Nita Lowey: “we are on the cusp of implementing a bill that will fall at least $8 billion below the levels authorized in the No Child…”

“we are on the cusp of implementing a bill that will fall at least $8 billion below the levels authorized in the No Child Left Behind Act. Our failure to uphold the promises made just 2 years ago will be felt in classrooms throughout America by every school-aged kid. I agree that we have to deal with attitudes. There are a lot of problems, and all of the problems of a community converge on our school systems. But, Mr. Speaker, I visit our schools which have to face the mandates included in No Child Left Behind. They are facing massive teacher shortages, and that has to be resolved by money and training. We have to ensure that every teacher of an academic subject be highly-qualified by 2006 and administering annual assessments in reading and math by 2006. America's schools should not have to choose between the need to recruit and train new teachers, implement antidrug programs, and pay for urgent school renovations. I would like my colleagues to visit some of these schools that are trying to educate these kids without enough books, without enough dollars, without enough teachers with adequate training. If we do not retool our efforts during the Labor-HHS conference, we will impose a great burden on our school administrators, board members and parents. For example, the NCLB Act promised to provide school districts with 40 percent of the Nation's average per pupil expenditure for each low-income student.…”