GOVERNOR MARTIN O’MALLEY TO VISIT JONES ELEMENTARY MARYLAND SCHOOLS #1 FIVE YEARS IN A ROW

Governor to join Lt. Governor Brown, House Speaker Busch, other officials at Jones Elementary

ANNAPOLIS, MD (January 10, 2012) – TODAY at 1:30 p.m., Governor O’Malley, joined by Lt. Governor Brown, House Speaker Busch, the Maryland State Education Association, and other officials, will hold an event at Jones Elementary School to celebrate Maryland’s public schools being certified today as #1 in the nation for the fifth straight year by Education Week Magazine.

Earlier this week, the Administration announced $336 million in proposed school construction investments and upgrades, moving our children from temporary learning shacks to modern, state-of-the art classrooms. Thanks to Maryland's students, educators and parents, Maryland elementary school students achieved their highest MSA scores ever in both Reading and Math, while middle school students achieved their highest scores ever in Math. Maryland’s students are #1 in AP success for the fourth consecutive year according to The College Board, and high school students are graduating at the highest rate in history. To prepare our students for the jobs of tomorrow, the Administration has set a goal to increase the number of STEM college graduates 40 percent by 2015.

Since taking office, the O’Malley-Brown Administration, even in the toughest of times while cutting more than any administration in state history, has remained committed to public education. Because of the choices we've made together to make government work for the people of our State, and because of the tough choices we've made over the years, we're close to eliminating a nearly $2 billion structural deficit that we inherited in 2007 while still investing in our priorities like public education and job creation.