Former OU prof has sensible suggestions for our 'broken education system'

Today in The Oklahoman, Gary Greene, who taught for 20 years at the University of Oklahoma in the College of Education, has a column with many sensible observations. Some highlights:

Most school administrators are relatively overpaid when you compare the daily work of a teacher to that of principals/superintendents. ...

The median income for Oklahomans is $25,229, with teachers starting at $31,606 for about 10 months of work, and Oklahoma has one of the lowest costs of living in the nation. The average pay for Oklahoma City teachers is $53,449. ... 

Why do Oklahoma schools have so many coaches? Most Oklahoma schools employ head coaches and many assistant coaches and well-paid athletic directors. Can we play competitive sports with fewer coaches? Sure we can. It will save dollars that could be applied to academics. 

Oklahoma spends hundreds of millions of dollars on student transportation. In most of Europe, it's the parent's responsibility to transport kids to school. Maybe Oklahoma parents should do the same by providing private transportation or paying a fee for school bus transportation. ... 

Prior to 1970, most local schools were responsible for vocational education. Oklahoma has developed a CareerTech system that centralizes vocational training at a huge expense. For example, the state Department of Career Tech has 176 employees with a budget of $171 million. ... There is significant duplication of CareerTech and community colleges programs. ...

Oklahoma has 517 school districts. Johnston County has six school districts all located within a few miles of each other, all operating independently, producing a product that is consistently below standard. ...