Rush Holt: Education Reform Based on Evidence, Not Ideology

From Congressman Rush Holt's Newsletter:

Last week, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, on which I serve, considered a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), currently known as No Child Left Behind.

While I agree with the basic principles of ESEA – that schools should be accountable for demonstrating that students are learning and that any definition of success must include all students and not just the best – I believe that the law needs reforming. I am working to improve teacher training, to increase funding for science and foreign language education, and to strengthen collection of student data so that we can see how well individual students are learning.

Education reform has always been bipartisan in the past. Since the first ESEA in 1965, Democrats and Republicans have worked together to close the skills gap and eliminate inequality in education, not just provide additional funds for schools to use as they please.

Unfortunately, the Committee considered two partisan bills that would move away from the crying need to close the gap between good schools and the many underperforming schools that are condemning millions of children to diminished opportunities in life. These flawed bills would let states and local school districts reduce education funding and even shift funds away from the schools with the most need. Particularly glaring, they ignored science education all together.

I voted for a comprehensive alternative that would address the concerns raised by parents, students, teachers, principals, and other school officials. You can watch a video of my remarks here.

Federal Procurement Workshop on Wednesday

On Wednesday morning, I’ll join representatives from the U.S. General Services Administration, the U.S. Small Business Association, and the New Jersey Small Business Development Centers to host a free federal procurement workshop for Central New Jersey small business owners.

We will share information about doing business with the federal government, an overview of the federal procurement process, and insight on obtaining federal contracts.

For more information or to RSVP, click here or call
Andrew Black of my staff at (609) 750-9365.

Federal Procurement Workshop for Small Business Owners

9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Monmouth County Library Headquarters

125 Symmes Drive

Manalapan, New Jersey

Daylight Saving Time Begins on Sunday

As a reminder, daylight saving time begins this Sunday, March 11 at 2:00 a.m. Be sure to remember to set your clocks forward by one hour.

Sincerely,

Rush Holt

Member of Congress