KCTV 5Missouri Board of Education OKs No Child waiver

The Missouri Board of Education has approved the state's request for a waiver from some provisions of the federal No Child Left Behind law.

It's been more than a decade since the No Child Left Behind Act first became law, but now there appears to be a mass exodus away from it.

Members voted Tuesday to support the waiver's submission to the U.S. Department of Education. Last fall, President Barack Obama said states will be allowed to seek a waiver from the law, which requires all students to show proficiency in math and reading by 2014.

States must meet conditions such as setting standards to prepare students for college and careers.

Missouri is one of 28 states now seeking a waiver.

Missouri officials plan to submit the waiver by Feb. 28, the deadline for the second round of requests. Eleven states were granted waivers earlier this month after the first round of requests.

State education officials see the waiver as an opportunity to re-define and align the federal accountability requirements to the state's own education improvement program - it's designed to ensure all students graduate from high school ready for college and careers.

Kansas City School District's interim superintendent, Dr. Stephen Green, said it's better to answer to just the state, as opposed to the federal government as well.  But, he said, it's still no easy ride.

"They will ask tough questions. They will give us advice. We will have to decide whether we take that advice or not, so it's a critical partner in the sense that they will hold us accountable for the things that we need to be doing in our move towards accreditation. But it won't be punitive in the sense that they're not constantly beating us up, for things that we're not doing, but helping us," said Green of what the change would mean for Kansas City schools. 

If the state receives waiver approval, it could go into effect for the 2012-2013 school year.

Copyright 2012 KCTV (Meredith Corp.)  All rights reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.