FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Rhonda Porter: 402-391-2273, Dave Nabity: 402-618-6759

Nabity Letter to Suburb Parents Urges Education Reform, Denounces OPS Consolidation Bid

(September 25, 2005—Omaha, NE) Dave Nabity, republican candidate for governor, sent a letter by e-mail to parents of Millard public school students today opposing the recent OPS effort to absorb the Millard school district and encouraging reform of the state’s education system.

The letter outlines a number of steps Nabity proposes for increasing efficiency of Nebraska school districts, while both improving quality of education and reducing the tax burden on Nebraska taxpayers.

Nabity is available for interviews at (402)391-2273. # # #

(Entire text of letter to suburb parents is included with this release, below. Three pages, including this one.)

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An Open Letter to Suburban School District Parents

From: Dave Nabity, Candidate for Governor September 25, 2005

I am writing you today, first as a Millard parent, and second as a candidate for governor. I am very proud of the exceptional education my six children have received from Millard Public Schools. Three of my children have graduated from Millard North, and I now have two in Kiewit Middle School and one in Harvey Oaks Elementary. In my opinion, Millard Public Schools is a professional operation that delivers a tremendous education and is also a model of efficiency in many ways. The recent OPS plan to take over other schools within the city of Omaha would be a setback for the parents in those areas and not good for the kids. A takeover also has the potential of raising property taxes in the affected areas, which would be a major hardship for taxpayers. It is for these reasons that I will stand firm in my opposition to the OPS takeover and will use whatever influence I have to stop this misguided plan.

As a candidate for governor, I have called for a halt to all consolidation efforts in the entire state until a thorough review can be delivered that will clearly communicate where inefficiencies are within our education system. This type of performance review from a volunteer board would deliver the intelligence and information we need to finally streamline our statewide education system to more efficiently operate. For years, we have been consolidating schools in an effort to save taxpayers money. It has not worked. In most cases, it has actually cost taxpayers more money. If OPS is having difficulty financing its district, then they should first review their system with a top-to-bottom "scrubbing" to find ways of more efficiently doing business. As your governor, I will lead the charge to begin this process.

I have been critical of the governor for telling us what we want to hear on this subject but not offering solutions. I believe the role of the governor, as the Chief Executive of the state, is to more deeply study the problem and offer clear and concise solutions that make sense to parents, kids and teachers. Nebraska has long needed a new and innovative plan that streamlines and modernizes education and brings relief to the taxpayer. We have conflicts statewide, and it is not enough to pass the responsibility to the legislature without a defined strategy that solves problems. As your governor, I will roll out a new plan that tackles many of the problems we are having today, and immediately deliver it to the legislature to begin the debate. Initially, however, we need to stop OPS and any other district trying to leverage a takeover.

One of the reasons I decided to run for governor is that I felt we needed new aggressive and innovative ideas to create a 21st Century education plan. As your governor, I would work to create a plan for education that includes the following:

--Formation of a Nebraska Performance Review Team. This team of volunteer professionals will completely review the current system, look for duplication and overlap in school administrations statewide and ultimately find ways to reduce costs and therefore reduce taxes.

--Create a benchmark for all Nebraska schools to follow. We need a clear, defensible assessment of what it should cost annually to educate a child K – 12 in Nebraska—one that would take into consideration low-income communities and rural distances.

--Develop a system allowing districts to operate freely, even if they are near larger school systems. If these school districts are at or below the acceptable annual benchmark, (Millard already falls into this category, because it operates so efficiently), let them operate freely. For those schools that don’t meet the benchmark, we’ll help them find better ways to operate.

--Conduct a study of state and federal mandates to determine necessity. Federal mandates were put in place to help failing schools in inner city areas (to make sure no child is left behind). However, I don’t believe it is as necessary in Nebraska as elsewhere. Many private schools do not have the same burdens.

--Create a better system for smaller state schools. Allow small schools to coexist by outsourcing expensive business functions—to help them keep overhead down.

--Provide alternative education systems. Parents in sparsely populated areas need access to alternative educational systems that help them stay cost effective and more efficient, while meeting standards.

This approach is what is needed in Nebraska to create long-term solutions for delivering quality education in Nebraska. As I’m sure you know, when education costs are allowed to get out of control, taxes also increase. Higher taxes increase the number of people leaving our state for places with lower taxes. When they leave, they take their money and their financial support for our schools with them. Retirees daily are facing this choice to leave. Also, higher taxes cause businesses to expand elsewhere, taking jobs and property tax support with them. If we don’t streamline and modernize our statewide system, I believe we will find ourselves incapable of financing quality education. The nagging conflicts between districts, cities and taxpayers will only continue.

That’s why I’m speaking out. We need new leadership to protect our right to choose how we educate our children. Our 21st Century system must have two goals: 1) to deliver an extraordinary education product to our children and 2) to bring property tax relief to our citizens. It’s just good stewardship of our education dollars. It’s also good citizenship to insist on forward-thinking solutions from our government to attack these problems.

The upcoming election is an opportunity for you to vote for fresh new ideas for Nebraska. I hope you will see that I don't play politics with critical problems like the ones we are facing. I am a person who believes in straight talk and solutions. It’s time we get about the business of improving our state with the least amount of conflict.

I would welcome invitations to visit with both parent groups and educators to learn more and listen to your ideas. Also, feel free to communicate your thoughts to me at dnabs@nabity.com.

Sincerely,

Dave Nabity Candidate for Governor

Dave Nabity for Governor
9140 West Dodge, Suite 100
Omaha, NE 68114
(402) 391-2273
www.davenabity.com