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Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Antonio Villaraigosa: It is Time for Teachers Unions to Join the Education Reform Team

Antonio Villaraigosa: It is Time for Teachers Unions to Join the Education Reform Team

Read my Education Reform Strategy here.

Read the text of my keynote on Education Reform at the Public Policy Institute of California here.

In the 60s, when I was in school, the California public school system was the gold standard--a national model that complemented our State's image as a land of opportunity.

Today, our schools rank in the bottom third among all states, we are out-spent by $2,400 per pupil, and we fail to graduate a full quarter of our students. What happened?

Well, I've spent an entire career fighting to fund and reform our public schools--first as a teacher union organizer, then as an Assembly Member and Speaker, and now as a Mayor.

In the past five years, I've partnered with students, parents, non-profits, business groups, higher education, charter organizations, school district leadership, elected board members, and teacher