DFER CEO Jorge Elorza Urges VP Harris to Make K-12 Education Central to Her Vision for an “Opportunity Economy”

As Harris Prepares to Speak in Pittsburgh, Elorza Calls for Bold Action to Connect K-12 Schools with Economic Mobility and National Strength

(New York, NY) — Today, ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris’s upcoming speech to voters in Pittsburgh, PA, Democrats for Education Reform’s (DFER) CEO Jorge Elorza released the following statement, calling for VP Harris to center education in her economic plan:

“As Vice President Harris heads to Pittsburgh to speak about her vision for an “Opportunity Economy,” we urge her to prioritize K-12 education as a cornerstone of her economic vision and of providing pathways to upward mobility for the working class. Today, there is an urgent need to not only respond to the post-Covid desire for something different in education but to also connect K-12 education more directly to building a resilient, thriving economy. 

Harris speaks passionately about her own education journey, she selected a former teacher as a running mate, and she is unencumbered by previous policy positions. She has the opportunity to mobilize America toward making our K-12 public schools the envy of the world. In contrast to Republicans’ “Project 2025” proposal to retreat from national leadership on education, Harris should lean into education’s essential role and embed it even deeper into the core of her economic agenda. 

Transforming K-12 public education is the most effective and uplifting investment we can make to bolster America’s long-term strength. Doing so would not only be good policy and politics for Harris; it would be what America needs.”

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