Texas governor candidates Bill White, Rick Perry clash over schools
09:20 AM CDT on Wednesday, October 27, 2010
AUSTIN – Gov. Rick Perry says Texas' public schools are good and getting better. His Democratic challenger, Bill White, says schools have suffered at the hands of the Republican incumbent for a decade and need help from new leadership.
Voters get to settle that debate Tuesday, but one thing is clear: Education has emerged as a marquee issue in the governor's race for the first time since George W. Bush's winning campaigns in the 1990s.
White has pounded on Perry for high student dropout rates, low SAT scores, overemphasis on testing and the state's fight over federal funds to preserve teacher jobs.
Perry has dismissed those complaints, saying schools have surged forward during his tenure and have been recognized by a handful of studies showing solid gains on achievement tests and in dropout prevention.
"I don't care how you measure it," he recently told an audience of