CommissionerSam.com - Education

A Commitment to Sustainability

The Office — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 17:27:18 -0700

Sam and Commissioner Saltzman display the freshly signed "Commitment Statement"On Tuesday, June 10th, the Commissioners Dan Saltzman and Sam Adams welcomed community leaders to sign a commitment statement to create a Sustainability Center of Excellence to establish Portland and Oregon as the global leader in sustainability. This commitment statement has been embraced by leaders from the business, academic and nonprofit sectors, and sets in motion a process for working together to develop a large, multi-faceted center.

While individual momentum has propelled Portland forward, the Center will centralize diverse and innovative skills in a way that promotes cross-fertilization, collaborative decision-making and greater visibility in the national and international arena.

"To achieve the vision of being the world's best we all need to come together in one initiative. I believe our collaboration improves the scope, reach and probability of success for each of us," Sam offered the group in his opening remarks.

The City is working to find an interim space for the center, which could open as early as this fall. At the same time, a working group is being convened to determine the long-term location and programmatic development for the center. Recommendations will be made to the broader group in September.

More than 100 businesses, academic institutions and nonprofit organizations have expressed their support for this visionary approach, and many more are expected to join in their support as the center begins to take shape. These include Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, Gerding Edlen Development, Oregon BEST, Portland State University, Multnomah County, Green Building Services, Lewis and Clark Law School, and the Association of Portland Neighborhood Business Associations.

To sign up your organization, please contact sustainable.portland@gmail.com

Once upon a school

Jane Ames — Thu, 22 May 2008 13:37:23 -0700

Dave Eggers, author, winner of the 2008 TED Prize and founder of 826 Valencia, wished to collect 1,000 stories of private citizens engaged in their area public schools. He called upon every adult to bring their time, skill, and energy to bear on the lives of students.

In collaboration with teachers and schools around the world, people are making his wish a reality.

Now it’s your turn...

The challenge

Design and implement a new and innovative project for local public school students. Collaborate with a dynamic teacher or school to determine the best use of your skills and passion. There are no limitations to what is possible.

Participate by telling your project story

Tell us the general idea of your project, how you shared and employed your particular expertise and creativity. Discuss how you planned and executed your project. Describe the results, how your efforts made a teacher’s life easier.

Find more information and commit to taking part in the challenge here:

www.onceuponaschool.org/?page_id=191

NYT: Higher Education Gap May Slow Economic Mobility

Kimberly Schneider — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 09:44:24 -0800

By ERIK ECKHOLM
Published: February 20, 2008

Economic mobility, the chance that children of the poor or middle class will climb up the income ladder, has not changed significantly over the last three decades, a study being released on Wednesday says.

The authors of the study, by scholars at the Brookings Institution in Washington and sponsored by the Pew Charitable Trusts, warned that widening gaps in higher education between rich and poor, whites and minorities, could soon lead to a downturn in opportunities for the poorest families.

The researchers found that Hispanic and black Americans were falling behind whites and Asians in earning college degrees, making it harder for them to enter the middle class or higher...[Read the rest at NYT.com]

A New Film about Working Together to Change Young Lives

Kimberly Schneider — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 11:02:50 -0800

In case you missed Second Chance - a film about changing young lives created by youth in the Multnomah County juvenile justice system - you can watch it here.

In 2005 Worksystems Inc. (the non-profit entity dedicated to workforce investment and training) in partnership with local employers, designed and launched a career exposure program called WorkSuccess for Portland area at-risk youth. Worksystems obtained funding for this pilot career exposure pathway program from the US Department of Labor and operates the program through regional alternative schools and youth providers.

In 2007, Worksystems partnered with the Northwest Film Center's Young Filmmakers Program, Multnomah County Department of Community Justice, Juvenile Services Division, and the Multnomah County Percent for Art Program to engage teenagers from the juvenile justice system to make a film about WorkSuccess.

Come to the Come Back Fair!

Daniel Ronan — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 23:15:11 -0700

Portland Public Schools, in collaboration with the Portland Schools Foundation and the alternative educational options are sponsoring a Come Back Fair.

The Come Back Fair is an opportunity for youth that are no longer in school to get back on track and find an educational program that fits their needs.

It's a one-day event (Saturday, September 8), held at Holladay Park, and youth can stop by anytime between 12 pm - 5 pm. The 20+ alternative educational options that PPS provides will be represented, and other service providers will be there as well.

It's like one-stop shopping for youth thinking about dropping back in; they can investigate the different options that are available to them and connect with the programs that best fit their needs.

It'll be a fun event, and the whole family is welcome. Lots of free food will be available.

Jammin' 95.5 will be present along with local youth bands. There will be also be a raffle, with chances to win i-pods, a bike, Nike gear, a $100 Adidas gift certificate, and many other great prizes.

Everything is free and open to the public.

Come to the Come Back Fair and get back on track!

READ ON

Jane Ames — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 13:39:17 -0700

Schools are starting up, and student energy will begin to focus in from the expansiveness of summer life lessons to the intentional lessons that make up formal education. Many of those lessons involve reading: either learning to read, or learning from reading.

Chalk It Up for Oregon LiteracyA few weeks ago Sam addressed those gathered for the Oregon Literacy event in Pioneer Courthouse Square.

Chalk It Up is an event where artists created beautiful works that depicted covers, characters or events of many popular books. The art pieces were sold and the proceeds benefited Oregon Literacy programs. The Chalk It Up website links to the pictures and identifies the artists.

Here are Sam's prepared remarks discussing the importance of reading and the literacy concerns facing many people in Oregon. Right now, 2 in 5 Oregonians struggle to read in their daily lives. No one is too young or too old to start learning to read. For an infant, the lessons begin by watching how a book is held and listening to the rhythm of written words. For adults beginning to read, the encouragement and respect of those around one as they step up to the challenge is very important.

Enjoy your last days of summer and cozy into fall with some good reading. Celebrate your ability to read and remember to reach out and encourage those who still need to learn this set of valuable skills.

Oregon Literacy exists because: knowledge empowers, and literacy should be a right for all.

University System Improvements will Benefit Economy for Oregonians

Jane Ames — Sun, 01 Jul 2007 19:21:49 -0700

An important economic impact for Portland and Oregon, will result from the capital funding allocation for the Oregon University System. The $561 million capital budget including the $60 million allocated to reduce the system's $640 million deferred maintenance backlog will help meet critical repair needs, and modernize classrooms and laboratories.

The efforts that will take place on campuses across Oregon will also create more than 11,800 construction jobs over the next several years. The projects will provide a $1.25 billion economic output of goods and services through the projects, and provide almost $400 million in increased earning for Oregonians.PCAT Building in the Background on PSU Campus

Portland State University will benefit with funds to help with the redevelopment of the PCAT building (that is the older turquoise tile building on 5th and 6th Avenues); improvements in the Science Teaching and Research Center; Science Building repairs and updating; and Lincoln Hall repairs. The Economic Benefits will Roll Out to Portlanders

While the improvements will be excellent for PSU, the economic impacts of those projects will roll out to Portlanders far beyond the campus.

Oregon Opportunity Grants and Aspire Benfit from the Legislative Session

Jane Ames — Sun, 01 Jul 2007 16:45:37 -0700

With Sam's advocacy, this is the first year the City of Portland has added higher education to its Legislative Package. Several of the higher ed priorities have been successful; including increased funding for the Oregon Student Opportunity Grants, and establishing Aspire as an officially recognized State Program. Both of these programs are run out of the Oregon Student Assistance Commission.

Aspire is a highly successful mentoring program, training and coordinating volunteers to help high school students be successful getting Aspire Mentoring Programinto college and applying for scholarships and financial assistance. Beyond being recognized as an official state program, Aspire has been allocated $700,000. These funds will allow Aspire programs to expand from the current 83 high schools in Oregon, to 115 schools next year. $300,000 of the allocation will serve as match, for school districts and high schools to develop their new programs.

I volunteered with Aspire five years ago and was impressed with the program's ability to encourage and assist students who didn't necessarily see themselves going on to college. One of my students came from a family who had emigrated to the U.S. from Nigeria when she was a baby. Her parents weren't familiar with our higher education system and, while their English was good, FAFSA (financial assistance), scholarship, college applications, and all the related forms and details can singe the synapses of anyone. In my case, since I was learning this information to help my daughter, why not use the knowledge to help some other kids as well? It's great to watch this program continue to expand.

College is ExpensiveThe Oregon Opportunity Grants will offer $107 million to financially needy undergraduate Oregon residents over the next two years. The Legislature passed and the Governor signed into law an allocation of $35 million to be distributed in the first year, and $72 million to be distributed in the second year of the 2007-09 biennium.

The legislation also directed changes in the calculations for who will be awarded grants and how much the student will receive. Previously, only those from very low income families qualified: a family of four earning $32,000/year did not qualify...because they "earned too much". While the calculations are still a work in progress, the new formulas will stretch the range of family income to allow those closer to middle income to receive benefits.

College is expensive; worth it, but expensive. These are good moves by our Governor and Legislature to help our youth and families prepare for family wage jobs and careers, as well as to reap the intangible benefits of college education.

It's good for Oregonians and it's good for Oregon.

No Time like the Present...to Prepare for the Future: Higher Education

Jane Ames — Sun, 01 Jul 2007 15:11:33 -0700

Thank Goodness, and THANK YOU Governor Kulongoski and State Legislators.

The Oregon University System (OUS) received a 23% increase in a combination of operating and capital projects funding from the State Legislature and Governor Kulongoski. The General Fund budget for the OUS system for 2007-09 is $870.4 million. As OUS Chancellor George Pernsteiner stated, "This budget signals a major commitment by the legislature to meet ...the ten-year reinvestment plan to improve student access and affordability, high quality learning, innovative research and programs directed at economic development, workforce shortages, and other state priorities for Oregon."

That is a mouthful, but it points out the various crucial roles higher education plays in Oregon.

The Community College System received $512 million total, a $71 millionPCC increase over the 2005-07 budget. The strong signal here is to provide for workforce development and to insure access to affordable higher education throughout Oregon. There are 17 community colleges in Oregon, many located in communities without four year college options. Whether students are heading for workforce training, a four year academic degree or lifelong learning opportunities, the community college allocation is significant to all Oregonians.

The Oregon university system alone has a $640 million backlog in deferred maintenance and repairs; the $60 million directed to reduce that backlog will mark the first time in several decades the backlog will be reduced. It is a good time to be turning from disinvestment to investment, and providing and planning for the future.

Sam led City Council efforts to make higher education funding, as well as PSUthe Oregon Opportunity Grants and Aspire mentoring program, priorities for Portland's Legislative package. He joined students, community, business and education leaders who became vigilant and vocal higher education advocates testifying, lobbying, writing letters and making calls throughout the session. Together, they created a steady drumbeat of support, highlighting the educational and economic necessities for improving higher education funding in Oregon.

Newspapers throughout the State reinforced the demand for higher education support. David Sarasohn, Associate Editor at The Oregonian was particularly effective and relentless. His nearly weekly editorials clarified the current dismal reality and the existing and future need for strong higher education opportunities in Oregon. Frankly, the state's investment in higher education isn't yet what it needs to be for the sake of our children and our economy. But, as of now, we are heading in the right direction.

Bravo. Encore. And again, Thank You.

Hurrah

OREGONIAN EDITORIAL: A state of low-wage jobs

Warren Jimenez — Wed, 02 May 2007 10:48:09 -0700

As the President of the Local Elected Officials on the Workforce Investment Board and the Higher Education Liaison for the City of Portland, Sam has been advocating for more state funding during this legislative session.

Unfortunately, the federal trends are worst. Since 2003, federal allocations for our region have gone from $25 million to an anticipated $15 million for 2007.

Worksystems Inc. recently received word from the Oregon Department of Community Colleges and Workforce Development that the primary federal resources available to provide workforce development services in our region will be cut by nearly 27% or just over $2.7 million for services beginning July 1, 2007. These cuts mean about 800 adults and 300 youth will not receive training or related services.

A state of low-wage jobs
Wednesday, May 02, 2007

O f all the questions raised by the Progress Board's report on the Oregon economy, here's the most important:

Do you want fries with that?

That is the vital question in a state that is becoming the world's best place to find a low-wage job. The Progress Board's new Benchmark Report to the People of Oregon, released Monday, paints a discouraging picture of a state led by a Legislature that still hasn't made the connection between quality education and skills training, and good jobs.

Instead, the report is full of statistics that painfully illustrate the results of Oregon's decades-long disinvestment in education and training. Among them:

Per-capita personal income in Oregon is only 93 percent of the U.S. rate, has steadily declined since 1996 and is now at its lowest level in nearly 20 years.

Only one Oregon worker in three makes at or above 150 percent of the poverty rate for a family of four.

Oregon's concentration of professional services, such as lawyers and accountants, is falling. Less than 40 percent of Oregon workers received at least 20 hours of training in 2005 -- far from the distant goal of 75 percent.

In the dry language of the Progress Board report, "Adult education attainment and skill development indicators, key to building a quality work force, are off track." Yes, they are.

If you wonder why, you could look back over the past 20 years and see the choices that Oregon has made: Measures 5, 47 and 50, property-tax limits that foisted K-12 school funding onto the state; the Measure 11 decision to invest in prisons, not education; voters' stubborn insistence on funding public services with a single volatile source, the income tax.

But really, you need look no further than the budget debate now under way in Salem. It's all there: The lip service lawmakers are paying to universities, the utter disregard of community colleges, the fight it is taking just to get lawmakers to invest a measly $10 million in work force training.

That's not how you build a strong work force. That's not how you get companies to bring family-wage jobs here, or persuade them to keep them here.

No, that's how you get an economy where new jobs pay less than the old ones they are replacing. That's how you wind up with a huge population of working poor, who live without health insurance and spend a huge portion of their income on housing. That's how you wind up with Oregon's economy.

Look at the neighbors: The Washington Legislature just agreed to invest several billion more dollars in education. The Oregon Legislature, meanwhile, is trying to summon the nerve to require some of the state's largest corporations to pay more than the $10 a year they now pay in corporate income taxes.

Ten bucks. It all leads back to that essential question in the new Oregon economy:

You want fries?

Adequate Higher Education Funding is a Necessity

Sam Adams — Sun, 22 Apr 2007 17:56:18 -0700

"Never before has the academic mission of colleges and universities-to generate and impart knowledge-been so fundamentally tied to regional economic success."
Greater Philadelphia's Knowledge Industry Plan

Oregon's and Portland's economy depends on our ability to meet the knowledge and workforce needs required to strengthen, attract and keep businesses that will provide family wage jobs.

Higher Education requires Adequate Funding. The Co-Chairs' budgets (see below) for operating the Oregon University System and the Oregon Community College System need shoring up. The capital budgets need a lifeline. I have been advocating for higher education in Salem, through letters, and here in Portland.

I now describe higher education as our knowledge industry. Included under the label of higher education I include colleges, universities, community colleges and career colleges. Manufacturing jobs have left the country in droves; we need to develop jobs linked to products and services dependent on knowledge to keep our economy robust.

Higher education and workforce training is not a luxury for Oregon. The State has determined that over 600,000 skilled workers are needed to fill new jobs and to replace retiring workers by 2014.

There are occupations which face current gaps: nurses, healthcare workers, welders, construction trades, business services. Oregon has been working to educate more engineers; yet more are needed to fill vacancies and attract new businesses. We are becoming a center of apparel and outdoor wear design; we need the design programs to help grow this industry.

Portland has been ranked the #1 Sustainable City in the U.S. by Sustainlane.com. This distinction and Portlanders' values and efforts open many doors for the city. We need to support and increase the talent base to take advantage of our opportunities to develop products, businesses and services that increase the livability of Portland. With sustainable industries we can increase livability by cleaning our air, water, and soil, facing our development challenges in ways that align our growth with our values, and by providing living wage jobs for our residents.

Higher Education is one of the necessary ingredients for solving these problems and capitalizing on these and other opportunities. Oregon can't afford to under-fund higher education any longer.

These are the numbers...the Governor's Recommended Budget are more challenging for legislators to reach, but it is necessary:

Community Colleges:
• Operating Funds
o $483 million Governor's Budget Recommendation
o $453 million Co-Chairs' Recommendation
• Capital Funds for Repair and Construction
o $103Million Governor's Budget Recommendation
o $ 6.5 Million Co-Chairs' Recommendation

Oregon University System:
• Operating Funds
o $864.5 million Governor's Budget Recommendation
o $840 million Co-Chairs' Recommendation
• Capital Funds for Repair and Construction
o $313.8 million Governor's Budget Recommendation
o $ 53 million Co-Chairs' Recommendation

The Northwest Institute for Social Change

Guest Author — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 10:49:44 -0800

Phil Busse is Executive Director of The Northwest Institute for Social Change.

Nothing drives me more nuts than listening to a White House press conference. The reporters shy from any probing questions and have all but muzzled themselves.

There must be a better way.

That's why this summer we're hosting the Northwest Institute for Social Change here in Portland-an academic program for undergrads to learn how arts and the media can bring about positive and progressive social change. (Sam is on the Board of Directors.) We're hoping to turn out a new generation of truth-seeking filmmakers, bold journalists and rabblerousing musicians. Check out: www.nwisc.com. The institute is a mix of liberal-arts styled classroom academics (taught by Reed, PSU, UO profs) and real-life projects (like producing a series of short documentaries about gentrification and designing a media literacy curriculum for middle schools).

The only challenge? Finding our students! If accepted, students receive a full-ride fellowship and can earn academic credit!

We're recruiting undergrads from across the country-from Middlebury College (my alma mater) to University of Kentucky. And we need help finding the right students. This is truly an opportunity for an ambitious and optimistic college student to find traction for his or her political passions-and to turn them into a career in the media.

Do you have a professor from your alma mater who inspired students and would be able to recommend someone? Is there a person that you know at Student Affairs? Do you have a son or daughter in college who you would like to bring back to Portland for the summer - but have them do something more productive than hang out at Rooster Rock?

The ideal candidate has completed his or her first-year of college. A background in Political Science and/or Media Studies is helpful, but the program is open to all disciplines. The ideal candidate has experience with media or art projects-such as the school newspaper, college radio, a band, dance, ‘zines, blogs-and has worked with community projects. When thinking about the student, these adjectives should come to mind: charismatic, motivated, creative, optimistic, tenacious.

We are not necessarily looking for the A+ student who sits front-and-center, but are looking for students who have potential, and who have a seriousness and earnestness of their purpose and desire to positively affect their communities-whether that means starting a blog that watchdogs city council in their hometown or means producing the next documentary that informs millions about global warming.

This summer is one that we hope will be a catalyst for professional development and personal transformation. Our application is on-line at www.nwisc.com or you can get it right here.

Oregonian: Front page of Business: " 'You couldn't waste money any better than that.' "

Jane Ames — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 14:18:15 -0800

Actually by Betsy Hammond; The Oregonian; Friday, January 26, 2007

Economists: Kicker is useless
School funding - At a legislative debate, both sides say the corporate rebate fails to grow Oregon's economy

What was billed as a debate by dueling economists before legislators who write Oregon tax laws turned on Thursday into a unified message: Spending more on education would pump up Oregon's economy, while giving corporations a "kicker" tax rebate does almost zilch to grow jobs and income.
Both Phil Romero, a University of Oregon economist who was chief economic adviser to former California Republican Gov. Pete Wilson, and Richard Sims, a former chief economist in two states and expert on state tax and fiscal policy whose visit was financed by the Oregon teachers union, agreed on those fundamental points.
They said spending more on education creates jobs for educators, creates jobs for those who serve them and draws new businesses that want a well-educated work force and good schools for their employees. By contrast, they said, giving corporations an after-the-fact tax cut in years when corporate tax payments surge beyond projections does not draw employers or change corporate behavior.

Giving those kicker rebates to corporations, as Oregon has done for a quarter-century, reduces the money available to provide public services without a corresponding benefit to the economy, they said.

Lawmakers on the House and Senate revenue committees, which write tax laws, have worked to keep Oregon's corporate taxes among the lowest in the nation. They also have crafted a tax policy that, in recent years, has yielded too little revenue to keep spending on schools and universities up to the national average.
Rep. Phil Barnhart, D-Eugene, the new chairman of the House Revenue Committee, said he was glad to get an unequivocal answer about the wisdom of that approach: From an economic standpoint, it's nuts.

"For years, the debate in the Oregon Legislature has been over whether you can enhance economic development in Oregon by cutting corporate taxes. Today we didn't hear two different sides. We heard a unanimous 'no.'
"We should stick to . . . raising the dollars needed to provide education, transportation, safety and infrastructure. . . . And the economic growth will take care of itself," Barnhart said.
Romero said cutting corporate taxes can play a role in growing the economy, as he said happened under his watch as California climbed out of a recession in the 1990s. But he agreed with Senate Revenue Chairman Ryan Deckert, D-Beaverton, that a smarter strategy for Oregon, given its relatively low business taxes, low spending on higher education and low rates of adults with college degrees, is to raise taxes and spend them on education.
"I actually think that is a very good idea, with an important caveat," Romero said. That strategy "needs to be married with strategies that make it easier for corporations to invest in Oregon." Romero advocates lowering capital gains taxes.
Lawmakers are expected to grapple this session with whether to end the corporate kicker rebate. Under Oregon's one-of-a-kind kicker law, when corporate tax payments come in at least 2 percent higher than predicted two years in advance, all of the unanticipated money is returned to corporations rather than saved or spent by the state. Because corporate profits are difficult to predict with that degree of accuracy, corporations often get rebates.

This year, they are projected to get two-thirds off their Oregon tax bills.

Gov. Ted Kulongoski has proposed diverting this year's $275 million corporate kicker, and any future corporate kicker rebates, into a state savings account. Some influential business groups have said they could go along with his plan because they want stability for Oregon's tax system.

Many lawmakers have yet to stake out a position on the corporate kicker.
Giving corporations kicker rebates is a dumb way to try to grow the economy, the economists testified Thursday, because corporations don't know until after the fact whether their actions for the year will lead to a tax cut. Corporate kicker rebates, although they can be large, are sporadic and unpredictable.
"Tax cuts have the greatest economic effect when businesses can plan on them," Romero said.
"You couldn't waste money any better than that," Sims said of the kicker.

Thomas Friedman is not ready to Cede the 21st Century to China Yet...

Jane Ames — Thu, 14 Dec 2006 10:45:35 -0800

Thomas Friedman has written an interesting column about the education goals necessary for the global economy that exists today. Competence, skill and creativity will be crucial for thriving in an economy that can scan the globe to find the least expensive resources and labor. A continuing committment to learning and changing will serve us well as individuals and as a community.

The New York Times

December 13, 2006
Op-Ed Columnist
Learning to Keep Learning
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN

I recently attended an Asia Society education seminar in Beijing, during which we heard Chinese educators talk about their "new national strategy." It's to make China an "innovation country" - with enough indigenous output to advance China "into the rank of innovation-oriented countries by 2020," as Shang Yong, China's vice minister of science and technology, put it.

I listened to this with mixed emotions. Part of me said: "Gosh, wouldn't it be nice to have a government that was so focused on innovation - instead of one that is basically anti-science." My other emotion was skepticism. Oh, you know the line: Great Britain dominated the 19th century, America dominated the 20th and now China is going to dominate the 21st. It's game over.

Sorry, but I am not ready to cede the 21st century to China yet.

No question, China has been able to command an impressive effort to end illiteracy, greatly increasing its number of high school grads and new universities. But I still believe it is very hard to produce a culture of innovation in a country that censors Google - which for me is a proxy for curtailing people's ability to imagine and try anything they want. You can command K-12 education. But you can't command innovation. Rigor and competence, without freedom, will take China only so far. China will have to find a way to loosen up, without losing control, if it wants to be a truly innovative nation.

But while China can't thrive without changing a lot more, neither can we. Ask yourself this: If the Iraq war had not dominated our politics, what would our last election have been about? It would have been about this question: Why should any employer anywhere in the world pay Americans to do highly skilled work - if other people, just as well educated, are available in less developed countries for half our wages?

If we can't answer this question, in an age when more and more routine work can be digitized, automated or offshored, including white-collar work, "it is hard to see how, over time, we are going to be able to maintain our standard of living," says Marc Tucker, who heads the National Center on Education and the Economy.

There is only one right answer to that question: In a globally integrated economy, our workers will get paid a premium only if they or their firms offer a uniquely innovative product or service, which demands a skilled and creative labor force to conceive, design, market and manufacture - and a labor force that is constantly able to keep learning. We can't go on lagging other major economies in every math/science/reading test and every ranking of Internet penetration and think that we're going to field a work force able to command premium wages. Freedom, without rigor and competence, will take us only so far.

Tomorrow, Mr. Tucker's organization is coming out with a report titled "Tough Choices or Tough Times," which proposes a radical overhaul of the U.S. education system, with one goal in mind: producing more workers - from the U.P.S. driver to the software engineer - who can think creatively.

"One thing we know about creativity is that it typically occurs when people who have mastered two or more quite different fields use the framework in one to think afresh about the other," said Mr. Tucker. Thus, his report focuses on "how to make that kind of thinking integral to every level of education."

That means, he adds, revamping an education system designed in the 1900s for people to do "routine work," and refocusing it on producing people who can imagine things that have never been available before, who can create ingenious marketing and sales campaigns, write books, build furniture, make movies and design software "that will capture people's imaginations and become indispensable for millions."

That can't be done without higher levels of reading, writing, speaking, math, science, literature and the arts. We have no choice, argues Mr. Tucker, because we have entered an era in which "comfort with ideas and abstractions is the passport to a good job, in which creativity and innovation are the key to the good life" and in which the constant ability to learn how to learn will be the only security you have.

Economics is not like war. It can be win-win. We, China, India and Europe can all flourish. But the ones who flourish most will be those who develop the best broad-based education system, to have the most people doing and designing the most things we can't even imagine today. China still has to make some very big changes to get there - but so do we.

Give a little, they'll get a lot

Jane Ames — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 19:35:06 -0800

In this season of giving, are you looking for a gift idea? Perhaps for someone who loves books, education, kids, community service, or already has everything? Consider going to Powell's and purchasing a "book pledge" for $5.95, good toward one book for Portland and Beaverton public schools.

A Great Place to Find a Book How cool is that? Powell's is a great example of our Portland businesses that keep finding ways to contribute to the community. Read on to find out what their project entails.

Powell's Books will attempt to raise 50,000 books for Portland and Beaverton public schools between now and January 1, 2007. To achieve this goal, the bookseller will be acting in partnership with area schools, Powell's own customers, and Schoolhouse Supplies, a non-profit "free store" for teachers sponsored by the Portland Schools Foundation.

Through Powell's School Book Challenge, customers are invited to purchaseA good book is always a treat $5.95 "book pledges," each good toward one book for Portland and Beaverton schools. At the close of the program, school librarians will receive an equal percentage of the total collected in the form of a credit toward the purchase of their choice of books for their respective schools. The book pledges will be available for purchase at all Powell's store locations, and at http://www.powells.com/.

For every book pledge customers purchase through the School Book Challenge, Powell's will buy ten additional books, encompassing a wide assortment of reading material - including picture books and novels; history, math, and social science; dictionaries, reference, and language learning tools - that can be used by any school library. Portland and Beaverton school librarians will then have an opportunity to choose from these books at a special Schoolhouse Supplies event in late summer.