CONGRESS OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS, INC. 501

The first weight, the measure of any institution or individual, is
integrity. This can be tested by commitments kept, faith fulfilled and
confidence justified. Last year, when I appeared before this conven-
tion, I was a candidate. I presented my position on public education
and I indicated some objectives.

What were those pledges? To make every effort:

1. To increase State aid to public schools.

2. To increase the student foundation formula.

3. To raise teachers' salaries.

4. To initiate State aid for public kindergartens.

5. To expand vocational-technical school construction.

6. To provide enrichment and emergency funds for inner city
schools.

7. To raise faculty salaries in our State institutions of higher edu-
cation.

8. To increase State aid to community colleges.

In retrospect, this is an awesome list of goals and you probably
thought, "If he means one-third of what he says, if he can deliver one-
fourth of what he is going after, we'll all be way ahead of the game. "
With the objectivity that only nine months in office can bring, I
would have to empathize with the skeptical — if any political can-
didate attempted to deliver that much, I'd be suspicious.

Yet, with the help of Maryland's newly apportioned General As-
sembly, with the invaluable assistance of its leaders, not only have all
of these commitments to try been kept — but the objectives have been
reached. Briefly let's match pledge with performance:

1. Fiscal reform produced an increase in State aid to public schools
exceeding $70 million.

2. The student foundation formula was increased by $30 per
pupil, advancing State aid from $340 to $370.

3. Fiscal reform included a provision in the allocation of funds
so that every subdivision could raise teacher salary scales.

4. Through fiscal reform almost $5 million was appropriated for
kindergarten construction, over $12 million to defray current kinder-
garten operating costs, approximately $7. 9 million to reimburse school
systems for kindergartens previously constructed.

5. The 1967 General Assembly authorized a $10 million bond loan
for vocational-technical school construction.