John Edwards for President-Education Leaders Endorse John Edwards For President

Education Leaders Endorse John Edwards For President

Nov 28, 2007 4:11 PM

Personal Endorsements from Educators Who Hold Leadership Roles in Iowa's Largest Teachers' Association

Des Moines, Iowa – Today, the John Edwards for President campaign announced the support of 12 Iowa education leaders who support Edwards as the best candidate to change our country and make sure every child gets a quality education. These educators hold leadership roles in Iowa's largest teachers' association.

Their endorsements reflect their personal decisions and do not indicate the support of the ISEA, which will not endorse a presidential candidate.

These education leaders believe Edwards has the best plan to strengthen our schools and support teachers. These endorsements follow the announcement of a 214-member Iowa Education Professionals for Edwards group, which the campaign announced in September. At Brody Middle School in Des Moines in September, Edwards outlined his plan to restore the promise of America's schools and ensure that every child gets the same quality education that he received.

"I'm proud to receive the support of these dedicated leaders," said Edwards. "They are America's true heroes. I look forward to working with them to make sure all children get a great education and the chance to succeed. When I am president, we are going to treat teachers, support professionals and all educators with the dignity and respect they deserve."

The education leaders – all of whom are leaders in Iowa's largest teachers' association – endorsing Edwards for president are:

Jean Swenson
Oscar Ortiz
Anne Travis
Ruth Moorberg
Melva Lewis
Jeannette Kline
Kevin Longcor
Tracy Kelley
Charles Bursch
Katherine Farris
Paula Logan
William Sherwood

Edwards' plan to improve America's schools and allow educators to focus on educating the next generation of leaders includes:

Overhauling the No Child Left Behind Act to judge schools more fairly, keep the curriculum from becoming too narrowed and get serious about helping low-performing schools with a new Marshall Plan to turn them around.
Leading the way toward universal preschool by providing resources to states to help them offer universal high-quality preschool programs for four-year-olds.
Investing more in training and paying our teachers by raising pay for teachers willing to serve in schools with high poverty levels, creating a new national teacher university, supporting teachers in the first years of their careers and reducing classroom sizes.

A detailed fact sheet summarizing Edwards' education plan is available at www.JohnEdwards.com/Iowa.