“Why are you running for DPI Superintendent?” my friends and supporters have asked me.

These people point to the extremely safe seat in the 22nd Assembly district I currently represent, won with 83% of the primary vote. Apparently they think I should be content with just cruising along.

I don’t see it that way.

For the last four decades I have been concerned with the state of the public education system in Wisconsin. All three of my children went to public schools. As a leader in educational issues in the legislature I saw first hand how Tony Evers and his “educational cabal” have done everything in their power to protect a failing status quo that only serves their own selfish interests at the expense of our children and hence, our future.

Tony Evers has fought hard to impede the progress of virtual schools going as far as suing them in court for simply being successful. Tony Evers has taken extravagant measures to cap the growth of these schools. Virtual schools offer a diverse menu of educational opportunities for kids on both sides of the spectrum and brings courses to remote areas that would otherwise be out of reach to those students. Why would Tony Evers oppose these schools? WEAC opposes them and that’s where Tony Evers gets his money.

Tony Evers has fought against choice schools again because Tony Evers believes that having a monopoly on education is more important than giving under advantaged kids a chance to escape a failing school system. Not only does the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP) offer some desperately needed competition for the Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) it saves million upon millions of dollars. Did you know that if all the kids in the choice program went back to the failing MPS system that school districts around the state would get millions of dollars less? West Allis school district for just one example would lose over 4 million dollars of funding every year!

The only thing that Tony Evers doesn’t oppose is throwing more money at problem that more money won’t solve. He also supports adding layer after layer of bureaucracy and then spending millions of dollars to support that bureaucracy. Policies like that not only take away control from our local school boards, it diverts precious resources away from our classrooms.

I have been a strong critic of the teachers union and that I’m sure is no secret to anyone. I never had a problem with a group seeking some representation at the table but the far extremes that the teachers union has taken that representation has crippled our educational system and has severely hurt our children. It is time to introduce some common sense conservative principles to public education. Those simple principles include options for students and parents, local control and commonsense standards and rethinking school safety.

I believe in teachers, not self-serving union leaders. I believe in parents, not a bunch of Madison bureaucrats. I believe in students, achievement, and character education. I believe that local school boards that have been elected by their local citizens should be able to choose a curriculum that reflects their values and their beliefs. I believe that schools need the flexibility to prepare their students for a bright future and that can’t be done in Madison or Washington D.C.

I believe that it is time to say no to the self-serving special interest groups that inhibit growth, suppresses innovation, and suffocates success. It is time we reinvigorate our public educational system with that great American spirit and move out of the dark ages. After all this time, it IS about the kids.

Don Pridemore - State Assembly District 22 Representative