Transcript of education related portion of Governor Gray Davis' State of the State Address delivered Monday, January 8, 2001.   

The full text of the speech can be accessed here.

My friends, no single issue better personifies our bipartisan resolve than our collective desire to improve California public schools.

Over the last two years we've invested in education like our future depends on it, because it does.

We've asked more of our students and schools than ever before.

We've put in place the building blocks of achievement. High standards, accountability, technology, modern facilities, new tools for learning. The most aggressive teacher incentive program in America, including the biggest performance bonuses in the nation; and, most importantly, our hard work is paying off. Test scores are up, student confidence is higher, public support is growing. All across the State, we are turning higher expectations into better student achievement. I thank you for that.

You know, as well as I, the fight for our children's future will not be won overnight. But know this: We are winning it. Let me just take one school, Melvin Avenue Elementary School in Los Angeles.

Two years ago Melvin was like a lot of other schools in California: Underfunded, overcrowded, underperforming.

Two years later, things are changing, expectations are higher, students are motivated, parents are involved, teachers are more skilled.

Two years ago, Melvin was a school without a direction. Today it is a full partner in our new accountability program.

Two years ago, Melvin's teachers were undertrained and underpaid. Today, they're better paid and better trained. One of them has been nationally certified and seven more soon will be.

Two years ago, Melvin was using materials and books that were older than many of the teachers. Today, they have new textbooks; their classroom libraries will soon be fully-stocked. And by the end of the school year, they are confident every classroom will have Internet access and one computer for every six students.

Two years ago, Melvin's reading scores were among the lowest in the state. Today, 200 of their kids are attending our Reading Academies. Every primary teacher has attended our Professional Development Institutes. And this year, Melvin Avenue improved 79 points on the Academic Performance Index, six times better than their statewide target.

Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Susan Grossman, the principal of Melvin; its nationally certified teacher, Sangeeta Maithel; and one of its top students, Hugo Saavedra. Thank you for your wonderful achievement. My friends, this is a success story. But it's not just Melvin's story, it's California's story. All across the State, elementary schools are on the rise.

But we still have a lot of work to do.

Test scores show, while elementary students are improving rapidly, middle-school students are showing only modest improvement.

Educators tell me that for all our new investments, the main thing they need now is more time to teach.

And so tonight I ask for your help, as I propose extending the school year in California by 30 days, starting where the need is greatest, right there in our middle schools.

That is 30 days of additional classroom instruction. No busy work; just teaching. Now, this program is voluntary. But the schools and teachers who participate will receive generous financial incentives and strict accountability measures will be put in place.

It's just a month, but it adds up to the longest school year in the nation. And it will make a huge difference for our children, as they cross the critical bridge between elementary and high school.

Now, we also need to match high standards with high-quality instruction.

Two years ago, you were good enough to allow us to send 6,000 teachers to attend the Professional Development Institutes, organized by the University of California. Last year, we funded an additional 70,000 teachers.

It has been the most ambitious, and I believe the most effective teacher-training initiative ever launched in America. And it has produced some of the best-trained, most highly-motivated teachers in America.

Over the next three years, we simply must give every teacher who teaches math or reading the benefit of this experience.

That's 200,000 math and reading teachers receiving 40 hours of intensive out-of-the-classroom training and 80 hours of critical follow-up support, all according to UC standards.

Together, we can build the best-trained, most highly-skilled army of teachers ever. I say, let's do it. Now, when my wife and I visit schools, we've seen firsthand how a strong and determined principal, like Melvin's Susan Grossman, can literally elevate a school. So this year, I will request funds to train every principal and every vice-principal in California -- 15,000 in all -- in programs that meet University of California criteria.

But there's more to the equation. Studies show that young people who take algebra succeed at much higher rates than those who don't.

To the next generation of Californians, I say this: Do the math.

Ninety percent of all new jobs require advanced math skills. More than ever, math is the doorway to higher learning and future successes.

Since I've taken office, we've been implementing the toughest math standards in the nation.

Last year, I was very pleased to sign Senator Poochigian's bill that requires, for the first time, that every student in California must take algebra before they graduate from high school. And I say, it was about time.

But our challenge now is recruiting 1,300 new algebra teachers to meet this new demand.

So I will ask you to fund a 30 million-dollar algebra initiative. Again, this is a financial incentive for schools to attract and retain high-quality algebra teachers.

While we've been investing in our oldest students, we shouldn't forget our youngest.

Too many children step aboard a school bus for the first time without developing a solid foundation for learning, right from the start.

To help our children prepare for the rigors of the classroom, I will appoint a task force led by my new Secretary for Education, Kerry Mazzoni, in partnership with the California Children and Families Commission, including its chairman, Rob Reiner, to explore a comprehensive "school readiness" initiative.

I will ask them to focus on finding ways to provide local communities with critical resources, including Proposition 10 funds, to help prepare our children for a lifetime of learning and success.

Please join me in welcoming and thanking my new Secretary of Education, Kerry Mazzoni, and Chairman Rob Reiner.