[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 129 (Wednesday, November 15, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2058-E2059]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               TROOPS TO TEACHERS IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 2006

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DORIS O. MATSUI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 15, 2006

  Ms. MATSUI. Mr. Speaker, today, my colleague, Mr. Petri, and I 
introduced the Troops to Teachers Improvement Act of 2006. I am proud 
to bring this bipartisan effort before the House. I first learned about 
the Troops to Teachers program at a California Purple Heart Veterans 
Day event in my district. Two different veterans who are participating 
in the Troops to Teachers program spoke with me about the program and 
how it had offered them the chance to continue to contribute to our 
country. After serving their country in the Armed Forces, they were now 
able to teach in high-need school districts.
  With a slogan like, ``Proud To Serve Again,'' Troops to Teachers is a 
unique program that provides stipends to military retirees to obtain 
the necessary certification for a second career in teaching. Equally 
important, the program places much needed math, science and special 
education teachers in the classroom. In fact, over 46 percent of Troops 
to Teachers participants teach science, a significant improvement over 
the national average of 18 percent. Additionally, veterans who 
participate in the Troops to Teachers program fill another void for 
male and ethnic minority teachers. Right now, our country is seeing 7 
percent of the Nation's teaching force leave every year, and we have a 
need for highly qualified science and math teachers. Simply put, the 
Troops to Teachers program has never been more important.
  First authorized in 1993, the program was designed to help members of 
the military obtain teaching credentials to teach in large districts 
with low-income schools. A variety of retired, separated, active duty 
and transitioning military members and veterans--including disabled 
veterans--are eligible to participate. Those who are interested are 
required to have a bachelor's or advanced degree, or if applying for a 
vocational or technical teaching position, are required to have at 
least 6 years of experience in the field. The program has successfully 
recruited and placed almost 10,000 veterans in school districts since 
then. In my home State of California, 571 veterans are currently 
participating in the program.
  Unfortunately, a small change under the No Child Left Behind Act, 
NCLB, of 2001 greatly affected where veterans could teach to fulfill 
their stipend. In some areas of the country, retiring military and 
veterans interested in the program now have to drive 50 to 100 miles to 
find an eligible school. This has resulted in a 20-30 percent drop-off 
in veteran participation, which has seriously hindered this productive 
and necessary program.
  The bill that my esteemed colleague Mr. Petri and I are introducing 
today would fix this error. The bill would allow participants to 
fulfill their teaching obligation at any school that receives title I 
funding, and is therefore, considered a high-need school. Prior to the 
NCLB change, participants were able to fulfill their teaching 
obligation in any school within my district in Sacramento, as they all 
receive title I funding. However, under the more restrictive rule, 
only 211 of the 350 schools in my district are eligible. Currently, 61 
percent of the high schools in my district are not eligible.

  I believe in this program and want to see disabled and retiring 
military have a second chance at serving our country. Recently, the 
Disabled American Veterans magazine published a story about William 
Mimigia, a retired Marine Corps major who proudly served in our 
military for 31 years. Now a middle school special education teacher, 
Mr. Mimigia was recently named the 2006 Middle School Teacher of the 
Year by the California Troops to Teachers program. In the article, he 
is quoted as saying, ``I served with good people who sacrificed so much 
for our country. I promised myself I would find a way to help them some 
day. What better way than to help their kids and the kids some of them 
would never have a chance to have? Teaching lets me do that.''
  Mr. Mimigia's dedication to serving our country and contributing to 
future generations is honorable. This program offers our returning 
veterans an opportunity for them to feel the same sense of fulfillment 
that Mr. Mimigia expressed. Troops to Teachers brings important math, 
science, and foreign language expertise to our classroom and fills a 
critical need among our educators. These characteristics make Troops to 
Teachers an excellent source of highly qualified educators and my 
colleague and I bring this bill before the House today to ensure that 
others can continue to serve our country--whether in the military or in 
the classroom. I hope that we can work swiftly on this bipartisan bill 
to do just that, and will continue to support the ideals behind the 
Troops to Teachers program in the 110th Congress.

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