This week the House of Representatives will consider a replacement for the obsolete No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act. NCLB was passed in 2001 by a large, bipartisan majority — but to get that majority, the Bush administration had to make compromises that transformed its modest yet firm vision for the federal role into a sprawling, unworkable mess. Among other excesses, NCLB mandated that schools d... Read more »
Our country faces tough challenges: a slow economy, stagnant wages, and a weak job market. With the right set of bold reforms, our nation can once again be a land of opportunity and prosperity for every American who seeks it. Toward that end, this week the House of Representatives will consider the Student Success Act, a commonsense proposal to fix a broken K-12 education system and help all chil... Read more »
Federal control over the nation’s K-12 classrooms continues to hamstring the ability of states and school districts to deliver a quality education to every child. Unfortunately, this problem has only gotten worse under the current administration. Through pet projects and conditional waivers, the Obama administration has forced states to adopt the president’s preferred education priorities, rather ... Read more »
The Club for Growth is right about a bunch of issues, but they’re wrong about the pending House bill to replace No Child Left Behind with something far better. H.R. 5 (the “Student Success Act”), slated for floor action a few days hence, would, if enacted, be the most conservative federal education move in a quarter century. It has the potential to undo nearly all of the mischievous, dysfunctiona... Read more »
If it’s broken, fix it. When it comes to elementary and secondary education, that is precisely what the Education and the Workforce Committee plans to do this week. As any parent, teacher, or administrator knows, the nation’s K-12 education system is in need of repair. Decades of Washington’s oversized footprint have resulted in stagnant student achievement, disappointing graduation rates, and hig... Read more »
Each year, countless parents have no choice but to send their children to broken schools. For many students, their likelihood for success is contingent upon their zip code, not their unique needs and abilities. Fortunately, there are educational opportunities that offer a promising alternative. By empowering parents with access to innovative options – online, private, charter, homeschool, and dual... Read more »
The president is pushing a new, multi-billion proposal to provide ‘free’ community college to every American. Like most political gestures that promise something for nothing, this one is too good to be true. As House Committee on Education and the Workforce Chairman John Kline (R-MN) remarked: Encouraging more individuals to pursue training or earn a college degree is a national priority and commu... Read more »
The House is expected to vote later today on the Save American Workers Act (H.R. 30), legislation to repeal ObamaCare’s 30-hour definition of “full-time employment” and restore the traditional 40-hour workweek. In a statement threatening to veto this bipartisan jobs bill, the White House said there is “no evidence” the law is causing a shift to part-time work. The administration is either in denia... Read more »
“Bipartisan” has largely become a phase used to describe ancient history. Yet the Republicans and Democrats on the House Committee on Education & the Workforce just negotiated complex compromise legislation that affects the basic rights of retirees—and last week it became law as part of the Cromnibus. What they did was controversial: They amended the Employees Retirement Income Security Act. ERISA... Read more »
There are nearly 11 million workers and retirees across America, including more than 165,000 Minnesotans, who rely on the little known but economically vital multiemployer pension system. Nationwide, this system has an economic impact of approximately $38 billion — with more than $375 million in benefits being paid to Minnesota retirees each year. Today, many multiemployer pension plans find them... Read more »
