[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 79 (Thursday, May 21, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5843-S5844]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. FEINGOLD (for himself, Ms. Snowe, Mrs. Lincoln, Mr. 
        Sanders, and Mr. Dodd):
  S. 1137. A bill to amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
of 1965 to establish a Volunteer Teacher Advisory Committee; to the 
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I am today introducing the Teachers at 
the Table Act of 2009. This bill is the Senate companion to legislation 
introduced in the House of Representatives by Representative Carolyn 
McCarthy of New York and Representative Lee Terry of Nebraska and would 
create a Volunteer Teacher Advisory Committee to advise Congress and 
the Department of Education on the impact of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act, ESEA, also known as No Child Left Behind, 
NCLB, on students, their families, and the classroom learning 
environment. The teachers serving on this committee would be chosen 
from past or present State or national Teachers of the Year and would 
be competitively selected by the Secretary of Education and the 
majority and minority leaders of both the Senate and the House of 
Representatives.
  Every year I travel to each of Wisconsin's 72 counties to hold a 
listening session to listen to Wisconsinites' concerns and answer their 
questions. Since NCLB was enacted in early 2002, education has rated as 
one of the top issues brought up at these listening sessions. I have 
received feedback from constituents about the noble intentions of NCLB, 
but I have also heard about the multitude of implementation problems 
with the law's provisions. The feedback from teachers, parents, school 
administrators, and school board members has been invaluable over the 
past 7 years and has guided many of my education policymaking 
decisions.
  As Congress seeks to undertake the reauthorization of ESEA this year, 
it is my hope that this legislation can be part of the reauthorization. 
Feedback

[[Page S5844]]

from good teachers is absolutely vital to understanding how federal 
education policy is impacting classroom instruction around the country. 
This legislation seeks to help ensure that continuous feedback is 
provided to Congress about how the reauthorized ESEA is impacting 
student achievement and closing the persistent achievement gap that 
exists in our Nation.
  The Teachers at the Table bill I am introducing today seeks to help 
ensure that Congress and the Department of Education receive high-
quality yearly feedback on how ESEA/NCLB is impacting classroom 
learning around the country. The teachers who will serve on this 
committee represent some of the best that teaching has to offer. The 
bill would create a committee of 20 teachers, with 4 selected by the 
Secretary of Education and 4 selected by each of the majority and 
minority leaders in the Senate and House of Representatives. These 
teachers would serve 2-year terms on the advisory committee and would 
work to prepare annual reports to Congress as well as quarterly updates 
on the law's implementation.
  Every State and every school district is different and this 
legislation ensures that the teacher advisory committee will represent 
a wide range of viewpoints. The bill specifies that the volunteer 
teacher advisory committee should include teachers from diverse 
geographic areas, teachers who teach different grade levels, and 
teachers from a variety of specialty areas. Creating a diverse 
committee will help ensure that the committee presents a broad range of 
viewpoints on ESEA/NCLB to Congress and the Department of Education.
  Much work needs to be done this year to reform many of the mandates 
of ESEA/NCLB and I look forward to working with my colleagues during 
the reauthorization to make those necessary changes. One thing is 
certain whatever form the reauthorized ESEA takes, there will be a need 
for consistent feedback from a diverse range of viewpoints.
  We need to ensure that the voices of students, educators, parents, 
and administrators, who are on the frontlines of education reform in 
our country, are heard during the reauthorization of ESEA and going 
forward during the reauthorized law's implementation in years to come. 
This bill seeks to help address that need by enlisting the service of 
some of America's best teachers in providing information to Federal 
education policymakers. The advisory committee created by this 
legislation will provide nationwide feedback and will allow Congress to 
hear about ESEA/NCLB directly from those who deal with the law and its 
consequences on a daily basis.
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