To the Editor:

I was disturbed to read that Avron Fogelman will propose lowering education standards for students in the Memphis City School system.

Everyone recognizes Mr. Fogelman’s longstanding and passionate commitment to improving public education and expanding opportunities for post-secondary education. He has devoted considerable personal resources toward improving the lives of many in the Memphis community and his philanthropy is giving hope to young men and women who might not otherwise have the opportunity to further their education beyond high school.

However, Mr. Fogelman’s proposal to move away from a rigorous set of education standards is not the answer. At no time in our history has a quality education been more vital to one’s ability to compete and succeed in the marketplace. The growing mismatch between what employers are demanding and employees are bringing to job market threatens to frustrate our region’s and nation’s continued growth. Therefore, it is imperative that leadership at all levels, in both the public and private sectors do all it can to raise academic standards and set the highest expectations of all students.

To illustrate the point, a recent report commissioned by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on the availability of a qualified workforce shows that employers are experiencing great difficulties in hiring and retaining skilled workers. The study found that two-thirds of employers report severe conditions when trying to hire qualified workers. A full one-third report that job applicants are "poorly skilled."

Our challenge is clear. Student achievement in the Memphis City School system is appallingly low, as demonstrated by the most recent Tennessee state report cards. Rather than weakening the tests, our focus should be on strengthening our students by improving teacher performance and curricula.

We should require tests that measure student performance against an established set of benchmarks, not just the performance of other students. Mr. Fogelman expresses a legitimate concern that the Memphis school system lacks the resources to give every child the education he or she deserves. Although public education is primarily a state and local responsibility, I am actively pursuing policy solutions to make the federal government a better partner by reforming Title I and providing substantially more funding to our neediest schools, including those in Memphis.

While Mr. Fogelman’s testing proposal is misplaced, his heart is not. A fitting model of public- private cooperation already exists in the form a national group known as Achieve, Inc. This bipartisan group of Governors and CEOs, including IBM Chairman Louis Gerstner, Jr., Governor Roy Barnes (D-GA) and Governor John Engler (R-MI), developed a number of initiatives to raise student achievement. Locally, a coalition of business and political leaders who lobbied so aggressively and successfully for the public financing of a new basketball arena should reunite under the banner of student achievement. Following the model of Achieve, Inc., the group could marshal its resources, enthusiasm and creativity to develop new approaches to raising standards and providing all young people with the opportunity to live out their dreams.

If we set the bar high for all our students and then support their efforts, they will not disappoint us.

Sincerely,

HAROLD FORD, JR.
Member of Congress