As a former teacher, I have seen first hand the importance of providing every student with a quality education.

In order to accomplish this goal, I believe it is very important that Washington:

• Refocus the decision making power out of Washington and into the hands of local school districts and administrators
• Minimize federal interference through expensive, unfunded mandates
• Fully fund special education requirements
• Provide Impact Aid funding so local schools can continue to welcome students from federal and military housing
• Prevent diversion of resources away from public schools
• Require results for education programs to win continued funding

With increased flexibility, local schools are empowered to make spending decisions that are vital to the quality of education that is delivered to their students. In the 10th District, we are extremely lucky to be home to some of the most elite schools in the nation. We also happen to be home to schools that are struggling, and it is for this reason, that I will continue to support initiatives that seek to promote funding for what works and efforts that can provide real change and progress not only for schools in our district, but also for schools across the nation.

H.R. 1, the No Child Left Behind Act

As you likely know, on January 8, 2002, President Bush signed into law H.R. 1, the No Child Left Behind Act which is the most sweeping federal education reform bill in decades. I strongly supported this bill. It was a bipartisan achievement, strongly supported by President Bush and Senator Kennedy. The bill reflects each of the four pillars of President Bush's education reform plan: accountability and testing, flexibility and local control, funding for what works, and expanded parental options. H.R. 1 calls for realistic and attainable goals that provide immediate new options for children in thousands of failing public schools nationwide. Some of the provisions included in the No Child Left Behind Act are:

• Strict accountability standards
• Unprecedented State and Local Flexibility
• A $13.5 billion increase for the Title I program for our nation's poorest schools
• A renewed focus on teacher quality which calls for a "highly qualified teacher" in every classroom by 2006.
• Reforms are being implemented under H.R.1 using a $4.8 billion budget allocated by Congress.

Impact Aid

Another issue of great importance to me is Impact Aid. The Impact Aid program for children of military families is especially significant in our district. During the House debate on the No Child Left Behind Act, I authored an amendment that calls for fully funding the Impact Aid program which provides funds to school districts who serve students who reside on federal land. This is a major issue for our schools in North Chicago, Glenview and Highland Park which include children of parents serving at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center. The Kirk Amendment passed overwhelmingly by a vote of 425-3. We have made progress but have not yet fully funded the Impact Aid program. I will continue to fight to ensure that children of our military men and women receive the quality education they deserve.

Special Education

I will also continue to work in a bipartisan manner to ensure that the federal mandate for special education is fully funded and that our federal dollars are being used efficiently and effectively to educate students with special needs. I am an original cosponsor of H.R. 737 which calls for mandatory funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Fully funding this program is an ongoing battle and I am dedicated and committed to seeing it through to the end. I urged President Bush to increase funding for IDEA and his fiscal year (FY) 2003 budget includes $8.53 billion, a $1 billion increase over last year for this program. Our budget passed by the House provides a 12 percent annual increase in IDEA spending - a rate that would allow for full funding of IDEA within ten years.

I look forward to continue working with parents, teachers, administrators and concerned citizens to maintain our tradition of education excellence in our communities.