Gray Davis was recent history’s most risk-averse governor, and it cost him dearly.
His failure to squarely confront simultaneous energy and budget crises led to his recall by voters in 2003, just a year after he had squeaked out a paper-thin re-election.
There was, however, one notable exception to Davis’ political timidity. In 1999, the first year of his governorship, Davis confronted the state’s education establishment, including the powerful California Teachers Association, over accountability for academic achievement, or the lack thereof, in K-12 schools.
At his behest, the Legislature authorized the creation of an “Academic Performance Index,” ushering in what Davis called “an era of higher expectations” – a subtle dig at his former boss, Jerry Brown, who often advised Californians to “lower your expectations.”
The API had problems from the onset. It was supposed to include not only school-by-school academic test results, but attendance and dropout data.
