Improving Our Education System

Martin O’Malley believes the most important opportunity we can provide a child is a first rate education – whether they’re rich or poor. Martin O’Malley has aggressively reformed and rebuilt the school system to make it accountable, responsive and equipped to make strategic investments – that will pay off now and in the future.

Since O’Malley became Mayor, Baltimore’s children are achieving more and scoring higher in standardized tests across the board. O’Malley’s commitment to early learning – expanding pre-K and Kindergarten education – was an integral part of his plan to improve Baltimore city schools and that commitment is beginning to show remarkable results.

• Martin O’Malley increased per-pupil funding & made Baltimore the 2nd best funded school system in Maryland.

• When Martin O’Malley came to office, not one grade scored proficient in reading & math. In 2004, a majority of the city’s 1st, 2nd, 3rd& 4th graders scored proficient or advanced. 3rd graders scoring proficient or advanced in the Maryland School Assessment increased by 20%. Hispanic and Latino 3rd graders meeting the state standard increased by more than 50%. In 2005, students in 3rd, 5th & 6th grades made gains in reading and “outpaced the rate of improvement statewide.”

• Martin O’Malley gave a major speech to the Maryland State Teachers Association in October and unveiled a bold plan to ensure our state keeps and recruits the best teachers. It includes making salaries and pensions more competitive with other states and creating a strong mentoring program for new teachers.

• Martin O’Malley and Anthony Brown released their detailed school construction plan on December 13, 2005. They believe that Maryland should fully fund the recommendations of the Kopp Commission report. O’Malley and Brown support the use of the current budget surplus for school construction and believe that Maryland should adopt responsible Pay As You Go (PAYGO) budgetary policies to guarantee that school construction funds directly benefit our students.

• After three years of tuition increases that saw the cost of higher education increase by 40% for Maryland families, Martin O’Malley and Anthony Brown oulined their plan to stop tuition increases for the 2006-2007 academic year and help working, middle-class families afford a college education.

• Martin O’Malley dramatically increased the number of full day pre-kindergarten classes from just one in the entire city in 1999 to more than 90 classes now. Similarly, full day kindergarten classes have dramatically increased under Martin O’Malley from just 109 to almost 300.

• Martin O’Malley has increased Baltimore school construction funding by 58% in the past few years.

• Martin O’Malley rescued Baltimore City’s Public School System from bankruptcy and led 5,000 volunteers in making $10 million worth of additional improvements to city schools.