Perhaps the greatest tragedy about American elementary and secondary public education is that the students who live in poverty and come from the toughest neighborhoods and domestic situations are often the victims of some of the worst school environments. Somehow we’ve failed to provide a safe haven and learning sanctuary for talented students who desperately need a place to go where they can feel a sense of value and encouragement. We know that there are scores of gifted young people residing in communities that are saturated by all kinds of negative externalities. And historically, schools had been the one place where many of them discovered and nurtured their gifts and talents to the point that they were able to reach heights that may have been unimaginable. Even today, there are still those students whose academic achievement gives them opportunities in life that exceed their impoverished conditions. However, what’s strikingly different in today’s climate as opposed to just a few decades in the past is that many adults in the room are in no mood to sacrifice on behalf of our students. Whereas you used to be able to take for granted that parents and teachers would do whatever it took to support learning and achievement for our youth, the reality of the 21^st century are the competing agendas and loyalties of the adults in the room.

Despite the selfishness and greed that seem to distract so many adult constituencies in the education arena, there are still enough voices to maintain the volume and accelerate the pace of large scale school reform. Ultimately, parental activism and the broader public concern will elevate and legitimize the efforts of the entrepreneurial movement in public education. It’s time out for playing politics and games when it comes to the education of our youth. Our students deserve better than what a lot of grownups are putting forth. Students can’t learn in physical spaces that are dysfunctional and falling apart, nor can they excel in classrooms where the desks and chairs are broken. Even further, it’s simply not fair to expect learners to meet high academic standards when their instructors condescend toward them and project low expectations of them. We owe America’s students across all income classes, the opportunity to learn in classrooms and schools that reflect not only the highest expectations of them as learners, but also provide the tools and resources that are needed to assist them as they progress. My commitment, along with the cadre of school reformers who make up a wide spectrum of professions, industries, and sectors, is to ensure that every child at least has access to a high quality education at the elementary and secondary levels.