Portland State Professor Cary Sneider Appointed to National Assessment Governing Board

Research Expert and Consultant is One of Seven Members Named by U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan

WASHINGTON (September 6, 2011) – Cary Sneider, an associate research professor at Portland State University in Oregon, has been appointed to serve a four-year term on the National Assessment Governing Board, U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan announced today. Six other Board members—four of them also new appointees—were announced as well. Their terms begin October 1, 2011.

Sneider, a longtime educator and consultant, will serve in the category of "curriculum specialist" on the Governing Board, which sets policy for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), known as The Nation's Report Card. NAEP is the country's only nationally representative assessment of student achievement in various subjects, including mathematics, reading, writing and science.

"We are delighted to have Cary join the Board," said Governing Board Chairman David Driscoll. "His experience in education and research, not to mention his current and recent work with NAEP, will be a major asset in efforts to oversee The Nation's Report Card—the most valuable benchmark we have for monitoring student progress in the U.S."

Sneider served as the planning committee co-chair for the Board's 2014 NAEP Technology and Engineering Literacy Framework. Sneider also served on the development team for the Governing Board's 2009 NAEP Science Framework. For four years, Sneider has taught courses on research methodology at Portland State University's Center for Science Education and served as a consultant to various groups, including Achieve, Inc., the Washington State Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the National Science Teachers' Association, and the National Research Council. Previously, he was vice president for educator programs at the Museum of Science in Boston and director of astronomy and physics education for Lawrence Hall of Science at the University of California, Berkeley. Sneider has also authored numerous publications in the science education field.

Sneider joins the Board as it is overseeing several major developments. They include a new computer-based Technology and Engineering Literacy assessment that will be administered in 2014, research studies to be released in 2012 on 12th-grade preparedness for higher education and job training, and a new ad hoc committee on engaging parents with the goal of increasing student performance and closing achievement gaps.

Congress established the 26-member Governing Board in 1988 to oversee NAEP, which makes objective information on student performance available to policymakers and the public at the national, state and local levels, and has served an important role in evaluating the condition and progress of American education since 1969. Among many other duties, the Governing Board determines subjects to be tested and the content and achievement levels for each test, and works to inform the public about NAEP results.

Sneider joins a group of governors, state legislators, local and state school officials, educators and researchers, business representatives and members of the general public who make up the Board. In addition to Sneider, others appointed by Secretary Duncan today are listed below along with their hometown, category of appointment, and official title. The term for each member is slated to extend to September 30, 2015.

• Andrés Alonso, Baltimore, local school superintendent: Chief Executive Officer of the Baltimore City Public Schools
• Lou Fabrizio, Raleigh, N.C., testing and measurement expert: Data, Research and Federal Policy Director for the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction; Board member since 2007
• Terry Holliday, Lexington, Ky., chief state school officer: Commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Education
• Dale Nowlin, Columbus, Ind., 12th-grade teacher: Teacher at Columbus North High School
• Susan Pimentel, Hanover, N.H., curriculum specialist: Educational Consultant; Board member since 2007
• B. Fielding Rolston, Kingsport, Tenn., state school board member: Chairman of the Tennessee State Board of Education

Download the PDF version.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress is the only nationally representative, continuing evaluation of the condition of education in the United States. It has served as a national yardstick of student achievement since 1969. Through the Nation's Report Card, NAEP informs the public about what American students know and can do in various subject areas and compares achievement between states, large urban districts, and various student demographic groups.
The National Assessment Governing Board is an independent, bipartisan board whose members include governors, state legislators, local and state school officials, educators, business representatives and members of the general public. Congress created the 26-member Governing Board in 1988 to oversee and set policy for NAEP.
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is a congressionally authorized project sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education. The National Center for Education Statistics, within the Institute of Education Sciences, administers NAEP. The Commissioner of Education Statistics is responsible by law for carrying out the NAEP project.