With just under a month to go before election day, New Jersey Republican gubernatorial candidate Bret Schundler discussed his proposals to reform the garden state's education policy in the Whig Senate Chamber last night.
"Schools that are responsive to parents don't rely on bureaucracy," Schundler said. "When politicians control [education] they respond to different pressures and money winds up being spent outside the classroom."
Schundler's come-from-behind victory in the Republican primary against former Rep. and Senate candidate Bob Franks attracted national media attention and placed him in a race against frontrunner Democrat Woodbridge mayor Jim McGreevey.
In an election year that had been put on hold by the events of September 11, the gubernatorial candidates are now refocusing their efforts on platform issues such as education.
College Republicans and Whig-Clio had invited McGreevey to debate Schundler or to talk in a separate event, but McGreevey declined both invitations, Whig-Clio President Jonathan Ophardt '03.
Calling himself an "empowerment Republican," Schundler — the current Jersey City Mayor — outlined a proposal to foster independent educational entrepreneurship and charter school expansion.
"Parents want money in the classroom not wasted in bureaucracy," Schundler said.
Now New Jersey has franchises overseen by politicians who are "worried about getting voted out of office," Schundler said. He added that he wants to move the "accountability to parents."
Charter schools would allow parents the choice of taking their child out of the existing school system and enrolling he or she in a separate program started by an individual educator. The schools would also comply with all regulations that pertain to existing schools.
By giving parents school choice through the charter school movement, Schundler said he thought parents would be able to fulfill their "moral obligation" to attain the best opportunity for their childern.
"Government would allow parents to fulfill their human desire, not 'We're going to do something whether you like it or not,'" Schundler said.
Responding to questions about the efficacy of charter schools, Schundler said he was not worried about retaining top students in existing school systems.
High-achievement students, Schundler said, would remain in their school system while students who were not as successful would move to charter schools.
There would "not be creaming," Schundler said, or the attrition of top students from existing schools.
"Instead of [teachers being] wage-laborers let them be professionals," Schundler said.
In addition to his proposals to bring charter schools out of regional districts and into local school zones, Schundler outlined his ideas to reform the state's tenure system and to increase accountability of teachers through testing.
If there has been no progress from the beginning to the end of the year in a class, then it has failed, Schundler said.
"Currently there is no penalty or accountability," he said.
More frequent testing would improve the efficiency of the school system while tenure would continue to protect the academic freedom.
"There is nothing wrong with tests that test for basic skills like reading and arithmetic," Schundler said.
Though Schundler said he was optimistic about the gubernatorial race he expressed concern about media exposure.
"The problem is we don't get covered," Schundler said. "And the Philadelphia and New York television market is expensive."
A series of four televised debates starts tomorrow night at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark.
As election day approaches, Schundler said he is optimistic that the media would cover the election in greater depth.
"We both have $9 million to spend so we will both get a message out," Schundler said.
"I think [McGreevey] will attack me on abortion and gun control," Schundler anticipated.
Schundler said that his campaign would focus in on McGreevey's history of raising taxes in light of the current economic malaise.
"Raising taxes like his record shows," Schundler said would prolong the recession.
"We're getting closer each day," he added.
The most recent Quinnipiac poll shows Schundler closing the gap — McGreevey leads Schundler by a 14-point margin.
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