Final Version of Common Standards Unveiled

Former West Virginia Gov. Bob Wise, left, addresses the audience alongside panelists Leah Luke, Wisconsin’s 2010 teacher of the year; Steve Rohleder, the group chief executive of Accenture’s Health & Public Service practice; and Michael Wotorson, the executive director for the Campaign for High School Equity, as the final set of common academic standards is released on June 2 in Georgia.

—Kendrick Brinson for Education Week

By Catherine Gewertz

Suwanee, Ga.

The final set of common academic standards was released today, capping months of closed-door work to write them and months more to revise them with feedback from state education officials, teachers’ unions, and other education interest groups.

The project is an attempt to address the uneven patchwork of standards that results in differing expectations among schools, districts, and states and leaves many students unprepared for work or college.

Organizers of the Common Core State Standards Initiative held a press event at a Georgia high school this morning. A high-profile list of guests, including governors and education commissioners, spoke in...