[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 15374]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




             TEACHER RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION ACT OF 2003

  (Mr. WILSON of South Carolina asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I am proud of President 
Bush for making positive change in our education system through the 
landmark No Child Left Behind legislation, which was championed by the 
gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Boehner), the chairman of the Committee on 
Education and the Workforce in the House.
  To promote this Act, we need to help disadvantaged school districts 
in our country, which are struggling hard to compete for high quality 
teachers in the basic skills. That is why I have introduced the Teacher 
Recruitment and Retention Act of 2003, which passed the Committee on 
Education and the Workforce last week.
  This bill will attract highly qualified teachers to low income and 
rural areas by expanding the teacher loan forgiveness program from the 
current $5,000 to a maximum of $17,500 for teachers who commit to 
teaching math, science or special-ed in a disadvantaged district for 5 
years. The goal is to ensure that America's children are prepared to 
succeed in a world based on science and technology.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in cosponsoring H.R. 438.
  In conclusion, God bless our troops.

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