Merryl Tisch

[4] Tisch has served in various civic service positions, including at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, the UJA-Federation of New York, the Leadership Enterprise for a Diverse America, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and the Citizens Budget Commission.

At the end of May 2011, principals affiliated with the New Visions for Public Schools signed a letter of complaint directed to Tisch and the Board, arguing that the elimination of the tests would lead to a higher dropout rate and would cost the state money.

[7] She has criticized Pearson PLC, the education text and test publisher, recently questioning its ability to handle its growing workload.

A provision in the state's evaluation law, passed in 2010, allows for the increase if officials adopt a more complex "value-added" model to measure student growth.

"[14] Tisch's husband James was an active supporter of Joe Lhota, the Republican front-runner in the 2013 New York City mayoral race.