I was pleased to learn about this program that pairs disadvantaged high school students with mentors to encourage them to graduate and pursue further education.

I founded a program in Miami-Dade County, the fourth largest school district in the nation, 20 years ago, and the purpose of the project was to make sure that African-American boys got the opportunity to go to college because too many of them grow up believing that they do not deserve the rewards of life.

The Pell Grant program is also a lifeline for America's economy.

We need more students to undertake higher education in order to close the skill gap and boost productivity.

For African-American and Latino students, education is the only--the only--stepping stone out of poverty.

The federal Pell Grant program is a lifeline for more than 9 million students every year.

Thank you for holding this hearing. I will not have time to ask the many questions that I have that have been submitted to me by my constituents, so I am going to leave them for you--for staff to get answers to them.

There are problems of insecurity, deprivation, hunger, and lack of prevention.

They feel left out.

Will our government do anything to help with this problem? It is a real issue.

They are concerned about the elections, and they are saying in the community in Miami that when the President does not allow for the elections, he is appointing people to these Senate seats.