Ensuring Excellence in Education 

 Prioritizing education for tomorrow's students

     By 2010, the Legislature's Office of Economic and Demographic Research (EDR) predicts that Florida will need more than 100,000 new teachers. This astonishing figure nearly equals the number of teachers currently in our neighborhood schools. This shortage will only be made worse if the Legislature continues to keep teachers' salaries low. One-time bonuses and short-term schemes are not the answer. The average Florida teacher salary is more than $6,000 below the national average, and this is wrong and harmful to our education system. If we expect to keep our best and brightest teachers, while attracting the educators of tomorrow, we must start paying and treating our teachers like the professional they are.

 I will fight for excellence in education

     I have more than a decade of experience in education reform, including six years on the local Board of Education and five years as the President of the Public Kindergarten Coalition. As a State Legislator, I introduced groundbreaking legislation for public kindergarten and spearheaded a state resolution to enable Public/Private partnerships aimed at encouraging science and technology studies in schools. The task of reforming our education system in Florida will not be an easy one, but my experience tells me it can be done. As your next State Senator, I will continue to fight for the values embodied in a quality education, and I will continue to ensure that all children have the opportunity to succeed.