University of Arkansas Professor Named to National Panel

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Robert Costrell, holder of an endowed chair in education accountability at the University of Arkansas, has been appointed to the National Technical Advisory Council, U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings announced Wednesday.

The 16-member council was created to advise the department on complex and technical issues regarding the design and implementation of state standards, assessments and accountability systems. All members are experts in assessment and accountability, and they represent a range of backgrounds, from academicians and researchers to national, state and local policymakers.

“The National Technical Advisory Council will play a vital role in ensuring that we address the technical needs of states and their accountability systems,” Spellings said in a news release. “Their work will be invaluable as we move forward in strengthening and improving No Child Left Behind.”

Members will serve staggered terms, ranging from one to three years. The council will meet at the request of Spellings but at least twice a year. The first meeting will be within the next few months. Meetings will be announced in the federal register and on the U.S. Department of Education’s Web site, www.ed.gov.

Costrell, a professor of education reform and economics who holds the Twenty-First Century Chair in Education Accountability, joined the faculty of the College of Education and Health Professions in the fall of 2006. He brings a unique combination of academic and policy-making accomplishments in the area of standards, assessment and accountability, which should be helpful to the National Technical Advisory Council.

On the academic side, Costrell has written seminal articles on the economic theory of educational standards for publications such as the American Economic Review. He has also written more specifically on the standards and accountability lessons from Massachusetts for general audiences in journals such as Brookings Papers on Education Policy.

From 1999 to 2006, Costrell served in major policy roles for three governors of Massachusetts, as director of research and development, chief economist for the Commonwealth, and finally education adviser to Gov. Mitt Romney. Costrell worked closely with both the governors and Commissioner of Education David Driscoll throughout this critical period when Massachusetts’ accountability reforms, based on exit exams, went into effect. He also helped develop Romney’s comprehensive education reform proposal of 2005 to advance accountability to the next level.

Costrell has served on comparable national panels previously, including the Steering Committee to develop an economics assessment for the National Assessment of Educational Progress and on the U.S. Department of Education’s Advisory Council on Education Statistics, appointed by Secretary Rod Paige.

Costrell’s current research includes value-added analysis of student math achievement in Massachusetts, among other topics. He received his doctorate in economics from Harvard University in 1978 and a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Michigan in 1972.