The discussion revolved around Hispanic/Latino Americans and education. School choice versus mandatory public education is something people have debated for some time. We know that there are underperforming schools where people are not receiving proper education and I'm aware of private schools that were more interested in the money then educating students. So there are some room for debate and difference here.

To me I think that school choice does allow for some level of competition that reduces the stagnation of some underperforming public schools. At the same time, some private schools are more innovative but also push down the wages and quality of their teachers. So perhaps there is a balance that can be played between the two. I'm wondering if more school choice will lead to innovation but there should be some criteria on those schools to ensure they fulfill their missions of educating students.

That might allow for more specialized schools that are focused on certain types of skills that are needed in the market. Of course that also has its own problems so certainly tweaking is necessary. Another option is to ensure these schools work with universities and education professors. That would also require more research and innovation in Gen Ed education. The world is changing and faster bits of information and new technologies need to be part of our educational process.

I'm not opposed to keeping public schools if they are focused on change and innovation but that isn't always what happens. At the same time I have seen charter schools really take advantage of educational monies and penny pinch to keep profits high. There must be some middle ground somewhere. I guess we could look at a couple of ideas. Mostly we have to make a decision of when public schools work and when it best to open up to school choice to help minorities. There are a lot of stakeholders that will have different opinions.

I guess we have to go back to the original purpose on educating students and what doesn't work should be radically changed so that we can give people opportunities and improve our nation. All the other arguments are just sort of noise and excuses for a dysfunctional education system. The primary stakeholder is the children and everything else sort of should take back stage...but not too far back.

Maybe a few unvetted and not really thought out ideas include...

1. Strong metrics on schools
2. When educational output is low we open up more school choice help students move to other schools.
3. Regulate charters better to ensure they fulfill their functions.
4. Work with schools and revamp them to improve performance if they are not working.
5. Engage much more in reading and primary education.
6. Solicit minorities and others to help support early education and educational attainment in these communities.
7. Review educational examples and methods to universalize them to a global world that accepts all cultures.
8. Support advanced intelligence and highly capable students from different backgrounds so we can raise stronger leaders and create a more universal leadership in the nation around core principles.
9. Tons of other unvetted ideas......

The press release was taken from HERE.
Information on the Round Table with Hispanics HERE

President Donald J. Trump’s America First Policies are Uplifting and Empowering Hispanic Americans

QUOTE

"Hispanic Americans are not only living the American Dream, but their incredible efforts are unlocking the American Dream for citizens all across our land."

President Donald J. Trump

EMPOWERING HISPANIC AMERICANS: President Donald J. Trump is taking significant action to ensure Hispanic Americans continue to prosper and achieve the American Dream.

• President Donald J. Trump is issuing an Executive Order focused on promoting the success of every member of America’s proud Hispanic community.
• This Executive Order establishes the White House Hispanic Prosperity Initiative and Interagency Working Group.
  • The Initiative also establishes the President’s Advisory Commission on Hispanic Prosperity.
• The Order will improve access to educational, training, and economic opportunities for Hispanic American students by promoting options to enhance school choice, personalized learning, family engagement, civics education, and pathways to in-demand jobs.
• This action further demonstrates the President’s support of school choice, apprenticeships and work-based learning initiatives, Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), as well as investment in economically distressed communities and small and minority owned businesses.

UPLIFTING HISPANIC AMERICAN WORKERS AND FAMILIES: As history has shown, Hispanic American workers and families thrive under President Trump’s pro-growth policies.

• Before the coronavirus pandemic, the Hispanic unemployment rate reached a record low of 3.9% under the leadership of President Trump.
  • Hispanic unemployment remained under 5% for 23 consecutive months and fell below 5% 27 times during the President’s first term.
• In 2018, the poverty rate for Hispanic Americans reached the lowest level on record.
  • Since 2016, nearly 611,000 Hispanic Americans have been lifted out of poverty.
• Under the Administration’s pro-growth policies, median income for Hispanic households reached a historic high, surpassing $50,000 for the first time on record.
• The President’s tax cuts are putting more money into the pockets of Hispanic American families and providing new resources for minority-owned businesses.

SUPPORTING HISPANIC AMERICAN COMMUNITIES: President Trump’s policies continue to support Hispanic American families and promote their communities.

• Under President Trump’s leadership, new jobs and investment are pouring into nearly 9,000 newly-designated Opportunity Zones, home to more than 9 million Hispanic Americans.
• In 2018, a net 362,000 Hispanics achieved the dream of homeownership—the largest such gain since 2005.
• President Trump is expanding educational opportunity for Hispanic American families through school choice and expanded higher education support.
  • Nearly one-third of all students in public charter schools and 11% in private schools are Hispanic.
  • One of Florida’s private school scholarship programs serves more than 100,000 students, nearly 40% of whom are Hispanic.
  • The President signed legislation that provides $1 billion to Minority Serving Institutions, including HSIs.