Marilyn Strickland: “A few months ago on a bipartisan basis, we voted for the so-called Leave No Child Behind bill. But in the interim…”

“A few months ago on a bipartisan basis, we voted for the so-called Leave No Child Behind bill. But in the interim period, we have failed to meet our obligations, obligations that we have under that bill. We are underfunding the No Child Left Behind bill by $11 billion. Yet the students across this country are going to be subjected to the tests mandated under that bill, the States are going to be required to fund these unfunded mandates and it is estimated that perhaps as many as 60 to 80 percent of our schools will be called failing schools. Mr. Speaker, our students are not failing, our teachers are not failing, our schools are not failing. I will tell you who is failing: The President and those of us who serve in this Chamber. We are failing our schools, our teachers and our students.”