Gist won’t share dissertation with legislative leaders

Deborah Gist declined to share her dissertation with legislative leaders, after North Kingstown Senator Jim Sheehan, a teacher, asked her to do so in a letter last month.

Gist replied to Sheehan, saying, “I hope you will read my work with interest with the embargo is lifted in June 2014.”

She also said, in fact, her dissertation did not speak to policy issues in Rhode Island, as Sheehan suggested in his letter.

You can read Gist’s letter to Sen. Sheehan here. And his Nov. 13 letter is below:

It was with great interest that I read an article appearing on the RIFuture.org website, “Public can’t read Deborah Gist’s dissertation on RI.”  I am curious, first of all, about the accuracy of the article. Specifically, has your dissertation, “An Ocean State Voyage: A Leadership Case Study of Creating an Evaluation System with, and for, Teachers,” been “embargoed” until September, 2015? Second, if the report is accurate, I would be interested in knowing why this is the case.

Given the import of the ideas and concepts within your thesis on the current educational reforms in Rhode Island, I believe it would be highly beneficial for the members of the General Assembly, and specifically the members of the Senate Committee on Education and the House Committee on Health, Education and Welfare, to have access to this important work.

I believe informing the policymakers of our state about your vision for Rhode Island education is necessary and appropriate as the General Assembly moves toward another legislative session that will once again focus on the education of our populace. While you have annually presented an address to the legislature and have also testified many times at various committee hearings, I believe your thesis is another important piece of your vision that should be shared with the General Assembly.

I therefore request that you provide a copy of your thesis to the Senate and House leadership, who may then share that document with legislative members.

I eagerly await your response and thank you for your serious attention to this request.

Sincerely,

James C. Sheehan
Senator – District 36
Narragansett, North Kingstown