[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 62 (Tuesday, April 29, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5498-S5499]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page S5498]]
                     NATIONAL CHARTER SCHOOLS WEEK

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 125, submitted 
earlier today by Senators Gregg, Lieberman, and others.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 125) designating April 28, 2003, 
     through May 2, 2003, as ``National Charter Schools Week,'' 
     and for other purposes.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. GREGG. Mr. President, today my colleagues, Senators Lieberman, 
Frist, Alexander, Carper and Bayh, joined me in the introduction of S. 
Res. 125, a resolution to designate the week of April 28 through May 2, 
2003, as National Charter Schools Week. This year marks the 11th 
anniversary of the opening of the Nation's first charter school in 
Minnesota. In the last 11 years, we have come a long way since that 
auspicious moment when one teacher collaborating with parents started a 
public school specifically designed to meet the needs of the students 
in the community.
  Today, we have almost 2,700 charter schools serving nearly 700,000 
students. Charter schools are immensely popular: two-thirds of them 
report having long waiting lists, and there are currently enough 
students on waiting lists to fill another 1,000 average-sized charter 
schools. Survey after survey shows parents are overwhelmingly satisfied 
with their children's charter schools.
  Charter schools are popular for a variety of reasons. They are 
generally free from the burdensome regulations and policies that govern 
traditional public schools. They are founded and run by principals, 
teachers, and parents who share a common vision of education, a vision 
which guides each and every decision made at the schools, from hiring 
personnel to selecting curricula. Furthermore, charter schools are held 
accountable for student performance in a unique way--if they fail to 
educate their students well and meet the goals of their charters, they 
close.
  Since each charter school represents the unique vision of its 
founders, these schools vary greatly, but all strive for excellence.
  For example, the Jean Massieu Academy in Arlington, TX, was created 
in 1999 to serve deaf and hearing-impaired children and their siblings. 
All instruction at Jean Massieu is in American Sign Language, 
accompanied by English text. For 2 consecutive years, the academy has 
earned the second-highest rating in the State's accountability system 
based on its students' excellent performance.
  Here in the District of Columbia, low-income fifth graders at KIPP 
DC/KEY Academy performed remarkably in reading and math on a national 
test, increasing their scores by more than twice the amount children 
typically gain from year to year. Students and teachers at the KEY 
Academy log long hours, attending class from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each 
weekday, half a day on many Saturdays, and for much of the summer, but 
their hard work is obviously reaping rewards.

  These are but a handful of the success stories in the charter school 
movement, which includes a wide range of schools serving a variety of 
different learning needs and styles, often at a lower cost than 
traditional public schools.
  I expect that we will see the popularity of charter schools continue 
to grow. Last year, the President signed into law the No Child Left 
Behind Act, which gives parents in low-performing schools the option to 
transfer to another public school. The act also provides school 
districts with the option of converting low-performing schools into 
charter schools. I believe these provisions will strengthen the charter 
school movement by creating more opportunities for charter school 
development. And, as parents exercise their right to school choice and 
``vote with their feet'', the demand for charters schools will grow.
  I commend the more than 1.6 million people involved in the charter 
school movement, from parents to teachers to community leaders and 
members of the business community. Together, they have led the charge 
in education reform and have started a revolution with the potential to 
transform our system of public education. Districts with a large number 
of charter schools reported becoming more customer service oriented and 
creating new education programs, many of which are similar to those 
offered by charter schools, and increasing contact with parents. These 
improvements benefit all our students, not just those who choose 
charter schools.
  I encourage my colleagues to visit a charter school this week to 
witness firsthand the ways in which these innovative schools are making 
a difference, both in the lives of the students they serve as well as 
in the community in which they reside.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
resolution and preamble be agreed to en bloc, the motion to reconsider 
be laid upon the table, and that any statements related thereto be 
printed in the Record, without intervening action or debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 125) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 125

       Whereas charter schools are public schools authorized by a 
     designated public body and operating on the principles of 
     accountability, parental involvement, choice, and autonomy;
       Whereas in exchange for the flexibility and autonomy given 
     to charter schools, they are held accountable by their 
     sponsors for improving student achievement and for their 
     financial and other operations;
       Whereas 39 States, the District of Columbia, and the 
     Commonwealth of Puerto Rico have passed laws authorizing 
     charter schools;
       Whereas 39 States, the District of Columbia, and the 
     Commonwealth of Puerto Rico will have received substantial 
     assistance from the Federal Government by the end of the 
     current fiscal year for planning, startup, and implementation 
     of charter schools since their authorization in 1994 under 
     the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     6301 et seq.);
       Whereas 36 States, the District of Columbia, and the 
     Commonwealth of Puerto Rico are serving nearly 700,000 
     students in almost 2,700 charter schools during the 2002-2003 
     school year;
       Whereas charter schools can be vehicles for improving 
     student academic achievement for the students who attend 
     them, for stimulating change and improvement in all public 
     schools, and for benefiting all public school students;
       Whereas charter schools must meet the same Federal student 
     academic achievement accountability requirements as all 
     public schools, and often set higher and additional goals, to 
     ensure that they are of high quality and truly accountable to 
     the public;
       Whereas charter schools assess and evaluate students 
     annually and often more frequently, and charter school 
     student academic achievement is directly linked to charter 
     school existence;
       Whereas charter schools give parents new freedom to choose 
     their public school, charter schools routinely measure 
     parental approval, and charter schools must prove their 
     ongoing and increasing success to parents, policymakers, and 
     their communities;
       Whereas more than two-thirds of charter schools report 
     having a waiting list, the average size of such a waiting 
     list is more than one-half of the school's enrollment, and 
     the total number of students on all such waiting lists is 
     enough to fill another 1,000 average-sized charter schools;
       Whereas students in charter schools nationwide have similar 
     demographic characteristics as students in all public 
     schools;
       Whereas charter schools in many States serve significant 
     numbers of students from families with low incomes, minority 
     students, and students with disabilities, and in a majority 
     of charter schools almost half of the students are considered 
     at risk or are former dropouts;
       Whereas charter schools have enjoyed broad bipartisan 
     support from the Administration, Congress, State Governors 
     and legislatures, educators, and parents across the Nation; 
     and
       Whereas charter schools are laboratories of reform and 
     serve as models of how to educate children as effectively as 
     possible: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) designates April 28, 2003, through May 2, 2003, as 
     ``National Charter Schools Week'';
       (2) honors the 11th anniversary of the opening of the 
     Nation's first charter school;
       (3) acknowledges and commends the growing charter school 
     movement and charter schools, teachers, parents, and students 
     across the Nation for their ongoing contributions to 
     education and improving and strengthening the Nation's public 
     school system;

[[Page S5499]]

       (4) supports the goals of National Charter Schools Week, an 
     event sponsored by charter schools and charter school 
     organizations across the Nation and established to recognize 
     the significant impacts, achievements, and innovations of the 
     Nation's charter schools; and
       (5) requests that the President issue a proclamation 
     calling on the people of the United States to conduct 
     appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities to 
     demonstrate support for charter schools in communities 
     throughout the Nation.

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