[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 152 (Monday, December 11, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2167]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         HONORING PATTI JOHNSON

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BOB SCHAFFER

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, December 11, 2000

  Mr. SCHAFFER. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to pay tribute to a real 
leader in the field of education, Mrs. Patti Johnson, who is leaving 
the Colorado State Board of Education this coming January. Patti has 
been an active member of the board since 1995, representing the Second 
Congressional District of Colorado.
  Patti leaves behind a legacy of activism through her tireless work to 
preserve the rights of parents to control and oversee the education and 
upbringing of their children. She has been especially effective in 
dispelling some of the myths associated with psychotropic drugs and the 
mislabeling of school children, a topic this Congress has addressed 
many times. In fact, Patti received national recognition when she 
obtained the successful passage of a resolution before the board 
encouraging school administrators to use proven academic and classroom 
management solutions rather than medication to resolve behavior, 
attention, and learning difficulties.
  Additionally, just this past September, Patti came to Washington, DC, 
to testify before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations at a 
hearing entitled ``Behavioral Drugs in Schools: Questions and 
Concerns.'' Mainly due to Patti's testimony, the hearing was a 
tremendous success, and generated much interest among the public 
causing members to schedule additional future hearings on behavioral 
drugs.
  Patti has also made other significant contributions to education as a 
member of the National Association of State Boards of Education and the 
Education Leaders Council. She is founder and president of Parent's 
Education Network and served as a mayoral appointee to the Broomfield 
City Council Ad Hoc Education Committee. Patti's philosophy on 
education is best exemplified by a statement she made: ``Our schools 
are the only institution entrusted to attend to the academic needs of 
our children and their mission must not be diluted. I urge this 
committee to do everything in its power to get schools out of the 
business of labeling children and back to the job of teaching.''
  Mrs. Patti Johnson's leadership on the board will be sorely missed.

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