2012 State of the State Addresses Education-Related Proposals by Issue

The following summary includes education-related proposals from the 2012 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 7 Accountability--Reporting Results 6 California Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr.'s State of the State Address PROPOSALS Accountability, Assessment, Data-Driven Decisionmaking, Teacher Mentoring and Evaluation --Reduce the number of tests and get the results to teachers, principals and superintendents in weeks, not months. --With timely data, principals and superintendents can better mentor and guide teachers as well as make sound evaluations of their performance. --Develop a qualitative system of assessments such as a site visitation program where each class is visited, observed and evaluated. Will work with the state board of education to develop this proposal. Finance --Devote more tax dollars to this most basic of public services (public education). --Pass proposed temporary taxes. Governance, Mandates, Finance, Local Control --Clearly delineate responsibility between the various levels of power that have a stake in California's educational system. What most needs to be avoided is concentrating more and more decisionmaking at the federal or state level. Set broad goals and have a good accountability system, leaving the real work to those closest to the students. Demand continuous improvement in meeting state standards, but not impose excessive or detailed mandates. ----Replace categorical programs with a new weighted student formula that provides a basic leveling of funding with additional money for disadvantaged students and those struggling to learn English. This will give more authority to districts to fashion the kind of programs they see their students need. Will also create transparency, reduce bureaucracy and simplify complex funding streams. Public Employee Pension Reform --Put forth 12-point proposal. Three times as many people are retiring as are entering the work force. Benefits, contributions and the age of retirement all have to balance. ACCOMPLISHMENTS Postsecondary Affordability--Tuition/Fees--Undocumented Immigrants --Enactment of the Dream Act. http://gov.ca.gov/docs/GOVERNOR_BROWN_OFFICIAL_STATE_OF_THE_STATE_ADDRESS_Final.pdf Delaware Governor Jack Markell's State of the State Address PROPOSALS Curriculum - Foreign Language -- Press ahead with the World Language Expansion Initiative. + Create partial immersion programs in twenty schools (in the next 5 years), where students will spend half the school day learning in another language. P-3 Early Grades - Ensuring Quality, Facility Evaluation, Teacher Evaluation (Early Learning Challenge winner) -- Properly train professionals who care for young children. -- Ensure that early childcare facilities where our children spend their days will have the best teaching and learning tools. -- Continually monitor the successes and challenges of centers to ensure continual improvement. -- Raise the percentage of high-need children in quality-rated programs from 20 percent to nearly 80 percent over the next four years. -- Introduce a new kindergarten assessment to let us know where our kids stand when they start school. Teacher Quality - Evaluations -- Implement without additional delay the Performance Appraisal System, with its focus on student progress. ACCOMPLISHMENTS Curriculum - Foreign Language; High School -Graduation Requirements -- Completion of a world language is a graduation requirement. Finance - Federal -- Won nationwide Race to the Top Grant. -- Won nationwide Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge. Standards -- Established high standards. Assessments, Accountability -- Put in place an improved assessment system so parents and teachers can track student progress and identify quickly when students risk falling behind. Teacher Quality -- Provide support to teachers with resources that help them raise student achievement. http://news.delaware.gov/2012/01/19/state-of-the-state-2012-transcript-delawares-time-to-lead/ Illinois Governor Pat Quinn's State of the State Address PROPOSALS P-3 Systems - Finance -- Invest more dollars in early childhood education. Attendance - Compulsory -- Raise the minimum school attendance age to 18. Finance; Facilities -- Invest in education through the Illinois Jobs Agenda for 2012. This investment will create jobs now as classrooms are upgraded with modern labs, smart technology, digital books, high-speed Internet access, and 21st century efficiency. Postsecondary - Financial Aid -- Make a significant investment in more state MAP scholarships to help students attend college. Postsecondary Success - Completion Rates -- Set goal to have at least 60 percent of adults in the state to have a college degree, an associate degree or a career certificate by 2025. ACCOMPLISHMENTS Accountability - Reporting -- Passed laws that improve school report cards so that parents have more information about the schools that educate their kids. Facilities -- Built and renovated more than 400 schools from Western Illinois University's new riverfront campus in Moline to the new Transportation Education Center at SIU in Carbondale and from the repurposed Cole Hall at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb to the new electrical and computer engineering building at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. School Calendar -- Passed laws that lay the groundwork for a longer school day and a longer school year. Teacher Quality - Evaluations; Tenure -- Passed laws that set clear benchmarks for teacher evaluation and put performance above tenure. Postsecondary - Financial Aid; Immigrant Education -- Passed the Illinois DREAM Act to help high school graduates from immigrant families. http://www.illinois.gov/PressReleases/ShowPressRelease.cfm?SubjectID=2&RecNum=9997 New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez's State of the State Address PROPOSALS Accountability -- Develop preliminary, baseline grades for New Mexico schools. By this summer, every school will receive an official letter grade – A, B, C, D, or F. Assessment - College Entrance Exams, Formative/Interim -- Assess kids from the 4th to 10th grades to catch kids before they fall too far behind. -- Pay for 10th graders to take the Pre-SAT. High-School - Advanced Placement, Drop-out Rates -- Expand access to Advanced Placement classes for low-income students. -- Raise graduation rates. Reading/Literacy -- Assess children early on – in kindergarten, first, second grade… -- Buy every New Mexico first grader a reading book of their very own. -- Encourage parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles to read to their children. -- Invest $17 million in reading reforms -- Ensure every child learns the basics and identify and help those who struggle before the third grade. -- Provide immediate help through tutoring and extra individual attention to students who are struggling. -- Put more reading coaches in elementary schools. Teacher Quality - Evaluations -- Develop a new teacher evaluation system. ACCOMPLISHMENTS Finance -- Protected classroom spending. -- School districts cut administrative waste and increased the percentage of their funding that went directly into the classroom. Demographics - Condition of Children -- Provided school clothes for kids most in need. http://www.governor.state.nm.us/uploads/PressRelease/191a415014634aa89604e0b4790e4768/stateofstate2012.pdf Ohio Governor John Kasich's State of the State Address PROPOSALS Career/Technical Education --Bring vocational education back strong in K-12 education. Charter Schools --Ask the legislature to exercise proper oversight of charter schools. Urban --Change urban education in Ohio. SStudy successful schools in urban areas. Economic/Workforce Development--Research --Use university research to commercialize, and create jobs and spinoff companies. Workforce Development, Community Colleges --Ask companies to forecast workforce needs so the state can point students to where the jobs are. --Match community colleges with business community needs and forecasting. --Develop workforce training reform plan. Postsecondary Completion --Improve completion rates for technical degrees, community college degrees, and university degrees. --Increase graduation rates for all universities. Postsecondary Finance, Facilities --Have universities collaborate on single capital bill. --Increase postsecondary collaboration to reduce duplicative programs across campuses. ACCOMPLISHMENTS Accountability --Allow parents, teachers to take over a school that continues to fail. --Public reporting on how schools are doing statewide. Teacher Evaluation --Took teacher evaluation framework to state board of education. Teachers want to make sure there are multiple ways for them to be measured. Teach for America --Brought Teach for America to Ohio. Vouchers, Charters --Went from 13,000 vouchers to 30,000 families. Next year there will be 60,000 vouchers. --Lifted the charter school cap. Postsecondary, Economic Development --Created a course at several universities, community colleges to train students in risk management to work in Cleveland financial sector. http://governor.ohio.gov/Portals/0/2012%20State%20of%20the%20State%20Address%20Transcript.pdf Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin's State of the State Address PROPOSALS Teaching Quality - Benefits -- Commit to fund teachers' health benefits. Postsecondary - College Completion -- Set a goal to increase the number of college graduates from 30,500 degrees and certificates awarded annually to 50,900. ACCOMPLISHMENTS Accountability - Reporting -- Introduced A-through-F grading for public schools Social Promotion -- End of social promotion Postsecondary - College Completion Launched Oklahoma's Complete College America Initiative through partnership with Higher Education officials. http://www.ok.gov/governor/documents/Governor%20Mary%20Faliin%20State%20of%20the%20State%20Address%202012%20UPDATED.pdf Accountability--Sanctions/Interventions 3 Accountability--School Improvement 2 Assessment 4 Assessment--College Entrance Exams 3 Assessment--Formative/Interim 1 At-Risk--Alternative Education 1 Attendance 3 Career/Technical Education 7 Career/Technical Education--Career Academies/Apprenticeship 1 Choice of Schools 4 Choice of Schools--Charter Schools 11 Choice of Schools--Charter Schools--Research 1 Choice of Schools--Vouchers 5 Civic Education--Professional Development 1 Continuous Impr/Performance Mgmt. 2 Continuous Impr/Performance Mgmt.--Promising Practices--Schools 1 Curriculum 1 Curriculum--Foreign Language/Sign Language 1 Demographics--Condition of Children/Adults--Welfare 1 Distance Learning/Virtual University 5 Economic/Workforce Development 12 Economic/Workforce Development--Research 3 Economic/Workforce Development--STEM 6 Economic/Workforce Development--Workforce Demand 3 Federal 1 Finance 24 Finance--Facilities 1 Finance--Federal 2 Finance--Funding Formulas 4 Finance--Resource Efficiency 2 Finance--State Budgets/Expenditures 2 Governance 3 Governance--Deregulation/Waivers/Home Rule 1 Health--Teen Pregnancy 1 High School 3 High School--Advanced Placement 3 High School--Dropout Rates/Graduation Rates 4 High School--Dual/Concurrent Enrollment 6 High School--Graduation Requirements 1 High School--International Baccalaureate 1 Instructional Approaches 1 Leadership 1 Leadership--Principal/School Leadership--Evaluation and Effectiveness 2 Leadership--Principal/School Leadership--Preparation 1 No Child Left Behind 2 No Child Left Behind--Flexibility 1 P-16 or P-20 1 P-3 Early Care & Intervention 2 P-3 Early Care & Intervention--Child Care 1 P-3 Early Care & Intervention--Health & Mental Health 1 P-3 Early Grades 2 P-3 Early Grades--1-3 1 P-3 Early Grades--Kindergarten 3 P-3 Early Grades--Kindergarten--Full Day 1 P-3 Early Grades--Preschool 7 P-3 Systems 2 P-3 Systems--Ensuring Quality 3 P-3 Systems--Evaluation/Economic Benefits 1 P-3 Systems--Finance 2 P-3 Systems--Governance 3 P-3 Systems--Teaching Quality/Prof. Dev. 1 Postsecondary 1 Postsecondary Accountability--Student Learning 1 Postsecondary Affordability--Financial Aid 7 Postsecondary Affordability--Tuition/Fees 1 Postsecondary Affordability--Tuition/Fees--Undocumented Immigrants 1 Postsecondary Finance 13 Postsecondary Finance--Efficiency/Performance-Based Funding 1 Postsecondary Finance--Facilities 3 Postsecondary Governance and Structures 2 Postsecondary Institutions--Community/Technical Colleges 6 Postsecondary Participation--Enrollments (Statistics) 2 Postsecondary Success--Completion 3 Postsecondary Success--Completion--Completion Rates (Statistics) 4 Postsecondary Success--Transfer/Articulation 1 Reading/Literacy 12 Rural 1 Scheduling/School Calendar 3 Scheduling/School Calendar--Extended Day Programs 1 School Safety 2 School Safety--Bullying Prevention/Conflict Resolution 1 School/District Structure/Operations--District Structure 1 School/District Structure/Operations--Facilities 4 School/District Structure/Operations--School Structure--Class Size 1 School/District Structure/Operations--Transportation 1 Special Education 2 Special Populations--Immigrant Education 1 Standards 2 Standards--Common Core State Standards 2 State Policymaking 7 Student Achievement 7 Student Supports--Integrated Services 1 Students--Promotion/Retention 3 Teaching Quality 6 Teaching Quality--Certification and Licensure 2 Teaching Quality--Certification and Licensure--Highly Qualified Teachers 1 Teaching Quality--Certification and Licensure--Natl. Bd. for Prof. Teach. Stds. 1 Teaching Quality--Compensation and Diversified Pay 2 Teaching Quality--Compensation and Diversified Pay--Pay-for-Performance 6 Teaching Quality--Compensation and Diversified Pay--Retirement/Benefits 6 Teaching Quality--Employment--Reduction in Force 1 Teaching Quality--Employment--Tenure or Continuing Contract 10 Teaching Quality--Evaluation and Effectiveness 16 Teaching Quality--Induction Programs and Mentoring 1 Teaching Quality--Preparation 3 Teaching Quality--Preparation--Alternative Preparation 1 Teaching Quality--Professional Development 2 Teaching Quality--Recruitment and Retention 2 Teaching Quality--Recruitment and Retention--At-Risk Schools 3 Teaching Quality--Recruitment and Retention--High-Needs Subjects 1 Technology--Instruction 2 Urban--Change/Improvements 1 Youth Engagement 1 359