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THE MAKING OF AN EDUCATION PRESIDENT.  The nation lost a true patriot this weekend, with the passing of President George H.W. Bush. As often noted, he was a true gentleman with a good heart.  Less known was that he was a stalwart champion for creative alternatives in education. His Administration fell square in the middle of the birth of the education reform movement. Polly Williams in Wisconsin was working with then Governor Tommy Thompson to adopt educational choices among all schools for kids (aka vouchers); choice, merit pay and the public school choice movement was being heavily debated among the Nation’s governors, and today. Taking a cue from the laboratories of democracy, our states, #Bush41 organized the first governor’s summit on education at Charlottesville, which took the mandate of a Nation at Risk and turned it into a movement of national, state-based reform efforts. Meanwhile in Washington, DC, President Bush used the bully pulpit to celebrate and advocate for the state efforts, and now Senator Lamar Alexander, his Ed Secretary, helped show the way.  We honor him for this and the myriad other meritorious endeavors to which he contributed.  America is a better place because of his public service. Rest in Peace, PRESIDENT GEORGE HERBERT WALKER BUSH.

WHY AMERICA? The Elections. CER kicked off a major effort to bring the most important markers and milestones of America in and around the Nation’s Capital to students in Washington DC’s crown jewels – charter schools! Today’s event took place on the grounds of Lincoln’s Cottage and the Soldier’s home, a rarely visited landmark where President Abraham Lincoln and family resided seasonally to escape the heat and political pressure of downtown Washington. Middle school students from 10 charter schools were treated to an assembly about the value of elections and character, from two members of Congress – one who won and one who lost! Valuable lessons all around.  Proud to work with our partner FOCUS-DC to drive more understanding and appreciation of American history in schools.  Next month – Why America? Money – a celebration of Hamilton, introduction to our financial system and more! For more info contact [email protected].

WHY INNOVATION? Well we’ve said it for nearly 3 years now – without the potential for innovation, real education opportunity is just a term. So having the first daughter Ivanka Trump and Apple CEO Tim Cook launch a tour to highlight education innovation was music to our ears. They began at Wilder Elementary School in Wilder Idaho;

“Cook and Trump embarked on a nearly hour long tour of the school, visiting classrooms and watching students demonstrate their technological skills on the handheld devices. ‘In the past year I have visited 20 states across the country … these are states that are often called the laboratories of innovation,’Ivankasaid. Cook added, “…the students at Wilder hold the classroom in their hands and complete the work at their own pace. What that allows is you can push the person who learns faster onto building the next skill and the person who needs a little more help can get a little more help.” 

Right out of the CER playbook.  We’re delighted Ivanka and Tim Cook agree with us, and that Wilder elementary school is doing great things for its students.

BEFORE JANUS THERE WAS REBECCA FRIEDRICHS. Most of us know that the Janus v. AFCSME decision was a huge victory for the freedom of workers, breaking the chains of forced unionization. The road to that victory was paved by an earlier case on the same trajectory, Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association.  The decision on the case was about to be handed down when Justice Antonin Scalia died, resulting in a 4 – 4 vote on the Supreme Court. Now Rebecca has a book “Standing Up to Goliath: Battling State and National Teachers’ Unions for the Heart and Soul of Our Kids and Country”. Get it on Amazon.

SIZE DOESN’T REALLY MATTER 😉 At least not in education. Former school teacher and CER friend Larry Sand, writing for the “California Policy Center” thoroughly debunks the myth that class size determines quality in teaching or outcomes. “Now we have a new meta-analysis – results from multiple studies – which again shows that small class size is a red herring. “The report, produced by the Danish Centre of Applied Social Science, examined 127 studies, eliminating many that did not meet strict research requirements, and finds that there may be tiny benefits to small classes for some students when it comes to reading. But in math, it found no benefits at all and the researchers “cannot rule out the possibility that small classes may be counterproductive for some students. So 127 studies later, it’s basically a wash.”

Founded in 1993, the Center for Education Reform aims to expand educational opportunities that lead to improved economic outcomes for all Americans — particularly our youth — ensuring that conditions are ripe for innovation, freedom and flexibility throughout U.S. education.