PALM COAST, Fla. (October 18, 2023) – “Dr. Moore provided a comprehensive analysis of all the defining public policy issues which will ensure that Florida has a 21st century education system that makes us a national model and very competitive globally,” said Dr. Joe Saviak on Wednesday after engaging keynote speaker Dr. Ed Moore during the Flagler Tiger Bay Club’s October luncheon meeting.
Education, a hot button topic at every level of a student’s career, has become a flash point for communities across the nation.
As Florida schools navigate the changes implemented by the Florida Legislature in 2023, expanding school choice and opening up opportunities, administrators of the K-12 system in Florida’s 67 counties are working diligently to elevate the conversation and ensure their schools are providing students the tools needed for success.
“Today his speech, for me, was all about options for our students and how choice for our students is not just about K-12 but it’s also about higher education as well,” said Flagler Schools Superintendent LaShakia Moore.
“I of course loved the push for really more attraction for teachers and getting teachers into our schools. I definitely enjoyed that portion of the speech,” she said.
Dr. Moore drove home the vital importance of a community’s education system during his remarks, with Superintendent Moore echoing his words.
“I think he did a great of really saying this and I continue saying this as I go across the county. Regardless of if you have children in the system, private, charter, home, public or you’re a community member, the success of our community really relies on the success of our school system. You’ve got to have a thriving school system in order to have a thriving community,” she said.
As the former President of the Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida, Dr. Moore worked directly with the product of the K-12 school systems. His speech reflected the current state of affairs and focused on the needs moving forward.
“Education is the foundation for everything after that,” he said. “I spoke today a lot of value.”
“I just think we need more people to understand the value of it and get behind it, and then we’ll start doing better with K12. We’ve got to produce better students coming out of high school. You can’t get bad performing students and then miraculously they turn into scholars. It has to start early and often, and it starts in the home.”
Unafraid to tackle the elephant in the room, Moore was generous with his assessment of college students trying to balance the challenges of their generation with real world expectations and responsibilities.
“I think most of that generation is on track. It’s a very small minority of people that enjoy protesting. I hate to put it that way. I grew up the late 60s and early 70s and we protested everything. It was part of a way of life,” he said.
“But some of them are misled, some are manipulated by outside groups and most of those people you’re seeing on northern campuses are being influenced by other groups outside. Yeah, there’s a bad professor now and then but generally people at that age have good hearts and good intent. It’s a small minority that gets all the attention.”
Moore spoke with students representing Matanzas High School and Bethune-Cookman University after the luncheon answering questions, as part of the Flagler Tiger Bay Club’s Young Tiger Program.
The Flagler Tiger Bay Club will host Scenic America President Mark Falzone on Thursday, November 16, 2023 at the Hammock Dunes Club, starting at noon. Registration is open at www.FlaglerTigerBayClub.com.
