Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I would like to say a few additional things on the benefit of the SOAR Reauthorization Act. When the Opportunity Scholarship Program, OSP, was first designed, D.C. public school students had the lowest test scores in the Nation. D.C. schools have improved since then, but D.C. public school students continue to test well below national averages. D.C. OSP students are seeing improved achievement against non-OSP students in reading and in graduation rates. In addition, the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program does not take away money from the D.C. public and charter schools nor does it reallocate D.C. education money. In fact, H.R. 4901 directs additional Federal resources to the D.C. education system that would not otherwise be available if not for the OSP. Finally, there are thousands of families on charter school waiting lists who aren't able to access the schools their children need. OSP allows income-eligible families to get into high-quality district or charter schools who would not otherwise have access to education alternatives. I reserve the balance of my time.”