The political and bureaucratic allegiances that have prevented substantive reform in public schools for decades continue to threaten the academic success of our young people. Liberal and conservative groups are still lining up behind elected officials and education groups who share their views about the nature of the problems in schools, without any serious consideration being given to what’s best for students. Closely aligned groups on both sides are not showing any promising signs or renewed commitment to coming together around common academic goals that make sense in the context of the real challenges facing our nation’s youth. Even as parent groups form across the country, many of their most urgent concerns are being ignored by the educational elites. What’s amazing is that the entrenched interest groups in the education industry are using the same old tired excuses for why there have been no measurable improvements in schools for two decades. They continue to attack school innovations with the notion that they don’t reach all students; failing to acknowledge the disgraceful reality that existing schools don’t even come close to reaching half of the enrolled students. They also fail to realize that parents are really tuned in now and are giving up on the perennial empty promises that have been made by the same voices for decades. We are witnessing record numbers of parents who are enrolling their children in new school prototypes that reflect new visions and approaches for helping students excel academically. The long waiting lists for charter schools and school vouchers in many cities across the country testify to this growing phenomenon.

Those of us who are truly committed to transforming schools have known for a very long time that status quo educators are not only resistant to meaningful school improvement, but are more focused on pushing their selfish interests, personal biases, and hidden agendas, regardless of the effects on student academic achievement. We are familiar with the lack of vision and the level of immaturity that are rampant among those who run schools and school districts. As school leaders concentrate on protecting their turf, pleasing their cronies, and promoting their research topics, America’s schoolchildren are left behind. The sad outcomes continue to be neglected students, shameful academic progress, lowered expectations of students, and rock bottom school performance. At what point will the adults fully understand that their inability or unwillingness to interpret the academic needs and desires of students is essentially blocking progress at the elementary and secondary grade levels. It is indeed a false choice for policymakers, administrators, bureaucrats, special interest groups and associations, and elected officials to believe that their professional and personal agendas are more important than the learning needs of our youth. When you hear the complaints and arguments of educational elites, you wonder whether they even care about the students and are they so fearful of innovation and reform that they would rather run the risk of losing another generation of schoolchildren.