Given eight years as Georgia's governor, state House minority leader DuBose Porter promised Columbia County Democrats, he could elevate Georgia from the bottom 40s in national education rankings to the top 20.
The gubernatorial candidate and Dublin-based newspaper publisher said in a speech Monday at the Evans Government Center that Georgia's governor needs the "political will" to undo seven years of damage to public education by Republican leaders.
Since Republicans took control of the state, Mr. Porter said, state funding for education has been cut by $2 billion.
He also chastised Gov. Sonny Perdue for increasing classroom sizes.
"It will take the political will to say we're going to do something in early grades ... and give our teachers the time to do it," he said.
To counteract what he called another Republican blunder, Mr. Porter said he wants to expand the number of students eligible for HOPE scholarships.
Other items on the 27-year veteran lawmaker's political agenda included improving Atlanta's mass transit system, improving public safety by hiring more state troopers and developing a state water plan based on watershed assessments and not political motivations.
Mr. Porter was the third Democratic gubernatorial candidate in four days to appear at meetings sponsored by Columbia County Democrats.
On Friday, Attorney General Thurbert Baker and David Poythress, a former commander of the Georgia Army and Air National Guard, spoke to area Democrats about their political platforms.
Reach Donnie Fetter at (706) 868-1222, ext. 115, or donnie.fetter@augustachronicle.com.
Comments
1) Bring back corporate discipline in the classroom. It worked great when we were in school in the 70s and early 80s. Got my last paddling in the 9th grade.
2) Politicians stay out of education, especially at the national and state level. Local school boards and communities know what is best for their families. We can sure use public funding from our taxes paid, but do not ever need for government to mandate how we educate.
Amen to justacomment; education is controlled by what goes on at home and the structure of the family. If money could fix it, Washington DC would have the best schools in the country. If Porter is a good man how can he be part of a pro-death party that celebrates sin and calls it good. When they removed prayer and Bible reading from the schools it has been all downhill from there. Now results=100% involvement of parents. No matter how good the teacher or system you cannot make children learn that do not care and that comes from the home. If the classroom contains too many that don't care parents have no choice but to pull their kids out and home school, which is the best because it is more like the way schools used to be.
middle grades seem to be where the students are failing. early grades & high schools seem to have a fair grip on their role; in middle school, we can't seem to figure out whether we are trying to nurture a love of learning (primary) or expecting rigorous curriculum standards (high school). the two shouldn't be exclusive, but somehow they are. solve that disconnect and there should be some major improvements in student performance.
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