2011 State of the State Addresses Education-Related Proposals by Issue

The following summary includes education-related proposals from the 2011 state of the state addresses. To assure that this information reaches you in a timely manner, minimal attention has been paid to style (capitalization, punctuation) or format. To view the documents, click on the blue triangle next to the state. Accountability 6 Accountability--Reporting Results 1 Accountability--Sanctions/Interventions 1 Accountability--School Improvement 2 Assessment 4 At-Risk (incl. Dropout Prevention) 1 At-Risk (incl. Dropout Prevention)--Alternative Education 1 Attendance 2 Bilingual/ESL 1 Business Involvement 5 Career/Technical Education 4 Choice of Schools 3 Choice of Schools--Charter Schools 8 Choice of Schools--Charter Schools--Cyber Charters 1 Choice of Schools--Charter Schools--Finance 1 Choice of Schools--Choice/Open Enrollment 2 Choice of Schools--Tax Credits 2 Choice of Schools--Vouchers 2 Choice of Schools--Vouchers--Privately Funded 1 Class Size 1 Curriculum--Foreign Language/Sign Language 1 Curriculum--Mathematics 1 Curriculum--Science 1 Economic/Workforce Development 18 Finance 17 Finance--Adequacy/Core Cost 1 Finance--District 3 Finance--Facilities 3 Finance--Federal 3 Finance--Funding Formulas 3 Finance--Resource Efficiency 1 Finance--State Budgets/Expenditures 13 Finance--Taxes/Revenues 2 Governance 7 Governance--School Boards 2 Governance--State Boards/Chiefs/Agencies 2 Health 1 High School 7 High School--Advanced Placement 3 High School--College Readiness 6 Idaho Governor C.L. "Butch" Otter's State of the State Address PROPOSALS Business Involvement -- Advance the recommendations of the Education Alliance of Idaho (i.e., a coalition of key stakeholders of the Idaho education system formed as a result of a charge from Governor Otter to the Idaho Business Coalition for Educational Excellence to develop strategic recommendations for setting Idaho on a trajectory to become a global leader in education). Finance -- Call for a little more state support for public schools and significant, targeted investments. -- Shift priorities from how much we are spending to how much children are learning. High School, Mathematics, Science -- Invest in a third year of math and science in high school. High School, Postsecondary Entrance -- Pay for all juniors to take college entrance exams. Postsecondary, Financial Aid -- Look forward to the time when we can resume building on the Opportunity Scholarship Fund to ensure money is never a barrier to qualified students going on after high school. Teacher Pay-For-Performance -- Establish a pay system for teachers that emphasizes performance, not tenure. ACCOMPLISHMENTS Business Involvement, Postsecondary -- Acknowledge the expaning role of the business community, the Idaho National Laboratory and the Center for Advanced Energy Studies in their collaboration with colleges and universities on research and technology transfer issues. Finance, Student Achievement -- Acknowledge the fact that Idaho students continue to out-perform national averages on math and reading and generally score higher on achievement tests, despite the fact that the state spends far less per student than the national average. Postsecondary, Community Colleges -- Acknowledge that efforts to provide more affordable higher education options are paying off, as The College of Western Idaho is one of the fastest-growing community colleges in the nation. Technology -- Congratulate the Idaho Education Network's (i.e., an entity formed to ensure high-speed broadband access for all students) expansion into every corner of the state where schools are using the Network to offer master's degree programs, POST Academy training, firefighter and paramedic training, and professional development courses for teachers. -- Congratulate the high school students who have earned 1,300 college credits by using the Idaho Education Network. http://gov.idaho.gov/mediacenter/speeches/sp_2011/State%20of%20the%20State%202011.pdf North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue's State of the State Address PROPOSALS Graduation Rate, College/Career Ready - Acknowledge that while the high school graduation rate has increased to 74 percent, that is not good enough to reach NC's goal for every child to graduate high school ready for a career, college or technical training. Teaching Quality - Demand that all teachers and administrators meet our standards of excellence or we will replace them. Two-Year College Degree - Rebranding a College Promise and North Carolina's Career and College Promise. By consolidating existing programs and nurturing partnerships between high schools and our community college system, career training and a college degree will be more affordable to our students. Any high school junior who signs up at school for the Career and College Promise--who meets criteria while maintaining high academic standards will be eligible to earn a two-year college degree at no cost. State Budget, Teaching Positions - Fund every current state-supported teacher and teaching assistant position. - Will not eliminate teachers to find budget savings. ACCOMPLISHMENTS College/Career Ready - Launched the Career and College Ready Set Go! initiative challenging educators at all levels to focus on one single goal: to prepare all students to graduate ready for a career, college or technical training. Federal Aid - Won federal Race to the Top funds. Virtual Schools, Educator Accountability - Providing a 21st century education imbedded with technology (46,000 high school students are taking courses from the NC Virtual Public School), more career and academic choices for students of all ages and a new level of accountability for teachers and administrators. http://www.stateline.org/live/details/speech?contentId=542519 Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber's Inaugural Remarks PROPOSALS Quality Schools, Postsecondary Success --By 2020, the end of this decade — by the time the children entering kindergarten this year graduate from high school — we should live in a state where our children are ready to learn before they get to school; where they have the resources and attention to learn and our teachers have the time and support to teach; where dropout rates are steadily falling and graduation rates are steadily rising; where all Oregon high school graduates are prepared to pursue a post-secondary education without remediation; and where 80 percent of them achieve at least two years of post-secondary education or training. Economic Development, Career Pathways -- We should live in a state that creates family wage jobs and career pathways that lead to those jobs; and where the average per capita income exceeds the national average in every region. Finance -- Shift our pattern of investments toward children, education and workforce development in a manner that is financially sustainable over the long term. -- Move from a two-year budget to a ten-year budget frame; from a current service level budget to true outcome-based budgeting. ACCOMPLISHMENTS N/A - Newly-elected Governor http://governor.oregon.gov/Gov/media_room/speeches/index.shtml#january_2011 South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard's State of the State Address PROPOSALS Postsecondary Readiness and Completion -- Ensure that every student who wants to go to college is fully prepared to enter and graduate. Technical Education -- Expand technical education opportunities, through partnerships with our tech schools and private businesses, so that high school students can have exposure to skilled, technical fields. -- Sponsor a bill to increase the bonding capacity of our postsecondary tech schools, to allow them to continue to expand their campuses and add new programs in technical fields. STEM -- Work toward new approaches to strengthen education in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Finance, Local Control -- Allow local school boards and school administrators to run their own districts. -- Sponsor bills to repeal the 100 student minimum for state aid to school districts and to remove the cap on school district reserve fund balances. Encourage Careers in Health Care -- Partner with health systems, professional organizations, educational institutions, and local governments to increase efforts to encourage students to consider careers in health care. -- Encourage local school districts to give high school credit toward graduation for training in fields like EMT, dietetics, or nursing assistants. -- Continue to promote the privately-funded DakotaCorps scholarship, which rewards young people who commit to staying in the state and entering health care and other high-need fields. ACCOMPLISHMENTS N/A: Newly-Elected Governor http://sd.gov/governor/docs/State%20of%20the%20State,%20Jan.%2011,%202011.pdf Washington Governor Christine Gregoire's State of the State Address PROPOSALS K-12/Governance/High School Senior Year -- Create one agency - the Department of Education - which will focus solely on student education with one plan for a seamless system from pre-school to Ph.D. -- Make the 12th grade relevant and exciting. Give our students a leg up in the competitive world of tomorrow by ensuring they leave their senior year on their way to certification, apprenticeship or college credits. Postsecondary Attainment/Postsecondary Affordability/Postsecondary Accountability -- Encourage every student to "complete to compete"— complete an AA, bachelor's or advanced degree so he or she can compete for the jobs of tomorrow. -- Establish tuition flexibility at our colleges and universities to keep the doors of higher education open to all and to maintain high-quality education in good and bad times. -- Adopt the recommendations of the Higher Education Funding Task Force, which increases the number of graduates, requires greater accountability from our colleges and universities, ensure stable funding, and establish a $1 billion Washington Pledge Scholarship Program. ACCOMPLISHMENTS -- Not prominently included, focused on proposals. http://www.governor.wa.gov/speeches/speech-view.asp?SpeechSeq=217 West Virginia Governor Earl Tomblins's 2011 State of the State Address PROPOSALS Global Competitiveness/Increased Completion/Teacher Recruitment/Career Education -- Submit legislation to accomplish these goals: - Refocus emphasis on creating an environment where children learn the skills necessary to be productive citizens so they can compete in our global economy. - Ensure efficient and appropriate use of resources. - Decrease the dropout rate in high school and in college. - Eliminate the high level of teacher vacancies in certain areas of the state. - Focus on developing the vocational skills from the middle school level up. - Design classrooms that will foster the development of 21st century skills. School Staff Compensation -- Propose a one-time, $800 across-the-board enhancement for our teachers. -- Propose a similar one-time salary enhancement for school service personnel. ACCOMPLISHMENTS Teacher Compensation -- Supported efforts in 2005 to fill in all of the steps in the teacher salary scale in statute. When filled in, it ensured that every teacher in West Virginia got an approximate 1.5 percent pay raise every single year. -- Presenting a General Revenue Fund budget that furloughs no teachers. Postsecondary -- Worked hard to create a consistent, comprehensive system of education. Now, community and technical colleges have the independence to focus on teaching the skills needed for the workforce. http://www.governor.wv.gov/Documents/State%20of%20State%20%202011.pdf High School--Dropout Rates/Graduation Rates 2 High School--Dual/Concurrent Enrollment 1 High School--Graduation Requirements 2 Leadership--District Superintendent 2 Leadership--District Superintendent--Compensation and Diversified Pay 1 Leadership--Principal/School Leadership 4 Online Learning--Virtual Schools/Courses 2 P-16 or P-20 5 P-3 5 P-3 Grades 1-3 4 P-3 Kindergarten 1 P-3 Kindergarten--Full-Day Kindergarten 3 P-3 Preschool 2 Parent/Family 1 Postsecondary 8 Postsecondary Accountability 1 Postsecondary Affordability--Financial Aid 6 Postsecondary Affordability--Textbooks 1 Postsecondary Affordability--Tuition/Fees 5 Postsecondary Affordability--Tuition/Fees--Prepd/College Savings Plans 1 Postsecondary Faculty--Compensation 1 Postsecondary Finance 13 Postsecondary Finance--Efficiency/Performance-Based Funding 1 Postsecondary Institutions 2 Postsecondary Institutions--Community/Technical Colleges 3 Postsecondary Participation--Access 6 Postsecondary Participation--Affirmative Action 1 Postsecondary Students 1 Postsecondary Success--Completion 7 Postsecondary Success--Developmental/Remediation 1 Postsecondary Success--Transfer/Articulation 1 Privatization 1 Promotion/Retention 3 Reading/Literacy 2 Remediation (K-12) 2 Rural 2 Scheduling/School Calendar 1 Scheduling/School Calendar--Extended Day Programs 1 School Safety 2 School/District Structure/Operations--District Consolidation/Deconsolidation 2 School/District Structure/Operations--Facilities 1 School/District Structure/Operations--Shared Services 2 Special Education 2 Special Populations--Military 1 Standards 2 Standards--Common Core State Standards 1 State Policymaking 5 STEM 6 Student Achievement 8 Teaching Quality 6 Teaching Quality--Compensation and Diversified Pay 5 Teaching Quality--Compensation and Diversified Pay--Pay-for-Performance 3 Teaching Quality--Compensation and Diversified Pay--Retirement/Benefits 5 Teaching Quality--Evaluation and Effectiveness 8 Teaching Quality--Paraprofessionals 1 Teaching Quality--Recruitment and Retention 1 Teaching Quality--Tenure or Continuing Contract 5 Technology 4 Technology--Computer Skills 5 Technology--Equitable Access 1 Technology--Teacher/Faculty Training 1 Textbooks and Open Source 1 Youth Engagement 1 329