Governor Ivey Proclaims Public Schools Week in Alabama

Governor Kay Ivey has officially proclaimed Public Schools Week in Alabama while celebrating what she calls historic academic progress across the state, according to this press release from the governor’s office.

“Every child deserves a high-quality education, and every teacher deserves the right training and support,” Ivey said, according to this press release from the governor’s office. “Strong students lead to a strong Alabama, and a strong Alabama is our goal.”

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The governor pointed to long-term reforms that began in 2017 with her Strong Start, Strong Finish education initiative, designed to strengthen the classroom to workforce pipeline.

Since then, the state has expanded its nationally recognized First Class Pre-K program and implemented both the Alabama Literacy Act and Numeracy Act to focus heavily on reading and math fundamentals.

According to this press release from the governor’s office, Alabama once ranked near the bottom nationally in fourth grade math and reading. Today, the state ranks 32nd in math and 34th in reading, posting the largest increase in fourth grade math in the country. Alabama is now first in the nation in math recovery and third in reading recovery.

The release also highlights a 92 percent high school graduation rate and an all-time record College and Career Readiness Rate of 88 percent. Alabama reportedly has the lowest rate of chronic absenteeism in the country and ranks among the top five states for computer science.

In addition, Ivey has proposed another teacher pay raise this year, bringing total teacher pay increases to nearly 20 percent during her time in office, according to this press release from the governor’s office.