I am a strong supporter of the public
school system in our state, having regularly served on the PTA organizations in my children’s schools.
I, myself, am apublic school system graduate who believes that the education of our citizens
is a basic right of citizenship to which each Maryland family should be entitled.I was raised in a
education-oriented family since my mother served as an elementary school teacher in public schools for over 30 years.
And I also served on the Board of Education in Anne Arundel County, in the mid-70s, as the first student member elected by
his peers on a school board in the State of Maryland.
School
funding
School Funding is an essential—and growing—element
of our State budget each year. This is critically important since the performance of our schools directly impacts job growth
throughout our state.Public schools in Maryland have had a long and distinguished record of
producing successful leaders in fields such as business & industry, professional services, education, government and more.
Unfortunately our legislators have become more focused over this past decade on the amounts of money that we can
spend on schools rather than how well our kids actually perform there.Funding levels for K-to-12 Education
in our state has almost doubled over the past 8 years. Maryland is now ranked very near the top in the nation in our level of expenditures-per-pupil.
Test Scores
But our scores on comparative national tests have only been average.We must find ways to establish better
accountability for the money that we spend in our classrooms, all the while ensuring that the abilities of our graduating
seniors actually meet the demands of the workforce that they will enter.
Education Successes Commission
If
I am elected to the House of Delegates, I will call for the formation of an Education Successes Commission. This commission will be created for three purposes that focus on Maryland’s expanded education
funding programs (the implementation of the Thornton Commission recommendations): 1) Highlighting the educational
successes of the past decade; 2) Reviewing any disappointments of the programs funded and 3) Underscoring any inherent limitations
of these funding models and educational programs.The Commission team will evaluate those options
that have already been implemented and compare them against alternatives that are still available.The final intent for
this commission will be to improve the overall performance of Maryland’s school systems.
Federal Funding Sources
I believe that Maryland schools should be controlled by Marylanders. Unfortunately, much of
our school funding is currently derived from money that has been provided by our Federal government in Washington--and
at a substantial cost. Those funds almost always carry Federal strings and increase the underlying bureaucratic
costs of running the school system.
Because of these ever-growing
"complications," I urge that we reduce or minimize the acceptance of funding from Federal programs, wherever
possible.
Other Actions
Our state should also investigate and consider whether other options might be used to encourage success in our schools, including such alternatives as:
Incorporating national
testing standards into our methods when evaluating
the accomplishments of our school systems
Pay differentials for
teachers that create incentives for them to excel in the classroom
Waivers in certification requirements for specialty teaching positions that may be hard to fill
Where justified, stronger state-mandated operating controls on educational
budget expenditures
Wider implementation of charter schools
Possible implementation of tuition vouchers for districts with substantial
at-risk student populations
Vote Jeff Robinson for District 13 House of Delegates
This site has been published by authority of Friends
of Jeff Robinson, Dave Frasier, Treasurer
