FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE:                                                                               
                          August 11, 2010
CONTACT:
press@susana2010.com                                                          
                                  Contact Number: (505) 872-2070
  

SUSANA MARTINEZ’S PLAN TO

REFORM EDUCATION
“A Bold Agenda For Education In New Mexico”
 

We start reforming our education system on day one of the Martinez

Administration.  There is nothing more important we can do than
implement real reform in our schools.  The measure of our success will be
when all New Mexico children have an opportunity to receive a quality
education that allows them to chase and realize their dreams.

We need to build real accountability into our education system.  We have

bred a culture of low expectations and we are failing a generation of
young minds.  This is entirely unacceptable.

My approach to education will be to get more dollars out of the

bureaucracy and into the classroom, hold students to high standards by
eliminating social promotion and enacting other reforms, increase
accountability and provide our best teachers with merit-based pay
increases.  It is time for bold change in education.

FUNDING IN THE CLASSROOM, WHERE IT COUNTS

With the last approved budget, New Mexico spends over 45.2% of state
general funds on K-12 education. (Source: Legislative Finance Committee)
We must learn to use our resources more intelligently and efficiently and
provide our children with an excellent education.

·    Out Of The Bureaucracy & Into The Classroom– If we are

asking more of our teachers, we have to give them the tools to get the job
done – that means more education dollars directly into our schools and
classrooms.  Today, only 61% of New Mexico’s education dollars get to the
classroom.  We need 4% more going directly to the students in the form
of the first-rate teachers, quality textbooks and the latest technology.  This
would mean directing more resources in the area of $74 million into the
classroom.  While student enrollment has increased by only 1.5% since the
2002-2003 school year, the education budget has grown $728 million
dollars or 43%.  We must get money out of the bloated bureaucracy and
into the classroom. (Sources: New Mexico Public Education Department &
Legislative Finance Committee)

·    Efficiency Studies For Districts – Every year businesses

undertake rigorous audits and studies to understand how their resources
are being used and where those resources can be applied in a more
efficient manner.  Our school districts should undertake similar studies.
These efficiency studies are not punitive in nature, but rather will help our
school administrators better understand where and how to better allocate
resources and get even more money to the classroom.  The Public
Education Department, working in conjunction with LFC and LESC, can
take representative samples of districts with a wide cross section as a
normal part of their work plan to look at efficiencies and cost savings.

·    Transparency In Budgeting – When New Mexico sets its budget

at the beginning of every year, the instructional versus non-instructional
dollars for schools are not divided into separate categories.  If we want to
make education spending more transparent and accountable – and get
more money into the classroom -- we need to divide the budget into
instructional and non-instructional spending categories. This will ensure
that we have more detailed explanations of expenditures at the state level.

SETTING THE BAR HIGH: ENDING SOCIAL PROMOTION, RAISING

STANDARDS, INCREASING ACCOUNTABILITY
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) shows New
Mexico at the bottom in performance comparisons to other states in
overall achievement and closing the achievement gap, despite spending
more per student. (Source: Achievement Gap And The Three Tiered
System, LFC Report, June 2009)

We can do better – we must do better – in educating our students and

closing the achievement gap.

·    Ending Unearned Grade Advancement – If students cannot

read after the third grade, they lack the basic skills needed to help them
learn and they fall behind in school.  From Kindergarten to third grade
students are learning to read; from fourth grade on, students are reading
to learn.  We must focus on higher literacy rates among our students.
Many times students are passed on to the next grade level even though
they are not able to meet achievement standards.  Simply put, students
who are not achieving must be held back in order to help them meet
standards.  The decision to hold a student back should not be based on a
single test; they should be given the opportunity to demonstrate their
mastery of the content in an alternative manner.  And, we need to provide
the opportunity for students to catch up through aggressive remedial
action.

·    Merit-Based Pay Increases For Teachers – Private industry

uses financial incentives as a motivating factor in achieving results.  The
same reward model can be applied to education for high performing
teachers.  Financial incentives should be linked to achievement in the
classroom.  Financial incentives can be further used to reward the highest
performing teachers who stay at, or relocate to, low-performing schools
and experience measurable improvement in student achievement.

·    High Academic Standards –We saddle our children with the

burden of low expectations.  If we want our children to achieve, we have
to set the bar high and provide an opportunity to succeed.  Student
progress should be measured every year and schools should be graded on
their ability to meet student achievement standards and student progress. 
We must recognize success and identify problems to take corrective action.
·    School Accountability – The Legislative Finance Committee
currently grades the Public Education Department on several performance
standards, but parents, students and teachers have no easy format to
understand the performance of individual schools throughout the state.
We should adopt an easy to understand, easy to implement system of
grading our schools based on the traditional school grading format.
Schools will be assigned letter grades of A,B,C,D or F and these grades will
be posted to an easily accessible Web site for parents, students and
teachers to access, which will help to increase performance in our schools
as well as increasing transparency in our school system.  We can only take
steps to correct failure if we first identify it, and reward success if we
measure it.  New Mexico conducts annual testing in the state for grades 3-
8 and grade 11.  Currently, there are consequences under the federal No
Child Left Behind (NCLB) guidelines for schools that fail to meet certain
standards.  But, interventions can take years.  We need to take immediate
corrective steps to get schools and students achieving standards and
making progress.  Measuring student progress more often would evaluate
not only student achievement (achieving grade level standards), but would
also recognize progress in a student from year to year.  This motivates
children, parents, teachers and schools to continue to strive for excellence,
whether they are an “A” or “F” school.

·    Immediate Intervention At Failing Schools – We cannot wait

five years to fix schools that are failing.  That means a whole class of
students has received an inadequate education.  If a school is failing, we
need to begin working with that school immediately by developing
stronger school curriculum, providing additional teacher support and
training, working to attract high performing teachers to the school, provide
remedial instruction to students who are struggling through summer
school and after school programs, and provide students and parents with
school options to make sure children get the education they deserve.  We
will not fund failure. 

·    Ending Truancy – While serving as District Attorney, we

established a truancy program in Doña Ana County that held parents and
students accountable for class attendance.  Through a partnership with
schools and law enforcement, we created a truancy program that ensured
students showed up for class and came prepared.  We need to work
together to make sure all of us are held accountable for the progress of
our children.

EXPANDING K-12 OPPORTUNITIES FOR SUCCESS

If we are truly going to ensure that every child receives a good education,
we have to expand the opportunities for children so they can reach their
full potential.

·    Real School Choice –We need to recognize that different students

learn better in different educational environments.  Every family should
have access to different educational opportunities, including charter
schools, vocational schools, virtual classrooms or enhanced school choice. 
No child should be trapped.  The core mission of our education system is
to make sure our children learn, graduate and are job-ready.  We can only
accomplish this if we embrace different options that maximize the potential
of every child.

·    Tax Credit Scholarships – Tuition tax credit scholarships for K-12

students help provide greater educational opportunities for students who
cannot otherwise afford them.  New Mexico should provide tax credits to
individuals and corporations who contribute to non-profit organizations
that provide scholarships to low-income students.  These donors would
receive a credit against their state taxes.  The tuition tax credit would help
offset the cost of K-12 schooling for these students, increasing school
choice and educational opportunities.

·    Scholarships For Students With Special Needs– We must

provide more educational choices for all students, but this is especially true
for students with disabilities.  If a student has an Individual Education Plan
(IEP) in place, and the parents of that student are not satisfied with the
progress the student is making, they will then become eligible for a
scholarship which will allow them to transfer to another public school or
transfer to a private school.  The scholarship would be equal in amount to
the funding received by the local school district for the individual student
or for the cost of the private school’s fees and tuition, which ever cost is
less.  This will allow parents the flexibility in helping choose the best
educational opportunities for their children.
·    Tax Credits For Summer Internships – Many times, over the
summer, students lack ongoing learning opportunities.  These students
typically try to find summer jobs, but in these tough economic times may
have difficulty doing so.  In order to expand education opportunities,
particularly for low-income students, New Mexico should provide a tax
credit against state taxes to employers who provide summer internships.
Not only will the internships provide employers with a labor force
throughout the summer, but will also provide ongoing education
opportunities for students.

·    Alternative Teacher Licensure – In New Mexico, we are blessed

with outstanding national laboratories, high tech businesses and the
brightest minds in the nation, especially in math and science.  Currently, if
a professional in another field wants teach in New Mexico, their options of
advancing to the classroom, regardless of their level of education, are
fairly limited.  We must take advantage of this wonderful resource and
ease the process of allowing these individuals to become teachers, while
maintaining high standards.  New Mexico can do this through expanding
alternative teacher licensure.  By removing barriers of entry into the
classroom for qualified individuals we can attract the best talent New
Mexico has to offer.

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Paid for by Susana Martinez for Governor, Anna Emerick-Biad, Treasurer.