Political Quotes

“Frankly, we are fighting a battle that is pretty tough. With more teachers retiring, with the demands on teachers increasing, with the number of teachers who are lured away to other private sector jobs increasing, we find ourselves struggling to maintain teacher quality. I ask the Senator from Massachusetts, how much easier is it going to be to recruit the next generation of teachers when we are making the cost of college education higher? How much easier will it be if those young students graduating from college have a greater college debt as they come out of school to make the choice to go teach where we want them to teach, K through 12, high school, where we need their skills? How can we maintain teacher quality at a time when the Bush administration's budget is cutting back assistance to colleges, thereby increasing the debt for some students and discouraging others from pursuing higher education?”