U.S. Chamber President Addresses the Need for Education Reform

Outlines Five Core Principles to Strengthen America's Education System

WASHINGTON, D.C.-In a major address on education, President and CEO Thomas Donohue spoke out on the need for reform stating "unless we turn education around, America we will lose jobs, productivity, and, eventually hope. The social fabric that holds our nation together will begin to unravel." At today's event hosted by the Rotary Club of Washington D.C., he outlined five core principles needed to strengthen America's education system in order for it to successfully compete in the 21st century.

"It's perfectly clear that the toughest, most important competitive race in the 21st century worldwide economy will be the global race for talent and workers," said Donohue. "We can't afford to lose any more of America's children. And if the business community has anything to say about it, we won't."

The five core ideas the Chamber believes are necessary to strengthen and reform the nation's education system are: (1) changing the way we train, pay, and evaluate our teachers; (2) giving school administrators greater independence to run their schools; (3) collecting more data to accurately measure results such as teacher performance and return on investment; (4) implementing more rigorous academic standards and a system to measure whether schools are meeting them; and (5) focusing on innovation and evaluation.

Donohue went on to state that the Chamber supports the reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act and is urging Congress not only to reauthorize the legislation but to strengthen it. He also said the Chamber will continue to promote Leaders and Laggards, a national report card that grades all 50 states and D.C. on performance in such areas as academic achievement, return on investment, rigor of standards, and data quality. The Chamber is also working with state and local chambers-as well as community colleges-to ensure that our education system works in tandem with the employer community.

"What has long made the American private sector an engine of global prosperity is its dynamism, creativity, and relentless focus on efficiency and results," said Donohue. "America cannot afford to fall behind as the rest of the world races ahead. The world will not stop and wait while our students catch up."

The U.S. Chamber is the world's largest business federation representing more than 3 million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region.

The speech can be viewed by clicking here.

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