California’s Race to the Top: Senator Romero’s Opening Remarks

Senator Gloria Romero -- California’s Race to the Top: Senator Romero’s Opening Remarks

“Today, decades after the Brown decision, we still have a form of segregation in our public school system. Nearly 80 percent of students in our lowest-performing schools are African American or Latino. Poor students and students of color are four times more likely to have under-prepared teachers. We have an achievement gap for African Americans, Latinos, and English learners that has been both persistent and pernicious – confirmed again with new test scores released just last week.

“Over the years, many of us in this Senate and in this room have advanced innovative legislation to find new ways to reform and transform public education. Impressive efforts have happened at the local level—oftentimes in spite of Sacramento or Washington. That includes: the use of student data to improve instruction and reward teachers in Long Beach and Fresno; an alternative compensation program in San Francisco that resulted from collaboration with the teachers union; a focus on better, not just more, high-quality charter schools throughout the state; a parents’ revolution that is captivating Los Angeles.