Access to a quality education is a fundamental right, and we need to rededicate ourselves to making sure a quality education is available and affordable to the young people of New Hampshire. Our schools need to more fully integrate 21st century technology into their curriculum to best prepare the next generation. We should expand and adapt the Common Core standards to more accurately reflect the specific needs of New Hampshire, and continue to explore different assessment methods.
College debt is out of control in New Hampshire, and it is directly related to our stubborn refusal to see the consequences of our state disinvestment. We are undermining the future middle class of NH by making college so expensive that we either force young people out of state, or we simply deny them the opportunity to educate themselves. New Hampshire students graduate with the second highest student debt in the country, averaging over $33,000.00 per student. This debt, along with high property costs, utility costs, and property taxes provides an incentive for college graduates to leave New Hampshire.