[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 13 (Wednesday, February 5, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H313]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  THE PRESIDENT'S EDUCATION INITIATIVE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from New York [Mrs. Lowey] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise this afternoon in strong support of 
the President's education initiative. Working together, the Congress 
and the White House can ensure that every 8-year-old can read, every 
12-year-old work the Internet, and every 18-year-old attend college. 
These are lofty goals. However, if we can fulfill them, we will help 
ensure that the 21st century, like the current one, is America's 
century.
  Last night the President spoke of setting world-class educational 
standards. I wholeheartedly support this goal. Setting high standards 
means challenging our teachers and students to be the very best they 
can be. It means challenging business to support education. It means 
challenging legislators at every level to ensure that our schools have 
the resources they need to provide every child in America with a world-
class education.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to work with my colleagues on the Committee on 
Appropriations, Democrat and Republican, to ensure that the Federal 
Government lives up to its commitment to education.
  In the President's State of the Union, the President announced the 
America Reads initiative, which will harness the volunteer spirit of 
our citizens and the knowledge of our Nation's educators to ensure that 
every fourth-grader can read on his or her own.
  I am proud that a college in my district, Pace University, is one of 
the 60 colleges that has already pledged to place work-study students 
in tutoring programs. This initiative epitomizes the types of 
activities we all should encourage and support: students working their 
way through college by helping to improve the lives of their neighbors' 
children.
  My home State of New York is well on its way to setting rigorous 
academic standards for all children. New York's plan will challenge 
every school to graduate every student with a diploma that businesses 
and colleges will recognize as proof of a rigorous education. Those 
local schools that struggle at first will be given a helping hand and a 
chance to improve, but no one gets a free pass. I would encourage other 
States to look at New York's plan as they work on their own State's 
standards.
  Mr. Speaker, some of the greatest support for higher standards comes 
from teachers and parents, but they cannot turn things around on their 
own. They do need the Government's help to ensure that every school is 
prepared for new challenges that await them. Sadly, however, too many 
of our public schools are in no condition to meet these challenges.
  I would hope that my colleagues would check the physical conditions 
of schools in their own area. I did, and found too many examples of 
unsafe conditions and serious overcrowding. Last year I released a GAO 
report, along with my colleague in the Senate, Carol Moseley-Braun, 
that confirmed what too many students and teachers already know: that 
some of our Nation's schools are literally falling down. The problem is 
especially severe in New York City, where two-thirds of the schools 
reported that their environment is inadequate for learning. Right now, 
not far from this Capitol building, there are public schools that were 
temporarily closed because they are unsafe.
  Mr. Speaker, the Nation's adults are letting our children down. That 
is wrong, and it must change. Last year I introduced the School 
Infrastructure Improvement Act, which would have provided interest 
subsidies to schools to make needed repairs. I also offered an 
amendment in the Committee on Appropriations to provide $150 million to 
make urgent repairs in the most dilapidated schools around the Nation. 
Local communities can sometimes find it just too tough to do it on 
their own and they need our help.
  In response, the President has announced that his budget will include 
$5 billion to help finance $20 billion in school construction and 
repair over the next 4 years. This money can also be used to help link 
our schools to the Internet so that one day soon every 12-year-old will 
be able to walk into his classroom or school library and link up with 
the Library of Congress or a local university, or a national newspaper, 
or a student on the other side of the world. I am working closely with 
the President on this initiative and plan to introduce legislation to 
help make it happen.
  The President's education vision also includes affordable college for 
every student. His plan includes a series of monumental student aid 
initiatives that will ensure that cost is no longer an obstacle to a 
college degree.
  His $1,500 HOPE scholarships, available for 2 years of college, will 
put a community college degree within reach of every family. More than 
4 million lower- and middle-income students would be helped by these 
scholarships. Families can opt instead for an annual $10,000 tax 
deduction to help send their sons and daughters to college. In 
addition, families could begin saving for their child's future college 
education while they are still young by opening a tax-free education 
saving account. These education IRA's will create investment capital 
for business now, and provide tax free withdrawals for college tuition 
down the road, when high school graduation rolls around. And as a 
mother of three grown children, I know that that time arrives before 
you know it.
  I strongly support these targeted tax cuts to make college more 
affordable. In addition, the Federal Government must maintain its 
commitment to grant-based aid for those families and students 
struggling just to get by each day. The President recognizes this. 
That's why he has proposed to increase Pell grants from $2,700 to 
$3,000--the largest increase in Pell grants in two decades. Over 3.6 
million students now eligible would receive a much needed $300 grant 
increase, and an additional 130,000 families could take advantage of 
the Pell program.
  Practically everyone in this body went to college. That same 
opportunity should exist for all Americans. These proposals will help 
give them that opportunity.
  Mr. Speaker, the President's education plan will make it clear once 
and for all that he is, indeed, the Education President. I hope that 
when the dust settles and the 105th Congress adjourns next year, this 
Congress will be known as the Education Congress. I will certainly do 
what I can to make that happen.

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