With this new weekly feature we will interview a young Hoosier leader about some of the policy issues being discussed at the Indiana General Assembly. We start off with Rachel Elsts from Marion County.
Click on the video below to hear thoughts from Rachel Elsts concerning the education reform package that the Indiana General Assembly will consider throughout the 2011 legislative session.
Hear Jeb Bush make a TON of sense regarding education reform during a recent appearance on the MSNBC show Squawk Box. Click on the video below to check it out.
Among the many bold and transformational components of Governor Daniels’ education agenda is the proposal to give parents more control over their children’s education. Parents want and deserve educational options (see this recent poll of Hoosiers http://www.aiminghigherindiana.com/blog/category/education-agenda/page/2/) when deciding what school can best serve their children. In short, the school that best fits a child’s needs should not be determined by their zip code. It’s an idea that has been around for fifty years and is picking up steam all over the country (http://www.edchoice.org/School-Choice/School-Choice-Programs.aspx).
To celebrate this idea, National School Choice Week is being held January 23-29. According to their website www.schoolchoiceweek.com “Our message is simple: we need a K-12 education system that provides a wide array of options. We need an effective education system that has the flexibility to personalize and motivate students and allow parents to choose the school that is best for their child.”
In his recent State of the State address (see it and read it here http://www.aiminghigherindiana.com/blog/category/videos/) Governor Daniels strongly endorsed the concept on expanding educational options for parents and their children. He honored several students who he invited to the address, and said “These children, and their parents, have waited long enough, for a better chance in life. And Indiana has waited long enough for the kind of educational results that a great state must achieve. I have spoken of the economic implications. But, at bottom, this is not about material matters. It is about the civil right, the human right, of every Indiana family to make decisions for its children. It’s about the right of all Hoosier children to realize their full potential in life. Will you join me in saying, the waiting is over, change has come, and Indiana intends to lead it?”
If you agree with Governor Daniels and want to find out more about what it means to give parents options, you should attend one of the many events being held during National School Choice week. Indiana is host to many events and a list of those events that you might want to attend can be found here http://schoolchoiceweek.com/Participate/Events.
Indiana is at the forefront of the educational choice debate. The entire nation is watching what will happen here over the next few months. The quality of the education we offer children impacts every Hoosier, all across the state, in rural areas, in urban areas, in great school districts and ones that struggle, for wealthy families, for the less fortunate, for young and old alike. In his address, Governor Daniels said that “When it comes to our children’s future, the real devil is not in the details, he’s in the delay, and 2011 is the year the delay must end.”
Don’t delay. Join this critical debate now.
In order to protect Hoosier taxpayers, Governor Daniels has proposed the novel idea of enacting a straightforward state government spending cap in the form of an automatic taxpayer refund (ATR). The program would work by setting a point (maybe 10%) above the state budget that would trigger a refund of tax dollars to every taxpayer. Such a measure would ensure that:
Read this article from the Heartland Institute to learn why this makes sense for taxpayers (http://bit.ly/gKSOWb). State Treasurer Richard Mourdock, has endorsed such a plan, saying, “It’s a positive effort to ensure that the State of Indiana doesn’t build unnecessary surpluses…In the end, Hoosier families are entitled to keep more of their monies rather than adding to the state’s bottom line” (http://bit.ly/dZOspv).
Hoosiers should ask at what point a government should stop collecting from its citizens. Identifying a point of fiscal self-sufficiency for the state will not only create a limit on government but also allow taxpayers to ultimately retain more of their hard-earned money so that they can decide what to spend it on and help grow the private economy, on which everything else prospers. Check out this article to read an explanation of the ATR (http://bit.ly/dMGddZ). Also check out this article which explains the refund concept (http://bit.ly/dUuX26).
One of the signature public policy accomplishments of the last decade was the successful leasing of the Indiana Toll Road to private vendors. This program brought Indiana nearly $4 billion in infrastructure money to build new roads (like the long-promised I 69 extension to Southwest Indiana) and also help free up dollars to repair and upgrade exsiting roads. In the process, jobs were created in a time when Indiana desperately needed them.
In the upcoming legislative session, Aiming Higher will support efforts by the General Assembly to broaden public-private partnerships (P3) for public infrastructure in order to:
Inside Indiana Business referred to P3 as “a tried and true solution…public-private partnerships reduce risk, secure development capital at reasonable rates, and provide a high return on investment for taxpayers and developers alike” (http://bit.ly/fxIc4g). This article from Reason.com (http://bit.ly/g3JoNW) provides some examples from Chicago and New York regarding the benefits that P3 can bring to taxpayers. In his testimony to the Indiana Senate Appropriations Committee, Geoffrey Segal of the Reason Foundation explains the characteristics of public-private partnerships and their merits by examining them in the context of the Indiana toll road privatization (http://bit.ly/9eZxe0). Check out the website for the National Council for Public-Private Partnerships to learn more (http://bit.ly/hmFlPt).
Its clear that as the economics of running government change, states should increasinly look for P3 opportunites to provide services. All over the world roads are built and run by private entities. Indiana should seek to continue to be a leader in this field.
Governor Daniels’ State of the State speech is receiving some terrific reaction. The Indy Star says ” the governor’s overall message — that Indiana must act quickly and boldly to ensure a brighter future — shouldn’t be in much dispute.” You can see the whole Star editorial here. http://www.indystar.com/article/20110112/OPINION08/101120313/No-time-waste-Indiana?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|IndyStar.com|s
Legislators liked it too. Speaker Brian Bosma said after the speech that in addition to having a better view of the speech this year (from the dais as Speaker!) he was very enthused by the content of the speech. Further, on major education reform he was glad that the Governor and the GOP House Majority were on the same page. In fact, Bosma will be a co-author of one of the Governor’s top priorities, giving scholarships to low and middle-income families so that they can choose a school that works best for their children.
New lawmakers liked what the heard as well. Rep. Sue Ellspermann, R-Ferdinand, said she liked the Governor’s upbeat attitude and applauded his “very aggressive goals for us as a Legislature and not to miss this opportunity to make 2011 a very important year.”
Rep. Cindy Kirchhoffer, R-Indianapolis, was interested in and supports the idea to allow high school students to finish school early and use the money the state would have spent on thier senior year on some other kind of education.
Another group of people who probably liked the speech? The 40 or so parents and children in attendance who are on charter school waiting lists, as well as, parents who would like to chose where to send their children, who heard the Governor talk about expanding Charters and offering more choices for parents.
“They believe their futures will look brighter if they can make that choice. Look at those faces. Will you be the one to tell them “tough luck”? Are you prepared to say to them “We know better than you do”? We won’t tell you where to buy your groceries or where to get you tires rotated, but we will tell you, no matter what you think, your child will attend that school, and only that school.
Pretty good stuff.
We interviewed Virgil Madden just minutes before Governor Daniels delivered the State of the State Address. Madden spoke of his anticipation of the Governor’s call for sweeping education reform and the public’s response to the proposed measures. Click on the video below to check it out.
Governor Daniels is concluding his state of the state by saying that Indiana has waited long enough for all sorts of reform. He will not accept a legislative session that “almost” matches periods of successful reform from the past. He is encouraging legislators to remember that they have an assignment and a duty to make Indiana a better place for her citizens and especially her children.
Barriers to a better education have been removed and Governor Daniels will continue to do so. Parents can now cross school district boundaries to choose which schools are best for their kids. He supports charter schools and the opportunities for families to send their children to non-governmental schools if they deem that the best decision for their kids. Parents know what is best for their children, and as the government doesn’t tell parents where they can buy groceries, Gov. Daniels argues that parents should have the maximum number of educational options available to them.
Governor Daniels says we should honor our parents by giving them choices in education. More charters, with full and on time funding.
The Governor endorses giving public funding for families who can not afford a private school of thier choice. He invited children who are on waiting list for Charter schools to the State of the State and recognized them in the gallery.
Choice is about giving parents the civil right to do what is best for thier children.
Finally, standing ovation for the line, ”The wait is over, change has come, and Indiana is going to lead it.”
