Great Public Education for All Americans
I believe in restoring federal funding for education to full authorization, teaching to learn, supporting and respecting teachers, a real education, for the real world, restoring vo-tech training and a college education for every qualified student.
Federal Education – Restore Funding to Full Authorization
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I support —
- restoration of the funds cut in the Department of Education budget proposed by the Administration in February 2006. These cuts would eliminate 42 highly effective education programs, including all vocational and technical education programs, education technology state grants, Upward Bound programs, and even the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities grants.
- full funding of key after-school programs ($2.48 billion in 2007) to provide two million students with after-school services through the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program.
- restoration of funding of Title I to authorized levels. The Title I program provides needed resources to local school districts, helping disadvantaged students succeed academically. Twenty-nine states would lose Title I funding in 2007 under the current budget.
- funding to provide Head Start services to all eligible children.
- funding the full amount authorized for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), not just the 17 percent proposed by the Bush Administration.
Teach to Learn – Replace No Child Left Behind (NCLB)
I will work to replace the No Child Left Behind Program with a more effective policy that will teach our children how to learn rather than just take tests. Until Teach to Learn takes effect, I support full funding of NCLB programs, as opposed to the President's proposed funding, which is $15.4 billion below the authorized level. Teachers and children should not be forced to suffer from unfunded government mandates imposed by short-sighted politicians.
Support and Respect Teachers
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I support —
- paying teachers well and providing them with the tools to be efficient educators.
- establishing a minimum national performance and certification standard for teachers, acceptable by all school boards. This will reduce the costs of teacher certification and bring consistency to the ranks of our teachers.
Real Education, for the Real World
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I support —
- funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, National Public Radio and the Public Broadcasting Service.
- restoration of full authorized funding for Physical Education programs.
- and encourage new thinking and new advances in progressive education efforts, in areas and districts where traditional education systems are failing.
- building broadband Internet infrastructure with wi-fi hotspots, allowing students throughout the school and nearby residential areas to utilize broadband.
- creation of more “real-world” curricula; for instance, education in grammar and conversational language, and academic economics linked with consumer education.
Craftsmen Building America: Bring Back Vo-Tech
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I support —
- full authorized funding for existing state grant programs for Vocational-Technical Education in middle and high schools and increased funding in the future.
- creation of a national two-year apprentice program that will give high school graduates an entrée into the workforce. The program will provide tuition tax credits for workers in the second year of the program.
- full funding for Adult Basic Education.
A College Education for All Qualified Students
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I support —
- full funding to authorized levels for existing college aid programs, such as the Pell Grant, Perkins Loan and LEAP (Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership) programs.
- creation of a national prepaid college program, similar to that in the state of Florida. This program will lock tuition at in-state universities at a rate set by each school, each year. Parents could save money, tax deductible, toward tuition at that rate. The money would be deposited in FDIC-insured banks, with interest from deposits going toward scholarships for underprivileged children.
- creation of a national tuition assistance program for college students majoring in math or science courses. Tuition will be paid on a sliding scale, from 20 to 100 percent, for students who pursue a double major in education or who seek teacher certification. They will promise to teach in a rural, inner-city, or disadvantaged school for three to six years following graduation.
- immediate repeal of the Student Tax increase, passed in May 2006. It is criminal for Congress to triple tax rates for teenagers with college savings plans while cutting taxes for millionaires.
- restoration and enforcement of Title IX rules that require gender equity in college sports programs. I reject recent rule changes proposed by the Bush Administration.
