Martin O`Malley on Education Democrat

Income-based college loan repayment plan for all students

SANDERS: We have some colleges and universities that are spending a huge amount of money on fancy dormitories and on giant football stadiums. Maybe we should focus on quality education with well-paid faculty members [instead of] vice presidents who earn a big salary.

Q: Governor, how do you propose lowering some of these costs?

O'MALLEY: My plan actually goes further than Senator Sanders' because a big chunk of the cost is actually room and board and books and fees. So as a nation we need to increase what we invest in Pell grants. Yes, we need to make it easier for parents to refinance. I propose a block grant program that will keep the states in the game as well. I believe that all of our kids should go into an income-based repayment plan. There're families all across America who aren't able to contribute to our economy because of this crushing student loan.

Goal of affordable & debt-free college, like in Maryland

O'MALLEY: I would agree with much of what Senator Sanders says. I believe that actually affordable college, debt-free college is the goal that we need to attain as a nation. And, unlike my two distinguished colleagues on this stage, I actually made college more affordable and was the only state that went four years in a row without a penny's increase to college tuition.

Dad went to college on GI bill; kids went on pile of bills

SANDERS: Yes.

O'MALLEY: I respectfully disagree with Senator Sander's approach. I believe that the goal should be debt-free college. I believe that our Federal Government needs to do more on Pell grants. States need to stop cutting higher education, and we should create a new block grant program that keeps the states' skin in the game, and we should lower these outrageous interest rates that parents and kids are being charged by their own government. 7% and 8% to go to college? I mean, my dad went to college on a G.I. Bill after coming home from Japan, flying 33 missions. My daughters went to college on a mountain of bills. We were proud of them on graduation day, but we're going to be proud every month for the rest of our natural lives. It doesn't need to be that way. We can have debt-free college in the United States.

Don't burden our kids with massive college debt

Allow refinancing college loans & income-based repayments

In his State of the State in January 2014, O'Malley wished for "A day when every high school student in Maryland graduates with a modern technical skill and a year of college credit already earned."

Encourage more public charter schools

So, let's expand families choices. Let's encourage more public charter schools to open and operate in Maryland. This month, our administration will submit legislation to strengthen Maryland's charter school law. This legislation will expand choices for families and make it easier for more public charter schools to operate in Maryland.

Tax credits for contributions to private & parochial schools

Complete College Maryland: incentives to finish on time

Give students, teachers & parents resources they need

Offer every parent Charter Schools and public school choice.

Create World-Class Public Schools
Now more than ever, quality public education is the key to equal opportunity and upward mobility in America. Yet our neediest children often attend the worst schools. While lifting the performance of all schools, we must place special emphasis on strengthening those institutions serving, and too often failing, low-income students.

To close this achievement and opportunity gap, underperforming public schools need more resources, and above all, real accountability for results. Accountability means ending social promotion, measuring student performance with standards-based assessments, and testing teachers for subject-matter competency.

As we demand accountability, we should ensure that every school has the resources needed to achieve higher standards, including safe and modern physical facilities, well-paid teachers and staff, and opportunities for remedial help after school and during summers. Parents, too, must accept greater responsibility for supporting their children’s education.

We need greater choice, competition, and accountability within the public school system, not a diversion of public funds to private schools that are unaccountable to taxpayers. With research increasingly showing the critical nature of learning in the early years, we should move toward universal access to pre-kindergarten education.

Goals for 2010
• Turn around every failing public school.
• Make charter schools an option in every state and community.
• Offer every parent a choice of public schools to which to send his or her child.
• Make sure every classroom has well-qualified teachers who know the subjects they teach, and pay teachers more for performance.
• Create a safe, clean, healthy, disciplined learning environment for every student.
• Make pre-kindergarten education universally available.

Opposes education vouchers for public or private school.

The Christian Coalition voter guide [is] one of the most powerful tools Christians have ever had to impact our society during elections. This simple tool has helped educate tens of millions of citizens across this nation as to where candidates for public office stand on key faith and family issues.

The CC survey summarizes candidate stances on the following topic: "Education vouchers that allow parents to choose public or private school for their children"