High Schools at the Tipping Point
Educational Leadership
May 2008

Alliance for Excellent Education President Bob Wise writes in the May 2008 issue of Educational Leadership that the high school system in the United States is in crisis and faces a choice: Do nothing to fix a broken system and watch our competitiveness further decline, or summon the political will, direction and leadership at the federal level to achieve reform. In addition, the article suggests approaches that states, school districts, and schools should take.

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Letter to the Editor: Reforming Our Schools
The New York Times
May 2, 2008

As “A Nation at a Loss,” by Edward B. Fiske (Op-Ed, April 25), correctly indicates, not all of the fatalistic predictions made in the 1983 report “A Nation at Risk,” about American education, and specifically the link between failing education and a weak economy came to fruition. But the reality is that American education is still in turmoil.

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Letter to the Editor: Middle and high school students are lacking real life skills
USA Today
April 24, 2008

Bob Wise, President, Alliance for Excellent Education: USA TODAY's editorial "A nation still at risk" rightly points out that 1983's Nation at Risk report led to reforms that have resulted in academic achievement gains in the early grades. It also notes that "the gains fade in high schools".

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Letter to the Editor: Education gap persists
Washington Times
October 16, 2007

In order to ensure that all children stay in school and graduate prepared for postsecondary education and the workforce, schools, districts and states must make certain that standards and expectations are set high for all students. However, we also must make sure that resources, from classroom materials to high-quality teachers, are distributed equitably in all districts so that each student, regardless of background, will have an equally high chance of success in life.

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Letter to the Editor: It Was a Priority (PDF)
Vallejo Times-Herald (CA)
August 3, 2007

The headline of your story discussing a high school reform summit in Oakland suggested that the participating members of Congress did not arrive in time to benefit from the preceding panel discussions ("Lawmakers Late for Education Summit," July 22). As president of one of the sponsoring organizations, I want to correct this misunderstanding.

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Turning Reading Research Into Policy (PDF)
Reading Research Quarterly
July/August/September 2007

Article contribution by Alliance for Excellent Education President Bob Wise to the Reading Research Quarterly journal on turning reading research into policy.

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Letter to the Editor: Education Mathematics
The Washington Post
May 15, 2007

We can quibble over the exact percentages of American students who are doing extremely well in reading and math compared with their peers in other countries, but is that the issue?

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Letter to the Editor: Alliance calls for expanded federal investment in local schools (PDF)
Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune
February 25, 2007

In "High school dropouts could boost state economy" (February 11), Gus Mancuso, principal of Lincoln High School in Wisconsin Rapids, says that schools alone cannot solve the dropout crisis. We at the Alliance for Excellent Education could not agree more. We strongly believe that the federal government, working to support the efforts of local communities, needs to become a more active partner in reforming America's high schools.

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Letter to the Editor: An investment for success (PDF)
Sacramento Bee
January 16, 2007

Recently, we at the Alliance for Excellent Education found that if California's minority high school students graduated at rates equal to their white peers and went on to post-secondary education at similar rates, the state's economy would gain billions of dollars in additional personal income by 2020.

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Letter to the Editor: What's needed most to successfully educate US children?
Christian Science Monitor
December 20, 2006

Regarding the Dec. 15 article, "To fix US schools, panel says, start over": The New Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce calls for drastic changes in the way we educate our students. I could not agree more.... Rethinking our schools, especially our high schools, is essential if we are to secure a future for all Americans.

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Letter to the Editor: Schools need the revamp
Dallas Morning News
December 19, 2006

In Texas, 74 percent of eighth-graders are reading below grade level. The state spends almost $89 million each year on remedial education in community colleges for recent high school graduates who did not acquire the skills necessary to succeed. Rethinking our schools, especially our high schools, is essential if we are to secure a future for all Americans.

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Opinion: A Clearer Picture Of Who Graduates
The Washington Post
May 28, 2006

Alliance for Excellent Education President Bob Wise writes about Maryland's new legislation requiring the state to abide by the National Governors Association’s compact committing states to institute a realistic, common definition of high school graduation rates.

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