Task force is working on it, but not even all members are full on board

As a candidate, Gov. Scott Walker promised to end the "social promotion” of third-graders who cannot read -- in other words, to stop passing to fourth grade students who aren't prepared for the next grade.

On March 31, 2011, Walker announced with an executive order the creation of a Read to Lead Task Force that he said would "ensure that every Wisconsin child learns to read by the third grade.” He gave the 14-member group -- which he heads -- a number of guidelines, including this one:

"A student must be given multiple opportunities on a number of different assessments to prove he or she can read before being non-promoted. A child will not be held back based simply on the results of one high-stakes test.”

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Evers said at the time he had agreed to serve as the task force's vice chairman, but hasn't made any "commitment or support" for the governor's recommendations. He criticized the governor's proposal to spend $1.2 million over the next two years to develop a third-grade reading assessment linked to the initiative, calling it redundant and possibly illegal.

In August 2011, Evers was accused of attempting to accelerate his department"s reform work to head off any initiatives proposed by Walker. An Evers spokesman said at the time that the work has yet to result in any final recommendations.

The WisconsinEye network has video of the task force's most recent meeting on July 29, 2011.

We rate this promise In the Works.