[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 89 (Tuesday, July 11, 2006)]
[House]
[Pages H5008-H5010]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  CELEBRATING ADVANCEMENT VIA INDIVIDUAL DETERMINATION'S 25 YEARS OF 
                                SUCCESS

  Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
resolution (H. Res. 576) celebrating Advancement Via Individual 
Determination's 25 years of success, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                              H. Res. 576

       Whereas Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) has 
     provided academic and motivational support that has enabled 
     more than 95 percent of the over 257,000 underperforming 
     students who have been in its program to go on to college;
       Whereas Advancement Via Individual Determination has grown 
     over 25 years to more than 2,200 middle and high schools in 
     36 States and Department of Defense schools in 15 countries;
       Whereas Advancement Via Individual Determination started in 
     1980 with one teacher and 32 high school students in San 
     Diego, California, and developed into an easily replicated 
     program that promotes academic success;
       Whereas students are selected because they are low-income, 
     first-generation, college-going students who are 
     underperforming academically;
       Whereas college students support the program with 
     individual academic coaching;
       Whereas students are required to take a rigorous, college 
     preparatory curriculum including advanced level courses;
       Whereas the program provides SAT/ACT preparation, college 
     information and financial aid assistance, college visits, and 
     motivational experiences;
       Whereas at the end of the first college year, 89 percent of 
     Advancement Via Individual Determination students are fully 
     eligible and do enroll for their sophomore year

[[Page H5009]]

     compared to a national average of 50 percent; and
       Whereas over 98,000 teachers and administrators have 
     attended training in the high-quality teaching skills that 
     support Advancement Via Individual Determination students: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
       (1) congratulates Advancement Via Individual Determination 
     students and their teachers on increasing college eligibility 
     and attendance; and
       (2) celebrates Advancement Via Individual Determination's 
     25 years of success.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Price of Georgia). Pursuant to the rule, 
the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle) and the gentlewoman from 
California (Mrs. Davis) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Delaware.


                             General Leave

  Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on 
H. Res. 576.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Delaware?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. CASTLE. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 576, celebrating 
the success of the Advancement Via Individual Determination program, 
also known as AVID.
  AVID began in one classroom in 1980, and has now trained more than 
98,000 educators and nearly 260,000 student alumni. Fortunately, AVID 
is beginning to spread to the East Coast, and has already reached five 
schools in my home State of Delaware.
  The accomplishments of AVID extend beyond the growth and expansion of 
the program. AVID seeks to help underachieving students by providing 
them with the support they need to take challenging classes and go on 
to college. School officials select average students making Cs and Ds, 
but have the potential to do better, and then place them in honors and 
college-prep classes with academic and motivational support. Over the 
past 25 years, more than 95 percent of the almost 260,000 students who 
have participated in the program have gone to college.
  AVID takes strong evidence of what we know to be true about closing 
the achievement gap and provides it for those students who not only 
need the assistance, but also want it. In addition to providing 
assistance and guidance to help students achieve, the program drives 
success by promoting rigorous standards, coupled with professional 
development not only for teachers, but also for school and district 
administrators. These are key components to any successful education 
program.
  Over the course of the past several years, there has been a growing 
debate surrounding our high schools. There is much to do, but I am 
thrilled by the response from all levels of government, as well as the 
private sector. Some of what we have heard about the struggles in our 
high schools is exactly what AVID embraces, the notion that there is a 
silent majority, average students who do okay in ordinary classes. The 
fear of failure often steers them away from more challenging course 
work or from seeking a postsecondary degree. I commend AVID for 
recognizing this need 25 years ago, and I commend those school 
districts that have incorporated the program into their schools.
  I would also like to thank the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. 
Davis) for bringing this program to my attention, and I congratulate 
our Delaware schools and students who participate. Here is to another 
25 years.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague 
from Delaware (Mr. Castle), and I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I would like to take this time to recognize a tremendous and 
extremely valuable asset to public education in the United States that 
began in my city of San Diego in 1980. The Advancement Via Individual 
Determination, or AVID, program has helped hundreds of thousands of 
underachieving middle and high school students across the United States 
learn the study habits and the skills needed to get into college and 
graduate; and for many of them to be the first in their family to go to 
college and to graduate.
  A teacher at Clairemont High School, Mary Catherine Swanson, created 
AVID because she wanted to find a way to help students tap their true 
potential and help them achieve academic success. The program 
emphasizes individual achievement, while teaching sound study skills 
and new study habits. AVID also encourages goal setting, and works to 
lift self-expectations and self-esteem in students so they can rise to 
the challenge.
  Mary Catherine Swanson recently retired, and now is the perfect time 
to celebrate what she accomplished for education through the AVID 
program. While overseeing the program for 25 years, AVID went from one 
classroom in San Diego to over 2,300 middle and high schools in 36 
States and 15 nations abroad. Nearly 260,000 students have benefited 
tremendously from its ground-breaking teaching methods, encouraging 
time management, sound study habits, self-confidence, and hard work.
  These students enroll in the toughest classes, such as AP courses, 
and are given the support and resources to rise to the challenge 
through AVID. Amazingly, over 95 percent of those who complete the AVID 
program attend college, and 89 percent of these students return for 
their sophomore year.
  Mr. Speaker, it is difficult to choose from the thousands of success 
stories produced by AVID. The program helped U.S. Olympic athlete 
Joanna Hayes earn the grades and develop the study habits needed to 
attend UCLA. Joanna then went on to win the Gold in the 100-Meter 
Hurdle event at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Greece, and she attributes 
her success in part to the discipline she learned from AVID.
  Another great story is that of AVID student Truong-Son Vinh, who 
earned degrees in engineering and applied math from the University of 
California at San Diego after high school. Vinh came to the United 
States as a boy when his family fled Vietnam after it fell to the North 
in the 1970s, and he went on to apply his knowledge and skills working 
for NASA.
  There are thousands of success stories. AVID students have gone on to 
earn advanced degrees in all key subjects and disciplines.
  I want to thank Mary Catherine Swanson for having a vision and 
working hard to implement this vision beginning with one classroom and 
32 students at Clairemont High. And I want to thank the teachers and 
the tutors for their dedication, and also recognize the students who 
had the courage to take on the rigorous academic track required by 
AVID, and who had the desire to go on one day and find success in 
college.
  I want to thank my colleague, Congressman Castle, for his efforts on 
behalf of this resolution, and also I would like to thank Chairman 
McKeon and House leadership for bringing House Res. 576 to the floor 
today.
  If we are to eliminate the achievement gap in the United States and 
remain competitive globally, I believe we need to build upon the 
programs that have proven success, encouraging and inspiring hard work 
in academics. AVID is clearly one of these programs, and I know it will 
continue its tradition of success in the years to come.
  Finally, as we look at the No Child Left Behind reauthorization and 
how we can improve it, I believe it is more than worthwhile to look at 
programs such as AVID. AVID provides the strong and uniform training 
techniques to those who oversee it in schools across the Nation. It 
sets high standards for both its instructors and its students.
  AVID is not about one community or one region, but a national push to 
encourage strong academic standards, and provides the accountability 
and support to back up those standards. It further gives the students 
the support they need both academically and socially to achieve in 
difficult classes.
  I encourage my colleagues to support passage of this resolution today 
and encourage my colleagues to learn from this highly successful 
program.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, I would like again to thank the gentlewoman 
from California. It is her initiative that brings us here to the floor 
today to recognize this excellent program, and I encourage everyone to 
support it.

[[Page H5010]]

  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle) that the House suspend the rules 
and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 576, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the resolution, as amended, was 
agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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