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News
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| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 8, 2002 |
CONTACTS:
Dave Schnittger or Heather Valentine Telephone: (202) 225-4527 |
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President Bush Signs Landmark Education Reforms into Law WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Today, President George W. Bush signed into law H.R. 1, the No Child Left Behind Act, the culmination of a yearlong, bipartisan effort to bring accountability and flexibility to federal education programs. The signing ceremony took place in Hamilton, Ohio, in the home district of Rep. John Boehner (R-OH), chairman of the House Education & the Workforce Committee. The four principal negotiators on the bill -- Rep. Boehner, Rep. George Miller (D-CA), Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH), and Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) -- were present, in addition to Education Secretary Rod Paige, Ohio Governor Robert Taft, and lawmakers who served on the education conference committee. H.R. 1 reflects each of the four pillars of the President’s education reform blueprint: accountability and testing, flexibility and local control, funding for what works, and expanded parental options. It is a comprehensive overhaul of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which was enacted in 1965 and is the principal federal law affecting K-12 education today. “I decided to sign this bill in one of the most important places in America -- a public school,” said President Bush. “Today begins a new era, a new time for public education in our country. Our schools will have higher expectations -- we believe every child can learn. From this day forward, all students will have a better chance to learn, to excel, and to live out their dreams.” “Today, we witnessed the signing of the most important piece of legislation most of us will ever work on. This education reform bill is meant to bring new purpose to a federal law that has lost its focus and never met its promise to our children,” said Boehner. “It will give new freedom, new flexibility, and new resources to local school officials at a time when they need these tools the most, a time when they’re being asked to meet higher expectations for our children, the future of our country.” # # # # # |