Education

In 2007, Senator Lieberman joined the Senate leadership in introducing the comprehensive bipartisan America COMPETES Act that addresses the challenges keeping the U.S. competitive in a global economy. The Act passed the Senate by a vote of 88-8 and was signed into law by President Bush, becoming Public Law 110-69. This law includes many of the provisions of the National Innovations Act (NIA), and the National Innovation Education Act (NIEA) authored by Senators Lieberman and Ensign. The NIA and the NIEA were based largely on the recommendations of the Council on Competitiveness and the National Academies "Rising Above the Gathering Storm" report.  Both reports made clear that we owe the economic vitality of the nation depends on the productivity of highly-trained people and the innovations they produce, and highlighted the need to spur research and innovation, and to enhance training in  STEM fields--science, technology, engineering, and mathematics--to ensure that our workforce has the skills necessary to compete in the global marketplace. 

Among the provisions of the America COMPETES Act were many initiatives long advocated by Senator Lieberman, including measures to help ensure that high school graduates are prepared to succeed in college; to increase the number of students graduating with degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields; to provide professional development for current teachers in these subjects; to enhance state education data systems so that we can improve public education at all levels; and to increase funding for innovative research across federal agencies. Also included in the America COMPETES Act is a section reauthorizing and increasing funding for the National Science Foundation's Tech Talent Act (now known as the STEM Talent Expansion Program or STEP), a program authored by Senator Lieberman to support innovative higher education programs designed to increase the number of graduates in STEM fields.

Since enactment of the America COMPETES Act Senator Lieberman has worked to ensure that its provisions are adequately funded. In addition, to further enhance STEM education in America, on July 24, 2008, Senators Lieberman and Coleman introduced S. 3324, the STEM Education for the 21st Century Act. This bill was based on the recommendations of the National Science Board’s National Action Plan, and sought to 1) charter an independent, non-Federal National Council on STEM Education to facilitate the flow of information about STEM education among various stakeholders, evaluate areas for improvement in the nation’s STEM education system, and improve Federal coordination with and service to state and local agencies; 2) establish a full Committee on STEM education within the National Science and Technology Council to coordinate STEM policy between Federal agencies; and 3) direct the Department of Education to undergo a comprehensive review of the coherence and effectiveness of its programs relating to STEM fields.

Education Reform

In the area of education reform, Senator Lieberman believes there are five key guiding principles that must be considered. They are to ensure: an effective accountability structure, meaningful school turnaround for failing schools, effective teachers and leaders, programs that foster innovation, and equity in resources. Senator Lieberman agrees that schools should be rewarded for their growth and progress and afforded more flexibility to reach these goals. In January 2011, Senator Lieberman along with Senator Brown and Senator Landrieu introduced the Securing Teacher Effectiveness, Leaders, Learning, And Results (STELLAR Student) Act of 2011(S.763). The STELLAR Student Act addresses the critical need to strengthen the effectiveness of teachers and principals by encouraging meaningful teacher and principal evaluations and supporting constructive professional development.

Teacher and principal effectiveness are critical factors in improving student learning and achievement. Research shows that increasing teacher quality is one of the most effective and promising strategies for improving education in the United States. Some studies show that the differences in achievement gains for students who had the most effective teachers versus those who had the least effective were greater than the single influences of class-size, race, socio-economic status, and parent education. Estimates suggest that the difference between having a highly effective teacher versus a highly ineffective teacher can be as much as a full year’s learning growth.

One problem is that current evaluation measures for teachers are not strongly linked to their ability to teach. In fact, seniority, not effectiveness, is often the single indicator used for making teacher personnel decisions.

Senator Lieberman believes it is time to rethink conventional measures of teacher qualifications such as advanced degrees, traditional credentialing, and years of experience as measures of teacher quality, and focus instead on actual measures of teacher effectiveness, including student academic growth. We must then use these measures to inform key personnel decisions if we are going to accomplish the important work of closing achievement gaps.

The STELLAR Act would:

• Direct states to implement a teacher assessment system that bases teacher effectiveness predominantly on student academic growth in addition to classroom observation and other measures.

• Direct states to implement a principal assessment system that bases effectiveness predominantly on student academic growth as well as improvement in graduation rates, leadership, and successful hiring, development, evaluation, and retention of teachers

• Require states to define four levels of teacher and principal effectiveness

• Require that schools receiving Title 1 funding implement teacher and principal evaluations that incorporate multiple measures, relying predominantly on measures of student academic growth and achievement, as well as classroom performance

• Require that evaluations be used to inform key personnel decisions including tenure, compensation and layoffs in the event of any reduction in force

• Ensure that evaluations are consistent among LEA’s in the state and that evaluations provide meaningful differentiation among the four performance categories

• Encourage input from teachers and principals in development and improvement of assessments

• Encourage better targeted professional development based on these evaluations, and recognition of effective teachers

Senator Lieberman has also cosponsored the School Turn Around and Rewards (STAR) Act of 2011 (S.959), legislation introduced by Senator Hagan (D-NC) to turn around low-performing American schools. The STAR Act would target the bottom 5 percent of schools in each state to implement an intervention model ensuring significant changes to the structure and operation of the school.

More than 2,000 American high schools, known as "dropout factories," graduate fewer than 60 percent of their entering freshmen, and 13 percent of high schools in this country produce 51 percent of our dropouts. In at least 1,800 elementary and middle schools in America, students average less than 40 percent proficiency in math and reading.

Currently under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB), states and districts choose the least intensive option to reform these low-performing schools. While studies consistently show that minor reforms fail to produce needed improvement in student performance, research demonstrates that schools taking aggressive actions do change the odds for students.

The STAR Act creates a state grant program in which school districts can compete for funds to implement one of four intensive intervention models at the state's bottom five percent of schools. To maximize the effectiveness of school turnaround practices, the bill emphasizes the importance of identifying and disseminating effective school turnaround practices, especially for rural schools. The legislation also rewards schools that make significant progress in closing their achievement gaps by giving them resources to continue designing innovative programs that maximize student success.

Senator Lieberman has also cosponsored the Charter School Quality Act (S. 686), sponsored by Senator Landrieu (D-LA). The bill aims to improve charter school quality through more rigorous charter school authorizing standards and practices.

The Charter School Quality Act provides a critical focus on quality control for the charter school sector. It amends the federal Public Charter Schools Program, authorized in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, to strengthen charter school quality by prioritizing that states ensure their charter school authorizers follow standards reflecting research-based best practices; evaluate the effectiveness of their charter school authorizers; and require that student academic achievement be a primary factor in charter school approval, renewal, and revocation decisions.

Additionally, this legislation establishes a new national competitive grant program for high-quality public charter schools, authorizers, and nonprofit charter support organizations to disseminate leading edge innovations and best practices to other schools, authorizers, and States.

Demonstrating his commitment to the improvement of our nation’s education system, Senator Lieberman has introduced the Race to the Top Act of 2011 (S. 844). The bill would direct the Secretary of Education to award competitive grants to states and local educational agencies (LEAs) to implement reforms and innovations designed to improve educational outcomes significantly for all students and reduce achievement gaps significantly among specified student subgroups. Grant applicants would be required to have a comprehensive and coherent plan for doing so, which if applicable would include:

• improving the effectiveness of teachers and school leaders and promoting their equitable distribution

• strengthening the use of data to improve education

• implementing internationally benchmarked, college- and career-ready elementary and secondary academic standards

• turning around its lowest-performing schools

• supporting, or coordinating with, early learning programs for high-need children from birth through third grade

• creating or maintaining successful conditions for high-performing charter schools and other innovative, autonomous public schools.

The Race to the Top Act would require grantees to establish performance measures that track its progress in implementing its plan, and improving educational outcomes for students and specified student subgroups. The bill would give grant priority to LEAs with the highest number or percentages of impoverished children and those that serve rural schools. The bill would also require each state grantee to use at least 50% of its grant for subgrants to LEAs that participate in its plan, and allow LEAs to receive a grant and subgrant for the same fiscal year.

Education Reform for Our Nation's Capitol

At the beginning of the 112th Congress, Senator Lieberman introduced the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Act (S. 206), which sought to reauthorize the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP). Senator Lieberman has long been a proponent of the program, which awards scholarships to children from low-income families who are in failing public schools, allowing them to attend private schools in Washington, D.C. As Chairman of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Senator Lieberman also held a hearing on February 16, 2011, on S. 206 entitled “The Value of Education Choices: Saving the D.C. Opportunity Program,”.

A report released by the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences (IES) presents evidence that the OSP resulted in statistically significant improvements in academic attainment, as measured by impressive graduation rates. Furthermore, the report found significant levels of parental satisfaction with their children’s education in the program. On April 14, 2011, Congress included a version of S. 206 in the Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act (H.R. 1473). President Obama signed H.R. 1473 into law on April 15 (P.L. 112-10), reauthorizing OSP for another five years through fiscal year (FY) 2016.

STEM Education

Recognizing that many other developed countries have far outstripped American students’ performance on international math and science tests, Senator Lieberman understands that the United States must drastically improve its aptitude in the subjects of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), a goal which entails recruiting and retaining highly qualified STEM teachers.

Along with Senator Al Franken (D-MN), in May 2011 Senator Lieberman introduced the STEM Master Teacher Corps Act (S. 758). This bill would amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 by creating a competitive grant program that would establish the STEM Master Teacher Corps program. The program would offer top STEM teachers higher pay and specialized training on leadership and mentorship in order to help foster growth among new STEM teachers and ultimately boost performance in STEM subjects. Experienced teachers who are Corps members will lead and mentor their beginner teacher peers, sharing their expertise and serving as role models to inspire these teachers to stay in the profession. To address the STEM achievement gap between low income, minority, and rural students and their peers, our bill focuses on strengthening STEM teaching in high-need areas by requiring that 75 percent of Corps members serve in a high-needs school.

Senator Lieberman has also cosponsored the Effect STEM Teaching and Learning Act (S.463) with Senator Begich of Alaska and Senator Tom Carper of Delaware. Designed to prepare American students for a global economy, the bill would establish competitive grants to help states develop comprehensive STEM strategies. The STEM Act targets funds to high-need students in high-need districts and emphasizes innovation and technology by enabling states and districts to apply "outside-the-box" thinking. The bill also supports professional development for STEM teachers.

Senator Lieberman has argued that the need for effective teachers with deep content knowledge is most apparent and urgent in schools that enroll a high proportion of students from low-income families.

As one response to this need, Senator Lieberman and fellow Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal introduced the Teachers Professional Development Institutes Act (S.1240), a bill that would help k-12 teachers improve their subject matter expertise and their instructional skills. The Teachers Professional Development Institutes Act would provide for the establishment of eight new Teachers Professional Development Institutes each year over the next five years. These institutes would be modeled after the very successful Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute, which has been in operation since 1978. Every Teachers Institute would consist of a partnership between an institution of higher education and the local public school system in which a significant proportion of the students come from low-income households.

School and Teen Safety

Senator Lieberman has consistently supported legislation to prevent bullying, harassment, and discrimination in schools. The Senator believes that every student, regardless of his or her race, national origin, sex, disability, religion, sexual orientation, or gender identity, has the right to an education free from fear. Research has shown that bullying and harassment are serious problems that can impede a student’s academic performance and damage his or her mental health.

Senator Lieberman has therefore cosponsored the Safe Schools Improvement Act or SSIA, (S. 506) and the Student Non-Discrimination Act or SNDA (S. 555), which were introduced by Senators Robert Casey, Jr. (D-PA) and Al Franken (D-MN), respectively. SSIA would amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965 to require states to collect, report, and monitor prevention efforts for incidents of bullying and harassment in public schools. All schools would need to develop policies addressing bullying and harassment in their official codes of conduct. Parents would be notified annually of these provisions and incidents of bullying and harassment. In addition, school districts would have to establish a process by which students and parents can file grievances when such policies have been violated. The Senator believes SSIA to be a strong proposal aimed at tackling this serious problem. Additionally, SSIA recognizes the proliferation of cyber bullying by specifically calling attention to bullying and harassment that occurs via electronic communication.

SNDA would prohibit public school students from being excluded in, participating in, or subject to discrimination under any federally assisted educational program on the basis of their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity. S. 555 would give LGBT students similar civil rights protections against bullying and harassment as those that currently apply to students based on race and gender. This measure is modeled after Title IX and would authorize federal departments and agencies to withhold educational assistance to recipients who do not obey the law.

In tandem, SSIA and SNDA will strengthen our schools and the students they serve. SSIA helps ensure that schools implement anti-harassment and bullying policies, and SNDA provides federal consequences to ensure that students are not denied an equal opportunity to a public education. Both measures have been referred to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Senator Lieberman has also been a major supporter of legislation to prevent dating violence among teenagers. According to recent studies, approximately one in four adolescents report some form of dating-related abuse each year; and one in ten adolescents report being a victim of physical dating violence. The U.S. Department of Education’s 2009 Youth Risk Behavioral Surveillance Report found that students who experience dating violence have lower grades than their peers. Additionally, studies have shown that teen victims of dating violence are more likely than their non-abused peers to smoke, use drugs, engage in unhealthy diet behaviors, engage in risky sexual behaviors, and contemplate suicide. Lastly, teen girls who are physically and sexually abused are six times as likely to become pregnant and twice as likely to contract a sexually transmitted disease. Determined to protect American teenagers, Senator Lieberman cosponsored the Stop Abuse for Every Teen (SAFE) Act (S.1447), a bill designed to prevent dating violence and educate our youth on ways to protect themselves from becoming victims of dating violence. The act would allow local school districts to use existing grant funding from the Safe and Drug Free Schools program for teen dating violence prevention and to create a Teen Violence Prevention Innovation Fund aimed at evaluating dating violence prevention and early intervention education. The measure would also require the Secretary of Education to collect and disseminate data on the incidence of dating violence for individuals ages 11 through 19. It is the Senator’s hope that through education and awareness, we can prevent dating violence in our communities.

Connecticut Education Reform & No Child Left Behind Waivers

As states implemented requirements of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), it became clear that many provisions had unintended negative consequences and that the goal of having all students be 100-percent proficient in English and math by 2014 was unrealistic. Senator Lieberman has therefore actively supported efforts to pass a reauthorization measure of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) to update and improve NCLB. In past Congresses, he introduced comprehensive reauthorization measures including the All Students Can Achieve Act in 2007. Efforts to reauthorize ESEA and amend the unworkable provisions of NCLB have regrettably stalled in Congress over the last four years. One result is that a vast majority of schools have been or will be labeled as failing, which would lead to federal penalties.

In June of 2011, Education Secretary Arne Duncan cited section 9401 of NCLB as giving the Secretary the authority to grant waivers under the NCLB law. In order to be eligible for an NCLB waiver, states must address four criteria: states must make progress toward the implementation of college and career ready standards; develop systems to measure student learning; determine a method to evaluate and support teacher and principal effectiveness; and reduce duplication and unnecessary administrative burdens.

As of August 2012, more than half of the states, including Connecticut, have applied and have been granted waivers to NCLB. The goal of the waivers is to relieve states from some of the unworkable components of the NCLB law. The first round of applications for NCLB waivers was eligible to be submitted in November of 2011 and the process continues on an ongoing basis.

Connecticut is making progress toward implementing many of the changes that the NCLB waiver application requires, including joining the more than 45 states in adopting the Common Core Curriculum Standards and through recently enacted education reform initiatives at the state level. Although Senator Lieberman is encouraged by the steps that many states, including Connecticut, are taking to advance education reform , he believes Congress should work to reauthorize ESEA.

Instructional Technology

Senator Lieberman believes technology has been a driving force behind globalization. It is apparent that around the country more and more States are recognizing the importance of technology in the classroom and are in the process of transitioning from traditional methods of teaching to technology-based instruction and management. The funding source for many State initiatives in technology comes from the Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) program. The EETT program seeks to improve student achievement through the use of technology in schools. Senator Lieberman has spearheaded efforts to retain funding for the EETT program. Senator Lieberman recognizes the importance of EETT funds which support the key pillars of No Child Left Behind and the competitiveness efforts.

Higher Education

Senator Lieberman believes that the promise of a college education should be open to all students who work hard and strive to achieve. It is the very essence of the American Dream to be able to pursue one’s goals to the fullest of their individual capabilities. Currently, students who are children of illegal immigrants who were brought to this country when they were infants, children, or adolescents often do not have the opportunity to go to college or join the military. Many of these students who are at the top of their class and have grown up culturally American are caught in limbo, with future opportunities for them stymied. That is why Senator Lieberman is a strong supporter of the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act or DREAM Act (S. 952).

Introduced by Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL), the DREAM Act would create an opportunity for certain young undocumented immigrants who came to this country as children to remain here to study or serve and to potentially become citizens in the future.

Senator Lieberman has seen evidence in Connecticut that the DREAM Act is the right choice for deserving young adults and for our own national interests. The Senator feels these young people embody the education and work ethic we promote; and that we should let them remain here to strengthen our military, our economy, and society as a whole.

The DREAM Act gives undocumented high-school graduates and GED recipients the opportunity to obtain U.S. citizenship through higher education or military service.

• If an undocumented high-school graduate or GED recipient came to the United States prior to turning 16, and has been present in the U.S. for at least five years, he or she would be eligible to adjust to conditional lawful permanent resident (LPR) status.

• Granted on a conditional basis and valid for six years, LPR status would allow the student to work, go to school, or join the military.

• After six years, if the student has completed two years in a bachelor’s degree or higher degree program, or has served in the military for at least two years and if discharged, has received an honorable discharge, the conditional status would be removed, and the person would be granted LPR status.

• While DREAM Act students would be eligible for federal work study and student loans, they would not be eligible for federal education grants. However, individual states would not be prevented from providing financial aid to the students.

On June 15, 2012, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano announced a new directive allowing undocumented aliens that meet certain specific criteria to register with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to legalize their presence in the United States temporarily. Similar to the DREAM Act this this directive allows children who did not have control over their legal status when they were brought to the United States to pursue an education or service to their country. Under the new directive, undocumented aliens who: (1) came to the United States below the age of 16; (2) have resided in the United States since 2007; (3) have graduated from high school, obtained a general education development certificate, or are honorably discharged veterans of the Armed Forces of the United States; and (4) are below the age of 30, will be allowed to register in the new program. This new directive went into effect on the day of announcement, on June 15, 2012; and the relief expires after two years.

As a strong, longtime proponent of the DREAM Act and comprehensive immigration reform, Senator Lieberman supported the Obama Administration's action to offer relief to tens of thousands of deserving young people who were in danger of being forced out of the country they consider home. Young immigrants who were brought here as children and have grown up to achieve and serve should be welcomed into our community, not forced out.

Charter Schools

Senator Lieberman is one of the leading advocates of the charter school movement in Congress. He coauthored legislation in 1994 that created the federal charter school program, which provided critical start-up funding.  He sponsored and won passage of legislation in 1998 that substantially expanded the charter program and provided new incentives for states to start charter schools. He has consistently fought to ensure adequate funding for charters in the annual appropriations process. Finally, he strongly supports the provisions of the America Recover and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), signed into law by President Obama on February 17, 2009, which seek to encourage states to enact laws favorable to the establishment of high quality charter schools.

Other School Reforms

Vouchers. Senator Lieberman is committed to ensuring that our Nation’s public schools are second to none and are providing all our children with a quality education. In conjunction with his public school reform efforts he has also supported proposals to offer students in failing schools the option of attending private schools by receiving scholarships or vouchers to attend such schools. On July 30, 2009, he introduced the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Act of 2009, or the SOAR Act. This bill proposes to reauthorize and improve the District of Columbia Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP). The OSP program provides scholarships to disadvantaged low-income students attending failing schools in the District of Columbia to enable them to get a better education at local private schools. Senator Lieberman has supported this program as part of a three-part strategy for enhancing educational opportunity in our nation’s capitol. The OSP program calls for new funds for DC public schools, DC public charter schools, and the OSP program. Senator Lieberman’s bill continues that strategy to ensure that the OSP program does not take any funds away from public schools, but rather provides additional support for the public schools and for reform efforts in the District. According to a report released by the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences (IES), the OSP program has been successful in improving academic achievement for students receiving scholarships. In fact, the OSP study shows the largest achievement impact of any innovative education program yet evaluated by the Department of Education using the gold standard of evaluation techniques, according to the evaluation’s principal investigator. Senator Lieberman strongly supports continuation of this program.