global-prep - ACE Scholarships

Choice Report
Volume 1 • Issue 2 • Winter 2007
GLOBAL-PREP
America’s schools need
to start talking business
Table of contents
Table of Contents
The Choice Report
Volume 1, Issue 2 – Winter 2007
A publication of the Alliance for CHOICE in Education
Leadership Message: “Global-Prep” Reform
page 3
Alex Cranberg & Ed McVaney
ACE Annual Dinner Event:
ACE Dinner Draws Record Crowd
pages 4-5
The Alliance for CHOICE in Education (ACE), a Denver-based,
501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 2000, provides lowincome families with the power and freedom of genuine educational choice through financial scholarship, college prep and career
guidance, and school choice advocacy.
ACE seeks to give every child in Colorado equal access to a quality education by promoting an accountable and competitive education marketplace that fosters effective private and public schools.
Choice Perspective: Competing for our
Children’s Future
page 6
Foster Friess Alex Cranberg, Founder
ACE Boards listed on page 19
page 7
Thank You to our Dinner Sponsors
Choice Impact: Can America Compete in the
Global Economy?
Jonathan Tee
pages 8-9
Staff
Norton M. Rainey III, Executive Director
Mickey Elliott, Chief of Operations
Sue Herrera, Program Director
Kelsi M. Prince, Director, College & Career Guidance
Jonathan A. Tee, Director of Communications
John G. Groman, Special Projects Coordinator
Amy E. Nichols, Office Manager
Interns
Choice Works: “I imagined America
was like Heaven…”
John Gromanpages
14-15
Victor Castillo, Jesuit Arrupe High School
Nia Vaugh, Jesuit Arrupe High School
Choice Briefing
Norton Rainey
page 16
Choice Support: A Conversation with
Blair and Kristin Richardson
Jonathan Tee
page 17
Board Message: Bridge the Political Divide
Polly Baca
page 18
Choice Leadership:
ACE Board of Trustees, Advisors and Directors page 19
The Alliance for CHOICE in Education
1201 E. Colfax Avenue
Suite 302
Denver, Colorado 80218
Tel.: (303) 573-1603
Fax: (720) 266-6798
www.acescholarships.org
The Choice Report is published by the Alliance for Choice in Education,
1201 E. Colfax Avenue, Suite 302, Denver, CO 80218;
www.acescholarships.org. © 2007 Alliance for Choice in Education,
all rights reserved.
For reprint information email [email protected]
Leadership message
“Global-prep” reform
A
We need to start thinking in terms
of “global-prep.”
merica’s business community finds
itself today in a similar position as
the business community of more
than 200 years ago. At the dawn of the 19th
century, business leaders recognized that for
America to compete in the emerging Industrial Age, the education system would need
to adapt and equip future workers with the
basic skills necessary to succeed in the new
manufacturing-based economy.
In 2000, we engaged a group of Denver business leaders that included Charlie Gallagher,
Ralph Nagel, John Saeman, and the late John
Walton, among others, and asked them to
join us in an effort to create a competitive
marketplace in Colorado’s education system.
A leading education policy expert aptly labeled this reform as a move toward “factory-prep” education.
We believed then – as we still do today –
that healthy competition will improve all Colorado schools and lead to
lasting reform.
The education reforms eventually came some 60 years after the initial
economic shift began, and America became the
world’s economic leader.
“…our education
Today, in the midst of the Information Age, our
education system needs to once again reform,
this time to equip students with the critical thinking skills necessary to not only succeed in the new
global economy, but to help shape it.
system needs
to once again reform, this time
to equip students with the
critical thinking skills
necessary to not only succeed in
the new global economy, but to
help shape it.
The business community of the 19th century waited close to 60 years for the education sector to respond to its calls for reform. We don’t believe that
in this new, borderless global economy America can
afford to wait that long.
By giving parents the power and freedom of genuine educational choice, we can ignite true reform.
We need to start thinking in
terms of ‘global-prep.’”
Alex Cranberg
Founder
Ed McVaney
Chairman of the Board
ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION – www.acescholarships.org
3
ACE events
ACE dinner
draws record crowd
T
he ACE annual dinner has gained a reputation over the years for drawing a high
level of Colorado business and political
leaders and their guests. The event has been held
on Alex Cranberg and Susan Morrice’s ever-evolving
property south of Denver since 2002, and this year
drew well over 300 attendees, including five of the six
original ACE founding committee members:
•
•
•
•
•
Alex Cranberg, Chairman, Aspect Energy
Charlie Gallagher, Chairman and CEO,
Gallagher Enterprises
Ed McVaney, Retired President and Founder,
J.D. Edwards
Ralph Nagel, President, Top Rock LLC
John Saeman, Founding Partner,
Medallion Enterprises, LLC
Former Governor Bill Owens, Scott Wetzel
and Charlie Gallagher
John Walton, the only original founding member who
was not present, was a retired U.S. Marine colonel,
entrepreneur and eldest of the Wal-Mart heirs. John
died in a tragic ultralight airplane crash in 2005.
Mike & Christina Ward
Martin Schmitz,
Brian & Diane Pauls
Dan Caplis and Aimee Sporer served as master and mistress of ceremonies
for the evening, blending Dan’s crisp political humor with Aimee’s gracious
personal style. ACE Trustee Scott Wetzel, President and CEO of United Western Bank, once again served as the presenting sponsor.
ACE Board of Trustees Chairman Ed McVaney reported on the local school
choice advancements made through the efforts of ACE in 2006-07. Superintendent of Denver Public Schools Michael Bennet joined us again this year,
sending the clear message that school choice continues to be an important
component of his administration’s efforts to revitalize public education.
The evening’s keynote message was delivered by Foster Friess, founder of The
Brandywine Funds, one of the nation’s most successful mutual fund companies.
Foster is a nationally recognized proponent of private sector options, like
ACE, as tools for education reform. With his delightful penchant for self-deprecating humor, Foster served up a steady stream of laughter as he delivered
a poignant message on the joys of personal philanthropy.
Atmosphere before and after this delightful late-summer evening event was
provided by one of Denver’s most popular jazz musicians, Dr. Isidro Aybar,
who took top honors at this year’s Breckenridge Jazz Festival.
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ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION – www.acescholarships.org
Former Governor Bill Owens, Scott Reiman, Don & Susie Law
Norton Rainey, Jack Overstreet
and Darci Hutson
Rick O’Donnell and
John Saeman
George Sissel, Attorney General John Suthers
and Walter Imhoff
ACE events
Guests at the ACE annual dinner enjoyed a warm September Colorado evening at Alex Cranberg and Susan Morrice’s picturesque property
south of Denver.
“Tonight’s gathering confirms that support for school choice is alive and
well in Colorado. Through programs like ACE, Colorado will continue to
be a leader in the school choice movement.”
— John Saeman
Ed McVaney and DPS Superintendent
Michael Bennet
Alex Cranberg, with daughter
Claire and Secretary of State
Mike Coffman
“Of all the organizations I have been involved with over the years, I believe
that few have had a greater impact on our community than ACE. I am
personally invested in ACE, and I take every opportunity I can to encourage others to support this great organization.”
— Former Governor Bill Owens
Gary Oakley and Vince Schmitz
“ACE levels the playing field, so every child can have access to a quality
education. Like me, many in the Colorado business community understand
that we need to give every child the basic tools to succeed if we are going to
compete with other states and other nations.”
Former Congressman
Bob Beauprez & wife, Claudia,
with Alex Cranberg
Barry & Arlene Hirschfeld
— Charlie Gallagher
“I believe that genuine competition in the education marketplace, through
organizations like ACE, will provide the spark that ignites our public education bureaucracy into meaningful and long-lasting reform.”
Master and Mistress of Ceremonies,
Dan Caplis & Aimee Sporer
— Alex Cranberg
“The most effective solution to our education crisis is to simply give every
parent the freedom to choose his or her child’s school based solely on the
quality of the educational product, versus its street address. That’s why
I’m committed to ACE.”
Alex Cranberg and Peter Dea
— Ed McVaney
ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION – www.acescholarships.org
5
Choice perspective
Competing for our
children’s future
F
or the majority of my professional career
I have worked in competitive markets
– mostly capital markets with my mutual
fund company, The Brandywine Funds. In that capacity, and even while working jobs as a young boy, I saw
how the marketplace finds and promotes efficiency
and effectiveness.
to be actively involved in the education of their child
– to ensure that their financial sacrifice is worthwhile. It’s this parental involvement that demands
private schools excel, and the better private schools
become, the better public schools will need to become to survive.
Why? Because markets are controlled by customers
– the customer, as the saying goes, is king. And what
empowers the customer in the market? The ability
to exercise choice.
We exercise choice in every facet of our daily lives:
from the brand of toothpaste we use and the type of car we drive, to how
we invest our hard-earned money and whom we elect to represent us in
government.
The brand, the investment options, or the politicians
that we, the customer, find most effective and therefore choose, survive in the marketplace – those rejected by the customer simply do not.
Private schools operate in the sphere of the competitive marketplace, where efficiency and results are
rewarded. They are usually small schools, oriented to
the neighborhoods that they serve and completely
dependent on parents choosing to send their children
to their school.
Make no mistake – public schools feel the pressure
of the market, and the competition from private
schools. Their change will be slow, but it will take
place. It will accelerate as they see more and more
of their students (and the associated funds) walk out
the door, never to return. Even the most bureaucratic of establishments cannot remain unmoved by the
pressures from market-based institutions. The change will be slow, acrimonious, and filled with denial. But it will be effective in the end.
“Make no mistake – public
schools feel the pressure of the
market, and the competition
from private schools.
Their change will be slow,
but it will take place.”
Oftentimes for parents, the choice is not an easy one.They must make a commitment in time and financial resources to send their children to a private
school, even if they are fortunate enough to receive outside scholarship funds
to assist with tuition.
By Foster Friess
ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION – www.acescholarships.org
ACE promotes healthy competition – private school
vs. private school, private schools vs. public schools. In
the end, all will improve and all children will benefit.
Foster Friess is a nationally renowned speaker and founder of The Brandywine Funds,
a mutual fund company that now manages more than $15 billion in assets. Foster
delivered the keynote speech at the 2007 ACE annual dinner in September.
Because parents, as customers, are allocating their own dollars, they are much
more attentive to the rate of return on their investment.They are more likely
6
Programs like ACE accelerate this change by allowing
more parents – low-income parents, who ordinarily
are not given any choices – to take their children out
of the public school system and into a private school.
The ACE effect is threefold: 1) it transforms the lives
of the children and families that it supports, 2) it helps
to sustain private schools, and 3) it helps to ramp up
the pressure that will lead to effective, positive change
in public schools.
Choice sponsors
ACE Annual Dinner:
Thank you to our sponsors
The ACE annual dinner is one of the most significant evenings of the entire ACE calendar year, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars so low-income families
can send their children to the schools of their choice.The evening would not be possible without the commitment of some very special individuals and corporations. To our dinner sponsors, we extend a hearty word of thanks. Our parents thank you. And, of course, our kids thank you for helping to give them a better
education, and a brighter future.
Presenting Sponsor
Platinum Sponsors
Gold Sponsor
Silver Sponsors
Scott and Texie Lowery • Bonnie Vivian and Mike Fitzpatrick
ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION–www.acescholarships.org
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Choice impact
Can America compete in the
global economy?
Only if our education sector reforms
to meet the needs of business
merica’s public education system plays a crucial role in
maintaining and enhancing our economic prosperity. As
shifts in the economy lead to new industries, the education sector must adapt to meet those emerging needs
and provide the business community with a well-trained
and prepared workforce.
Historically, the education sector has responded to the
needs of the business community; however, the response
has been slow, lagging behind the calls from business by
half a century or more.
Our nation is in the midst of such a “lag time,” as illustrated by the
attached timeline. An economic shift began in the 1970s when the industrial economy began to give way to a knowledge-based one. But
the education sector has yet to respond with significant or lasting
reforms, and consequently America’s position as the world’s economic leader has become less certain; we are losing ground in
the new global economy that this latest economic shift created.
The business community – here in Denver through programs
like ACE, and in cities across the country – is initiating education reforms to help meet its needs.Yet many of these reforms
must operate separately from the education establishment (i.e.
unions), or risk being thwarted by it. The business community’s
efforts are noble and must continue. But for how long can we
afford for this “lag time” to persist?
From Agriculture to Industry, from Choice to
Centralization
Prior to the emergence of a manufacturing-based, industrial economy
in the 19th century, America was predominantly agricultural. Wealth
was created by laboring on farmlands – the body, not the mind, was
the more essential tool for success.1 Schooling was therefore not a prerequisite and consequently “remained a local, voluntary, and largely entrepreneurial undertaking.”2 In this agrarian culture, with no education
establishment in place, school choice was the natural educational model;
call it innate school choice.
But in the early 1800s, as the Industrial Revolution swept toward America’s Eastern Seaboard, the needs of the business community began to
change. Some formal schooling became desirable, and ultimately necessary,
for business to succeed. Future factory workers needed to learn basic skills
to meet the needs of business.Yet it was not until the latter part of the
century – some 60 years after the economic shift began – that the education system finally began to respond.
B y J o n a t h a n Te e
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ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION – www.acescholarships.org
Choice impact
In hindsight, the education sector’s eventual response was a natural one.
As business became more centralized – from the fields to the city – the
education establishment responded in kind, transitioning from the locally
dispersed one-room school house to the centralized public school. Educators sought to standardize education and uniformly instill in students
the “modern habits of punctuality, regularity, [and] docility”3 – all in preparation for life in the factory. It was the beginning of more than a century
of “one size fits all” schooling.
From Industry to Information, from Centralization
Back Towards Choice
America experienced a similar economic shift in the 1970s, this time from
a concentration on machines and industry to a focus on electronics and
eventually the manipulation of information. We are now in the midst of
an Information Age, wherein the development of the mind is an essential
prerequisite to success.4
In this knowledge-based economy, the “one size fits all” industrial education model is no longer relevant. Bill Gates – the archetype of the new
economy – warns that America’s high schools are “not only inadequate;
[but] obsolete … By obsolete, I mean that our high schools – even when
they’re working exactly as designed – cannot teach our kids what they
need to know today. This isn’t an accident or a flaw in the system; it is
the system.”5 Gates understands the demands that the new economy has
placed on American businesses, and he realizes that our schools are not
equipped to meet these needs. While Gates’ rhetoric made news at the
time, his message was not new. Almost 25 years ago, the education establishment acknowledged as much.
The 1983 federal report A Nation at Risk revealed shocking failures in the
industrial education model, specifically pertaining to student performance
and achievement.The report predicted America’s economic decline unless
significant education reforms were instituted, stating that “our once unchallenged preeminence in commerce, industry, science and technological
innovation is being overtaken by competitors throughout the world.”6
Establishment Resistance
Virtually every state that attempts to enact reform has felt the brunt of
such establishment resistance – and Colorado is no exception. Several
years ago the Colorado legislature passed the Opportunity Contract Pilot Program. At the time, it was the largest statewide school choice program ever signed into law and it would have empowered low-income parents with the financial resources to send their children to the school of
their choice. But the education establishment – the Colorado Education
Association – sued to stop this innovative reform, and the State Supreme
Court struck down the law on a technicality. More recently, two members
of the Denver Public School Board, both of whom are publicly supportive
of DPS Superintendent Michael Bennet’s innovative reform plan, had to
fend off union-supported opponents in their recent re-election bids.
Colorado’s education establishment is clearly unwilling to entertain genuine, meaningful reform. The question becomes: How long can we afford
to wait?
A Nation (Still) at Risk
Statistics reveal that our nation has already paid a staggering price for the
education sector’s rigidity. One country after another has surpassed the
U.S. in the proportion of its workforce earning the equivalent of a high
school diploma, and many more are on the verge of doing so – just as A
Nation at Risk warned. Thirty years ago, the United States had 30% of the
world’s population of college students; today that number has dwindled
to 14%.7
And as the education establishment continues to resist reform, we should
brace for further crises. A recent projection suggests that if current state
education policies go unchanged the Colorado workforce of 2020 will be
less educated than today’s workforce. As a result, the state’s per capita
income will not just stagnate, it will decline8 – a costly ramification of
repeated inattention to a failing school system.
Acquired Choice
A Nation at Risk tied America’s slumping economy directly to our obsolete education system, and prompted business leaders to call for reform.
The resulting expansion of school choice alternatives throughout the
late 1980s and early 1990s allowed charter schools, voucher initiatives,
and private scholarship programs to make significant gains as parents increasingly sought educational solutions outside of the establishment: call
it acquired school choice. However, no major reforms within the public
school system took place – as Bill Gates points out.
Now, more than 30 years after the economic shift began, while the
business community is in a dire state and while we are losing ground
to our global competitors, the education establishment continues to
resist reform.
In spite of establishment adversity, efforts by the business community to
advance school choice must continue.The overwhelming evidence shows
that school choice works. When given the opportunity to choose the
school that best fits their unique learning needs, children of every income
bracket and every zip code can succeed. Yet perhaps even more importantly, school choice creates a competitive education marketplace that
may prove to be the catalyst for lasting reform within the public school
system – reforms that may finally end the “lag time” our business community now faces.
Only time will tell how long our nation can afford to wait for such reforms to bear fruit.The fear is that like the proverbial frog in boiling water,
we may not realize we’ve waited too long until it is too late.
Ruby K. Payne, “No Child Left Behind: What’s Really Behind It All?” Instructional Leader, March 2003
Carl F. Kaestle, Pillars of the Republic: Common Schools and American Society, 1780-1860 (New York: Hill and Wang, 1983), 183-184
3 Michael B. Katz, The Origins of Public Education: A Reassessment in The Social History of American Education, 110.
4 Payne, “No Child Left Behind: What’s Really Behind It All?”
5 Remarks delivered by Bill Gates at the National Education Summit on High Schools, February 26, 2005, Washington, D.C.
6 A Nation at Risk, National Commission on Excellence in Education, April 1983
7 “Tough Choices or Tough Times: The Report of the New Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce,” National Center on Education and Economy, 2007
8 “Income of U.S. Workforce Projected to Decline If Education Doesn’t Improve,” The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, Policy Alert, November 2005
1
2
ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION – www.acescholarships.org
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Choice impact
Choice impact
Lag Time: the historical relationship between
America’s boardrooms & classrooms
Economic
Phases
1793 — Samuel Slater, known as the Father of the
American Industrial Revolution, opens the first successful
textile mill in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
1812 — The War of 1812 with Great Britain highlights
the need for America’s economic independence, and
consequently calls for expansion in manufacturing begin
to escalate.
1837 — John Deere invents the steel plow.
1869 — The Union and Central Pacific railroads meet in
Ogden, Utah creating the first transcontinental railroad.
1908 — Henry Ford mass produces his Model T automobile.
By 1913, Ford has installed the assembly line, which
produces a complete Model T automobile every 93
minutes.
1930 — The Chrysler Building in New York is completed,
becoming the tallest building in the world, only to be
eclipsed by the Empire State Building the following year.
1951 — Univac builds the first commercial computer.
1955 — William Shockley, who co-invented the transistor
and became known as the creator of the Electronic Age,
moves to the Santa Clara Valley; twenty years later it is named
Silicon Valley.
1939 — A prototype of the first digital computer is introduced
by John Atanasoff.
An Industrial Nation
From Factories to Computers
1790 – 1910 From Fields to Cities ~~ America’s transition to a manufacturing-based economy is often said to have begun with
the first successful textile mill in 1793. American manufacturing benefited from the advances of Europe’s Industrial Revolution,
which would eventually come to U.S. shores in the 1860’s. American manufacturing became the primary mode of economic activity,
culminating with Henry Ford’s Model T assembly line in 1913, and setting the stage for American economic dominance for the
remainder of the century.
1910 – 1950 An Industrial Nation ~~ The American factory thrived in the first
half of the 20th century, producing at unprecedented levels, whether to meet the
needs of a growing nation or to equip military forces to fight two world wars. It
is an era defined largely by Ellwood Cubberly’s statement that “the employee
tends to remain an employee; the wage earner tends to remain a wage earner.”
1950 – 1975 From Factories to Computers ~~ Technological advancements in the
second half of the century began to shift wealth-creation away from factories. Computers
began to replace machines, and in many ways, economic success became more dependent
on the mind, rather than the body.
1850
1900 1910 1920
1950
1975 – present The Information Age ~~ In today’s knowledge-based, information economy, the ability to create wealth
is directly related to the development of the mind. A significant sector of the economy’s focus has shifted away from the
production of physical goods and toward the manipulation of information. There are no boundaries, no limits. Through the
Internet, economic success can be achieved at the kitchen table just as easily as in the board rooms of Wall Street.
1975 1980
2000 2007
State Centralization
Federal Centralization
Acquired Choice
1600 – 1850 Innate Choice ~~ Throughout much of America’s first two hundred years no education establishment existed and therefore choice was the natural
educational model. Schooling “remained a local, voluntary, and largely entrepreneurial undertaking” well into the Founding Era for a variety of reasons: often, mere
survival took precedent over formal schooling, and the focus on classical education that dominated formal schools was, “so difficult to fathom in a wilderness setting,
[that] the ‘public’ schools gave way to ‘private’ schools that taught skills parents felt were necessary for their children’s well-being.”
1850 – 1920 State Centralization ~~ Sixty years after the nation began its economic transition to an industrial nation, the education
sector began to react. Massachusetts passed the first compulsory education law and within seventy years every state required children
to attend school, as experts increasingly advocated the standardization and centralization of the education sector to mirror the
centralization of manufacturing in our nation’s cities.
1980 – Present Acquired Choice ~~ The 1980s sparked the dawn
of the modern choice movement with a startling examination of the
public education system in A Nation at Risk: “If an unfriendly foreign
power had attempted to impose on America the mediocre
educational performances that exist today, we might well have viewed
In other words, this era was defined by parents choosing schools that best fit their needs and the needs of their children.
Public schools thrived in the densely populated cities and focused on what has been called “factory-prep programs in which students
learned to keep schedules, follow the regimented dictates of bells and superiors, and be acceptably passive.”
1920 – 1980 Federal Centralization ~~ Regulation at the state level would eventually lead to federal oversight. In 1965, President Johnson – a proponent of federal
intervention – signed the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which
“granted the federal government control over an amount of education money
unprecedented in American history.” Prior to the ESEA (176 years) the federal
government passed 41 laws regarding education activities; from ESEA to 2005 (40
years) the federal government had passed 117 such laws.
1791 — The Bill of Rights is enacted, with no mention of education.
The Tenth Amendment gives powers not delegated to the federal
government to the states. Thus education becomes a function of
individual states, not the federal government.
1635 — America’s first Latin Grammar School is
established (Boston Latin School) with a curriculum
designed for sons of certain social classes who are
destined for leadership positions in the church, state, or
the courts.
1647 — Because “the chief project of the old deluder,
Satan, [is] to keep men from the knowledge of the
scriptures,” Massachusetts passes the Old Deluder Satan
Horace Mann
Act, requiring every town of at least 50 families to hire a
schoolmaster to teach reading and writing, and towns of at least
100 families to hire a Latin grammar school master.
1787 — The Northwest Ordinance is enacted to
provide a plan for western expansion, stating that
“schools and the means of education shall forever be
encouraged” and stipulating that a section of land in
every township of each new state be reserved for the
support of education.
Supporters of federal education control often cite the
Northwest Ordinance when asserting that the national
government has been involved in schooling since the earliest
days of the republic.
1827 — Massachusetts passes a law requiring each town of more
than 500 families to have a public high school open to all students.
1837 — Horace Mann, later to be known as the “Father of American
Education” is appointed to the Massachusetts State Board of Education.
Mann champions education reforms such as compulsory attendance,
national training for teachers, national testing for all students,
national curricula set for each grade, and mandatory kindergarten.
Mann’s efforts, along with other reformers of the 1840s and 50s,
lead to fundamental changes in the U.S. education system that
remain today.
1852 — The culmination of Mann’s reforms leads to the passage of
the nation’s first statewide compulsory education law in Massachusetts.
1916 — The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) is founded.
1925 — US Supreme Court strikes down an Oregon
law that required attendance at public schools in Pierce v.
Society of Sisters with the court stating that “the child is
not the mere creature of the state; those who nurture
him and direct his destiny have the right, coupled with the
high duty, to recognize and prepare him for additional
obligations.”
1918 — Mississippi becomes the last state to pass a compulsory
education law – now every state in the union requires children to
attend school.
1955 — Nobel Prize winning economist Milton
Friedman publishes “The Role of Government in Public Education”
introducing the concept of an education voucher program.
1919 — The Progressive Education Association is founded with the
goal of reforming American education. The Progressive Era sought to
educate children according to their station.
1965 — The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) is
signed by President Johnson, with the lasting effect of “smashing
through the long-respected barrier separating America’s schools
from the federal government.” The ESEA doubles federal financial
support of K-12 education.
1857 — The National Teachers Association (now the National
Education Association) is founded in Philadelphia.
2007 — Experts estimate that the amount of technical information doubles every 2 years; by 2010, it will double every 72 hours.
The Information Age
Innate Choice
60 year lag time
2006 — The U.S. graduates approximately 1.3 million college
students, compared to 3.1 million in India and 3.3 million in China.
Of India’s 3.1 million graduates, 100% are English-speaking.
1957 — Russia launches Sputnik into space.
From Fields to Cities
1790 1800
1975 — Bill Gates and Paul Allen develop a version of BASIC
for the Altair personal computer and found Microsoft.
1998 — Larry Page and Sergey Brin found Google.
An Agricultural Economy
1700
2000 — The “Dotcom Bubble” bursts and hundreds of Internetbased companies fold.
1990 — Tim Berners-Lee invents the World Wide Web.
1879 — Thomas Edison perfects the incandescent light bulb.
1889 — For the first time, the U.S. produces more steel than Britain.
1969 — Neil Armstrong wins the Space Race for the U.S. by
landing on the moon.
1956 — The first Japanese made car is sold in the U.S.A.
1600 – 1790 An Agricultural Economy ~~ For two hundred years America had a predominantly
agricultural economy; wealth was generated from land, crops, cattle and children. As such, schooling was
not a prerequisite for financial success, and was therefore voluntary and concentrated to local, private
schools, often with religiosity as the primary aim.
1600
Education
Phases
1814 — First plough with a replaceable cast-iron tip is introduced in the
rocky soils of New England.
1790 — First U.S. Patent filed.
This graphic representation in the form of a timeline seeks to portray the concept of
the “lag time” described in the Choice Impact article. The lag time begins when the
economy begins to shift, such as from a concentration on agriculture to machines;
and ends when the education sector begins to respond in a meaningful way to
meet the evolving needs of business. We realize this timeline is not to scale. It
does, however, accurately depict our contention that the American economy
and the business community have played a significant role in the development
of learning and education.
If you have questions or comments about this timeline, or the accompanying
Choice Impact article, please email the author Jonathan Tee at
[email protected]
2020
it as an act of war.” Unlike school choice during our country’s initial years, this choice is
chosen specifically as an alternative to the existing establishment.
Home schooling, charter schools, voucher programs and private scholarship programs have
all found footing, as parents seek alternatives to the public school systems. It is a movement
that continues today, while the education establishment continues to resist reform.
Current lag time
1972 — The nation’s first attempt at a modern
school voucher program is launched by the federal
Office of Economic Opportunity, originally designed
to serve low-income, minority students in Alum
Rock, California by giving parents a voucher for any
participating public or independent school. Opposed
by teachers’ unions, the program is eventually
reduced to a limited public school choice program.
1983 — The National Commission on Excellence in
Education’s report, A Nation at Risk is published, directly linking
the slumping U.S. economy to its failing education system.
America’s “once unchallenged preeminence in commerce, industry, science,
and technological innovation is being overtaken by competitors throughout
the world.”
– A Nation at Risk
Fifteen distinct school choice programs educate close to
140,000 students in America; one million kids are educated in
charter schools.
1990 — Milwaukee, WI launches the nation’s first voucher program.
1992 — The first charter school opens in Minnesota.
2000 — ACE is founded.
2001 — “The most sweeping federal education law in the nation’s
history” is signed into law. No Child Left Behind holds state and local
schools accountable for student achievement levels.
2006 — In what has been called “the most successful year ever
for...school choice programs,” twenty-eight states debate school choice
programs; five new programs are launched and five are expanded.
The information contained in this timeline was gathered from
several sources: The American Experience, by PBS; American
Educational History by Edmund Sass, Ed.D. Professor of Education,
College of Saint Benedict/Saint John's University; and Feds in the
Classroom by Neal McCluskey (2007).
Choice works
“I imagined America was
like heaven...”
A
t the annual ACE dinner in September,
those in attendance had the opportunity
to meet Phuong Ahn Ngo, an ACE scholarship recipient in her senior year at Arrupe Jesuit
High School in northwest Denver.
But Phuong’s personal public middle school crisis
was about to encounter a two-pronged solution.
“In September 2004, my grandfather read about Arrupe Jesuit High School in Denver. I decided to apply,
but knew the percentage to get in was really low
since I was still not an English speaker. Luckily, I got
accepted and even received an ACE scholarship because my mother can’t cover my tuition.”
Here’s her story.
“I was born and raised in Vietnam. In September 1999
my father passed away in a motorcycle accident. In
order to support us, my mother had to sacrifice by
working dreadful hours to make money. As the oldest child, I had to take care of my two younger sisters.
I was in middle school and only went to school from
7 a.m. to noon. After school I dedicated my time to homework and watching
over my siblings.”
Arrupe – and ACE – changed Phuong’s life.
“Arrupe helped me learn and improve. Every day, I
spent 6 to 8 hours to do homework because I had to translate it from English
into Vietnamese and back into English. I always do my best in school and have
a 4.3 GPA through my six semesters.”
But in 2000, Phuong’s grandfather saw their need and began the process to
sponsor the family’s move to the United States.
“I imagined America was like heaven because my
grandfather would tell me that the kids go to school
for free, eat lunch at school and go to college, all things
which I never saw in my country,” Phuong recalled.
“Just the thought that my family could move to the
United States made me so happy.”
“I imagined America was like
heaven... kids go to school for
free, eat lunch at school and
go to college, all things which I
never saw in my country.”
It took two years, but finally in February 2004 Phuong and her family arrived
in the land of opportunity.
“But the picture of ‘America is like heaven’ did not exist in my head after my
first day at public high school,” Phuong said.“I couldn’t speak English. I couldn’t
even answer the easiest question like ‘How are you?’”
Phuong ate cookies that she had brought from home for lunch on that first
day of school because she didn’t know how to buy food in the cafeteria. “I was
afraid students would ask me questions, so I decided to eat in the hall where
no one walked during lunchtime. It was my personal crisis, and every day I
cried and wanted to go back to Vietnam.”
ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION – www.acescholarships.org
“The original model for Arrupe came from the Jesuits’
Cristo Rey High School in Chicago, which was founded in 1996 and where I served as assistant principal,”
Arrupe President and founder, Father Steve Planning
explained recently to ACE.
“The Jesuits in Denver were looking for a way to serve
inner-city youth and wanted to use the Cristo Rey
model, which includes a strong emphasis on academics and a unique corporate work-study program.”
Arrupe opened its doors in 2003. The work-study model is brilliant in its
simplicity. School staff approach local businesses and corporate offices and
ask them to provide an entry-level clerical position for Arrupe students, who
fill the jobs one day a week. “We currently have our 285 students working in
over 80 local businesses,” Fr. Planning told ACE. “They work in hospitals, law
offices, banks, and local colleges like D.U. and Regis. Even ACE has
Arrupe interns.”
By John Groman
14
Phuong’s experience at Arrupe is not unique, however.
Choice works
Phuong, pictured here with her supervisor, Carol Heinley, works at Exempla Saint Joeseph’s Hospital through Arrupe’s work-study
program. She’s gaining valuable real-world experience that she hopes will help her as she prepares for a career in dentistry.
“Kids who grow up in the inner city don’t get exposed to the corporate world
or get comfortable with it,” Fr. Planning explained. “Our students get that
chance, and begin to see what kind of opportunities are in the workplace, then
get comfortable there and actually begin to see themselves as belonging.”
These numbers are staggering when one considers that 70 percent of Arrupe
students are low-income and qualify for the federal Free or Reduced Lunch
Program, and nine out of ten are the first in their family to graduate from high
school with a chance of going to college.
The income from these entry-level clerical jobs covers close to 70 percent
of Arrupe’s $7,500 annual tuition, and the students are responsible for the
remaining third.
Phuong tells ACE that she wants to go to Creighton University in Nebraska
to be a dentist, and that her work at Saint Joseph’s is preparing her for this
next step in her journey.
“Education becomes more meaningful when students work for their own
private school tuition,” Fr. Planning explained. “This is the chance for inner-city
kids to build a future with their own hands that might otherwise be impossible. So essentially, what started as a way to fund the private school tuition
for low-income kids has turned out to be so much more.”
“My grandfather and uncle were dentists in Vietnam,” Phuong recalled. “Since
coming to the United States, they have not been able to practice their careers.
I see the pain in their hearts because they could not receive a license to practice. I feel that being a dentist is in my blood and I have a strong incentive.”
As a senior, Phuong was nominated by ACE for a Daniels Fund college scholarship.
Arrupe hears stories from its corporate partners around Denver about how
they have hired college graduates who still don’t understand that it’s not appropriate to show up on the first day of work in a professional office wearing
flip-flops and shorts. “Unfortunately, few public high school students these
days understand the direct line of connection between school and the rest of
their lives as clearly as Phuong and our other Arrupe students do.”
“Arrupe students learn how to dress and relate appropriately to their coworkers before their first day of work as high school freshmen. By the time
Arrupe students graduate, they not only have a diploma, they have a resume.
They’ve gained extended practical experience in the workplace. Colleges love
that, and give preference to this kind of student,” Fr. Planning said.
“This is such a wonderful opportunity,” Phuong told the enrapt audience of
business leaders and state and local politicians at the ACE dinner. “In the end,
I am truly thankful to ACE for giving me a chance. Moreover, I want to thank
everyone who supports ACE. Because of you, I can continue to study and
go to college.You make a difference in my life! With your generosity, I believe
there will be more kids like me who will get a great opportunity to fulfill their
education. Thank you!”
As the audience rose to give Phuong a standing ovation, Fr. Planning proudly
stood at the back of the room. “Every young person deserves that kind of
opportunity.”
“This past June we graduated our first senior class that included 47 students,”
Fr. Planning proudly announced. “One hundred percent of our graduates were
accepted to college.”
ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION–www.acescholarships.org
15
Choice briefing
FROM THE DESK OF THE
E X E C U T I V E D I 2006
RE
CTOR
Average Composite ACT Scores
25
20.7
20
14.4
15.6
15
10
S
5
even years ago, a group of business leaders,
including Ed McVaney, John Saeman, Charlie
Gallagher, the late John Walton, Ralph Nagel,
Steve Schuck and Alex Cranberg, were stunned to learn
of the dire state of Colorado’s public education system.
Low-income
DPS students
All DPS
The ACE class of 2007 also
boasts an impressive graduation rate
In response, the Alliance for Choice in Education has
two important objectives. Primarily, ACE seeks to give
every Colorado child, regardless of race, income bracket
or zip code, the opportunity to get a quality education.
Secondly, and just as importantly, through the creation
of a competitive educational marketplace, ACE seeks to
improve all Colorado schools.
ACE Class of 2007 (entered high school in ’03)
this success spreads,
58%more and more concerned individuals are supporting ACE. For the current
school year we are able to provide more scholarships
than ever before.
The students that ACE financially supports are very often the students that
the current system cannot serve – they are the low-income, at-risk kids who
have done poorly in their assigned public schools.
But given a chance to learn in an environment of their choosing – which meets
their needs – these kids can succeed. Just look at how the ACE scholars performed on the ACT, a nationally administered assessment designed to gauge
student proficiency in various areas of study.
07/08 scholarships
Participating schools
Average ACE family size
Average family income
40% of ACE families make less than
Average school tuition
Average ACE scholarship
Average family obligation
2006 Average Composite ACT Scores
25
20.7
20
14.4
Does school choice work? We believe it does. And as more low-income students are given the chance
to succeed – and then do – school
choice will most certainly become a
vital component in the resurrection
of America’s education system.
15.6
15
10
5
Low-income
DPS students
All DPS
The ACE class of 2007 also
boasts an impressive graduation rate
16
ACE Class of 2007 (entered high school in ’03)
84%
DPS graduation rate
58%
84%
As news
DPS graduation
rateof
Norton Rainey
ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION – www.acescholarships.org
715
167
5
$22,899
$18,000
$5,869
$2,146
$3,723
Choice support
Passion for reform:
A conversation with Blair
and Kristin Richardson
“O
ur four children all went
to different schools, because we don’t feel that
one school fits all,” Kristin Richardson recently told ACE.
“Every child is different, and their
needs are different.”
“It’s critical that we engage the business community,” Blair said. “Corporate America has the financial
means and the influence to have a
dramatic impact on our education
system. The business community
has the most to gain from genuine
reform… they also have the most
to lose if they don’t get engaged.”
Indeed, Blair and Kristin Richardson are the embodiment of school
choice, and they have a passion for,
and dedication to, education reform
that is second-to-none.
“We’re trying to change the culture,” said Blair, “from a culture of failure
to a culture of success.” The “we” he refers to are those whom he affectionately calls the “Bennet-ites” – supporters of Denver Public School
Superintendent Michael Bennet, and his ambitious reform plan for DPS that
has caught the attention of the entire nation.
“The country is watching as we try to reform DPS,” said Blair. “If we can succeed here, it means other communities can too.”
And according to Kristin, it’s an issue that we
should all care about. “Anyone who doesn’t think
that public education is their problem because
their kids go to private school is wrong. We’re all
part of this community.The lion’s share of American students attend public schools, and if we don’t
fix them, we’re all in trouble.”
The Richardsons work hard to
spearhead reform because they
have passion – passion for this
country, this community and the
young people that we will one day entrust them to. “Some would say it’s an
intractable problem,” Kristin says of the state of public schools. “But if you
believe that, you can throw up your hands and say that’s it, America has
crested and we’re on our way down. Blair and I just refuse to believe that.”
Of course, reform comes in many forms, and initially Kristin was not so
sure about the positive effects that school choice scholarship programs like
ACE can generate.
“Initially, I questioned Blair’s
involvement with ACE … but
after working with Michael
[Bennet] … I realized that ACE
is a great thing.
ACE provides competition and
it forces the schools to do a better
job; it holds them accountable.”
For years, Blair and Kristin Richardson have not
just paid lip service to fixing our schools, they’ve
rolled up their shirt sleeves and worked for
change. Kristin has been on the board of the DPS
Foundation since 2003, and is vice president of
the Denver Academy board of trustees. For his
part, Blair is actively involved in Colorado Uplift and serves on the ACE
board of trustees. He’s also leading an effort to involve the business community in Michael Bennet’s reform plans.
“Initially, I questioned Blair’s involvement with
ACE because, to me, it seemed as if ACE was
torpedoing the efforts of DPS. But after working
with Michael [Bennett] for two years, I realized
that ACE is a great thing. ACE provides competition and it forces the schools to do a better job; it
holds them accountable.”
Blair agrees. “ACE will force our standards to be
better and higher in the public school system …
ACE, charter schools, whatever it might be … it’s
all holding the system accountable and saying mediocrity is not good enough.”
The Richardsons hold dear “an overarching belief that if we can fix our educational system, we can fix many of the other ills facing American society.”
With their mix of passion, energy and dedication, they just might be right.
B y J o n a t h a n Te e
ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION – www.acescholarships.org
17
Board message
Polly Baca served as President Lyndon B. Johnson’s Public Information Officer and in President Bill Clinton’s administration as Special Assistant to the President. Ms. Baca also worked on
the national presidential campaign of President Jimmy Carter.
Bridge the political divide
A
s a former member of the Lyndon Johnson and Bill Clinton administrations, I know firsthand how divisive political debate can
be. In Washington, D.C. and in state capitols across the nation,
few issues are able to transcend the political divide. Whether it is immigration, healthcare, taxes, or the economy – with virtually every issue, deep
political trenches have been dug on either side, making progress in these
critical areas next to impossible.
Unfortunately, the issue of education – and specifically education reform and
school choice – is no exception.
For our children’s sake, we must work to bridge this political divide by setting
aside our political bias and viewing the issue objectively. To do so, it might be
helpful to answer a simple question:
These statistics clearly reveal an American education system in crisis. Yet,
many refuse to acknowledge this fact, allowing politics to skew their perspective. But with such a track record, is it any surprise that more and more
parents are choosing alternatives to public education?
In the past 15 years, charter schools, voucher and tax-credit programs,
and private scholarship foundations, such as ACE, have flourished across
the nation.
Forty states – including Colorado – allow charter schools. There are now
more than 4,000 such schools across the country, serving more than a million children.
Just last year, 28 states debated school choice legislation in their state capitols.
If you had equal access to a school with a proven track record of success
and a school with a proven track record of failure, to which school would
you send your child?
I originally asked if a parent would purposely choose a school with a proven
track record of failure, if given equal access to a school with a proven track
record of success.
Would a mother purposely send her child to a low-performing school over
a high-performing one, if she had equal access to both? Of course not. For
instance, the vast majority of our representatives in Washington, D.C. have
the freedom to choose between a private school and a public school – and
most choose a private education for their children. Yet the harsh reality is
that many of these same representatives oppose school choice for families
without their financial means.
That’s the sole purpose of ACE. Low-income parents don’t have the luxury
of answering this hypothetical question. School choice doesn’t exist for them,
because politics shut them out.
With each passing year, more parents choose proven success over proven
failure. They don’t let politics dictate their decision; they choose what’s best
for their child. It’s time to view school choice objectively, not politically – and
give choice to those who have none.
Low-income families have no choices outside of their public schools. They
are stuck with a system that has yielded the following results:
•
•
•
More than 1.2 million students drop out each year. That’s more than
6,000 kids per school day … one child every 26 seconds.
60% of high school dropouts come from low-income families.
Only about half of America’s Latino and African-American students
graduate from public high school on time.
Polly Baca is the Executive Director of the Latin American Research and Services
Agency and serves on the ACE board of directors.
By Polly Baca
18
ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION – www.acescholarships.org
Choice leadership
Boards
ACE Board of Trustees
Rick Adam, President and CEO, Adam Aircraft
William Armstrong III, President and CEO, Greenwood Capital, LLC
Don Bailey, Chairman and CEO, Triton Investment Company
Bill Bergner, President, Berco Resources, LLC
Terry Considine, Chairman and CEO, AIMCO
Alex Cranberg, Chairman, Aspect Energy
Peter Dea, President and CEO, Cirque Resources LP
John Fox, Chairman, MWHC Holding Inc.
Mike Fries, President and CEO, Liberty Global, Inc.
Steve Friess, Friess, Inc.
Charlie Gallagher, Chairman and CEO, Gallagher Enterprises
Caleb Gates, Retired V.P. and Principal, Denver Investment Advisors
Sharon Alexander Holt, President and CEO, Urban League of
Metro Denver
Bud Isaacs, President, RIM Operating
John Leede, Manager–Exploration, Leede Operating Company
Dick Lewis, Chairman and CEO, Avant Premium Water
Jim Lightner, Partner and CEO, Orion Energy Partners, LLC
Scott Lowery, Chairman, CEO and President, Collect America
Tom Marsh, Executive Vice President, Lockheed Martin Space Systems
Ed McVaney, Retired President and Founder, J.D. Edwards;
Chairman of the Board, ACE
Jim Mulvihill, Principal and Founder, Black Creek Capital
Ralph Nagel, President, Top Rock, LLC; Vice Chairman of the Board, ACE
Jack Overstreet, President, Legacy Energy
Bill Owens, Former Governor, State of Colorado
Roger Parker, President and CEO, Delta Petroleum Corporation
Tom Petrie, Vice Chairman and Member,
Executive Client Coverage Group, Merrill Lynch Petrie
Jim Piccone, President and General Counsel, Resolute Natural Resources
Paul Rady, Chairman and CEO, Antero Resources Corporation
Walter Rakowich, President and COO, ProLogis
Scott Reiman, President, Hexagon Investments
Blair Richardson, Managing Partner, Bow River Capital
Dick Robinson, Co-Chairman, Robinson Dairy
Dick Saunders, Chairman and Treasurer, Saunders Construction Company
Rick Schmitz, Partner, SKS Ventures, LLC
Vince Schmitz, Chairman of the Board, Citywide Banks
Scot Sellers, President and CEO, Archstone-Smith
Mark Sexton, CEO, Evergreen Energy, Inc.
Eric Sipf, Chairman of the Board, ESS Holdings
George Solich, President, Cordillera Energy Partners, LLC
Bob Tointon, President, Phelps-Tointon, Inc.
Dell Van Gilder, President, Van Gilder Insurance Corp.
Luis Villarreal, President, Save Our Youth
Bonnie Vivian, Retired, President and CEO, Denver Biomedical
Jim Wallace, Partner, BWAB Exploration
Peter Wells, Chairman, Wells Property Holdings
Scot Wetzel, Chairman, United Western Bank
Wayne Williamson, Partner, Plexus Capital
Don Wolf, CEO, Quantum Resources, LLC
Earl Wright, President and CEO, AMG National Trust Bank
ACE Board of Advisors
Ben Addoms, President, Quintess
Tony Bolazina, President, Northern Trust Bank
Melissa Corrado-Harrison, First Vice President, Merrill Lynch
Debbie Donner, President, Han Chaparral
Mike Kennedy, Managing Director, Gallagher Industries
Chandler Lippitt, Partner, Murray Franke Greenhouse List & Lippitt
David Livingston, President, United Western Bank
Bruce MacDonald, President, MacDonald Hardwood Floors
Tim Miller, President, Synergy Services, Inc.
Marcus Mollmann, Director, Archstone-Smith
Todd Neugebauer, Partner, CHx Capital
Rick O’Donnell, Former Executive Director,
LLP
Colorado Commission on Higher Education
Ben Rainey, Director, Teegarden Financial Corporation, Inc.
Josh Stewart, CEO, X Jet
Brian Watson, President, Northstar Commercial Partners
Eric Wolf, Partner, Bow River Capital
ACE Board of Directors
Polly Baca, Executive Director, LARASA
Todd Clough, Principal, La Academia at the Denver Inner-City
Alex Cranberg, Chairman, Aspect Energy
Dr. Vernard Gant, Director, Urban School Services,
Parish
Association of Christian Schools International
Nita Gonzales, Founder and President, Escuela Tlatelolco
Sergio Gutierrez, Managing Partner, Montero Capital, LLC
Sharon Alexander Holt, President and CEO, Urban League of Metro Denver
Pierre Jimenez, Jimenez & Associates
Haven Moses, Consultant
Jim Piccone, President and General Counsel, Resolute Natural Resources
Bishop Phillip Porter, Bishop Porter Ministries
Dianna Vigil, DTS & Associates
Luis Villarreal, President, Save Our Youth
Vivian Wilson, Principal, Excel Institute
ALLIANCE FOR CHOICE IN EDUCATION – www.acescholarships.org
19
1201 East Colfax Avenue, Suite 302 – Denver, Colorado 80218
TEL.: 303.573.1603 • FAX: 720.266.6798
www.acescholarships.org