Legislators who are truly interested in renewing our education system so it can respond to the changing needs of our economy ought to come together to study and review the recommendations of the recently released report by the Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce, "Tough Choices or Tough Times." As Mark Tucker, the vice chairman, said, "We've squeezed everything we can out of a system that was designed a century ago ... we've ... tried every program we can think of and not gotten significantly better results. This is the sign of a system that has reached its limits."

The commission is calling for a complete overhaul of our nation's education system which, they say, is not a blue print, rather a framework to start a national dialogue, much like the "Nation at Risk" report 25 years ago. It, too, warned that " ... unless improvements are made in the nation's public schools and colleges ... a large number of jobs would be lost to countries like India and China, where workers are better educated and paid much less than their U.S. counterparts." The report calls for "out of the box" ideas such as authorizing school districts to pay companies to run the schools much like charter schools, allowing 10th grade students to take board exams to enter college, paying teachers $100,000 in lieu of benefits, universal kindergarten, adult education and restructuring school financing to name a few.

Maybe some state leaders will be able to resist giving in to special interest groups, rise above blind party loyalty, stop tinkering with quick fixes such as vouchers and choice, and take up the challenge laid down by a commission that has set forth some revolutionary ideas to renew education for the 21st century. Maybe then they could consider what role, if any, a school board might play.

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Utah native John Florez has founded several Hispanic civil rights organizations, served on the staff of Sen. Orrin Hatch and on more than 45 state, local and volunteer boards. He also has been deputy assistant secretary of labor. E-mail: jdflorez@comcast.net