[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 42 (Thursday, April 10, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E638]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            IN MEMORIAM, HELEN BERNSTEIN AND ALBERT SHANKER

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JANE HARMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 10, 1997

  Ms. HARMAN. Mr. Speaker, with the sudden passing of Helen Bernstein 
last week, public education in Los Angeles suffered a terrible blow, 
one that will continue to ache for many years to come. Only 52 years 
old, Helen was struck by an automobile while crossing a street to 
address the Miracle Mile Residents Association.
  Those who were fortunate enough to glimpse the private Helen know 
that her daughter, mother, and brothers will mourn the premature loss 
of an unquenchable source of energy and warmth. To them, I offer my 
deepest sympathies.
  Those of us who were familiar with the public Helen--and who were 
products of the Los Angeles Unified School District--are painfully 
aware that the voice of its most articulate critic and energetic 
champion has been silenced forever. The civic life of Los Angeles will 
be impoverished by that silence.
  Helen's experience, intelligence, and wisdom will be especially 
missed in the months and years immediately ahead: Her beloved school 
system, the second largest in the Nation, will be negotiating difficult 
passage through budget restrictions, multicultural complexities, 
performance standards, and various proposals for reform and 
restructuring.
  Only 5 months ago, Helen became Mayor Richard Riordan's first 
education advisor. Previously, she had taught history in three 
different public schools and served as president of United Teachers-Los 
Angeles from 1990 to 1996. At the time of her death, Helen was running 
for election to the commission that will rewrite the Los Angeles City 
Charter. She was also developing a national teacher union reform 
network.
  Helen's passing, coupled with that of Albert Shanker, president of 
the American Federation of Teachers, will be a disorienting effect on 
the movement to revitalize public education in America. Congress, the 
President, State departments of education, and local school districts 
across the country are now placing a high priority on educational 
reform; but all of us feel an urgent need for the patient counsel of 
battle-tested veterans--in short, for the wisdom of a Helen Bernstein 
and an Albert Shanker. Only members of their immediate families will 
miss their presence more than public officials grappling with 
complexities of again creating a matchless system of public education.

                          ____________________