[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 148 (Thursday, October 8, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7274-S7275]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself, Mr. Scott, Mr. Johnson, and Mr. 
        Booker):
  S. 2171. A bill to reauthorize the Scholarships for Opportunity and 
Results Act, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Homeland 
Security and Governmental Affairs.
  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I rise today with my colleagues 
Senator Ron Johnson, Senator Tim Scott, and Senator Cory Booker to 
introduce the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Act, bipartisan 
legislation to extend the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program.
  I am a long-time supporter of this important program, which provides 
low-income students residing in the District of Columbia the 
opportunity to improve academically by attending a private school of 
their choice.
  Without this platform, D.C.'s most disadvantaged students would not 
have access to a high-quality education, including smaller class sizes 
and effective curriculum. That is not right. All

[[Page S7275]]

students should have the same opportunity to learn and thrive.
  The Opportunity Scholarship is a successful and transformative 
program. It has shown promising results in raising student achievement. 
According to data released by the program administrator for the 2014-
2015 school year, 90 percent of scholarship students graduated from 
high school and 88 percent of those graduates are enrolled in a 2- or 
4-year college or university. The Opportunity Scholarship Program's 
graduation rate is more than 30 percentage points higher than D.C. 
Public Schools' rate, which stands at only 58 percent, well below the 
national average of 81 percent.
  For the 2015-2016 school year, there were more than 8,500 names on 
waiting lists at D.C. charter schools, an 18 percent increase over last 
year. This shows the demand for high-quality education in this city and 
unfortunately, the shortage to meet that demand.
  I have worked on this legislation with my House colleague, Speaker 
John Boehner, for many years. I also had my staff visit schools and 
talk to administrators and parents about ways to improve the program so 
that it can fully meet the goal of providing a better education to low-
income families in the District's lowest-performing schools.
  I am pleased that this legislation strengthens the program by 
requiring participating schools to acquire and maintain accreditation, 
and by ensuring that an evaluation study truly assess the effectiveness 
of the scholarship, including how it affects academic achievement for 
scholarship recipients.
  I am pleased that Senators Johnson, Scott and Booker have joined me 
as original cosponsors of this bill. I remain fully committed to the 
success of the program, and I believe this reauthorization bill makes 
critical improvements to ensure that scholarships continue to transform 
the lives of the District's most vulnerable students.
                                 ______