Governor Douglas's Speech For VSA And VSBA

Thank you very much for asking me to be here today.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your dedication and service to the students of Vermont. I am certain we agree that nothing is more important to the future of Vermont than a quality education for our youth. The work that your associations do to coordinate the interests and professional development needs of school administrators and school board members is an important part of our education system. 

I would also like to take this opportunity to discuss a few of my education policy priorities.

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The first is an expansion of public school choice in Vermont.

As you know, Vermont spends a billion dollars a year on public education. We are second among the states for education spending per capita and we have the lowest pupil/teacher ratio and the lowest pupil/staff ratio in the country. 

Our spending continues to increase dramatically and yet we have not seen any substantial change in the performance of our students. Our spending is second highest, but our test scores do not reflect that spending.  If money and student/teacher ratios were the only factors in providing a quality education, Vermont would be providing the best education. While these are important factors, they are not the only factors.

I do not suggest that we starve our education system of the resources that it needs to do the best possible job. In fact, the opposite is true; I believe we must inject our system of education with innovation and offer parents choices to encourage cultivation of this innovation.

In addition, I will be asking that together we seek out those systems that prevent us from providing the education our children deserve.

That is why the work of the governance review committee established by the General Assembly is so important. To me, the objective should be less an issue of cost containment—although affordability and sustainability is a key component of our education system—and more an issue of addressing systemic inefficiencies in the delivery system.

No school meets every student’s needs, and every child deserves access to the best education Vermont’s public schools have to offer. 

That is why I will be advancing and supporting legislation in the General Assembly that will augment the choices we offer our children and our families. Public school choice in today’s system is mostly for those who can afford to pay tuition or move to a new district, I believe it ought to be the right of every Vermonter, regardless of income. 

Moreover, Vermont has a long history of advancing the interest of our students and seeking equity in educational opportunity. The obvious shortfall of the funding mechanism notwithstanding, Act 60 was a good step in that direction. 

No law, particularly in education -— including No Child Left Behind -— is perfect. Nevertheless, in the case of both the original Act 60 and NCLB, they have set us in the right direction: in the direction of greater equality in access, opportunity and accountability. That is why I believe that a greater commitment to student-centered choices is the next logical step in reforming Act 60, now Act 68.

On the issue of accountability, it is impossible to know which schools are meeting most students’ needs without appropriate accountability. This is why we must work to implement No Child Left Behind. 

As I said, this is not a perfect law, but I believe the intent is generally good and it offers Vermont some additional resources with which to work.

This bipartisan act, and it was bipartisan, establishes meaningful accountability standards and requires that states determine if every student is making adequate yearly progress. Measuring the progress of our youth and ensuring that they are making “adequate yearly progress” -— and holding our schools and their administrators accountable -— is an important step.

The Vermont Department of Education has been working with the U.S. Department of Education to finalize the implementation of this historic education reform law.   

I would like to add, however, that it is important for us to work to make this federal law fit within the framework of Vermont’s own education policy priorities, not the other way around. Just as local school boards do not always appreciate mandates from state government, state government does not always appreciate mandates from the federal government.

I recognize too that there are growing pains associated with change. I have encouraged those skeptical of the law to embrace a “can-do” attitude. The fact is, for the foreseeable future, it’s the law. There are clearly implementation challenges that are unique to rural states. I remain convinced that these are challenges that we can meet, within the scope of our own education priorities, if we work together.

The barriers to successful implementation of the spirit and letter of this law are as much skepticism as financial. We have enough money to fund the elements of the law that we are required to meet this year. 

We do not know, however, know much full implementation will cost. Consequently, I have urged President Bush to continue to make funding for this law one of his highest priorities. It is for me.  

I recently read a commentary written by Education Secretary Rod Paige about the implementation of this law.

In his commentary, Secretary Paige points out that contrary to some who say No Child Left Behind is "under-funded,” the current administration has increased K-12 education spending by 40% since the President took office. Education spending in the United States has increased by $11 billion; and I am proud to report that as a nation, we now spend more on education than on national defense. This is the product of a strong bipartisan commitment to our children.  

That is why I was disappointed to read in a Vermont NEA newsletter recently the language of those opposed to the Act, and criticizing it because it was funded with an appropriation below what was "authorized." 

As many of you know, an authorization is a "limiting" number, not necessarily the appropriate or proper funding level. 

In this case, the appropriation, at least for this year, is the realistic figure needed to do the job. I remain cautiously optimistic that we will continue to receive from Washington the funding needed to do the job. But we all must assure both Congress and the President understand this importance.

Education is not just about spending. Vermont’s high spending has led to extraordinarily high property taxes -— and has left us with a system where some children do get a great education, while others are being left behind. 

No child, not one Vermont child, should ever be left behind! 

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In other important education policy areas, my administration is looking at the best ways to alleviate the mounting pressures of special education costs on local school districts. In addition to continually urging both the President and the Congress to fully fund special education, we are exploring ways that the state might help to shoulder much of this important responsibility.

One way that we are hoping to reduce the cost of special education over time is to strengthen our early care and education system. Unlike when I was young, most families today have two breadwinners. This societal change has increased the significance of our communities’ role in caring for young children.

We are increasingly relying on others -– whether it is another family member, a babysitter or nanny, or childcare -– to provide much of the nurturing our young children require. 

These dynamics are introducing new challenges for our children and we need to work as communities to ensure they can thrive in a well-balanced, secure and loving environment. We need to work together to create opportunities for young children to receive the development opportunities critical to their early education, social interaction and exploration. We need strong early care and education programs.

Dorothy and I have great faith in quality early care and education programs. We witnessed, first hand, the positive impact that quality early care and education had on the development of our two sons.

Yet, if we have good childcare, but families are unable to sustain nurturing relationships, we will fail in our efforts to assure children reach their full potential. For example, if mom or dad is fighting depression, and cannot access treatment, they may face an insurmountable challenge as they try their best to parent their children. 

Our challenge, as we work to ensure all children succeed, is to help the whole family. I am committed to this goal. I want to work with you and other partners in our communities to make sure all children enter kindergarten ready to learn. I want to do everything I can to help assure that all children thrive. If we are successful with this effort, it will be one of the best investments Vermont has ever made.

While I will not be sharing the details of my plan with you here today, in the next few months I hope to outline for Vermont some areas where we can make progress, within the scope of our current budgetary constraints.

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As I said, nothing is more important to the future of Vermont than a quality education for our children. There is no doubt that the best pedagogical tool is a great teacher. We are fortunate in Vermont to have schools full of dedicated teachers. 

In order to make sure that the next generation of our children has great teachers, we have been reviewing the tools that the department and our local schools have to recruit and retain highly qualified teachers.

Specifically, we need to recruit talented people to become teachers by reducing unnecessary barriers that keep successful, qualified and motivated people out of the teaching profession. 

That is why I was excited to learn about the work of the American Board for Certification of Teacher Excellence. I believe that alternative certification is a wonderful way to increase the supply and diversity of highly qualified teachers in Vermont.

Guaranteeing a good teacher in every classroom also means providing competitive pay and benefits and a meaningful accountability system. However, money alone is not the answer. We can do more to support our new teachers within existing resources. 

Sometime ago, I was surprised and saddened to read that nearly half of new teachers change professions within two years of graduating from teaching college. 

To help provide our new teachers with the tools that they need to succeed, I have been exploring ways to utilize the skills and methods of experienced teachers to help train these new teachers for success.

More specifically, over the next several months, my administration will be working closely with the Department of Education and the State Board to establish the Gubernatorial Fellows Program for Retired Teachers that will create a corps of retired teachers who will volunteer to mentor new teachers in schools throughout Vermont. 

It will take some time to get this ambitious project off the ground, but by working with the office of national and community service, the RSVP program and other volunteer organizations, I believe that, over time, we can make a difference. 

My administration is also pursuing more student-centered options for our post-secondary students. I would like to see more coordination between high schools and Vermont’s state and private colleges, particularly in the area of dual enrollment options. 

We must work toward providing high school juniors and seniors opportunities to experience college-level coursework prior to high school graduation. This would offer very valuable educational choices and move Vermont toward the student-centered model embraced by the high schools on the move report.

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Now is a time of unparalleled opportunity to work together to achieve the results our kids deserve.

We should all work toward policy that finishes the work of achieving educational equity in our state—our children are too important; they deserve no less.

It is always a great pleasure to meet with you and, on behalf of every Vermonter, thank you for your service to our children.

I look forward to working with each of you—I look forward to working for our children.

Thank you all very much.