Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Alex Sink Unveils Comprehensive Education Plan

Florida CFO and Gubernatorial Candidate Alex Sink announced a comprehensive education reform plan today, September 1, 2010.  To view the plan, click here.

A press release detailing the plan from the Alex Sink Campaign is reprinted below.

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Alex Sink’s Plan for Education

BUILDING A HIGH-QUALITY & ACCOUNTABLE EDUCATION SYSTEM FOR TOMORROW’S WORKFORCE

Miami, FL – Florida CFO and Gubernatorial Candidate Alex Sink laid out her comprehensive education reform plan today focused on improving quality and accountability in Florida’s education system.  Sink’s plan – being presented to parents, students, teachers, and business and community leaders today at Miami Dade College — will ensure that Florida provides its children and workforce with the education and training needed for a globally competitive 21st century economy. 

“Without a strong education system, Florida cannot build a more prosperous economy because the quality of our workforce depends directly on the quality of our schools,” said Alex Sink.  “As a parent whose own two children graduated from Florida public schools, I understand that we will build a stronger, more accountable education system by focusing at the local level – instead of the top-down system of micromanagement and unfunded mandates that we have seen for too long from Tallahassee politicians.  My education reform plan is built on the principles of innovation, excellence and accountability, with defined goals to drive better results for our students and accountability for how our education dollars are spent.”

Florida needs a Governor who will lead on statewide education reform — by inspiring more local innovation and supporting the spread of best practices to all school districts.  As a proven business leader, Alex Sink understands the vital link between a vibrant economy, high-paying jobs and a quality education system.  Sink will implement a comprehensive education plan focused on child readiness, quality instruction, and accountability that measures student performance.  

She will work with local and state education experts to lead Florida’s schools, colleges and universities toward higher levels of measureable achievement that will support the future economic growth and prosperity of the state.  Sink’s plan also emphasizes the need to get parents and communities more engaged in our schools. 

Alex Sink’s education reform plan will build a stronger workforce for Florida’s future, with proposals to:

1. Build a Strong Foundation with Quality Pre-K.  Pre-school readiness is the foundation for a child’s lifelong success.  Alex Sink will develop a reasonable timeline for transitioning pre-K programs toward having at least one degreed teacher in every classroom and seek partnerships with businesses to ensure steady investment.

2. Keep Our Children from Failing and Dropping Out.  Florida’s current dropout rates are unacceptable and our families, businesses and communities deserve better.  Alex   Sink’s plans include developing a statewide dropout early warning system, supporting alternative learning opportunities that will lead to jobs, and piloting a mentoring program.

3. Invest in Teacher Quality.  Alex Sink will improve the quality of classroom teaching by enhancing our teacher support system and educational resources.  To give teachers the ability to earn more by using their skills in innovative and demanding ways – all focused on helping students, teachers and schools do better — Sink supports a fair, performance-based compensation system built on local collaboration.

4. Build Better School Leadership.  Principals have critical influence over whether an education reform effort will succeed or fail at the school level, and Sink will focus on recruiting and retaining capable school leaders by providing the right training and resources. 

5. Demand Quality Outcomes & Accountability Measures.  Alex Sink believes that the FCAT must be reformed as part of a comprehensive effort to raise student achievement standards, expand how students and schools are assessed, and link both to clearly identified performance outcomes. 

6. Engage Parents, Guardians & Communities.  The entire community must respond in ways that help ensure each child has the same opportunity to succeed in school. Alex Sink will support successful models of school/parent programs to get families more involved and pilot community collaborations to transform schools into neighborhood activity centers.

7. Build a 21st Century Curriculum.  Our students need the knowledge and skills to compete in a global economy that’s fast-paced, high-tech, and specialized. This means a well-rounded curriculum that includes science, technology, engineering, math, economics, civics and the arts.

8. Create Accessible, Affordable, Responsive Colleges & Universities.  Alex Sink will focus on improving access to higher education, increasing affordability and ensuring that the programs are in place to prepare our students for the high-skilled workplace of tomorrow.  She will also work to increase the proportion of need-based student aid, and strike a better balance with merit-based scholarships.

9. Reprioritize Education Funding.  As Florida’s economy recovers, Alex Sink will work to reverse the shrinking investment in education funding and use lottery funding to enhance educational programs, as originally promised.  Sink supports the proposed adjustment to Florida’s class size requirement as a common-sense cost-savings measure.

Alex Sink’s comprehensive plan can be viewed at www.alexsink2010.com/page?id=0049.