Not as many went in as we predicted. Kids are learning more in the schools. That's the good news. The more disturbing news is that once you're in the later years of 'program improvement,' you don't get out.

Money continues to flow to public schools whether kids are learning or not. They have a monopoly. There's no accountability. There's no incentive for them to change.

We feel that if a school is growing quite well, even if they don't meet AYP, they're on the right track.

It is going to get harder for everybody. The targets will stay flat through 2007, but after that, they are going to go up dramatically. After that, it is going to be really hard for schools statewide to make it.

We know that kids with quality early learning opportunities are more likely to graduate from high school, more likely to graduate from college, and more likely to earn higher income. And we know for every one dollar we invest in early education, we save seven dollars down the line in welfare, special education, and criminal justice costs. Our children deserve the chance for an early start on success.

I sense a difference at both schools. There's an atmosphere that learning is the most important thing.