A Vote for Education is Critical in South Carolina
November 2, 2014
By Kara Kerwin
In a state where just 31 percent of eighth graders are proficient in math and 29 percent are proficient in reading according to national assessments, education is deserving of more attention in 2014 elections. Across the country, more parents are making informed decisions about their child’s education, but for Palmetto State parents without means, choices can be difficult to come by in a system where a child’s education is largely determined by zip code. As South Carolinians head to the polls, it’s important they seek out candidates that share their views in putting student results first, regardless of party or politics.
Governor Nikki Haley has been a strong advocate of school choice, supporting the growth of public charter schools, and voucher-like options such as private school tax credits and scholarship programs. Of her executive budget supporting charters, Haley said, “Charters are innovators – we need those fresh insights and ideas to help us improve our educational system for all of South Carolina’s children.”
Currently, South Carolina has a newly created tax credit scholarship program for students with special needs, allowing those learners to access scholarships that originate from tax credit-eligible contributions.
Haley also supports performance-based pay incentives – merit bonuses and higher salaries specifically for teachers that improve student performance – and has criticized a standardized state test system that doesn’t generate useful data needed to support such a policy.
Offering only the vague comment that he favors allowing families to have greater choice among district public schools, challenger Vince Sheheen says, “There are two parts to improving education. One is access. The other is quality.”
Evidently, improving access doesn’t include offering school choice vouchers to low-income families who do not have access to private schools. Says Sheheen of vouchers, “What this issue really is about is taking money out of public schools and giving it to people to send their kids to private schools…a school that’s not held to the same standards as other public schools.”
What Sheheen does claim improves education is paying teachers more, and his main campaign agenda item seems to be expanding pre-K programs.
While educators and parents are doing inspiring things everyday at the classroom and community level to further student outcomes, reform and innovation in schools go only so far as the laws that govern them. The key to solving the nation’s education crisis is electing governors who understand that they have the power to change a system, and holding them accountable to do so. With 36 gubernatorial elections underway in 2014, we should all resolve to make education our top priority when we take to the polls in November.
It’s up to South Carolina voters to spot the candidate who has a chance of enacting the types of state-level reforms that have been gaining traction in Columbia, and have proven successful elsewhere across the nation. As families increasingly demand positive change at rallies and in their communities, now is the time to demand it at the ballot box.
Kara Kerwin is president of The Center for Education Reform.
Founded in 1993, to bridge the gap between policy and practice, The Center for Education Reform is the pioneer and leading voice for substantive change that transforms learning opportunities and outcomes for America’s children. Additional information about CER and its activities can be found at www.edreform.com.
