[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 104 (Friday, July 19, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1099-E1100]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          STUDENT SUCCESS ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 18, 2013

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 5) to 
     support State and local accountability for public education, 
     protect State and local authority, inform parents of the 
     performance of their children's schools, and for other 
     purposes:

  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Chair, I thank Chairman Kline and Ranking Member 
Miller for their work to improve education for our Nation's children. I 
thank the Rules Committee for making in order Jackson Lee Amendment #5 
for full consideration by the House of Representatives.
  My amendment to H.R. 5, the ``Student Success Act,'' is simple and is 
an important addition to this bill. I believe that my amendment to H.R. 
5 can be supported by every member of the House.


                       Jackson Lee Amendment # 5

  Jackson Lee Amendment #5 would direct States with insufficient 
funding to target funds to schools serving neglected, delinquent, 
migrant students, English learners, at-risk students, and Native 
Americans, to increase academic achievement of such students. The 
purpose of the Amendment is to make the best use of the funds available 
to focus resources on students with the greatest need.
  According to research conducted by Chester Hartman, titled, High 
Classroom Turnover: How Children Get Left Behind, found that a 
disproportionate number of schools with predominantly low-income 
African American and Hispanic students have low stability, and that 
such students are much more likely than others, to switch schools in 
the middle of the year. High student mobility has consequences for 
students, teachers, and schools and can result in lower achievement 
levels, slower academic pacing, and lower teaching satisfaction.
  Poor families move 50-100 percent more often than non-poor families. 
Welfare reform has resulted in residential mobility. Migrant children 
typically move from community to community. Foster children often 
change schools each time they are removed from a home. The education 
administrators' role in education should emphasize meeting the needs of 
disadvantaged students, and students who are mobile are among the most 
disadvantaged.
  In the past, the government has taken limited steps to address this 
issue. Jackson Lee Amendment #5 is intended to support schools 
educating children who are neglected, delinquent, migrant students, 
English learners, at-risk students, and Native American youth.
  The topic of delinquency also presents challenges to schools and 
educators. Children live in their own worlds, which can present threats 
to their health, safety and emotional well being.
  Children become delinquent or can become at-risk for a number of 
reasons including school bullying and violence.
  Consequences of bullying:
  15 percent of all school absenteeism is directly related to fears of 
being bullied at school.

[[Page E1100]]

  According to bullying statistics, 1 out of every 10 students who 
drops out of school does so because of repeated bullying.
  Suicides linked to bullying are the saddest statistic.


  Statistics on Houston Independent School District and Large School 
                               Districts

  1. HISD has over 200,000 students, 80 percent of which are eligible 
for free and reduced price lunch. This means that, 80 percent of 
students come from low socioeconomic households. HISD has approximately 
25 percent African American students, 63 percent Hispanic students, and 
30 percent students with limited English proficiency.
  2. The 100 largest districts represent less than 1 percent of all 
school districts in the nation, yet enrolls 21 percent of all students, 
including 25 percent of the Census poverty students, 33 percent of the 
black students, 32 percent of the Hispanic students, and 31 percent of 
all minority students.
  Houston Independent School District's challenge in providing a world 
class education faces many of the challenges that Jackson Lee Amendment 
#5 would address.
  The Nation's first line of national defense is a well educated 
population. Much of the Nation's defense depends on what is developed 
and created by STEM jobs. It is also important that men and women 
serving in the Armed Forces have a basic working knowledge of STEM to 
succeed. For these reasons, it is vital that every child have the best 
education that this Nation can provide. There is no one size fits all, 
and there are changes with each generation of teachers and students, 
but the one constant are the needs of all children are not the same.
  There is no deterministic model that decides which child will succeed 
and which will fail. What we do know is that given the right learning 
environment with teachers with the right training and support we can 
graduate students who can create, innovate, lead and succeed in life.
  I urge all members to vote in favor of these amendments.

                          ____________________