Political Quotes

“I thank my colleague from Washington for yielding and for his kind comments. Mr. Speaker, today's debate on education and the Student Success Act is a crucial one for our future. Over the last five decades, the Federal Government's role in education has increased dramatically. The Department of Education currently runs more than 80 K-12 education programs, many of which are duplicative or ineffective. As a school board member in North Carolina, I saw how the vast reporting requirements for these Federal programs tie the hands of State and local school education leaders. My colleagues on the House Education and the Workforce Committee and I have been working on the Student Success Act to make commonsense changes to update Federal law, addressing the concerns raised following No Child Left Behind. Our legislation is centered on four principles: reducing the Federal footprint in education, empowering parents, supporting effective teachers, and restoring local control. H.R. 5, the Student Success Act, will also streamline the Department of Education's bureaucracy by eliminating more than 65 duplicative and ineffective Federal education programs, cutting through the bureaucratic red tape that is stifling innovation in the classroom, granting States and school districts the authority to use Federal education funds as they believe will best meet the unique needs of their students.…”