[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 25 (Monday, March 3, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S1817]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             ALBERT SHANKER

  Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, I would like to say a few words about 
the recent death of a great education leader, Albert Shanker, who was 
as committed and effective in the fight for National standards as 
anybody in our country. For those of us who believe that the Federal 
Government should do more to improve the quality of education in the 
country, Al Shanker's death was a great loss. More than anyone else in 
the Nation, Al Shanker was the visionary pushing for higher standards 
and national standards for teachers and students alike.
  In a recent piece in the Washington Post, E.D. Hirsch, Jr., said it 
very well:

       If a single person could be said to be responsible for the 
     shift in sentiment that prompted the President to call, in 
     his State of the Union Address, for national educational 
     standards--a proposal that would have been unthinkable a few 
     years back--it would be Al Shanker.
  Albert Shanker had an abiding belief that collectively we in America 
could improve the lives of all of our citizens. He dedicated his life 
to that belief. He also believed passionately that public schools were 
the great strength of our country and were the means by which we could 
improve the lot of Americans.
  A recent essay by Albert Shanker was contained in the New York Times. 
I would like to read two paragraphs from that. This is an essay that he 
wrote in a publication a few years ago. He said:

       Why do I continue when so much of what I've worked for 
     seems threatened? To a large extent because I believe that 
     public education is the glue that has held this country 
     together. Critics now say that the common school never really 
     existed, that it's time to abandon this ideal in favor of 
     schools that are designed to appeal to groups based on 
     ethnicity, race, religion, class, or common interests of 
     various kinds. But schools like these would foster divisions 
     in our society; they would be like setting a time bomb.

                           *   *   *   *   *

       Public schools played a big role in holding our nation 
     together. They brought together children of different races, 
     languages, religions, and cultures and gave them a common 
     language and sense of common purpose. He was not outgrown our 
     need for this; far from it. Today, Americans come from more 
     different countries and speak more different languages than 
     ever before. Whenever the problems connected with school 
     reform seem especially tough, I think about this. I think 
     about what public education gave me--a kid who couldn't even 
     speak English when I entered first grade. I think about what 
     it has given me and can give to countless numbers of other 
     kids like me. And I know that keeping public education 
     together is worth whatever effort it takes.
  Al Shanker believed that the National Government needed to commit 
itself to improving our Nation's schools. Should we have national 
education goals? Al Shanker believed strongly that we should. Should we 
have educational standards? Al Shanker believed we should so that every 
parent could determine whether their child was getting the education 
that they deserved.
  Mr. President, I was privileged to work with Al Shanker on several 
issues but, most importantly, on the issue of improving standards for 
our schools. His vision and his strength of commitment were always an 
inspiration.
  With his death, the American Federation of Teachers lost a superb 
president and all of us in America lost a tireless champion for public 
education and for a better America.
  Thank you, Mr. President. I yield the floor.

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