Before serving in the Senate, I volunteered as the business co-chairman of the Partners in Education Council of the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce. We worked with teachers, principals and local leaders in Oshkosh to help provide students with the tools they’ll need to lead productive and successful lives.

Serving on the council made me aware of the challenges facing educators today. It also confirmed my belief that good teachers know how to teach and that local administrators know how to run their schools. Educational decisions should be made as close to local schools and classrooms as possible.

Parents, teachers and local leaders are in the best position to understand what their children and students need. The more power Washington bureaucracies have over education, the more education suffers. Students and parents should have the flexibility to choose the type of education that best suits their individual requirements.

I know how important education is in the lives of people and to the success of America in a global economy. We should be moving toward more local control and an educational system that concentrates on matching educational results with employer needs.