Kitzhaber Outlines New Future for Oregon Education
Plan encompasses classroom, budget and funding reform to strengthen student and economic success.
Former Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber presented his education proposal before a group of future teachers, health care professionals, and parents at Portland Community College Cascade Campus on Tuesday, February 23rd.
Calling public education The hallmark of a successful democracy, the foundation of a strong economy and the central factor in the individual success of Oregonians, Kitzhaber noted that public education should be the first priority for additional public funds.
His plan proposes to integrate the budgeting for all public education from early childhood through a post-secondary experience, into a unified, transparent, student-centered framework allowing policy makers to understand expenditures, make informed choices and investments to maximize educational results and to hold public institutions accountable for student performance and growth.
A new Oregon Education Investment Board would be tasked with investing in students at each level, assessing institutions based on student growth, and recommending budgets to the legislature.
Kitzhaber said that the Board will encourage more of the many remarkable things educators are already doing at the local level through innovation; and that the transparent budget will allow the Board to see where districts and schools need help and to allocate resources to make improvements. Saying that Educators are the heart and soul of our educational system, Kitzhaber proposed a robust program for professional development for educators at all stages of their careers.
The plan includes a range of other policy priorities such as ensuring at least two years of post-secondary education, a pilot program for a new year round schedule, and connecting our students to the jobs of the future.
