On March 14, 2011, nearly 20,000 college students descended upon the California state capitol in Sacramento.  While student rallies aren’t exactly a rare occurrence, the situation facing public higher education in California is like little else.

Should Governor Brown’s budget pass, the California State University (CSU) budget will have shrunk by more than 22 percent, almost $700 million dollars, since the 2007-2008 fiscal year. Unsurprisingly, students have had to make up for this shortfall – since 2002, tuition at the CSU has increased by 303 percent.

Yet, the situation in California can become even more dire: should voters reject Brown’s proposed tax extensions, the Legislative Analyst’s Office estimates the CSU will need to reduce enrollment by 21,650 students and increase tuition by another 10 percent.

Nearly three decades ago, the National Commission on Excellence in Education issued “A Nation at Risk,” a compelling report that sounded the alarm on the state of public education in America. Since then, we have spent billions of taxpayer dollars to improve our public schools. Yet American students have fallen behind their international peers in math and science, and our achievement gaps remain. 

We must do better. Our economic prosperity, national security, and quality of life for all Americans depend upon the ability of our students to compete successfully in the global economy, which places high value on knowledge and innovation in math, science, technology and engineering. As President Obama has said, “America’s prosperity has always rested on how well we educate our children – but never more so than today.”

Now, I just had a chance to talk with some of your teachers, as well as some students, who told me about your all-school project that’s weaving the life and music of Duke Ellington into your classes. And by getting students engaged in learning, you’re teaching the kinds of skills about how to think and how to work together that young people are going to need in college and beyond. That’s what all of our schools need to be doing.

And in an economy that’s more competitive and connected than ever before, a good job and a good career is going to demand a good education. Over the next 10 years, nearly half of all new jobs are going to require more than a high school diploma. So, if you want a bright future, you’re going to need a college degree or advanced training.

And as Arne [Duncan] mentioned, unfortunately too many students aren’t getting a world-class education today. As many as a quarter of American students aren’t finishing high school. The quality of our math and science education lags behind many other nations. And America has fallen to 9th in the proportion of young people with a college degree. Understand, we used to be first, and we now rank 9th. That’s not acceptable.

Over the past few years, educators and lawmakers in Ohio worked together to benefit the students of our state.

In 2009 we passed the Education Opportunity Act, which laid the groundwork for improved student achievement and teaching practice. Since then we have seen a narrowing in the achievement gaps between minority students and their counterparts. We have seen college graduation rates climb. We have seen test scores rise at a pace faster than the rest of the nation.

The Education Commission of the States recognized Ohio’s education reform plans as ambitious, inspired and comprehensive.