AP Wire

More noise from the anti-Common Core movement

by Melinda Deslatte, Associated Press

The bitter feud over the Common Core education standards has grown increasingly personal.

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The bitter feud over the Common Core education standards has grown increasingly personal. Critics of the standards are raising conflict-of-interest allegations against state education leaders and seeking new ethics restrictions for them.

Superintendent of Education John White

Unable to force an end to Louisiana's use of Common Core, opponents of the multistate standards are targeting Education Superintendent John White directly. They're asking lawmakers to enact tougher ethics limits for White and state education board members.

The suggestion is that White has been influenced by outside groups pushing Common Core and that's why he's such a staunch supporter. He denies any improprieties — and the ethics board cleared him after a complaint was filed.

The toughened ethics proposals, backed by Gov. Bobby Jindal, are scheduled for a hearing Tuesday in the House and Governmental Affairs Committee.