NORMAN — With a new school year just beginning, this is an exciting time for students, teachers and parents alike. Aside from catching up with old friends, a new school year brings new friends, new class schedules and a host of opportunities to excel inside and outside the classroom.
Parents and educators, too, are eager to see students learn, achieve, and take a step toward their dreams. But achieving those dreams will require hard work on everyone’s part.
A first-class education is the prerequisite for the high-tech, high-paying jobs of the future, and that means bringing together committed teachers, diligent students and involved parents. All three elements are essential for our students to succeed.
We’ve taken great steps in the last decade to boost student achievement in Oklahoma. Oklahoma’s nationally recognized, voluntary pre-K program for 4 year olds helps ensure that students are prepared for the classroom. All-day kindergarten is laying a solid foundation for a lifetime of learning.
In higher grades, the Achieving Classroom Excellence, or ACE, initiative is raising academic standards and expectations to ensure a meaningful high school diploma.
The Oklahoma’s Promise scholarship program is helping thousands of state students attend college, while the success of the endowed chairs program and the generosity of many donors have helped make a college education in Oklahoma better than ever.
But despite all our efforts in the State Capitol, the real work still happens in the classroom. I applaud our hardworking teachers; they are true public servants who have a profound and lasting influence on the future of our state.
Teachers will be helped along the way by dedicated parents and community members to whom we also owe our gratitude. Best wishes to all the teachers, students and parents for a fantastic school year.
If you have questions or comments, please write me at the Office of the Governor, Room 212, Oklahoma City OK 73105 or visit the “Contact the Governor” section of my website, www.governor.ok.gov.
