Today, Arthur Rothkopf, senior vice president at the U.S. Chamber presented alongside the National Education Association (NEA) and the National Manufacturers Association (NAM) to ask states to give a fair trial to the education reform initiatives outlined in Tough Choices or Tough Times, the report of the New Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce.  

While the U.S. Chamber doesn’t agree with every detail of the recommendations in the report, the case it makes for revolutionary change is compelling and urgent, and we do believe the proposals deserve serious attention.

At the same time, President Barack Obama was also laying out his case for urgency in reforming education during a keynote presentation at the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s annual meeting. President Obama remarked:

"In a global economy where the most valuable skill you can sell is your knowledge, a good education is no longer just a pathway to opportunity, it is a pre-requisite. That is why it will be the goal of this Administration to ensure that every child has access to a complete and competitive education – from the day they are born to the day they begin a career."

During his speech, the President proposed four pillars of reform: 1) investing in early childhood initiatives; 2) encouraging better standards and assessments; 3) recruiting, preparing, and rewarding outstanding teachers; and 4) promoting innovation and excellence in America’s schools by supporting charter schools, reforming the school calendar, and the structure of the school day.

The Chamber supports such state-based education transformation efforts, including those outlined in the Tough Choices agenda, and we urge our members to give serious attention to this and other education reform models. Our goal is to ensure that we move toward the U.S. once again having the best educated workforce in the world.