[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 124 (Tuesday, July 24, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H7089-H7090]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HOUSE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE TO HOST INNOVATION FORUM 
                              AND SHOWCASE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Thompson) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, tomorrow the House 
Education and the Workforce Committee will host innovators from across 
the country for the bipartisan Innovation Forum and Showcase. The 
Innovation Forum will begin at 10 a.m. in room 2175 of the Rayburn 
House Office Building. Five panels of innovators will speak and answer 
questions from committee members about their work. From 10 a.m. to 1 
p.m., members of the public are invited to tour the Innovation Showcase 
in the Rayburn foyer, where the innovators will be available to share 
information about their work.
  As a senior member of the committee, I am so proud of the bipartisan 
Innovation Forum and Showcase. This event will certainly highlight 
hardworking American innovators from all walks of life. Tomorrow, there 
will be 24 innovators who have traveled to

[[Page H7090]]

Washington to discuss how they run career and technical education and 
workforce development programs in their communities.
  I am incredibly honored to have Joe Luther, from the Central 
Pennsylvania Institute of Science and Technology located in Pleasant 
Gap, Centre County, Pennsylvania, be there. Mr. Luther is the 
horticulture and landscaping instructor at CPI. He is well loved by his 
students and has received numerous accolades for his performance in the 
classroom.
  In 2014, Mr. Luther was named the ACTE New Career and Technical 
Education Teacher of the Year for Pennsylvania. In December, he was 
awarded the National Career and Technical Education Teacher of the Year 
from NOCTI, which is presented annually to recognize career and 
technical education teachers for their outstanding service.
  I visited Mr. Luther in his classroom at CPI and out in the 
community, where his students routinely work on projects or participate 
in competitions. In January, Mr. Luther's landscaping students secured 
their fourth consecutive first place win at the Pennsylvania Farm Show 
as a part of the agricultural education landscape exhibits.
  Mr. Speaker, the Pennsylvania Farm Show is the Nation's largest 
indoor agriculture event, and the CPI students beat a total of seven 
other schools to take the top prize for their exhibit. I know these 
students are talented, and it is their teacher, Mr. Luther, who truly 
inspires them to reach great heights. Through his hands-on instruction, 
Mr. Luther affords students in his classroom the ability to design, 
build, and maintain their landscaping projects. He lets them interact 
with customers and discuss real transactions. He brings real-life 
scenarios into the classroom at every opportunity to show students what 
their futures can be like in the workforce.
  I look forward to having Mr. Luther here in Washington for tomorrow's 
Innovation Forum and Showcase. I know that, because of dedicated 
teachers like him, scores of students will be set on a path to success 
in life through career and technical education programs.
  Mr. Speaker, I am grateful to all the innovators who will participate 
tomorrow to share with Congress and the public how they are addressing 
the Nation's education and workforce development challenges. As co-
chair of the bipartisan House Career and Technical Education Caucus and 
a consistent advocate for high-quality career and technical education, 
I know these programs not only shape the future of our Nation's youth, 
but will be the foundation for a new era of economic growth in the 
United States. And the future looks bright.
  Mr. Speaker, on a related note, I was thankful to the Senate last 
evening, which passed my legislation which already passed out of this 
body almost a year ago, H.R. 2353, the Strengthening Career and 
Technical Education for the 21st Century Act. I look forward to ironing 
out just a few minor differences, some good refinements that the Senate 
made, and we will see about getting that to the President's desk, quite 
frankly, providing greater access to more effective, skills-based 
education for all Americans seeking the American Dream of opportunity.

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