Posted on 01/30/2006 8:32:55 AM PST by Great Communicator
For the last seven years as governor of Florida, I've worked with thousands of educators, policymakers, parents and students to reform public education in our state. The reality of reform is vastly different from the theory, and change is a lot harder than it looks. But there are a few rules, you might say, for real reform that make it possible.
• The first rule is that when you run for office, you need to say what you're going to do and then do what you said you would. Candidates who aren't willing to take political risks won't take the policy risks required to drive real change.
By taking a stand during our campaign, my running mate and I gave voters a chance to examine and debate our plan to transform Florida schools. As a result, our election came with a mandate to implement a comprehensive education reform based on high standards and expectations, clear measurement and accountability, and rewards and consequences for results.
• The second rule of reform is that if you don't measure, you don't care. You have to be willing to measure the outcome of reform and to let the world know what the real results are -- the ones you're proud of and the ones that show more work is needed.
Today, 53% of Florida students are reading at or above grade level, up from 46% in 2001. That's 161,000 more students with this critical skill. Our graduation rate is up from 60% to 72%, our drop-out rate is down by half, and our students are making greater learning gains than their national counterparts. The biggest gains are being made by our minority students as they close the achievement gap more each year.
• The third rule is that big reforms require long-term commitment. We've
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
My governor - gotta love him
Too bad he won't run for the senate, but he's done a great job for florida.
No Blanco is Jeb
during the hurricanes
He tells you straight out - get out, then when you've dawdled he says stay in your home, because we can't get to you until a few days after the storm has passed.
In this state response is city,county,state,national, in that order, and in about that many days.
#1. Give every child in the state of Texas a $5,000 chit to the private school of the family's choice. (The state is now spending aout $10 G's per kid.)
#2.Close every public school in the state. Sell all their assets. Return the money to the taxpayers of Texas.
#3. Stand back and let the market take over. There would be so many new and better private schools coming on board competing for these students that it will make your head swim.
#4. Dissolve the TEA. Teachers must compete for jobs. No more tenure. Teacher's pay would be higher due to the fact that say a classroom had 18 kids in it. 18x$5000=$90000. Plenty of money to pay teachers adequately. Each school would have 1 principal--the schools would not be these huge monstronsities we have now--no need for excessive bureaucrats.
#4. Let the parents have input into the school--free reign to see and hear what is being taught. Parent involvement is key to any kid's education.
Okay--I'll come back down to earth now.
One does not need school reform. What one needs is reform schools.
I live in California, so I don't know the day-to-day working of Jeb Bush. Personally, I would never vote for him for President; not after the Terri Schiavo debacle. I still believe that Jeb could have overuled everyone on that case and moved Terri to her Parent's home.
The way it should have been.
Q: Would it still be to early for "another Bush" if his opponent was "another Clinton?"
Not after the SCOTUS refused to hear her case. The Florida Supreme Court had already ruled that any new laws or interference from the Governor was illegal. Jeb did everything he could do. If you lay any blame with him, you've got the wrong scapegoat.
Cute, but just as irrelevant as the "another Bush" argument.
The current president is related two 16 other presidents.
did he address the (liberal) florida supreme court decision to throw out vouchers? i am not a subscriber so cant read the whole thing...
ping
Rice is the one person one potential candidate that I know would lose to Clinton. You and I both know that Clinton is a liar, but the stated political views of the two women are actually quite similiar. Rice is pro-choice, so she would lose quite a bit of the conservative vote. Plus, she's never held elected office.
Giuliani would most likely beat Clinton in a national race, but it would be close. Again, a lot of conservatives would stay home. He's pro-choice, pro gay marriage, and pro gun control. Either candidate might be acceptable for a socially liberal, moderate Republican, but neither is the type of candidate that anybody who frequents this website should be endorsing.
Actually, I can think of a few, but the point is that Jeb Bush would have a better chance of beating Hillary Clinton than Condoleezza Rice. As a matter of fact, the only way Bush could possibly run and win in 2008 be if Clinton was his challenger, in which case all nepotisism charges would be moot.
My personal candidate for 2008 right now is Newt Gingrich (should he run), but keep in mind that Governor Bush of Texas did not become the frontrunner in 2000 until after the South Carolina primary. The fact that no name jumps out at you right now doesn't necessarily mean anything more than that several perspective candidates have thus far avoided putting their names in play.
This much I can promise you: Condoleezza Rice will never be President of The United States, so get that idea out of your head.
BUMP
If you have asked to be added to this list, and haven’t been receiving the pings, please let me know. I’ve had a problem with my file synchronization between my home and work computer, and apparently have lost some names on the list. I think I have the problem fixed, and will gladly re-add your name.
I love Mr. Newt and would vote for him in a heartbeat (he has even come out on Rush against illegal immigration, unlike the current administration.)
BUT, don't you think his reputation in the MSM from a few years ago would be hard to overcome? Most people, sad to say, don't really think for themselves. This excludes Freepers, of course.
BTW, personally, I disagree that so-called "border security" deserves the attention it's getting.
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