Education

“A quality education is the foundation upon which we create a vibrant society and economy” - Cong. Tsongas

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• Click below for more info on:
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• Elementary & Secondary
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• STEM Education
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• School Nutrition
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• Higher Education
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OVERVIEW

During my time as a teacher at an alternative school, while serving as a dean at Middlesex Community College, the Commonwealth’s largest community college, an

d as a parent, I have witnessed firsthand the impact education has on an individual and a family. Massachusetts’ public schools, the first established in our country, have long led the nation in providing students with a high-quality education.

The renaissance of science and technology innovation in Massachusetts, and the Third District in particular, in recent years has demonstrated clearly how integral public education also is to the economy. A large part of our boom in the technology sector is due to the integration of government, industry and educational institutions.

The federal government should be a strategic partner that assists state and local communities in preparing its students for their futures. It should not be an entity that issues mandates from on high. My job in Congress is to help support the education funding pipeline to states and local communities from early education to higher education.

There are educational policies Congress should prioritize as we consider the distribution of financial resources for education. We need smaller class sizes and services for students with specialized learning needs. We need improved school infrastructure to ensure students have access to 21^st century learning environments.  We need to pay teachers more and to attract more and better qualified teachers to our public schools, particularly the most challenging schools. We need to collaborate with teachers to provide them with the resources and incentives to improve themselves if they are failing. We need systems for removing ineffective teachers who do not improve. Most importantly, we need a plan for public education that spans from preschool through post-high school education opportunities.

The diverse Third District is made up of small suburban communities and old industrial cities where public education dollars play a critical role in helping all of our children gain the skills they need to succeed in our knowledge-based economy and in helping newcomers integrate into our American society. A quality education is the foundation upon which we create a vibrant society and economy, and I am fully committed to building an educational system that will help us realize our individual and national goals.

Click here to find out more about Massachusetts schools

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ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND

 Since coming to Congress, I have heard from many teachers, school administrators, and parents in the District regarding the No Child Left Behind Act and its unintended impact on our communities. 

Despite its laudable goals, No Child Left Behind has fallen short in many important ways. Some states have lowered their education standards in order to dodge the sanctions in this law. Others have struggled to fulfill the law’s mandates without the needed funding to achieve those results, particularly in low-income areas where resources are scarce. As a result, school districts have been unable to keep up with the goals this legislation set out to achieve. 

Research suggests that, more than class size or textbooks, teaching method or technology, or even the curriculum, what makes a difference in student achievement is the quality of the teacher. I believe that we need to invest in our teachers by paying them more and attracting more highly qualified candidates to the profession, and  that teachers should be evaluated and held accountable for their performance. Such evaluations ought to take multiple factors into account, not focus solely on student test scores. Evaluations should also be accompanied by the appropriate resources and time during the school day for teachers to reflect and improve upon their performance.

We have learned that No Child Left Behind placed too much emphasis on test scores as a measure of success, leading to a diminished focus on other critical disciplines like history and science. It failed to take into account the huge gains some schools made in student achievement, labeling them as “failing” and subjecting them to a series of mounting sanctions when they did not deserve that designation. 

In September of 2011, President Obama announced that states could apply for flexibility waivers from the strict provisions in No Child Left Behind if they show that students are meeting certain educational goals. Massachusetts applied for and received one of these waivers.  But these waivers are not a substitute for reform. 

We need a new bipartisan education reform bill that will fix the problems with No Child Left Behind. Every child should have the chance to pursue all of the opportunities this country has to offer, beginning with the solid foundation of a quality education. We must create a culture in which a standardized test is not the only measure of success in schools, and I will continue to work at the federal level to bring us closer to that goal by supporting reforms to No Child Left Behind. 

RACE TO THE TOP

I supported Massachusetts’s applications for Race to the Top (RTTT) funding and am thrilled we are a recipient of these funds. This program was designed to encourage innovation in school improvement. The funding, beginning in the 2010-2011 school year, focused on four areas: standards and assessments, great teachers and leaders, school turnaround, and data systems.

With RTTT funds, schools in the Third Congressional District are working to make real improvements. Lowell Public Schools moved from a Level 4 district status to Level 3 through the leadership of its administrators and teachers. They have partnered to capitalize on the local flexibility offered through RTTT to “Lowellize” their approach to educator effectiveness and trained 68 teachers to become district trainers. In Lawrence, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten both visited to celebrate students’ impressive improved test scores.

As RTTT ends this year in Massachusetts, I will be keeping a close eye on the final results to ensure we build on what worked and eliminate what hasn’t worked.

CHARTER SCHOOLS

I support charter schools.and I believe they have a critical role to play in education reform. However, the funding formula is broken and the state needs to develop funding mechanisms that do not disadvantage district schools.  Furthermore, charter schools should not be used as a way to avoid having to meet education standards.

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND SPECIAL NEEDS

Access to early childhood education is critical to ensuring all students start off their education on equitable footing. I have consistently supported universal pre-school and Head Start, and have urged the Budget Committee to make full-funding Head Start a top priority.

I voted for the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act, which awards grants to states that improve early education standards and practices, build an effective workforce, and improve the school readiness of young children.

I have consistently supported funding for the Reach Out and Read program, which helps foster a love of reading in young children by providing books to their parents at well-baby and well-child pediatric visits, and the Reading Is Fundamental program, which delivers free books and literacy resources to children and families.

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STEM EDUCATION

The renaissance of science and technology innovation we are seeing in Massachusetts is largely the result of the Commonwealth’s unwavering public and private support and the bright young minds generating the ideas of tomorrow. Nowhere else is this more apparent than here in the Third District.

As a member of the Congressional STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) Caucus, I recognize the critical role that science, technology, engineering and math education play in preparing American students for the jobs of the 21^st century. I understand the value of ensuring that our children, and especially our young women, have adequate training in math and science.

Today, an understanding of scientific and mathematical principles, a working knowledge of computer hardware and software, and the problem solving skills developed by courses in STEM are necessary for a growing number of jobs. I hear from employers throughout the district about the need for STEM-educated workers to remain competitive in a global economy.

Read about some of the innovation going on at institutions around the Third District!

I was proud to support the America COMPETES Act, signed into law in 2011, which coordinated federal STEM education programs and funded academic programs to increase the number of qualified STEM teachers who will train the next generation of scientists and researchers. In the 113^h Congress, I cosponsored a number of bills to improve STEM education, including legislation to provide competitive grants to states working with their community colleges that train students in the skills needed by the modern workforce.  I am also a strong advocate for the Defense Department’s STARBASE Program, a nationwide program that provides STEM education to elementary school students.  The only STARBASE program in New England is located at Hanscom Air Force Base where students from Lowell, Lawrence and Fitchburg have all participated.

I will continue to support expanding STEM initiatives throughout our educational system, from young children first developing an interest in science to adult workers seeking to sharpen their skills to take advantage of high tech opportunities available in our region.

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CHILD NUTRITION

Going to school is about more than just learning a curriculum. It is also about having a nurturing space to grow, learn and mature into a healthy and responsible citizen.

Federally supported child nutrition programs and initiatives reach more than 40 million children nationwide and aim to improve children's health, increase access for low-income children to nutritious meals and snacks while also supporting the agricultural economy.

Hunger has a residual, negative impact on a child’s education.  I have heard from school officials who voiced concerns about students who arrive at school hungry and as a result, have a harder time concentrating.

I was proud to support the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, which was signed into law by President Obama on December 13, 2010.

This law expands and improves upon child nutrition programs that provide meals to millions of children in schools and child care centers as well as nutrition assistance to pregnant women and their newborns. While the bill is not perfect, this bipartisan legislation represents the most significant improvements to these programs in more than 30 years, and takes several important steps to fight childhood obesity and hunger.

In the 113^th Congress, I fought repeated attempts by House Republicans to gut the SNAP (food stamp) program by $33 billion. The SNAP program feeds more than 15 million children nationwide, and reduces by half the number of children each year that would otherwise face extreme poverty and hunger.

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HIGHER EDUCATION AND STUDENT LOANS

Having served as a dean at Middlesex Community College, the Commonwealth’s largest community college, and knowing its impact on my own family, I have seen how higher education is the key to American ingenuity and innovation and to a productive civil society. In particular, I’ve seen how federal student aid programs can mean the difference between whether a student is able to attend college or not. An educated employee has access to better employment opportunities and higher pay, while an educated America enhances the nation's productivity and leadership in the global economy.

Unfortunately, increases in college tuition and cuts to financial aid have created barriers to higher education for many students. At a time when so many Americans are struggling to make ends meet, students are being forced to borrow unprecedented sums of money, often at extremely high interest rates, to finance their education, leaving many students unable to afford college. High tuition and borrowing costs puts college beyond reach for many and serves as a substantial disincentive for students to pursue a college degree.

I have joined my colleagues in supporting federal funding for the TRIO programs, which help disadvantaged, first-generation college attendees, and individuals with disabilities prepare for and succeed in high school and college.  I was also proud to vote in favor of the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA), which was signed into law by President Obama in March 2010. SAFRA represents one of the largest investments in student aid in history. By ending wasteful overpayments to student loan lenders, SAFRA was able to increase the maximum Pell Grant scholarship to $5,550 in 2010 and to $5,975 by 2019. Students from the Third District have seen a dramatic increase in their Pell grant awards. Additionally, the law strengthens the Perkins Loan program by expanding it to every U.S. college campus. The remaining portion of funds was used for deficit reduction.

The law also simplified the FAFSA form, something that had long been requested by financial aid counselors and parents. The law changed a previously onerous process into a simple one, ensuring that parents only need the information from their yearly tax returns to complete the form.

Additionally, SAFRA invested $1.5 billion to allow borrowers to cap their monthly federal student loan payments at 10 percent of their discretionary income for new borrowers after 2014. These actions move us in the right direction, but we still have more to do to address the rising cost of college and the weight of student loan debt on our economy.

There are few issues as vital to our economic future as developing a trained and educated workforce. The first public schools in America were established in Massachusetts; in fact, our state’s Constitution specifically includes education as an obligation of the Commonwealth. I will continue to help strengthen our schools by ensuring that the federal government is a strategic partner, assisting state and local communities.

Click here for the US Department of Education website

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