As part of the second segment of this year’s university-wide forum on K-12 education, the university welcomed 4 distinguished leaders in education for a panel discussion. Entitled “The Conversation: Developing the Schools Our Children Deserve,” the discussion took place before a full audience on September 28.

The panelists represent a small sample of the diverse perspectives within the field of education. Juan Rangel hails from Chicago where he is the chief executive officer of the community organization United Neighborhood Organization.  Advocating for the group’s target Hispanic population, he has established 11 charter schools.

Randi Weingarten, featured in the documentary WAITING FOR SUPERMAN, leads the American Federation of Teachers, one of the country’s largest teachers unions.

Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas currently works in Tucson, although he spent many years serving the greater Chicago area in a number of community roles.  Wendy Kopp, the founder of Teach for America and its international counterpart Teach for All, rounded out the panel.

Notre Dame Political Science Professor David Campbell and Fr. Timothy R. Scully, CSC, who founded the Alliance for Catholic Education (ACE) served as moderators.

Campbell first asked the panel what one thing in American education they would change if they could. Their answers revealed a common ground among the different voices in education. In various ways, panelists said they want all children to receive a good education.

Weingarten wants people to abandon educational fads like longer school days or new methods of teacher evaluation and instead focus on making sure schools serve “all kids, not some kids.”

Bishop Kicanas expressed his hope for a quality education for every student regardless of the circumstances. Kopp also emphasized the need for equity in education, suggesting that society must recognize that our education system is in a state of crisis because it is not effectively serving low-income students.

Fr. Scully concurred and redirected the conversation to the achievement gap.

Rangel and Bishop Kicanas remarked on the problem of competing opinions and interests undermining positive change for students.

“Entrenched interests within the school system, whether bureaucracy, politics, or unions, are locked in their position and have nothing to do with the kids,” Rangel said.  “After decades of that kind of system, how do you pull back?  We have a system that makes excuses for failure.  We can talk about cooperation, but that is not going to happen.”

Along with Bishop Kicanas and Weingarten, Kopp expressed dissatisfaction with the current system.  “We are all caught up in a broken system,” she said.

Kopp and Weingarten then focused on the challenges poverty imposes on education and the need for schools to accommodate low-income students.

Campbell posed the next question, “How do we recruit the best talent to serve as teachers?” Wendy Kopp led the response, focusing on the need for leadership not limited to the classroom. She explained that our country needs leaders in every sector who understand the crisis and use their position of leadership to advocate for students.

She also suggested a culture of professionalism for teachers, in which school districts would recruit the best candidates and teachers undertake ongoing professional development. Weingarten explained that teaching ought to be highly regarded by society, and that teachers need a higher salary, better working conditions, and a voice within the school.

Rangel suggested that quantifiable results should guide change. He brought up the tremendous reconstruction that has occurred in New Orleans schools since Hurricane Katrina and expressed hope for a similar reorganization in Chicago.

The final question concerned the role of choice in education. Weingarten described the debate about choice in schools as a money issue. She stated that money that could go to public schools should not be directed to non-public schools.  Bishop Kicanas disagreed, noting that faith-based schools need some form of financial support to keep from closing.

Kopp concluded by stating that we should be optimistic of the optimism we should feel because of the changing tide in education. Schools exist that effectively serve low-income students, and communities are actively addressing the factors that threaten their schools’ success.

Kelsey Clemson is a senior psychology major, living off campus. Contact her at kclemson@nd.edu with questions or concerns regarding education, ecumenism, or escalloping.

Derek Defensor contributed reporting to this article.