Malloy’s Education Reform

With the start of a new legislative session a few weeks away, Governor Malloy says education reform will be the focus. From the governor:

(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Dannel P. Malloy today sent a letter to state legislative leaders, as well as other key legislators and stakeholders, in which he outlined his principles for education reform. Those principles will serve as a “roadmap” for the upcoming 2012 session of the General Assembly, a session in which the Governor has repeatedly said he will focus on education.

The Governor is seeking to introduce legislation “that is potent enough to make Connecticut a national leader in narrowing the achievement gap, and comprehensive enough to set the stage for a restoration of Connecticut as a model for creating academic excellence for all.”

He invited legislative leaders to join him in a bipartisan fashion to introduce proposals that “embrace a real sense of urgency and a willingness to deploy bold strategies, deliver a competitive edge, and prepare students for success in college and in their careers.”

“Our state’s positioning has weakened to the point that we are not competitive in national grant competitions like the recent Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge,” the Governor wrote. “Worse, the recent release of the National Assessment of Educational Progress results demonstrated that in most cases, Connecticut’s poor and minority students are less prepared for success than their peers in the vast majority of other states–and that our state has the largest achievement gap in the nation.”

In what he termed a “deliberate attempt to set high expectations,” the Governor closed his letter by writing, “We should not and will not accept half-measures and repackaged versions of the status quo.”

Governor Malloy is seeking to introduce legislation that:
• Enhances families’ access to high-quality early childhood education opportunities
• Authorizes the intensive interventions and enables the supports necessary to turn around Connecticut’s lowest-performing schools and districts
• Expands the availability of high-quality school models, including traditional schools, magnets, charters, and others
• Unleashes innovation by removing red tape and other barriers to success, especially in high-performing schools and districts
• Ensures that our schools are home to the very best teachers and principals–working within a fair system that values skill and effectiveness over seniority and tenure
• Delivers more resources, targeted to districts with the greatest need–provided that they embrace key reforms that position our students for success

On January 5, Governor Malloy will convene a set of multi-stakeholder workshops to delve more deeply into some of the most pressing education reform issues for Connecticut.