A New Leader at a Critical Moment in Delaware’s Schools

As we remember the life and legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr., I find some of his words as powerful today as they were then. In the Morehouse College student newspaper in 1947, he wrote about what many parents, educators and employers are still wrestling with close to 80 years later.

“…Education must also train one for quick, resolute and effective thinking. To think incisively and to think for oneself is very difficult. We are prone to let our mental life become invaded by legions of half truths, prejudices, and propaganda…Education must enable one to sift and weigh evidence, to discern the true from the false, the real from the unreal, and the facts from the fiction.”

Growing up today is no easy task and as a state, we find ourselves at a critical juncture. With the appointment of Cindy Marten  as Secretary of Education, Governor Matt Meyer has strategically positioned our state to capitalize on this pivotal moment, setting the stage for meaningful progress in education.

Her track record of getting things done in San Diego (a district of 100,000 students) will transfer well to Delaware (a state of about 140,000 students)—especially when it comes to improving graduation and literacy rates and overall health (see  here). While moving Delaware’s 42 local education agencies (19 districts and 23 charter schools), each with their own boards and micro politics, is different than moving one district, I’m confident her track record in California and all she’s learned in her recent role as Deputy Secretary at the U.S. Department of Education, the second highest ranking education official in the nation, will serve her, and us, well in this new role. She has worked with the best educators in the country and seen what’s worked, and what hasn’t.

She will have some work to do. Much has been made of the drop in Delaware’s performance on state and national test scores that began before COVID and dropped precipitously since then (see here).

The good news is that, despite some real challenges, Secretary-Designate Marten will also have some strong assets to build upon, not the least of which is our collective ability to put our shoulder to the wheel with her.  The John Carney administration and the past two Secretaries, Susan Bunting and Mark Holodick, advanced public education in some significant ways. In the last several years:

• More than 70 percent more children are being served in state-funded pre-K.
• 30,000, or 65 percent of Delaware’s high school students are in career pathways getting a leg up on life with meaningful work experiences and access to post-secondary credits and credentials (at least 5X any state in the nation in terms of percentage engaged).
• We have increased teacher salaries nine percent and implemented a multi-pronged “Grow Your Own” approach to teacher recruitment and retention. This work is already impacting over 800 future educators and creating pathways for many more, all with the goal of building a teaching workforce that reflects the diversity of the students we serve.
• We are investing $60 million more in our low-income and multilingual learners and finally have a roadmap for redesigning our 80-year-old public school funding system.

As we consider how best to meet this moment, I encourage all of us to do what Delawareans do best, align and raise this collective “barn.” Our “Delaware Way” can be a powerful vehicle for working together to move on tough issues, or it can hold us back. Let’s work together to make the most of this moment.

Dr. King concluded that 1947 article, “We must remember that intelligence is not enough, intelligence plus character—that is the goal of true education.”

Strengthening our public schools is not just about test scores or jobs, it’s about the foundation of our democracy and our communities.

Welcome Cindy, we look forward to your confirmation, and let’s get to work!

Related Topics: cindy marten, Delaware education, delaware schools, Secretary of Education