[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 120 (Thursday, September 11, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H7203]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             EMPOWER PARENTS AND TEACHERS, NOT BUREAUCRATS

  (Mr. ROGAN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. ROGAN. Mr. Speaker, we Republicans have one basic, simple belief 
when it comes to education. We believe in empowering parents and 
teachers. We do not believe in empowering Federal bureaucrats. For all 
the good intentions of those who believe that Washington regulators 
should run our public schools, no Federal program can be designed to 
get parents to teach children to read at night or get them to love 
books.

                              {time}  1015

  No Federal program will ever teach children to admire virtue. No 
Federal program will bring us orderly classrooms. No Federal program 
will help when children fail to do their homework.
  If children have to pass through metal detectors on their way to 
school and be in daily fear while trying to obtain an education, no 
Federal program from Washington is going to correct that situation.
  More importantly, when it comes to those Members of Congress looking 
to Federal bureaucrats to fix our schools, I can only say that no 
Federal program will give them common sense. We need to empower parents 
and teachers, and move away from Washington trying to run our schools.
  That is the only solution available to ensure our children will 
obtain a world-class education from world-class schools.

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