They also question why four of six open houses on the group's proposals are scheduled to take place after the group's final report already has been delivered.

"To me, the point of having forums and public meetings is so you can engage different communities . . . and ask what needs to be done better," said Enrique Aleman, an assistant professor of educational leadership and policy at the University of Utah. "It's been done backwards, and that doesn't make sense to me."

Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. organized the group in May to address the state's achievement gap, which has been criticized by national education associations. National Assessment of Educational Progress data, for example, shows that 20 percent more white eighth-graders are academically proficient in math and reading than their Latino counterparts, and similar trends apply to fourth-graders.

The working group is made up of legislators, professors, community activists and parents representing the state's ethnic populations.

However, a number of the group's members wanted to get opinions from the wider community, a step in the process they say is coming too late.

Yvette Diaz, chairwoman of the working group, said that although most of the town-hall meetings will be held after the final draft of the group's proposal is presented to lawmakers, the working group's meetings were open to the public.

Diaz, executive director of the Utah Department of Community and Culture, maintains that the process was as "democratic" as possible, and included opinions from all communities. She also said she intends to share any feedback she receives with Huntsman.

But Aleman maintains "very, very little community presence" existed at the meetings, and no time was allotted on the group's agendas for public comment. That input could have changed the final five recommendations, which some of the board members disagree with.

The fact that only those five final recommendations will be presented at public open houses worries Maria Farrington, director of educational services at Centro de la Familia and the chairwoman of the working group's accountability subgroup.

"What if I have an audience full of individuals saying, 'Hey, you got it all wrong,'?" Farrington asked.

The current draft sent out to the members for comment recommends that the state create a permanent commission on student achievement. It calls on educators to analyze student statistics, and for lawmakers to enforce accountability standards, create programs for at-risk students, such as access to all-day kindergarten, and then fund those programs.

The five were narrowed down from more than 60 potential recommendations.

Aleman said he has problems with all of the recommendations except creating a permanent commission, although he wouldn't be specific other than to say he didn't like the wording and didn't think they would be funded.

Andrea Rorrer, a member of the group's research arm and professor of educational leadership and policy at the U., wants to research how the list was narrowed down to determine whether the final recommendations reflect the reality of Utah's schools.

"I want to know if we are really ramping up to real accountability," Rorrer said. "As a citizen in this state and an educator, it's not enough to say that we put together a diverse group of people just to have their work discarded."

She said it's not only group members' work, but their perspectives and experiences that were set aside.

Aleman also worries that Diaz and Huntsman will try to pass off the final five as something all ethnic communities agreed upon.

"I hope they don't sell this as coming from the Latino community or diverse groups of people. . . . I hope they don't expect all of us to fall in line," Aleman said.

smcfarland@sltrib.com

Working Group on Student Achievement

Background

Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. created the group in May to address the achievement gap in Utah and improve all students' performance.

Recommendations

1. Create a permanent commission on student achievement.

2. Analyze student statistics.

3. Enforce accountability standards.

4. Create programs for at-risk students.

5. Fund those programs.

What's next

The group will present its final report to the Legislature on Nov. 9. Hourlong town-hall meetings on the recommendations are planned starting Thursday, but only two of the six will take place before lawmakers receive the final report.

All meetings begin at 6:30 p.m. and will take place as follows:

* Thursday: San Juan County School District Building, 200 N. Main St., Blanding.

* Nov. 7: Salt Lake County, Horizonte School Auditorium, 1234 S. Main St., Salt Lake City.

* Nov. 9: Weber County Main Library, 2464 Jefferson Ave., Ogden.

* Nov. 10: Provo High School, 1125 N. University Ave., Provo.

* Nov. 15: Logan High School Little Theater, 162 W. 100 South, Logan.

* Nov. 16: Utah Family Center, 15 S. 100 West (on Tabernacle St.), St. George.