Candidate for
Member; Riverside County Board of Education; Trustee Area 4

The Issues Facing Education

Funding of public education:
With the economy in a prolonged recession, the state has cut funding of public education for each of the past four years. It is not the effect of any single cut, but rather the cumulative impact of these cuts that has resulted in the elimination of programs in schools statewide and increased class sizes. In addition to the state cuts, there also under-funded mandates placed upon the education system by the federal government which are encroaching on school districts' general funds. Our children need a voice, an advocate to ensure that their generation is provided with the first class education required to compete in a global marketplace. Bruce Dennis has been an advocate for children at the local, state and federal level, working with the Riverside County School Boards, California School Boards and the National School Boards associations in their advocacy efforts. Bruce has led teams of school board members in meetings with state legislators and Congress.

Increase the high school graduation rate:
The times are gone when you could leave high school early, find a job in the manufacturing sector and make a reasonable life for you and your family. Today's job market requires that entry level workers have beyond basic math and communication skills. The market requires more advanced math and computer skills, the very skills that a high school graduate would have.

Preparing students for the workplace:
The Riverside County Office of Education provides Career Technical Education (CTE) and Regional Occupation Program (ROP) courses throughout the county to over 35,000 students yearly. Not only does this result in young adults with the necessary skill sets to meet today's job market, their participation actually keeps them involved in their overall education and much more likely to earn their high school diplomas.

College readiness:
To increase our children's odds of being successful in today's ever changing market, there is no better tool they can have than a college degree. We owe it to our children not only to prepare them academically for college, but to make them believe earning a college degree is possible for everyone. The Advancement Via Individual Determination program (AVID) is the primary program that helps individuals who come from a background where earning a college degree was not even a dream in their home. The students are taught the necessary organizational and study skills to prepare for college, but more importantly they are slowly turned into students who believe that they can graduate college. We owe our best and brightest a chance to shine that is solely based on their ability and drive.