[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 7]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 9783-9784]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                    NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT OF 2001

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 23, 2001

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 1) to close 
     the achievement gap with accountability, flexibility, and 
     choice, so that no child is left behind:

  Mr. RANGEL. Mr. Chairman, I believe that there are no expendable 
human resources in my America. I view every high school dropout, every 
welfare recipient, every child as a vital resource that must be rescued 
from the effects of dependency, reduced earnings, and

[[Page 9784]]

the potential of being permanently locked out of a productive future. 
This Congress must adequately fund public schools; this Administration 
must support a national initiative to engage educators, parents, 
business, and communities in addressing the needs of urban schools; and 
our U.S. Department of Education must articulate a new vision to 
address the needs of poor performing urban schools. This is about 
ensuring that we leave no child behind, no family behind, no community 
behind.
  Investment in public education and job training is the key to 
developing young minds and giving all of America's children a chance to 
excel. At the present time, however, a significant number of children 
attend schools where facilities are crumbling, classrooms are 
overcrowded, students are without computers and Internet access, and 
many teachers are uncertified and lack the requisite content expertise. 
While there are many dedicated teachers and great public schools in 
this country, it is a shame when even one child in the United States 
receives an obsolete and inadequate education.
  America must develop a new paradigm to keep children in school, 
provide a solid education foundation, world-class academic skills, 
industry responsive job training, and preparation for post-secondary 
education and life-long learning. Children growing up in America's 
urban communities need to know that there will be a job for them when 
they complete school. It just makes good sense to educate people.
  The economic future of America's urban communities is contingent upon 
developing strategies for achieving sustainable and systemic change in 
public school and the delivery of state of the art technical training. 
We must value the input of families, businesses, teachers, unions, 
universities, and faith and community-based organizations in a 
coordinated effort to promote educational achievement and the creation 
of work. All stakeholders in the community must recognize and 
acknowledge the contributions of all members of the community.
  If this nation is to succeed in closing the opportunity divide, we 
must first close the racial, literacy, economic, social, and the 
technology gap for future generations.
  The private and public sector must be willing to blur the 
distinctions among public schools, the business community, and 
traditional academic institutions. We need a national agenda for 
addressing poor performing urban schools. This initiative is about 
creating opportunity for America's poorest communities.
  What is good for our poorest communities is ultimately an investment 
in the future of America's economic growth. Free market expertise can 
have a dramatic effect the quality of public schools and their ability 
to attract the best and brightest of the teaching profession.
  The business community must assist schools in laying a solid 
groundwork in math, science, and technology skills at the elementary, 
middle school, and high school levels. We also must reach out to public 
schools, whose teachers and administrators are charged with the 
responsibility to insure that the skills learned today are the skills 
prospective employers want and need. We must reach into the hearts and 
minds of the students we serve, giving them the skills, the confidence, 
and the opportunity to succeed in our nation's increasingly digital 
economy.
  Our nation's children have a big stake in the future of America, but 
many are not being provided with adequate education, job training, and 
opportunities that will allow them to take advantage of the prosperity 
and promise of the new global economy. Tragically, an entire generation 
of poor urban and rural children, many minority and most undereducated, 
are missing out on the American dream. At the time of unprecedented 
economic growth in this country these children are being left behind. 
Where is the outrage? Where is America's outrage? These children 
deserve better.
  Students in schools that have high concentrations of poor children 
are at great risk of being left behind in an economy driven by 
technology, increased knowledge, and higher skills. Gaps in student 
achievement, between high-poverty and low-poverty students, and between 
minority students and their peers have persisted and in some cases 
widened in recent years.
  As they get older, these children are less likely than other students 
to attend a college or university. This breach in opportunity 
undermines one of the central purposes of public education: providing 
all children, regardless of background, with a basic sound education 
and an equal chance to compete in the world of work when they leave 
school.
  Americans consistently tell us that education is their highest 
domestic priority. In that context, we need to put a face on America's 
education priority, the face of America's poorest children. We must 
articulate our plans for the next century; a message of inclusive 
economic participation, self-reliance, affordable higher education, 
market-driven job training, world-class public schools, and 
accountability for educators and students.

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