Education is a Difference Maker. Every Child, Every School System, Every Day.

Education is a Difference Maker. It strengthens our economy.

Education is a Difference Maker. It gives kids a future.

Below is a portion of Denisha Merriweather’s story shared in The Wall Street Journal and on the Foundation for Excellence in Education website. Ms. Merriweather shares that attending “a secondary school that was the right fit for me… changed my life.” Let’s make every school “a right fit.” Here’s more from Ms. Merriweather:

Making honor roll is expected and academic success is celebrated. This environment was very different for me. But something clicked. My grades and self-confidence rose. I believed I could succeed and people there believed the same. Learning was no longer a nightmare, but a gift I greatly appreciated. I worked hard. In the end, I graduated with honors.

And yet, that’s not the end. A different school didn’t just make dreams come true for me. It allowed me to have dreams I didn’t know I could have. Last summer, after graduating from the University of West Florida, I volunteered at an orphanage in the Dominican Republic, where I learned firsthand about that country’s social-welfare system. This spring, I plan to continue my education at the University of South Florida, in its joint master’s program in social work and public health.

I’m not sure which professional road I will take. I have options now. But whatever it is, I know I want to create opportunities for children to have a shot at a bright future. Just like I had.

Today, one of my colleagues, Dr. @janetpilcher, is attending the Foundation for Excellence in Education conference in Washington, D.C. Why? Because our Studer Education responsibility statement, “Every Child, Every School District, Every Day” is being shared in the day’s message; here are some tweets from this morning’s keynote by former Florida Governor Jeb Bush via @ExcelinEd:

“Too often, the bar is set low… and too little is expected of children who could do far more.”

“When schools fail our kids, we deny them more than an education….we deny them their right to their potential.”

“We need to measure to identify students & schools that are struggling so we can get them the support & resources needed to help them improve.”

“Aim higher…be bolder…raise standards and ask more of our students and the system.”

“… The promise of a quality education for every American child and with it, a chance to strengthen America.”

One final tweet from @ExcelinEd before this post goes to press sums up the importance—the purpose—we live daily at Studer Education and in the work we do with school districts across the country, “… All that can be done in the future will require bold leadership from the people in this room.”