Jeb Bush Shares Roadmap for Transformational Education Reform in Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah — More than a decade ago, Florida embraced the core belief that all children can learn when schools are organized around the singular goal of learning. Since then, Florida’s students have surged past Utah’s fourth graders in reading, according to the Nation’s Report Card (National Assessment for Educational Progress). Today, Jeb Bush, Governor of Florida 1999-2007, shared the lessons of reform that reversed a generation of decline in public schools and led to sustained rising student achievement in the Sunshine State.
“Governors and Legislators must seize the opportunity to transform education for the 21st century,” said Bush. “Florida made incredible progress in the last ten years. If Florida can do it, Utah can do it.”
Bush outlined the policies that improved results in Florida and can make the difference in Utah, including:
Raising standards and expectations for all students,
Grading schools on a scale of A – F,
Making reading a requirement of advancing to the fourth grade,
Rewarding schools and teachers for rising student achievement, and
Providing an unprecedented array of educational choices for students.
“Accountability is paramount,” says Robyn Bagley, Chairwoman for Parents for Choice in Education. “Simply put we are all stakeholders and it is our collective responsibility to ensure that every child receives the education they need to succeed in a 21st century global economy. If we fail them, we also fail ourselves, our state and our nation.”
Florida has 2.7 million public school students. The student population is majority minority and half the students are living on the poverty line (eligible for free and reduced price lunch). In 1998, nearly half of Florida’s fourth grade students were functionally illiterate. Under the leadership of Governor Bush, a decade ago, Florida fundamentally changed the quality of education in the Sunshine State, shattered long-held myths, stopped accepting excuses for poor performance and started challenging the status quo.
As a result, today, more than 70 percent of Florida’s 4th graders are reading on or above grade level and Florida’s Hispanic students outperform the statewide average for all students in 31 other states, including Utah.
Dr. Matthew Ladner of the Goldwater Institute released a policy report during the luncheon event detailing the key components of Florida’s K-12 education reform strategy and explaining why the adoption of the Florida reforms in Utah would aid all children, especially disadvantaged students. He called on leaders to adopt Florida’s Formula for Student Achievement to improve the quality of education in Utah.
A key announcement was made that legislation, patterned after Florida’s A-F School Grading Policy, will be sponsored during the next legislative session by Senator Wayne Niederhauser and Representative Greg Hughes. More legislation patterned after Florida’s Formula for Student Achievement will likely follow.
Governor Bush addressed Governor Gary R. Herbert’s Education Excellence Commission and keynoted a luncheon with education stakeholders, business leaders and education advocates.
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Parents for Choice in Education is dedicated to ensuring every child has equal access to a quality education by empowering parents, increasing choice, and promoting innovative solutions to Utah’s educational challenges.
The Foundation for Excellence in Education is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit organization dedicated to igniting a movement of reform, state by state, to transform education in America for the 21st century economy. The organization’s flagship initiative, Excellence in Action, is working with advocates in Arizona, Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Utah to advance policies that improve the quality of education. To learn more, please visit www.ExcelinEd.org.
