Jon Ralston on the dialogue that must take place between Democrats and Republicans for the sake of Nevada’s children

Sunday, Jan. 28, 2007 | 7:32 a.m.

Join me in changing our education system with a single bold stroke.

When the snickering subsides about the new governor needing a remedial class on the centerpiece of his education agenda, and when the shock ebbs over the decrease in the percentage of money that the state spends on schools, we are hardly left empowered by the state of lower ed in Nevada.

Gibbons may want to parrot what Strembitsky did in Edmonton during the previous decade - with unquestionably impressive results. But the governor's failure to address many of the other systemic problems in lower education, and his stubborn or willful refusal to consult with the county or state superintendents, does not bode well. And Gibbons' decision to erase incentives for teachers, especially in math and science, to pay for the $60 million for 100 empowerment schools seems less a stroke of boldness than a choice without thought.

Even if Gibbons is not yet up to speed on some or most of this - give him time, the Legislature hasn't yet convened - the message should not be slain because the messenger is so flawed.

Gibbons may unintentionally have raised significant and provocative policy questions, if only the Gang of 63 would take up the challenge - and that's more than likely, especially in the Assembly.

Gibbons insists on labeling as "pilot programs" both his amorphous empowerment proposal and the all-day kindergarten concept (at at-risk schools) now embedded in two budgets. But his argument for the empowerment experiment - that it has worked in other places - is the same argument advocates have used for all-day kindergarten - now established in about 70 percent of the states.

Without any elaboration by the elusive new governor, we are left to assume that he went with empowerment because it was proposed by some well-connected nonexperts and disposed of all-day kindergarten expansion because it was proposed by a man he despises, his predecessor Kenny Guinn, and would involve spending more money.

There will be plenty of time during the session to hash out all the conflicting studies on all-day kindergarten. But as a few Democrats have said, it is common sense that youngsters, who are learning sponges, will absorb more during a full, productive day (not the glorified day care that critics sneer it will become) and fewer parents will opt for private schools.

As for empowerment schools, the Democrats have to realize that this, too, is common sense: Give principals more authority; give each school administrator the power to decide what's best for that site.

Superintendent Walt Rulffes acknowledged as much on "Face to Face" last week. He supports the concept - he started a real pilot program less than two years ago. But he worries about the loss of the retirement incentives and the governor's short shrift for funding issues, vocational education and many other ideas stuffed into the county superintendent package called iNVest.

I also interviewed one of the empowerment school principals, Linda Reese of Antonello Elementary, who couldn't have been more enthusiastic about the concept and the changes she had wrought at her facility. And despite criticisms that Nevada is the wrong petri dish to grow empowerment schools, especially because of the large number of minority students, Reese said the improvements with her large Hispanic student population have been dramatic.

Strembitsky said 13 years ago that "change is very threatening to people," and the education establishment here has to wear that to some extent. But change for change's sake is not logical, either. One size does not fit all, so questions about how much flexibility principals should have, how do you get the best principals and what remains standardized are different here than they might be in Alberta.

The real shift has to come in how politicians approach the conundrum. Democrats have to think beyond crying for more money and posing as the puppets of teacher union ventriloquists. Republicans have to stop bleating money isn't everything (especially since our per pupil funding is pathetic) and cease muttering accountability without having any plans.

Democrats and Republicans actually having a philosophical discussion about education and trying to find a middle ground? Now that would be a single, bold stroke.