Education Reform: Before It Was Cool

The Real Story and Pioneers Who Made It Happen

In 1983, Americans, content with the failing education establishment and ill-equipped to change the status quo were handed a wake-up call in the form of A Nation at Risk. This national report exposed the problems in the system, and slowly, Americans began to see possibilities where there were none. Successes bloomed in cities desperate for change; states began to sign bills into laws. Parents and teachers were starting schools on their own and gutsy governors and legislators began to put education reform at the top of their lists. The Center for Education Reform (CER) has led the charge for change since ideas for reform weren't more than dreams, and now, it seems, perseverance has paid off. Education reform is back in the national spotlight and CER remains the cornerstone of the movement. With the Center's vast experience in two decades of reform, Education Reform: Before It was Cool recounts successes, remembers the pioneers of education reform, and continues to press on for our nation's children as the destination for all Americans who seek something better for our country's education.