss rescoring the 2006 third-grade FCAT reading exam, and to look
at the creation of an annual, independent review of FCAT results.

Yes, but who's going to be there, you ask. A whole bunch of folks from all over the state.

From the DOE, Commissioner Jeanine Blomberg, Deputy Commissioner of
Accountability, Research and Measurement Jay Pfeiffer, Office of
Assessment and School Performance Administrator Dr. Cornelia Orr,
Program Director of K-12 Assessment Section Kris Ellington and Office
of Evaluation and Reporting Director Juan Copa. School superintendents
Mary Ellen Elia (Hillsborough County), Buddy Vickers (Gilchrist
County), Dennis Bennett (Dixie County), Fredric Ward (Lafayette
County), Bill Vogel (Seminole County), and Ron Blocker (Orange County)
will be there.

School district administrators Brenda Blackburn (Brevard County) and
Alberto Carvalho (Miami-Dade County), as well as district assessment
coordinators Nicki Junkins (Volusia County), Natalie Roca (Sarasota
County), John Hilderbrand (retired, Hillsborough County), Lee Baldwin
(Orange County), Rhonda Borne (North East Florida Educational
Consortium) and Owen Roberts (St. Lucie County) are invited. And Robert
Lange will represent the Florida Coalition for Assessment Reform, and
Marshall Ogletree will represent the Florida Education Association.

Reporters will be there, too. We'll let you know what these people do.

(Times photo, Ken Helle)