Lawmakers, I call on you to join me. We will give educators the powers and the tools that they need to spend that money effectively. We will not leave Olympia this session until we have removed the barriers hindering academic performance and great teaching. Specifically, we'll agree to abolish the current education code and have a new one in place by 2004. To get the ball rolling, I propose to waive regulations for schools that want to set even higher achievement standards and to reward schools for meeting those goals.
Exceptional teachers deserve exceptional compensation.
My proposal calls for select school districts to lead the way and design a new teacher compensation system based on knowledge, skill and performance. To further encourage great teaching, and to increase the number of great educators, we will adopt alternative certification programs for teachers. If a Microsoft retiree wants to teach math she should be able to do so without going back to college for an education degree. The Professional Standards Board we created just six months ago has devised a quicker method for qualified people to get into the classroom. So a person can retire from one profession in May and be teaching in September.