[StBernard] National Review: Jindal's Tough Education Reforms

[Westley Annis]

Jindal's Tough Education Reforms

National Review
By Patrick Brennan
4/17/12

"Earlier this month, after a bipartisan majority passed two new education
bills in the Louisiana state house, teachers took the day off from work to
protest in concert with activists, including the rather obscure Occupy Baton
Rouge. In Cajun tradition, they held a raucous 'funeral for education
reform.' But on the contrary, Louisiana's school reforms represent a new
national birth of freedom for education. This is a huge step forward for
conservative policy, especially with the establishment of unprecedented
access to school choice.

As Jim Geraghty wrote in National Review last fall, Louisiana governor Bobby
Jindal has enjoyed a spectacular run of success at governing his state,
overhauling Louisiana, once derided as America's 'banana republic,' by
cutting down corruption, improving business-friendliness, and reforming the
health-care system. Louisiana had gotten so bad that dramatically reducing
spending and cracking down on ethics violations didn't anger the body
politic at all. But then, of course, there were still public schools: With
sacrosanct spending levels, lifetime tenure, and no accountability measures,
they are the Louisiana-like rump in every state, holding back student
achievement.

Jindal's reforms are smart, comprehensive, and innovative, representing the
best of conservative thought on education. Rick Hess, director of
education-policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, has high
praise for the reforms, calling them 'both politically savvy and good public
policy,' and important both 'as an individual event, and part of a trend.'
That is, Jindal's reforms represent a victory for conservative
education-reform policies, and represent the growing tide of support for
such ideas. The measures are broken down into two bills, and have two major
components: significantly increasing school choice, and increasing
accountability.

As Hess puts it, Louisiana's new policies 'establish a new standard for
school choice, breaking ground for other states across the country.' Jindal
has pushed for a huge expansion of voucher programs, which pay tuition for
students at parochial or private schools.

The other major element of Jindal's reforms applies to public schools,
establishing greater incentives and accountability for teachers. The plan
would completely scrap the current teacher-salary matrix, replacing it with
a more merit- and accountability-based system.

But more importantly, teacher tenure will be reformed and superintendents
and principals will be given more decision-making discretion, empowering
administrators at the expense of school boards.

Of course, Jindal's reforms aren't perfect. But Louisiana's new laws are a
major breakthrough for education reform, one that will empower other
governors and administrators to follow in kind."

Read more from the National Review here:
http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/296225/jindal-s-tough-education-refor
ms-patrick-brennan
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