Education

Support Choice and Charters

I believe that education policy must focus on the welfare of our children first. That is why I support choice as a means of education reform — like vouchers, which allow parents to choose the best private and public schools; and charter schools, which allow communities to host a greater range of educational choices. These policies also create equal opportunity for low-income families.

Fix Basic Problems First

Spending more money on failing schools will not, by itself, be enough to turn them around. We need to fix basic problems first. I will support investment in the physical infrastructure of our schools, and improvements in policing in and around our schools so that children can learn safely. I will also support sensible, relevant measures to hold administrators and school boards accountable for bad performance.

Build Broad Support For Reform

I believe teachers ought to be part of the solution. They are a highly committed, and often underpaid, group of public servants. Yet teachers’ unions also ought to be open to merit pay and other reforms, including those that create greater pressure on teachers and students to perform. I will work with teachers and parents to forge a new reform consensus that puts the future of our nation’s children first.