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The way Gov. Pawlenty sees it, too many high school students aren't getting the skills they'll need to land 21st century jobs. He zeroed in on high schools back in January during his State of the State speech.

"Another hard reality we have to face is this: American high schools are obsolete in their current form," Pawlenty said. 

The Republican governor was introducing a package of proposals aimed at beefing up secondary education. His harsh assessment of high schools was followed by an even harsher assessment of high school students.

"Too many of our high school students today are engaged in academic loitering for much of their high school career," Pawlenty said. "In too many cases our high school students are bored, checked out, coasting, not even vaguely aware of their post high school plans, if they have any. And they are just marking time."

Pawlenty says he wants high school students engaged and performing at high academic levels, whether they're heading to college or not. He says some schools get it, but many don't. 


The approach used at one suburban school recently caught the governor's attention. He  took his weekly radio show on the road in March to talk about his high school reform initiatives. 

The governor showcased Bloomington Kennedy, because he says the school is already doing much of what he wants for the rest of the state.

"We're talking, in part, this morning about how we can improve our schools. Certainly they need more money, because their costs are going up," Pawlenty said during his program. 

"But we also want to ask the question, are there ways to modernize our schools and improve them that are more relevant to the economy and careers of today and tomorrow, rather than 50 year ago or 40 years ago or 30 years ago?"

Pawlenty wants other high schools to follow Bloomington Kennedy's lead by challenging students of all ability levels. 

His budget includes $75 million to encourage more high schools to offer rigorous courses. Another $15 million would expand the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate opportunities statewide. 

Students would be required to take at least one year of college-level instruction during high school, as well as more math, science and foreign languages. Pawlenty wants all classes to be more relevant for today's technology-savvy students.

"These are people who spend a great deal of time on YouTube, My Space, the Internet, text messaging, cell phones that are social devices,  and phones and cameras. They absorb information and learn information fundamentally differently than my generation," Pawlenty said. 

"And yet, we have an educational system that is white boards and dry-erase markers, with people getting up and lecturing to them. And then we wonder why they're bored."

Pawlenty isn't the first governor to zero in on high schools. Policymakers throughout the country have embraced the issue. They've been spurred in large part by Bill Gates and the $1.8 billion his foundation has invested in high school reform. 

President Bush wants high school improvement addressed as part of the reauthorization of the federal No Child Left Behind Law. The National Governors Association is also influencing the discussion, and Tim Pawlenty is currently vice chairman of the NGA.

"High school reform is high on the agenda of nearly every governor in the country," said      Thomas Toch, co-director of Education Sector, an independent, nonpartisan think tank based in Washington. 

Toch has written extensively on the high school reform movement. He says all governors care about the work force and the business climate in their states. He says they know that too many unskilled high school dropouts can become a drag on the economy. 

"They require, typically, more resources in the form of unemployment compensation, and larger numbers of them are incarcerated and the like," Toch said. "So, the cost of failing to educate students to a high standard through high school is substantial to states, and the governors recognize that."

Toch says high school reform is also a good political issue for governors. That's because parents tend to worry -- and they tend to vote.

"There are large numbers of middle class families that are concerned about the ability of their students to get the kind of jobs in today's global, knowledge-based economy that will provide them with a living wage, that will provide them access to the middle class or beyond," said Toch. "So politicians are able to serve that large constituency with attention to the high school problem."

Pawlenty is also pushing for more demanding career and technical opportunities in all high schools. At Bloomington Kennedy, he met with students who've designed and built motorcycles in a program known as the Chopper Project. 

One of the students is Ryan Kaulbars, a senior who's planning to go to college next year but hasn't quite decide what he'll study. Kaulbars told the governor the Chopper Project is the reason he shows up for school.

"This is my passion. I love building things," said Kaulbars. "I build cars on the side. And this is just what makes me tick."

Kaulbars is the kind of motivated and engaged student Pawlenty likes to see. 

There's a personal side to the governor's view of high school students. Pawlenty, who graduated from South St. Paul High School in 1979, worked hard to make sure he had options after high school. He wants today's students doing the same.

"In high school, I was highly motivated. My mom passed away when I was in 10th grade, of cancer, and not long after that my dad lost his job. And I realized that if I was going to make it, or try to get by, I needed an education," Pawlenty said. 

"So I was highly engaged and highly motivated, mostly out of fear and concern that if I didn't try hard and didn't get good grades I wasn't going to get into college, or I wasn't going to get any help with college."     

Three months after his State of the State speech, Pawlenty remains concerned about high school students, their future and the potential cost to the state if they don't succeed. 

But he no longer uses the word "obsolete" to describe high schools -- after hearing a great deal of criticism for his use of the term. 

"I was quoting Bill Gates. Bill Gates stepped forward at a National Governors Association meeting a year and a half or so ago, and said that American high schools are obsolete, and that trying to prepare students for the economy of the future with today's high school model is like using a 50-year-old mainframe," Pawlenty said. "But that's a little startling to many educators who are working hard in high schools, so we downplayed that term."

LEGISLATURE HAS OTHER EDUCATION PRIORITIES

The governor's change in terminology hasn't helped his high school plan gain traction at the State Capitol. Lawmakers have been focusing more on early childhood and special education funding, instead of high schools. 

The DFL-controlled Senate largely ignored Pawlenty's proposals in its education bill. 
In the House, Democrats have increased funding for advanced instruction and college credit opportunities, but they say the governor wasn't the reason.

"I think the governor is always quick to catch a national sound bite and try to apply to Minnesota, whether it fits or not. And this one doesn't fit," said Rep. Mindy Greiling, DFL-Roseville, who chairs the House K-12 Finance Committee. 

Greiling says the governor's high school reform agenda hasn't made much of a splash because no one has been complaining about Minnesota high schools.    

"I think the governor is very in tune with the National Governors Association, and more out of tune with Minnesotans with his high school reform proposals," said Greiling. "We've been listening to the people in the high schools in Minnesota, so our proposal is more reflective of Minnesota."

But the governor insists the flat academic performance he sees in Minnesota high schools is a quiet crisis. 

Pawlenty says he's worried the state might fall further behind in a competitive world if improvements don't come soon. He says just providing more money to an outdated system won't get the state where it needs to be.

Gallery

Politics and Government News

Tim Pugmire

Author

Gov. Tim Pawlenty is determined to modernize high schools, to better prepare students for the competitive world they'll face after graduation. Pawlenty's crusade is both political and personal.

Pawlenty's motivation is part politics, part personal

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