Bush points to school improvements

Gee, poor and minority kids are doing a lot better in Florida, so let's attack and kill off the new programs that are the reason it's happening -- that makes a lot of sense!

The statistics speak for themselves, said Bush. Thousands more African-American and Hispanic students are reading at or above grade level than four years ago, he said.

In the 1998-99 school year, there were 60,000 African-American student attending an "A" or "B" school. That number grew to nearly 275,000 in 2005, according to the Florida African American Education Alliance. And the dropout rate among black students has decreased by nearly 50 percent since 1999...

On the Nation's Report Card, Florida's African-American students exceeded national performance levels in reading and math, Bush said. They outperformed their peers in reading by 70 percent, compared with 15 percent in 1998.

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Bush points to school improvements

The achievement gap is closing in Florida schools, Gov. Jeb Bush said, promoting his A-plus plan and vouchers.

By Associated Press
Published January 17, 2006

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ORLANDO - Education has been an arduous journey for Shonticca Oliver, who dropped out of school when she got pregnant at 16.

Now 35, she was among hundreds lauded for their educational accomplishment during a Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration Monday by Gov. Jeb Bush and the Florida African American Education Alliance.

Bush pointed to Oliver and others as examples that the achievement gap in Florida's schools is closing, even drawing on the words of King's famous "I have a dream" speech to make his point.

"That is my dream, for a Florida of equal access and opportunity where people's dreams come true because they have the power of knowledge," said Bush, who touted the benefits of his A-plus plan and private school voucher program - the latter ruled unconstitutional by the Florida Supreme Court this month.

Oliver received her associate's degree in health education from Tallahassee Community College and plans to attend a university in the fall.

"There were many days where I was like, "I can't go on,"' said Oliver. "I often felt defeated by my circumstances."

The statistics speak for themselves, said Bush. Thousands more African-American and Hispanic students are reading at or above grade level than four years ago, he said.

In the 1998-99 school year, there were 60,000 African-American student attending an "A" or "B" school. That number grew to nearly 275,000 in 2005, according to the Florida African American Education Alliance. And the dropout rate among black students has decreased by nearly 50 percent since 1999.

"We're challenging the status quo and implementing fresh, bold, new ideas in education," Bush said.

After meeting with students at Florida A&M University, a traditionally black college in Tallahassee, Bush proposed ways to improve minority enrollment. His plan includes $35.8-million for needs-based aid funding, $6.5-million for a new first generation matching grant program and a mentoring program between college and middle school students.

On the Nation's Report Card, Florida's African-American students exceeded national performance levels in reading and math, Bush said. They outperformed their peers in reading by 70 percent, compared with 15 percent in 1998.

The school voucher program is a key factor in their success, said Bush, because it gives students of all incomes and races an opportunity for equal education.

Judith Venant, 9, told attendees she is a testament to the program's success. The Orlando student transferred from a local public school to Academie Chretienne Haitienne D'Orlando on a school voucher and said her grades and behavior have improved significantly.

Bush said he plans to offer alternative solutions to save the voucher program in the coming legislative session. "Either a ... statute that will bring clarity and or allow the voters to make up their own mind through an amendment to the Constitution," he said.

But opponents of the governor's education strategies said the A-plus plan has contributed to the downturn of Florida's education system by taking money out of the public schools.

"They've funneled resources outside the school system for other kids, and the Supreme Court has even weighed in and said that's not right," said House Democratic Leader Chris Smith of Fort Lauderdale, who also argued that the plan gives too much weight to the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, or FCAT.

"To base education on one standardized test on one day is an abomination to education," said Smith. "We've made a cookie-cutter type of education system for all children, and that's not fair to the kids, the schools and the communities in which those schools are located."