Good afternoon. I am pleased to kick off todays event on education savings accounts and the future of educational choice. Our event today is straightforward, and in a moment, i will give the podium to our speaker, jeb bush. I will join him on stage freight the conversation together, and following that, my former colleague, now the executive director of the center for advancing opportunity will join the distinguished group of panelists, which i will let him introduce the details. Todays event a little housekeeping, it is being livestream and full video will be available later in the day. We also have our friends at cspan broadcasting, and we appreciate their service. For those watching at home and online, we have a for the event. It is jebbushataei. Will pose questions for later and monitoring on twitter. This is National School choice week, and in ideal way to wrap up the discussion is education savings accounts. I am aware some of you are wondering why we should care about education savings accounts. And what our education savings accounts . They are a mechanism for educational choice in six states where parents can withdraw kids from schools and into accounts where parents can control and use those funds for restricted uses for educational services. That include private school tuition, but much more. Online learning programs, private tutoring, Higher Education expenses, and a variety of customized learning services and materials. It allows parents to unbundle education services. Moving beyond choices between schools, we are moving beyond the idea of School Choice to really brought their broadened the choices of School Choice. It comes with promises and pitfalls. Last year, Gerard Robinson and i released an edited volume, our education savings accounts, the new frontier of choice. We brought together a bunch of experts to look at the many history, legal foundation, and how parents use them and what Public Opinions running them is. How to develop the supply side and the minister, regulate them, and ensure quality control. There is a number of these aspects will discuss today. Growth and education savings accounts and other School Choice mechanisms has been progressing in the states for a number of years, but we are in a new era of School Choice. The unapologetic support for School Choice from the Current Administration is new, and is raising the possibility of tailwinds and headwinds for School Choice. What the future of educational choice holds and the role esa will play and it is open for questions, and i cant think of a better person to tackle that question and governor bush. Jeb bush does it need introduction, he is the 43rd governor of florida. But, some introduction to his passion for education reform. During his two terms, his top priority was to tackle floridas struggling Education System. Under his leadership, they placed them accountable School Choice program in the nation. It can be defended at the time, and still defended today. Even before becoming governor, bush was engaged in reform and florida, being involved with starting the First Charter School in florida back in 1994. Today, governor bush maintains his passion for all students across the country, serving as the chairman are the foundation of excellence in education. He founded to transform education in america. Please join me in welcoming governor jeb bush. [applause] mr. Bush thank you all very much. When people say i dont need introduction, some person saw me, and i guess i have remote face id, having run for president , not a winner, but be not to be a little bit, you get known, and this woman was looking at me. She said, i know you, you used to be jeb bush, right . [laughter] mr. Bush always good to recognize that i need no introduction, but i probably do. It is a joy to be here. Arthur, are you trying to push the brand here . This is a beautiful place, and it is a place where scholars think big thoughts and create practical ways that we could improve the human condition and we could live with a life of purpose and meaning. I try to still every idea that comes out of this place, and it is a joy and honored to be here. So whys it important to talk about School Choice . For people who dont like a good political fight, it seems like that goes on when you talk about education reform and School Choice. Advocating as made different choices as possible normal people dont like to get into fights, just voluntarily. Here is what i believe to be true. The first thing we have to recognize is that if you think the school is working, and many parents think the schools are working, then great. If you think the schools are ok, or mediocre, or you think they are failing, it doesnt matter. The arguments that we have from time to time in all 50 states, and occasionally in washington is the quality of schools and who is to blame for the outcomes and all of that. It is irrelevant, what we can all agree on is learning has to get better. Has to change. It has to recognize the world were living in and the world we are moving in is dramatically different than the schools were organized to do. If you start with that premise, then the political fight will subside and some of these new ideas should get a fair hearing. We try to convince people of different ways of thinking, because the world we are moving because the world we are moving towards is the most exciting time to be alive, and it is also perhaps the most dangerous time we have lived in. The me give you statistics that bear this out. From mackenzie, has become totally accurate. 45 of all jobs that americans are paid to do could be automated with existing technology today. That is 2 trillion of wages. Imagine what that looks like in a decade of time. I have been fascinated by ups building a one of a kind of Research Project looking at every aspect of their business, it is called the overriding project or ryan project orion project. Using inputs across the spectrum of their business, including the trucks are going. With they concluded is that becoming fully operational at the orion project, not allowing trucks to take left turns, which is counter to me living in miami for when i make a left turn, i go as quick as i can. They determined using Big Data Analytics that it would save them more money. If the implement this program, they would save 100 million miles per year. 10 million gallons of fuel. They would reduce co2 emissions by metric tons, reduce the number of trucks by a thousand, and save 400 million towards the bottom line. Marching band celebrating it. But what about the Truck Drivers . Think of our entire economy using this information across the board. The combination of wireless technology, use of artificial intelligence, Big Data Analytics, converging into our lives on once. It is possible that a child born in poverty, going to in lives on once. Excellent school, would never get a job. The simple fact is that this is not just about poverty, there is a lot of people who will not have the skills because of the Education System, starting from k12 and all the way up to Lifelong Learning is not prepared or the world were moving towards. That is why this is important. Education is the chance to have the skills to live a life of purpose and meaning. Quality teachers in front of students, using Innovative Technologies the right way will give people the chance to be, not just a truck driver, but the Software Provider that will make it possible for a lot of other people to be successful. You extrapolate the yes experience, not just in transportation, manufacturing, retail, amazon sales for each one of its employees cells one million worth of goods. In brickandmortar retailer sells 100,000 of goods for employees. Was going to be the winner there . Were not prepared to deal with this exciting and dangerous time. So the question is which governance model applies to the 21st century and the world are moving towards . My personal opinion is that the toll thousand 29 eyes, monopolies, we call them School Districts, is not the best governance model for the world were moving towards. The new system should be parent driven, totally transparent, focused on as many choices as possible, where we customize the learning experience for this unique group of people emerging into our world. Florida is a geordie minority state in terms of its children so is texas, california, and most states that have growing populations and 58 of all children in florida are qualified for free and reduced lunch. Same as texas and california and other states that are growing. You think the systems were created around these kids are working to the extent that they should . I dont believe so. The reason why our foundation why have been involved for many years, fact, it is like dog years. I think it is the american way to empower americans to allow them to be able to love their children with their heart and soul in the right way to be able to improve education outcomes. Have you already the end of average . A phenomenal book by todd rose, a professor at the Harvard School of education, and in the book, i recommend it if you havent read it. Begins with a story of military plane crashes in the late 1940s and 1950s with the conversion of jet aircraft from what existed before. They studied the reasons why there were so many crashes, and what they ruled out, highly error and training, and they turned to the cockpit that was designed prior. A young lieutenant named Gilbert Daniels look at the body measurements of more than 4000 pilots. He measured the leg sizes, arms, next of these pilots to determine what would be the perfect cockpit so there could be fewer crashes. When he determined was that not a single pilot met the average. Some might have longer arms, some had bigger torsos, some had big cans, some had small hands, but the simple fact was that all out of those 4000 pilots, not a single one met at average. Many aspects of our society, averages, that is not the relevant thing we should be looking at. Not one of them conform to to the average used to design the cockpit. And so, the simple point is, everybody is different. Is not a question of race or income, we are all different, which makes us all special and unique, and our Education System should be customized around that uniqueness. We could do that today, whereas 50 years ago in the industrial era, whenever thing was home watching eyes and created and organized around averages, it was impossible to do. That is why we should focus on School Choice, particularly School Savings accounts. Virtual schools, all of those, are important for sure, but what makes esa where we should focus on expanding is that it is customized to the uniqueness of these childs. That the parents received the money, and it wont go 100 to another option in the monopoly that dictates where the child should go to. It could be for therapy, tutoring, afterschool programs, for the uniqueness of that child. I would argue, empowered with the proper information, parents are the best School District that exists in this country. What we should do about it . This is not a place for washington is going to play an important role. Play a role for advocacy for sure, but this is a battle fought out in 50 states. Legislators are doing this work, whether it is in nevada, certainly in florida the largest yes a Scholarship Program with close to 10,000 students were parents can customize learning experience rated it can grow to 100,000 if we have the budget to be able to make that happen. And states that are focused on this, special needs kids, and in the case of nevada and other places, across the board for students. Things work out. My vision is that with the right policies in place, the most open system, you would have a halfday where mom could take from a Traditional School, take an ap calculus course that is not available in the classroom setting, online, from the Virtual School or other Virtual Schools. Take an online music course, or a spanish course with a local, retired schoolteacher. My guess is that education outcomes be much stronger, more sustainable to deal with the world we are moving towards. The question is, what are the issues at hand to implement this vision . It is complicated, theres a lot of things that need to be worked on. With his accountability look back look like when Parents School to schools two schools at once . How can we create harmony, how do we deal with assuring that this disadvantaged families get equal access . All of these things have to be worked out for sure, but it is work doing. If you consider the system we have today, which works effectively the optimal system for governance for the next generation fine. You have what you have. A growing number of families look in the whole rise in and see huge opportunities, but also see a great danger if their children dont gain the power of knowledge. By advocating these programs, i think we can achieve that at a far faster rate, and we need to. The world is moving at warp speed towards an exciting time. Thank you. [applause] thank you, governor. I know have questions for you. To backup a little bit off of esa, yet have been at this for quite a while. Before most folks before the century started how does the landscape of School Choice change over time since you were governor . Mr. Bush when we created the first Voucher Program in 1999, it was the first statement larger program. It hadnt been done before, and you would have to before we implemented it that the world was going to come to an end. One of the advantages of implementing policy is that the world does not come to an end. Our system was a perfect, but the fact that we implemented it took away the arguments from the people were protecting the status quo at all costs. My attitude is that success is never final and reform is never complete. When you need to be doing is creating perpetual you build a platform based on one policy change, and that allows you to take advantage and move on. What we proved was that the world is a come to an end. 47 of all florida kids go to a school that is chosen by their parents. Whether that is a universal public School Choice, which we have in florida a burgeoning Charter School effort. Largest Corporate Tax scholarship 100,000 kids, the largest voucher for kids with learning disabilities. All of these have been fought, people attack, fishback, but once implemented, people move on to the next to gripe about. My advocacy is to be big and bold and fill the void, because if you dont, someone else will. You had not one, but two big shifts, two moves forward. You had an a plus, the accountability system. You also had large choice programs which do you think, and you were governor, got the most bang for your buck . We also eliminated social in a big way. We created a School Recognition program to the schools that were great from a to at the Bonus Program was the 100 for students that there went directly to the schools that were a partial improvement. Mr. Bush it is not one thing, it is about improving student learning. We got it because we focused on Early Childhood literacy. It was a choice by itself, it wasnt accountability by itself, wasnt about being passionate if a third grade kid is functionally illiterate, it is shameful. Society should be ashamed of that fact, and we created a climate where there was a lot of tension. Was a dynamic time because not everybody agreed with the policies, but we try to faithfully implement them and we had success, thankfully. The point is, we were at the bottom in terms of student learning, and through all of this effort, to put in perspective, the nations report card in 1997 or 1998, we were 29th out of 31. In 10 years time, we were sixth out of 50. That is the best way, to protect these programs, you need to have success in learning and have a constituency where the parents will say, you can take this away from me. I want to move to the choice, but i want to focus on florida. They have a strong charter sector, and i know folks who like School Choice, but they say charters are enough, charters are what we need. We put all our bets on charters. You support private School Choice in addition to charters. Why arent charters enough . Mr. Bush they are not, plain and simple. We have slots in the country that are unfilled, what is wrong with having people be given other options that is best for themselves . Maybe some parents, i am a catholic, i am lobbying to make sure my grandchildren get a Catholic Education. So far, it works. Or id say it is a job. Why not, why not have a variety of different options that is public and private. I never understood what the decision about it is. There are great schools, and they should be held as great examples. If you go to a parent central model rather than protecting the Sacred School what other sector we go through this whole, exhaustive conversation . We dont do it when we consume products, do we . Do go to the supermarket once in a while question mark i do the shopping in my family, and i use this analogy of milk. The lust that i use analogy was two years ago, but the number of milk options, or fake milk, has doubled. The who