Susana Martinez
When doing anything substantive or meaningful in life, the foundation one puts in place is critical to long-term success and the integrity of the effort. That is certainly true concerning education. Every year in the classroom – from pre-kindergarten through high school – builds on learned subject matter and experiences. The lessons and subject matter studied and taught is applied year after year and is crucial to achieving success both inside and outside the classroom.
But today, the foundation our schools have constructed is not sound. The long-term success of our children is in great peril. In New Mexico, our children are not learning the basic lessons and subject matter that will position them to be successful in life. In fact, the education deficiencies in our state have now reached crisis levels, and only bold change will turn things around.
One of the top priorities for the next governor of New Mexico will be to provide our children with a high-quality education. It’s important to understand, nearly eight years ago when the Richardson/Denish Administration was elected, that was also the case. And yet, almost a decade later, we are confronted by failing schools, abysmal performance scores and a growing sense of hopelessness.
The importance of turning things around cannot be overstated. Our ability to educate our children will make or break our state’s capability to compete with our neighbors, much less in the intense 21st Century global economy we find ourselves in.
Knowledge is the most important commodity we can provide to our children, and in doing so, we will give them the opportunity to realize their dreams in addition to providing New Mexico with a flourishing economy. The increasingly global economy demands that we stay competitive with other states as well as other countries. This requires us to provide our students with the tools they need to succeed throughout the duration of their academic careers.
Developing a world-class education system will provide New Mexicans for generations to come the opportunity to compete and win at every level. And this is why reforming education is one of my top priorities and I have put forward a plan to clean up the mess left by Bill Richardson and Diane Denish and deliver results, not excuses, when it comes to classroom performance.
My plan
I believe we must start with rebuilding the expectations we have for our schools. Simply stated, New Mexico must and can do better. Low expectations for our students and poor performance from our schools are currently the unacceptable reality. When the Richardson/Denish Administration was voted into office nearly eight years ago, Diane Denish vowed “failure is not an option” for our schools and promised that she would “not fail our children.”
Unfortunately, the Richardson/Denish Administration has done just that. Nearly half our high school students drop out of school and our 8th grade reading and math scores are among the very worst in the nation. Voters realize that now is the time for bold change. Specifically, my proposal aims to encourage high standards for our students, increase the accountability of our schools and provide incentives for excellence.
First, we need to ensure that more resources are going into the classroom so that students and teachers are given the tools they need to succeed. Currently, only 61 percent of the money we invest in our schools actually ends up in the classroom. This needs to change. We need to direct an additional 4 percent of funding to our students so that they have the quality teachers, textbooks and technology to succeed.
In order to facilitate this, I want to institute annual efficiency studies for each school district that will paint a clear picture of where taxpayer dollars are working and where they aren’t. Knowing how our money is spent will allow us to make sure that students in the classroom are the ones benefitting from our efforts.
In addition, we need to encourage higher standards for our students and hold our schools more accountable. Yearly student progress measures will help ensure that our children are on the right track and getting the help they need. Letter grades for schools will help ensure that students, parents and teachers will know exactly where their school stands and encourage participation in the education process. Failing schools should be provided with the tools to turn around immediately, such as curriculum review, teacher training and supplemental instruction for students.
And, in order to advance to the next grade, students should be academically prepared to make that jump. We cannot have students advancing without the tools to succeed at the next level. If necessary, students should either be held back or provided remedial instruction.
Finally, we need to ensure that education in New Mexico is fundamentally about providing opportunities to our children, those that allow them to succeed and realize their dreams. This means that a quality education should be available to all children. We should encourage a diverse amount of options, such as charter schools, vocational instruction, virtual classrooms and school choice, so that every parent and student can find the program that best suits their needs.
In addition to school choice, we should also provide tax credits for those wanting to help fund charitable scholarships and summer internships so that our students have the resources and experience they need to succeed; yet, this can be accomplished without redirecting funds away from public schools, which educate the vast majority of our children.
Now is the time
My reform plans are crucial to getting New Mexico back on the right track, and nowhere is that more apparent or important than with our children’s education. The Richardson/Denish Administration had their chance to try their way, and our schools are now worse off as a result.
The people of New Mexico understand that the Richardson/Denish Administration deserves a grade of “F” for failure on the issue of education. Now is the time for bold change that encourages higher standards, increases accountability and provides greater opportunities for our parents and children. Together, we can turn around our state, and there is no better place to start than in each one of our classrooms.
Martinez is the Republican candidate for governor.