Many consider No Child Left Behind to be “the most negative brand in America.” Well, perhaps second most negative, after “Bush/Cheney”. So with sanity restored to the White House, it’s time to change this law, beginning with the changing of its Orwellian name.

According to a story in today’s New York Times, Rename Law? No Wisecrack Is Left Behind, the new Education Secretary, Arne Duncan, says of the despised Act, “Let’s rebrand it,” and “give it a new name.” The article provides a nice summary on how this wretched Act got its name (Bush trademark infringement, natch), and new efforts to change the Act and its name.

Over on the Eduwonk.com blog, you can compete in a rename-the-law contest and offer your own serious or snarky suggestions. Some examples of the latter include:

• Mental Asset Recovery Plan
• The All American Children Are Above Average Act (AACAAAA)
• Double Back Around to Pick Up the Children We Left Behind Act
• No Crony Left Behind
• The Act of Contrition
• Not Even We Think This Will Work Act
• Act to Help Children Read Gooder
• No Child’s Behind Left
• Mega-sized Multiple Choice Exam Act
• No Child Left Untested
• No Excuse Left Behind
• Teach to the Test Act
• The Child-Propulsion Act
• Another Administration, Another Education Act Act
• The Mess Bush Left Behind
• Texas Two-Step & Textbook Lobby Act
• The Unfunded Mandates Statistically Impossible Goals Act
• No Child Left a Dime
• Testing Companies Financial Enrichment Act
• No School Left Standing
• Don’t Task, Don’t Fail Act
• DADA: Dumb America Down Act
• The Sarah Palin Slipped Through the Cracks Literacy Act
• If You Are Smarter Than a Bush You Pass Act
• Rearranging the Deck Chairs Act
• Reach Out And Test Someone Act
• SEA — Standardize Everything Act
• The Voucher-Readiness Act
• The Teacher Held Hostage Act
• The Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Act
• The Consumers of Tomorrow Act
• Leave No Inner Child Behind
• Disenfranchisement Panacea Act (DPA)
• No Child Gets Ahead
• Could We Start Again Please Act
• Dog Ate My Homework Act

For the sake of simplicity, I like the entry by Joe Williams: “It should be named Caitlin. Everybody seems to be naming things Caitlin these days. Or Caleb.” Here here!