Miami Herald Letter: Florida schools up to feds’ challenge

The Miami Herald published this Letter on December 29, 2009.

BY JACK LOWELL
Jack.Lowell@flaglerdev.com

Florida is taking part in a high-stakes competition with the other 49 states to bring up to $700 million in national education funding to the state. The U.S. Department of Education is sponsoring a $4.35 billion competitive grant program called Race to the Top to reward states for addressing some of the most persistent challenges in public education. First round applications, to be submitted by the governors of each state, are due Jan. 19. Winners will be announced in the spring.

Historically, our state’s education system has been consistently cited for low student achievement. Now, because of recent reforms, Florida is one of only two states considered “highly competitive” to receive these funds, according to a recent report by the New Teacher Project, a national nonprofit organization. Our state is a strong contender because we are already implementing reforms in Race to the Top’s four selection criteria: standards and tests, student data management, teacher and principal effectiveness and interventions for struggling schools. The state Department of Education has chosen to focus on these areas because they are proven “levers” for bringing long-term change to schools and school districts.

Florida is leading the competition because the state has invested in several of the most important categories already, and we are poised to continue to do so. The still-controversial FCAT has offered a level of data regarding student achievement and needs that puts us ahead of the curve. We are also one of only four states with more than one region of Teach For America corps members. Five years ago, I supported a partnership between business leaders and elected officials to bring Teach For America, a national organization that places top college graduates in high-needs public schools, to Miami-Dade.

Today, there are more than 95 Teach For America teachers in Miami-Dade and another 100 in Duval County who are impacting some 12,000 students in high-need schools. Next year, we will see the opening of our state’s first KIPP school in Jacksonville — a public charter school network founded by two Teach For America alumni in the 1990s that focuses on dramatically raising achievement for students living in poverty. With strong data management, a focus on high quality teachers and interventions for struggling schools, we are a strong contender in this competition.

While Florida has made a lot of progress, there is still much work to be done. According to the 2009 National Assessment of Education Progress, only 29 percent of Florida fourth graders eligible for free or reduced-price school lunch, an indicator of poverty, performed at or above proficient in math.

In 2007, only 22 percent of Florida fourth graders growing up in poverty performed at or above proficient in reading, compared with more than 45 percent of students living above the poverty line in the state. Furthermore, the educational outcomes for students in our low-income communities continue to lag far behind those of their wealthier peers. Race to the Top has the potential to bring both money and urgency to Florida so we can raise these numbers and close the achievement gap in our state.

As the due date for proposals approaches, Florida must not only finalize a winning application, but gain the support of all stakeholders in our education system, including school districts, unions, elected officials, parents and the community.

With Race to the Top, we have an opportunity to invest in education to create a brighter future for our children. We’ve got a head start in this race, so we ask for continued support to give Florida’s children the chance to achieve their dreams.

Jack Lowell, vice president of Flagler Real Estate Services, chairs the Teach For America Miami-Dade Advisory Board.