News
Rex says stimulus will help fix some school problems
Thursday, June 25, 2009
By FELICIA KITZMILLER/ fkitzmiller@indexjournal.com
Instead of giving a customary speech, state Superintendent of Education Jim Rex fielded questions from a TV reporter and the public at his annual State of Our Schools address.
Rex was interviewed by WIS anchor Judi Gatson before an audience of high school principals at the Summer Leadership Conference in Myrtle Beach. In addition to fielding questions from the audience and Gatson, viewers were encouraged to e-mail questions that Gatson asked Rex on air. The interview covered a wide range of topics including federal stimulus money, tax reform, vouchers and tax credits, public school choice and the No Child Left Behind Act and other accountability standards.
The $700 million in federal stabilization funds that Gov. Mark Sanford was recently forced to accept as the result of a lawsuit decided in the S.C. Supreme Court brought by the the state Association of School Administrators, will save an estimated 500 teaching jobs and 100 non-teaching jobs, Rex said.
“We’re going to see some improvement on a bad situation,” he said.
Of the $700 million, about $185 million will flow into K-12 education each of the next two years. Though the money will be helpful, it comes nowhere close to making up for the $400 million in state cuts public education has taken since last July, he said.
The degree of those state cuts is one of the reasons Rex said he is pushing for comprehensive tax reform.
