Candidates' Stance on Education

Candidates have remained mum as to whether they would can NCLB; publicly their stance is that NCLB needs considerable tweaking before it is reauthorized.

Obama cites some research which sounds like my organization's findings on drop outs (drop outs show evidence of wanting to go back to school, also mentions Diploma Plus); relatively little on higher ed accountability. On teacher policy, threads a pretty cautious path between support and accountability, with strong emphasis on more pay and mentoring. Cites Denver plan as a model for compensation as an incentive. On college access, mentions Gear UP and Trio.

Competitive Grants for Evidence-Based Models to Help Students Graduate: Studies show that a majority of students who leave high school without a diploma continue to pursue the goal of high school graduation. Unfortunately, states and districts lack the resources to make substantial investments in alternative education pathways. Non-profit and community-based organizations have tried to fill in the gap, but they lack substantial resources. As president,Barack Obama will establish a competitive grant process open to existing or proposed public/private partnerships or entities that are pursuing evidence-based models that work - such as Diploma Plus or Teacher Advisor programs. These grants will decrease the dropout rate by increasing the capacity of state and district leaders as well as outside leaders - foundations, politicians, entrepreneurs, and community leaders - to collaborate on improving graduation rates.

Hilary Clinton's platform both discusses her record and makes proposals for how she would spend money. A strong proponent of universal Pre-K, Clinton's plan also talks of creating greater alignment between K-12 and higher education standards. This also includes greater financial investment in the country's community colleges as well as ensuring facility in the transfer of earned credits. Considerably more concrete than Obama's with this reference to its interests on drop outs and higher ed:


Identify at-risk youth early on and provide $1 billion in intensive interventions, such as early college high schools and multiple pathways to graduation, to get them back on track. Double the after school program to ensure that 2 million young people have a safe and stimulating place to go between 3 and 6 p.m. Invest $100 million in a new public/private summer internship program. Provide opportunity for 1.5 million disconnected youth in job programs linked to high-growth economic sectors.



McCain doesn't have education as a topic on his website.