President Obama: We Must Not Cut Our Priorities

Miami Central Senior High School was on the verge of being closed down just a few years ago. Today, it has seen increases of 40 percent in writing and a graduation rate that jumped to 63 percent from a bottom of the barrel 36 percent. The school received a $785,000 School Improvement Grant from the Department of Education and the praise of President Obama.

"You are proving the naysayers wrong - you are proving that progress is possible," Obama said. "There is always plenty of naysayers out there who will say it's not even possible, who say that turning around failing school means just throwing good money after bad, who say too many of these schools are beyond repair, who say we ought to give up on those schools and focus on places that have more breaks and have a little more going for them. Here's what I say. I say I am not willing to give up on any child in America."

That's the message Obama is sending to every school aged kid in America as he kicks off "Education Month." The federal government is using the school improvement grants to rejuvenate schools like Miami Central Senior High.

Last year, the Department of Education gave out $3.5 billion worth of the grants. This year the Obama administration will increase the grants by $545 million. They requires schools to take solid steps to turn around their schools by adopting one of four models:

Turnaround Model:Replace the principal, screen existing school staff, and rehire no more than half the teachers; adopt a new governance structure; and improve the school through curriculum reform, professional development, extending learning time, and other strategies.
Restart Model:Convert a school or close it and re-open it as a charter school or under an education management organization.
School Closure:Close the school and send the students to higher-achieving schools in the district.
Transformation Model:Replace the principal and improve the school through comprehensive curriculum reform, professional development, extending learning time, and engaging the community and families

"A good education equals a good job. If we want more good news on the jobs front, then we've got to make more investments in education. As a nation, making these investments -- in education, in innovation, in infrastructure -- all of them are essential," Obama said.

The president also used this as an opportunity to talk about how now is not the time to cut things that can help the country grow. Educating our young people is one of those things.

"If we want more good news on the jobs front then we've got to make more investments in education,'' Mr. Obama told students in a crowded gymnasium. He went on, "I want everybody to understand: Our job is not just to cut. Even as we find ways to cut spending what we can't do is cut back on investments like education.''

The president is right. If our country is to be successful, it starts with education. We won't have the people with the necessary skills to run the country if our schools are failing. Before we get down to making budget cuts, it's important to have our priorities in order.