October 1, 2006
Lewis offers schools a free teaching resource
Acknowledging the need for civic education, superintendents gladly accept the offer
By Jan Pudlow
Senior Editor
Saying he possesses “the passion of a Baptist minister and the aggression of a NFL linebacker when it comes to our kids and education,” Chief Justice Fred Lewis told a roomful of school superintendents he was willing to give them help worth millions of dollars — for free.
Withholding judgment on policies and politics, Lewis acknowledged the growing demands on educators during this “era of high-stakes testing.”
“I know you don’t have enough time. I know you don’t have enough resources. I know you don’t have everything you need and deserve. What can we do to help?”
Answering his own question, Lewis outlined his plans for the Justice Teaching initiative that will send volunteer judges and lawyers into classrooms in every school in Florida to teach civic education.
“I come to you this morning to offer you something for free — and that is us. You know, if you would go out and pay for what I am going to offer, it would cost you millions of dollars.”
He likened his offer to having a heart surgeon speak in biology class about the workings of the heart, or Bill Gates visiting the classroom to chat about computer technology.
“Would you take him up on it?” Lewis asked members of the Florida Association of District School Superintendents meeting September 14 in Tampa.
“Not to tell you what to do, not to tell you how to do it, but to offer to help. I think we have a need in the public school system to be resource persons for you. And I have 78,000 people who are willing to get involved and help your schools. Not all of them are going to get involved, let’s face it. My goal is to have a resource person for each of your schools available to you. Sky? You bettcha. . . I believe if you don’t reach for the sky, you will stay on the floor. . . .A philosopher once said, ‘That which you wish to see in the life of a nation, you must first see in the educational system with the children.’”
The big question, Lewis said, is: “Can we be trusted? Can we be trusted with maintaining this representative democracy?. . .My friends, I often say, I would not give my wallet to just anyone on the street, nor would I give our children to just anyone on the street to take care of. You have our most precious resources passing through your schools each and every day. If this process reaches 10 percent of them, that’s 10 percent better off than we were yesterday.
“This program is not about simply filling the bucket. This program is about lighting the fire.
“So you must excuse me if my passion for education seems a little overbearing,” Lewis said, as he gestured, voice rising.
“But we at the Florida Supreme Court believe in you, we believe in what you do. We believe in each and every one of your teachers. We support what you do, because we know that history will demonstrate that we’re doing the right thing.”
Before Lewis’ presentation, Bill Montford, chief executive officer of the FADSS, said: “I am just ecstatic that he is here with all the superintendents of Florida. It’s good for the kids of Florida when you have the chief justice of the Florida Supreme Court taking time out of his busy schedule to be with the superintendents and to reach down into our classrooms to have such a good positive impact on the literally thousands and thousands of kids throughout Florida.”
Montford, formerly superintendent of Leon County schools, first met Lewis at a reception at the Capitol when former Secretary of State Colin Powell came to visit Tallahassee.
Lewis was singing the praises of Tallahassee’s schools, where his daughter with disabilities attends as a special-track student. Little did Lewis know he was sitting next to the school superintendent. Montford asked if he could pass the compliment along to his school principals and asked, “What is it you do again?”
When Lewis answered “Justice of the Florida Supreme Court,” Montford recalled, he muttered to himself an embarrassed, “Oh, boy.”
Now, Montford is part of Lewis’ Select Committee on Justice Teaching that will govern the civic education initiative.
Asked if he agreed there is a need for civic education in Florida’s public schools, Montford answered: “Oh, absolutely. It’s one of the criticisms that we received in public education, the lack of civic education. It’s fair. And superintendents will respond and the teachers throughout Florida will, as well. We have 67 school superintendents. They are all excited, and they all have tremendous respect for the chief justice and what he is trying to do. We are very confident we will be very successful.”
[Revised:
08-01-2010
]