No matter how loud they shouted, a group of anti-Israel protesters could not prevent Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) from speaking at the University of Florida on Wednesday about illegal protests on college campuses. .
In many ways, the incident was a microcosm of the governor's education policy agenda in the Sunshine State: to drown out the noise and move forward. And this week, this approach was once again proven to be successful. US News & World Report Ranked Florida as the best educated state in the nation.
Today, the Sunshine State consistently ranks at or near the top of education rankings from conservative groups such as the Heritage Foundation, which says the state has many strong parental rights protections and a universal school choice program. I am evaluating it.but us news The rankings prove that the state provides a model for good education policymaking, even by traditional metrics.
The rankings use several data-driven metrics to rank states by educational outcomes. Five indicators pertain to higher education and another five pertain to K-12 education. Florida ranks highly in three higher education indicators: four-year and two-year graduation rates, tuition and fees, where Florida ranks among the top two in the nation. The state also ranked her fifth in the K-12 school readiness category.
DeSantis has faced much controversy and vitriol from the left, but the rankings are yet another validation of his approach to education policy. In this success, the governor took revenge for the malicious and dishonest smear campaign carried out against him.
The fact that Florida has the lowest tuition fees in the country (despite being the best place to live) is nothing short of an amazing accomplishment. Although college costs have ballooned in recent years, the average tuition for in-state students is $4,613, less than half the national average of $9,678.
Over the past two years, Mr. DeSantis and Republicans in the Florida Legislature have waged and won battles against education cartels at both the K-12 and college levels. Given the fact that states have persevered in their pursuit of educational freedom in the face of corporate boycotts and pressure campaigns, as well as legal and administrative efforts by the Biden administration and traditional education groups such as teachers. , this result is even more impressive. Union.
As Florida has shown, the key to achieving educational success is to educate institutions, students, and families about what is possible within an ever-growing educational ecosystem, while keeping overt political agendas out of classrooms and offices. It's about giving them the freedom to choose from as many options as possible.
Florida allows school choice, so Florida parents can send their children wherever they want, whether it's public school, private school, or homeschooling, as soon as their children reach school age. . This educational freedom continues through high school. That's because, thanks to DeSantis' education policy, students are no longer limited to taking her SAT or ACT to apply to the state's public universities. Alternative exams, such as the Classic Learning Test, are now considered on par with traditional exams, expanding the range of high-quality options students can rely on to fairly measure their academic performance.
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The commitment to a better path extends to higher education, with Florida cutting down on administrative bloat and ideological alignment by banning diversity, equity, and inclusion bureaucracies, and cutting back on political indoctrination. We have appointed university trustees who are dedicated to educational excellence. Additionally, to protect Florida schools from overly intrusive accreditors, state universities are now required to change accreditors every 10 years.
In three years, Florida's education ecosystem has been completely reshaped to one that values ​​freedom over bureaucratic control. Detractors can accuse Mr. DeSantis and Republicans all they like of destroying education in the state, but the results are clear. When it comes to education, the Sunshine State outperforms other states.