[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 5]
[House]
[Page 6386]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  NATIONAL PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS WEEK

  (Mr. PAULSEN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PAULSEN. Mr. Speaker, this week we celebrate National Public 
Charter Schools Week. With over 2 million students attending public 
charter schools nationwide, it is important that we continue to create 
and develop this very important educational option.
  Minnesota is a leader in developing innovative new ways to educate 
our children, including being the very first State to allow charter 
schools 21 years ago. In Minnesota, we have 146 charter schools, and we 
are now ranked number one in the country for having charter school 
friendly laws and developing high quality and independent charter 
school options.
  Last Congress, we made significant bipartisan support and progress 
with the introduction of the bipartisan All-STAR Act and passage of the 
Empowering Parents through Quality Charter Schools Act. I'm building on 
this progress and success by working now to craft additional options 
that aid in the replication of successful charter schools.
  America will continue to lead the world in innovation and ideas if 
our children receive the best education from childhood through graduate 
school, and all by strengthening charter schools and helping ensure 
that a child's ZIP code does not determine the quality of education 
they are able to receive. That is the direction we should go in 
Congress.

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