[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 34 (Friday, February 27, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E274-E275]
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

                      Wednesday, February 25, 2015

       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 rise in opposition to H.R. 5, the 
``Student Success Act,'' which would harm the education of our nation's 
youth.
  I thank Chairman Kline, Ranking Member Scott, and all the members of 
the Committee on Education and the Workforce for their work to improve 
education for our nation's children.
  Unfortunately, the bill before the House for consideration, should it 
become law, would harm our most vulnerable children, including those 
who attend urban and rural schools, and special needs children who need 
equal access to an excellent education.
  The bill as it exists now allows for the establishment of separate, 
lower standards for students with developmental disabilities.
  As a result of these standards, opportunities available for students 
with disabilities later in life would suffer considerably.
  H.R. 5 converts much of the funding currently directed at English 
learners, migrant students, or at-risk students into block-grants, 
which would enable those funds to be spent outside the target 
populations.
  Support for these students would also be eroded by suspending 
requirements that school districts improve the English-speaking ability 
of such students.
  One of the most dangerous provisions of this bill is the proposal to 
allow ``portability'' of funds under Title I of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act.
  This proposal, if enacted, would allow states to redirect funds away 
from districts with the highest concentrations of poverty, and into 
more affluent districts with less need for such support.
  This proposal is especially harmful for Houston school districts, 
where an estimated 31.5% of children live below the poverty line. The 
vast majority of these children are Black or Hispanic.
  As legislators, as Americans, we have a generational responsibility 
to enhance the lives of those who will follow us, especially the most 
vulnerable.
  It is sobering to me, as the founder and co-chair of the 
Congressional Children's Caucus and someone who has long advocated on 
behalf of young people from all backgrounds, to see a bill that would 
have such a negative impact on the very children who need our help the 
most.
  In addition to these sad truths, the bill currently under 
consideration would strike a devastating blow to our schools' ability 
to provide the variety of programs that our children deserve.
  It repeals dedicated funding for programs such as student safety, 
after and summer school programming, STEM education, education 
technology, arts education, literacy and block-grants support, forcing 
high-need districts to choose between funding vital services.
  It should not be overlooked that one of these programs that is 
considered expendable is STEM-focused education, an area of importance 
both nationally and to my constituents in Houston.
  The Houston region is one of the most important industrial bases in 
the world and was recently ranked the No. 1 US manufacturing city by 
Manufacturers' News Inc.
  Houston is also home to the largest medical complex in the world--the 
Texas Medical Center--and provides clinical health care, research and 
education at its 54 institutions.
  These jobs, and truly the middle class of this decade as a whole, are 
dependent on workers who get the right STEM education and job training 
today.
  Brookings' Metropolitan Policy Program's report ``The Hidden STEM 
Economy'' reported that in 2011, 26 million jobs or 20 percent of all 
occupations required knowledge in 1 or more STEM areas.
  The same report stressed that fully half of all STEM jobs are 
available to workers without a 4 year degree and these jobs pay on 
average $53,000 a year, which is 10 percent higher than jobs with 
similar education requirements.
  To eliminate federal funding aimed at enhancing STEM education is to 
cripple an entire generation of America's youth, leaving them without 
skills that may be essential in securing their own future and the 
economic prosperity of our nation.
  Finally, it must be addressed that the defining characteristic of our 
primary and secondary education system has been to prepare our students 
for college.
  H.R. 5 does not contain any provisions that states consult with 
institutes of higher education in order to ensure that their academic 
standards are consistent with what will be demanded of those students 
once they graduate.
  As a result, many students, even after receiving a high school 
diploma, will find themselves unprepared to pursue a college degree if 
they choose to.
  Furthermore, the bill eliminates the current requirements that 
districts take action when their schools are under resourced and unable 
to meet the needs of all students.
  Together with the lack of consideration and support for at-risk and 
low-income youth, this will result in those students being marginalized 
and denied educational opportunity rather than given the support and 
resources they so desperately need.
  There is no greater testament to the substantial and wide-ranging 
harm done by this bill than the coalition of organizations that have 
voiced their opposition, including:
  National Education Association
  American Federation of Teachers
  Committee for Education Funding
  Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD)
  American Association of People with Disabilities
  Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
  NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund
  League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC)
  National Council of La Raza
  U.S. Chamber of Commerce
  Business Roundtable

[[Page E275]]

  I urge all members to join with me in heeding their counsel and 
opposing H.R. 5.

                          ____________________