Dan Coats: “I am so pleased to join my good friend, Senator Lieberman, in introducing another bill which has as its primary aim the…”

“I am so pleased to join my good friend, Senator Lieberman, in introducing another bill which has as its primary aim the expansion of educational opportunities for children. Senator Lieberman has been a leader in promoting educational alternatives, and his efforts in the charter school movement have contributed to the tremendous growth in the number of charter schools since 1994. I commend him for his work in this area and am honored to join him in introducing the Charter School Expansion Act of 1997. This bill builds on the great success of the original charter school legislation which Senator Lieberman introduced in 1994. The Federal Charter School Grant Program provided seed money to charter school operators to help them cover the startup costs of beginning a charter school. In the last 3 years, the number of charter schools in operation around the country has tripled, with more than 700 charter schools now in 23 States. The purpose of this bill is to further encourage the growth of high-quality charter schools around the country. This bill provides incentives to encourage States to increase the number of charter schools in their State. The bill also tightens the eligibility definitions to better direct funds to those States who are committed to developing strong charter schools.”