Dive Brief:

• Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber suggested a generous 9% increase in education funding for the state's 2015-17 budget.  
• Kitzhaber recommended that in the coming two years, Oregon spend $9.4 billion on pre-K through college education.  
• For the base funding of schools, Kitzhaber recommended setting aside $6.9 billion. He also wants to see more funds going toward state-designated initiatives such as teacher training, career and technical courses, STEM curriculums, and early reading programs.  

Dive Insight:

One of the governor's biggest funding increases would affect early childhood. There, he wants to see an increase of $135 million. This plan would give $50 million in scholarships to low-income families with pre-school aged children.  

In 2011, Oregon created the Oregon Education Investment Board, which is responsible for streamlining pre-K to college education decisions. Its ultimate purpose is to help Oregon achieve its "40-40-20" goal by 2025, which means that 40% of the state's youth will have degrees from four-year colleges, 40% will have degrees from two-year colleges or technical schools, and 20% will have high school diplomas.