BY: AMY DALRYMPLE (North Dakota Monitor)
An important discussion about the future of North Dakota’s K-12 education system appears to be happening in private.
The discussion is so private, in fact, that even some Education Committee lawmakers seem to be in the dark.
The Legislature’s interim Education Committee was directed through legislation approved in 2023 to study school choice models that have been implemented nationally, such as charter schools and voucher systems where the state helps pay for a student’s private education. The committee is supposed to report its findings and bring potential draft legislation to the next legislative assembly.
But a separate group – a school choice task force – seems to be doing the heavy lifting through meetings that have not been publicized, according to discussion during Wednesday’s Education Committee meeting.
The lack of transparency seems to in part be driven by confusion over who’s in charge — and the fact that a private consultant is facilitating the meetings.
Superintendent of Public Instruction Kirsten Baesler told the North Dakota Monitor on Thursday that the Legislature has jurisdiction over the task force and she is merely a member.
Baesler said Sen. Michelle Axtman, R-Bismarck, who chairs the Education Committee, chose the members of the group after getting recommendations from her office and the governor’s office. Both Axtman and Baesler made the distinction that members were not appointed but were invited.
The group has met three times, twice in person and once virtually.
“I really don’t want this to be mistaken for a study that was directed to the Department of Public Instruction or that we were leading whatsoever, because we weren’t,” Baesler said.
Legislative Council Director John Bjornson, meanwhile, said the task force is not driven by the legislative branch and that Axtman did not have the authority to appoint a subcommittee or task force. Bjornson said it was his impression that the Department of Public Instruction was leading the group. Lawmakers have not been paid to participate in the meetings, as they are for legislative meetings.
“It had little to nothing to do with the legislative branch, other than Sen. Axtman and a couple others were asked to attend meetings,” Bjornson said. “It would be up to DPI and their attorney to decide whether any meetings they held would fall under the requirements of being a public meeting.”
Confusion over the task force was apparent during Wednesday’s Education Committee meeting.
At the meeting, Axman briefed the rest of the committee on the task force’s progress. The group is discussing a three-tiered education model that would provide opportunities for students enrolled in public and private schools and homeschooled students, she said.
“We are inching closer to really cementing what possible legislation would look like,” Axtman told lawmakers.
Rep. LaurieBeth Hager, D-Fargo, noted during the meeting she had only recently become aware of the task force. She asked if the meetings had been open to the public and inquired about the group’s members and meeting minutes.
Axtman said that Legislative Council, the Legislature’s research arm, doesn’t post materials related to the meetings because it is not a legislative-driven task force.
Hager further pressed for an explanation about why the task force would not be required to meet open meeting requirements.
“It applies to school boards. It applies to most entities in the state, but not this particular task force that would restructure the entire education of the state of North Dakota?” Hager asked.
Baesler said the task force was following the advice of Legislative Council.
Legislative Council attorney Liz Fordahl then chimed in, indicating that the task force is not subject to open meetings laws.
“As this was not a group that was authorized by any legislative body, it’s not a public meeting, and it’s not subject to those requirements. It was formed outside of a government body,” Fordahl said.
Bjornson, who talked to Fordahl after the meeting, clarified in an interview that Fordahl thought the effort was facilitated by Baesler’s office and not a governing body.
The meetings have been led and facilitated by the Hunt Institute, which has a contract with the Department of Public Instruction, Axtman said.
Baesler said the Hunt Institute contract is tied to a separate study the Department of Instruction is conducting. The Hunt Institute “piggybacked” on that contract for the work related to school choice, Baesler said.
“While they were in town, they helped Sen. Axtman secure experts for this study as well,” Baesler said.
The Hunt Institute also led a lawmaker retreat on education issues in July.
Axtman, who is in her first term, said in an interview that she raised questions about open meeting requirements during a meeting with Bjornson and Baesler and followed their advice.
“If they would have told me they need to be open meetings, I absolutely would have gone and ensured that they were open to the public,” Axtman said.
Baesler said she also questioned why the meetings weren’t open but was told by Legislative Council that lawmakers are able to form working groups.
“The studies and the task force that I run and direct, I always post my meetings,” she said.
Baesler also serves on the Teacher Retention and Recruitment Task Force, which has publicized its meetings, including through the Secretary of State’s Office meeting notice page.
Gov. Doug Burgum appointed members to the group focused on teacher retention but had no role in appointing members to the school choice task force, said spokesman Mike Nowatzki.
The governor’s education policy adviser is participating in the school choice task force because that was in the directive of the Legislature through Senate Bill 2284 when it directed the study, Nowatzki said.
“The Governor’s Office did not determine the structure of the study or any group(s) designed to develop recommendations to the interim committee for the purposes of the study,” Nowatzki said in an email.
Baesler said she hopes the procedural questions don’t take away from the group’s good work.
“We’re working really hard to help improve education for all students in North Dakota,” Axtman said.
