CONGRESSWOMAN BARBARA LEE SUPPORTS EDUCATION REFORM
Washington, DC B Congresswoman Lee today joined an overwhelming majority of the House of Representatives in passing by a vote of 381-41, the conference report to H.R. 1, an historic education bill that will raise student achievement levels through a combination of higher standards, stronger accountability, and increased resources.
H.R. 1 provides teachers with new resources for mentoring, training, salary enhancement and other improvements. It also provides for an expanded after-school program, greater support for technology programs and an expanded reading program, including a new pre-kindergarten reading program. The bill establishes clear goals and a time line for narrowing the achievement gap between disadvantaged children and their more affluent peers and between minority and non-minority students, while targeting federal dollars toward the neediest children.
AFor the first time in federal law, we will set a goal of eliminating the harrowing achievement gap between rich and poor students and minority and non-minority students that has plagued our educational system for decades,@ said Lee. AThe Oakland Unified School district will receive more resources to serve our children.@
The Oakland Unified School District will directly benefit as the conference report authorizes increased Title I funding to the nation=s 50 school districts with the highest percentage of poor students. It also authorizes funding for new small schools, which were each designed by the staff, parents and students. They are supported by a partnership between the District, Oakland Community Organizations and the Bay Area Coalition for Equitable Schools, and have been given a unique degree of autonomy in the areas of staffing, budget, curriculum and assessment.
AThe hard work and unity of our Democratic Caucus has enabled Congress to pass a strong education reform bill that meets the high standards we set forth at the outset of this debate,@ said Lee. AToday Congress has passed a bill that shows real promise of improving the quality of education for our children.@
Democrats were successful in defeating conservative provisions that some Republicans attempted to insert into this legislation. Democrats were successful in defeating provisions for vouchers and state Block Grants. They were also successful in retaining After-School programs and the Hate Crimes program that teaches tolerance in our schools. Perhaps most importantly, Democrats were successful in their argument that we cannot have meaningful education reform without adequate resources. President Bush had only requested $19.2 billion for ESEA programs, an increase of about or 3% for ESEA programs. In contrast, the conference report authorizes about $26.3 billion for ESEA programs, an increase of about 20%.
President Bush is expected to sign the bill into law before Christmas.
###