[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 141 (Friday, October 9, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H10223]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page H10223]]
    FORSTMANN-WALTON TEAM CREATING THE FUTURE OF AMERICAN EDUCATION

  (Mr. SHAW asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. SHAW. Madam Speaker, two businessmen, Ted Forstmann and John 
Walton, are, in my opinion, American heroes, and here is why.
  American public schools are in crisis. The crisis is starkly 
illustrated by the results of the Third International Mathematics and 
Science Study which found that only Cyprus and South Africa have 12th 
graders who knew significantly less about math and science than United 
States students. The major cause of poor United States performance is 
that our public schools have a near monopoly on education and secondary 
education, stifling student's academic development. To counter this 
dilemma, Americans across this Nation are seeking much greater freedom 
of school choice.
  And here is where Forstmann and Walton come in. Last year, through 
the Washington Scholarship Fund, they awarded over 1,000 scholarships 
to poor children in Washington, D.C., but they had requests for 7,500. 
In response to this great demand, the amazing Forstmann/Walton team has 
pledged $100 million of their own money and plan to raise an additional 
$100 million to provide around 35,000 scholarships to help poor 
children attend schools of their choice all across this country.
  Mr. Forstmann and Mr. Walton are creating the future of American 
education. When at last our public schools have to compete for 
students, they will be remembered as two of our greatest, and most 
generous, education reformers.

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