08/31/12 Janelle Irwin
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Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and education reform activist Michelle Rhee talk about a movie that brings the parent trigger debate to the big screen.
photo by Janelle Irwin
Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush used the Republican National Convention as a platform to garner support for so-called parent trigger legislation. During a panel discussion at the Straz Center for the Arts Tuesday, Bush said states need massive overhauls to their education systems.
“We have a third of our kids that are college or career ready despite spending more per student than any country in the world. We can say, ‘U.S.A. number one’, we can be proud that we won all these medals and we can brag about country, but the foundation of our country is not just cracking, it’s coming apart because two thirds of our kids won’t be able to be successful.”
Bush spoke to a crowded auditorium of Republicans after watching a movie called Won’t Back Down It’s about two women who try to take over a failing school to make it better. It echoes the parent trigger legislation that failed in Florida this year. Opponents argue it’s an effort to funnel public money into private hands. Former Washington, D.C., schools head Michelle Rhee dominated the panel discussion. She started a non-profit called Students First that advocates for education reform. Read full story
















