Susan Davis: “I rise in support of H.R. 366. I want to thank the chairman of our subcommittee, the gentleman from Delaware (Mr.…”

“I rise in support of H.R. 366. I want to thank the chairman of our subcommittee, the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle), for his leadership in crafting a bill which could receive bipartisan support. Mr. Chairman, as we all know, education for careers is terribly important for young people. Members have worked hard to balance planning for academic courses and introductory training to create a seamless move from secondary to postsecondary education. {time} 1200 In my district there are several community colleges which offer excellent training for nursing and the health support occupations, as do the universities. But the truth is that high school students need to have taken the math and science courses that will enable them to move into these post-secondary courses directly. They deserve to progress quickly to qualify for these needed and available jobs. But I have to reiterate the concern that I expressed in committee when I offered a sense of the Congress amendment to state that this Act must not only be reauthorized, but also funded. Unfortunately, that amendment failed on a party-line vote. I appreciate the sentiments that were expressed saying that well, of course appropriations would be made for the program. But Members, we have failed to do that. Last week we passed a budget which omits funding for this program as well as for programs like Trio and GearUp that also help high school students prepare for post- secondary education.…”