President Obama has designated over $5 billion to improve the education of children in the United States. Under the program, “No Child Left Behind” and with the support of local state, county and district school boards, a whole new system could be in the works shortly.
He is designating the money to be used to close down and reopen failing schools throughout the country. By shutting down and laying off the staff of the schools who fail to meet the necessary standards, he hopes they will re-open with a brand new staff and a whole new positive outlook. It is quite an undertaking and the President has no authority to close schools so he is hoping that the local officials will use this money wisely.
The schools which will be targeted will be mostly middle and high schools in which only 2 out of 5 students stay in school and actually graduate. These schools could be in the core sections of large cities or in the smallest of towns. The Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, has done this job before in Chicago when he turned 8 schools around and made a difference in the delivery of education to underserved children.
While firing and hiring a brand new staff sounds a bit brash it is a wonderful plan to shovel out the old and the disillusioned teachers whose hearts just aren’t in their jobs anymore. They will continue to be on the payroll and act as occasional teachers when needed. Fresh young teachers can also learn from the older teachers and it could be a win-win solution. President Obama has more than doubled the country’s contribution for education and he hopes to see a real change in the lives of the young people. He wants to see more enjoyment and love of learning which he has not noticed in the past few years.