Robert Torricelli: “there is understandably much discussion in our country about the ways and means to continue the rather extraordinary…”

“there is understandably much discussion in our country about the ways and means to continue the rather extraordinary economic prosperity that has been visited upon our generation. Theories abound about how to maintain this economic growth that is providing employment, a growing Federal surplus, and a rising quality of life in America. It is one thing upon which I suspect we can all agree, as we think about continuing the current economic expansion, that this prosperity is built upon a foundation of quality education. Indeed, I would argue that it is the investment of our parents' generation in quality schools, rising standards of excellence, attraction of good teachers, 30 and 40 years ago, that we are now reaping in dividends of prosperity. There is no question that in those years our parents understood that the security of our Nation and our prosperity would be no stronger than the investment we made in education. I believe that as our parents recognized the opportunity and made the investment and that investment yielded these dividends, the problems of American education now stand like a dagger at the heart of our economy.”