Federal Funding of Public Education
I support a substantial increase in federal funding of public education. The current system relies heavily on state and local funding, with local property taxes providing the bulk of it. This leads to good schools in wealthier communities and poor schools in less affluent neighborhoods. To fix this inequality, the federal government should increase its investment in all public schools so that all children have an equal opportunity to learn. Increased federal funding could be used to improve teachers' salaries, finance school construction and modernization, make art and music education available to all students, encourage diverse and creative curricula, provide before- and after-school programming, and encourage a smaller student-to-teacher ratio in our classrooms.
No Child Left Behind
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB), the massive education reform bill, required local schools to comply with new national testing standards. The president, however, did not live up to his commitment to provide adequate funding to improve schools. Under-funding federal education mandates creates a domino effect that ultimately ends at the local property owner's doorstep. Since the federal government won't pay for the programs it requires schools to implement, the cost of NCLB has been passed down to the states. The states in turn pass the burden of education funding down to the local communities and school districts, resulting in both increased property taxes and decreased or diminished school programs. We pay more to get less.
IDEA Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
Congress has never adequately funded education for children with disabilities, leaving state and local governments to pick up the slack. That's why I have always fought for increased funding for IDEA and other crucial education programs. Over twenty-five years ago, Congress pledged to meet 40 percent of average per pupil expenditures to help students with disabilities, but it has fallen short of that level every year. I assure you of my continued support for increasing the federal investment in IDEA and in our public schools.
Vouchers
Using public funds to support private schools is bad for our educational system. While many public schools have fundamental problems that need to be fixed, a voucher system would create a whole new set of problems while only helping some students. Vouchers would give some students opportunities to attend better schools, but unless the voucher paid the full cost of tuition, it would not help the poorest kids. Those who would have to remain in public schools because they couldn't make up the remainder of the cost of tuition would suffer under worse conditions than they do now. By implementing such a system nationwide, we would be ensuring that young people would not have equal access to education. That is why I have opposed every effort to divert federal funds to private school vouchers. Instead, I believe very strongly that the government should commit itself to improving all public schools so that every student can have access to a quality education.
