February 13, 2007  In his fifth State of the State address, Gov. Phil Bredesen pledged to use the proposed cigarette-tax increase to provide $120 million to schools that serve many children deemed at risk of school failure.

February 13, 2007  Pennsylvania Gov. Edward G. Rendell has proposed a $9.3 billion pre-K-12 education budget, a 5.8 percent hike from the amount spent in fiscal 2007.

February 13, 2007  Gov. Brad Henry has asked for $15 million in the fiscal 2008 budget for a pilot program to expand preschool to 3-year-olds, according to Paul Sund, the governor’s communications director.

February 13, 2007  Gov. Ernie Fletcher proposed an extra $7 million for the state’s Math Achievement Fund.

February 13, 2007  Gov. M. Jodi Rell recommended $3.4 billion in additional state spending on schools over the next five years.

February 6, 2007  Gov. Martin O’Malley's education agenda calls for increased funds, but few new initiatives.

February 6, 2007  Wisconsin Gov. James E. Doyle calling on lawmakers to “make Wisconsin a place where anyone who is willing to roll up their sleeves and work hard … can afford to get an education.”

February 6, 2007  Rhode Island Gov. Donald L. Carcieri said he would form a group to craft a 21st Century Education Plan focusing on school finance, teacher quality and compensation, and urban schools.

February 6, 2007  In his first budget address last week, Iowa Gov. Chet Culver called for nearly $190 million in new spending on education in fiscal 2008

January 30, 2007  The plan would help underwrite initiatives in instructional technology, early-childhood education, and after-school programs.

January 30, 2007  Gov. Jim Gibbons said he wants to stick with the current pilot program instead of calling for statewide implementation.

January 30, 2007  Gov. Linda Lingle said students need to be able to “compete with the best and the brightest from around the world.”

January 23, 2007  Gov. Dave Freudenthal called on Wyoming residents to look beyond their own counties, school districts, and political parties and to concentrate on the state first.

January 23, 2007  West Virginia should focus its attention on improving its response to school emergencies, says governor.

January 23, 2007  Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. pushed for salary increases and "targeted financial incentives."

January 23, 2007  Gov. Mark Sanford's speech to the state legislature this year included a call for school choice and “market-based solutions to education,” but he didn’t endorse a specific program.

January 23, 2007  Gov. Haley Barbour called for increased teacher pay, expanded early-childhood education, and full funding for the formula intended to equalize school spending throughout Mississippi.

January 23, 2007  Gov. Pawlenty's initiative would give schools a 2 percent bonus for reaching and maintaining proficiency on state tests in reading and mathematics.

January 23, 2007  The full-day kindergarten initiative, the centerpiece of Gov. Mitch Daniels' education platform, flopped when pitched by the two previous governors.

January 23, 2007  Gov. Ruth Ann Miller said her budget proposal would fully finance full-day kindergarten for Delaware's regular public and charter schools.

January 23, 2007  Gov. Ritter also called for reducing by half over the next decade the achievement gap on state test scores between poor and some minority students and better-performing groups.

January 23, 2007  Gov. Sarah Palin's proposed budget would increase educational funding by 17 percent.

January 23, 2007  Gov. Bill Richardson is proposing to relieve overcrowding, double prekindergarten enrollment, and give a tax credit to some highly qualified teachers.

January 17, 2007  Existing funding won’t begin to meet the state’s continuing need for more classroom space, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said last week during his State of the State address.

January 17, 2007  Deeming education her top priority, Gov. Christine Gregoire pledged in her Jan. 9 State of the State address to improve opportunities for the youngest children in Washington state by spending more money on early education and health care.

January 17, 2007  Gov. Timothy M. Kaine reiterated his desire to expand preschool options for Virginia children in the State of the Commonwealth address he delivered to the legislature Jan. 10, saying his budget plan offers a way to expand early-learning programs, including those offered by religious institutions.

January 17, 2007  Gov. Michael Rounds’ speech opening South Dakota’s 2007 legislative session last week gave plenty of hints that the Republican governor expects the budgetary debates in the GOP-controlled legislature to be as intense this year as any in his five-year tenure.

January 17, 2007  “Opportunity” was the theme of Oregon Gov. Theodore R. Kulongoski’s Jan. 8 inaugural address as he highlighted increased education funding at all levels on the opening day of the legislature’s 2007 session.

January 17, 2007  A need to reduce property taxes in New Jersey—and to restructure the school funding that drives those taxes—formed the centerpiece of Gov. Jon Corzine’s State of the State address.

January 17, 2007  Gov. Dave Heineman of Nebraska called for both lower taxes and higher spending on K-12 education in his State of the State address last week.

January 17, 2007  Eight months after the Kansas legislature passed a three-year, $466 million K-12 education spending plan, Gov. Kathleen Sebelius praised lawmakers in her Jan. 10 State of the State address for their efforts, and urged them to fulfill their promise.

January 17, 2007  In his inaugural State of the State address on Jan. 8, Idaho Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter called education the highest budget priority in a year when the state has a new governor, a new speaker of the House, and a new state superintendent.

January 17, 2007  Saying he wants to keep Georgia’s teachers the “highest-paid in the Southeast,” Gov. Sonny Perdue proposed a 3 percent across-the-board raise for the state’s teachers in his Jan. 10 State of the State address.

January 17, 2007  In his first State of the State address, Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe, a Democrat, proposed a $40 million expansion of the state’s prekindergarten program, the Arkansas Better Chance program, bringing its total funding up to $111 million. Children whose families earn up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level are eligible for the program.

January 17, 2007  Gov. Janet Napolitano used her Jan. 8 State of the State address to propose increasing the minimum requirements for high school graduation in Arizona and raising the age at which youths there can drop out of school.

January 9, 2007  The governor pledged to provide enough additional school funding to achieve “excellence" in public education.

January 9, 2007  Gov. James H. Douglas launched his third two-year term with an inaugural address last week picturing the Vermont of the near future as a center for environmental engineering. High schools specializing in math, science, and technology would dot the landscape, the Republican governor said.

January 9, 2007  Gov. John Hoeven outlined a plan last week to take advantage of North Dakota’s economic good fortune by spending more state money on education while allowing local governments to reduce their school funding.

January 9, 2007  Gov. John Lynch, in his Jan. 5 inaugural address, called for a constitutional amendment allowing New Hampshire to target school funding to the communities that need it most. The proposal by the Democratic governor, who was elected to a second term in November, is aimed at putting an end to a school finance dispute that has raged in the state for 15 years.

January 9, 2007  Gov. Deval L. Patrick of Massachusetts said after being sworn into office Jan. 4 that “better schools” and “high expectations” for children are critical for ensuring that the state’s economy will flourish. He called for more flexibility in classrooms, as well as more early-childhood education and after-school programs.

April 4, 2006  Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco made teacher pay a top education priority in her State of the State Address last week, asking Louisiana lawmakers to hand teachers raises of about $1,500.

March 14, 2006  Minnesota needs tougher standards in mathematics and science, starting in 8th grade, Gov. Tim Pawlenty said in his annual State of the State Address.

March 14, 2006  In his eighth and final State of the State Address, Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida pressed legislators who opened their regular session last week to improve high schools, prepare better for hurricanes, and give a boost to economic development.