[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 6]
[House]
[Pages 7702-7703]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     CONGRATULATING CHARTER SCHOOLS

  Mr. TIERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to 
the resolution (H. Res. 1168) congratulating charter schools and their 
students, parents, teachers, and administrators across the United 
States for their ongoing contributions to education, and for other 
purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
  The text of the resolution is as follows:

                              H. Res. 1168

       Whereas charter schools deliver high-quality education and 
     challenge our students to reach their potential;
       Whereas charter schools provide thousands of families with 
     diverse and innovative educational options for their 
     children;
       Whereas charter schools are public schools authorized by a 
     designated public entity that are responding to the needs of 
     our communities, families, and students and promoting the 
     principles of quality, choice, and innovation;
       Whereas in exchange for the flexibility and autonomy given 
     to charter schools, they are held accountable by their 
     sponsors for improving student achievement and for their 
     financial and other operations;
       Whereas 40 States and the District of Columbia have passed 
     laws authorizing charter schools;
       Whereas over 4,300 charter schools are now serving 
     approximately 1,200,000 children;
       Whereas over the last 14 years, Congress has provided over 
     $2,262,257,000 in support to the charter school movement 
     through startup financing assistance and grants for planning, 
     implementation, and dissemination;
       Whereas over 365,000 children are on charter school waiting 
     lists nationally;
       Whereas charter schools improve their students' achievement 
     and can stimulate improvement in traditional public schools;
       Whereas charter schools must meet the student achievement 
     accountability requirements under the Elementary and 
     Secondary Education Act of 1965 in the same manner as 
     traditional public schools, and often set higher and 
     additional individual goals to ensure that they are of high 
     quality and truly accountable to the public;
       Whereas charter schools must continually demonstrate their 
     ongoing success to parents, policymakers, and their 
     communities, some charter schools routinely measure parental 
     satisfaction levels, and all give parents new freedom to 
     choose their public school;
       Whereas charter schools nationwide serve a higher 
     percentage of low-income and minority students than the 
     traditional public system;
       Whereas charter schools have enjoyed broad bipartisan 
     support from the Administration, Congress, State Governors 
     and legislatures, educators, and parents across the United 
     States; and
       Whereas the ninth annual National Charter Schools Week, to 
     be held May 5 through May 9, 2008, is an event sponsored by 
     charter schools and grassroots charter school organizations 
     across the United States to recognize the significant 
     impacts, achievements, and innovations of charter schools: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
       (1) acknowledges and commends charter schools and their 
     students, parents, teachers, and administrators across the 
     United States for their ongoing contributions to education 
     and improving and strengthening our public school system;
       (2) supports the ninth annual National Charter Schools 
     Week; and
       (3) joins the President in calling on the people of the 
     United States to conduct appropriate programs, ceremonies, 
     and activities to demonstrate support for charter schools 
     during this weeklong celebration in communities throughout 
     the United States.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Massachusetts (Mr. Tierney) and the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. 
Boustany) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Massachusetts.


                             General Leave

  Mr. TIERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I request 5 legislative days during which 
Members may insert material relevant to H. Res. 1168 into the Record.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Massachusetts?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. TIERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, this measure supports the designation of May 5 to May 9, 
2008, as National Charter Schools Week and recognizes the growing 
charter school movement in our Nation.
  Since their inception in 1991, charter schools have grown by leaps 
and bounds to address various needs of our Nation's public school 
students. Diverse charter schools across the country offer innovative 
instruction.
  With site-based control and flexibility, charter schools can make 
timely decisions about how to structure the school day, which 
curriculum best suits the needs of their students and, additionally, 
charter schools may form important partnerships with parents and the 
surrounding community.
  This week charter schools across the country will celebrate the ninth 
annual National Charter Schools Week. This year's theme, ``Growing 
Excellence,'' encourages charter schools to share their successes as 
part of the effort to reform public education in our country.
  Today there are almost 4,300 public charter schools operating in 40 
States. Their combined force serves over 1.2 million students, and 61 
percent of charter schools report significant waiting lists. These 
waiting lists of nearly 365,000 students nationally are enough to fill 
over 1,100 new charter schools. Between 300 and 400 new public charter 
schools open each year, and nearly 150,000 new students enroll in 
charter schools annually.
  The growing charter school movement is said to be providing 
opportunities for many historically underserved communities. 
Nationally, it is said that charter schools disproportionately

[[Page 7703]]

serve minority and low-income students. It is reported that 58 percent 
of charter school students are minorities, and 52 percent qualify for 
free and reduced-price lunch, and many charter schools are able to 
achieve impressive academic results.
  H. Res. 1168 expresses support for National Charter Schools Week and 
recognizes the charter school movement's 16-year history providing 
public education options based on innovation, flexibility and community 
partnerships.
  The committee urges our colleagues to pass this resolution.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BOUSTANY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 1168, 
congratulating charter schools and their students, parents, teachers 
and administrators across the United States for their ongoing 
contributions to education.
  This week has been designated as the ninth annual National Charter 
Schools Week, and it is entirely appropriate that we take a few minutes 
to recognize the contributions that charter schools make every day in 
the lives of millions of children. Charter schools are innovative 
public schools with a simple interest in providing a quality education 
to children in their community. They explore new educational 
approaches, such as longer school days or an extended school year, and 
are free from most rules and regulations governing conventional public 
schools. Every day, however, charter schools face unarguable facts of 
free-market pressures.

                              {time}  1530

  Unlike traditional public schools, charter schools must demonstrate 
the success of their students' academic achievements to parents, 
policymakers, and their communities or they face closure. From the time 
the first charter school opened its doors, they have risen to the 
challenge.
  For example, charter schools made an important contribution to 
rebuild and strengthen Louisiana after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, 
particularly in New Orleans.
  More often than not, charter schools meet the student achievement and 
accountability requirements under No Child Left Behind in the same 
manner as traditional public schools, but often set higher individual 
goals to ensure that they are of high quality and truly accountable to 
the public. Yet despite these innovative approaches and promising 
reports of parental satisfaction, charter schools across the country 
have struggled through a myriad of obstacles to create successful 
schools.
  We should support the $272.6 million included in the President's 
fiscal year 2009 budget request for the public charter school programs 
authorized under No Child Left Behind. These programs provide key 
points in the development of charter schools, helping cover the 
extraordinary costs of launching successful charters, disseminating 
their successful innovations to other public schools, and providing 
financial incentives to State governments and private lenders that help 
enable schools to build and renovate facilities. These programs have 
been a tremendous success helping to create public charter schools all 
across the country that work to improve academic achievement for low-
income students.
  It is my hope that the charter community will continue to build on 
its 15-year history of providing a high-quality option in public 
education that is based on innovation, freedom from red tape, and 
partnership between parents and educators, an option that is giving new 
hope to disadvantaged and minority families across the country.
  I urge my colleagues to support the resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. HALL of New York. Mr. Speaker, I have no doubt that the faculty 
and staff employed in America's charter schools are working hard to 
educate their students and give them the tools needed to succeed, I 
respect their efforts, as well as the overall goal of charter schools 
to pursue innovative approaches to education that will allow children 
throughout our Nation to reach their potential. However, in an era when 
the funding shortfalls under No Child Left Behind have created a 
burdensome unfunded mandate on public schools and property taxpayers, I 
am extremely concerned about any diversion of funds, to charter schools 
or otherwise, from public schools across the country that are already 
struggling to maintain a diverse curriculum and serve their students. I 
voted present on H. Res.1168 in order to make sure that this concern 
was acknowledged.
  Mr. TIERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Tierney) that the House suspend the 
rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 1168, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. BONNER. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a 
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not 
present.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.
  The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.

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