Funding. Standards. Choice.
The Better Public Education Plan
Fully Funding Education
For decades, the Oregon Legislature has funded K-12 education at a level well below what is necessary to provide students with a quality education. The Better Public Education Plan fully funds Oregon’s K-12 education system, providing the billions of dollars that will allow each child to receive a quality education.
Restoring Standards
In 2023, the Oregon Board of Education suspended the Essential Skills graduation standards for students. The standards are simple: students should be able to read, write, and do math at a level necessary to graduate high school and be successful. Instead, thousands of Oregon students are graduating high school without the skills to succeed.
Oregon students deserve better than the soft bigotry of low expectations and restoring graduation standards into law will ensure that student progress is measured and the students that need additional help, get it.
Expanding Learning Options
The Better Public Education Plan expands options for students and their families in several ways:
Education Savings Accounts. For students from low-income families or with special needs, an Education Savings Account allows parents to use the tax dollars spent on their child’s public education in the way that’s best for them. They can spend that money on private schools, virtual learning, tutoring, or other educational needs that are best for their student.
Open Enrollment. The Plan allows a student to transfer from the public school they’re currently attending to a public school in another school district that is a better learning environment for them.
Increasing Access to Virtual Public Charter Schools. Existing Oregon law limits enrollment in a virtual public charter school to no more than 3 percent of a school district’s total enrollment. Virtual public charter schools have been an invaluable resource for students across Oregon, providing them with the learning environment that suits their unique learning needs. The Better Public Education Plan eliminates the arbitrary 3 percent cap, giving more students a choice that has worked for thousands of Oregon students.