Press Releases

House Committee on Education and the Workforce Chairman John Kline (R-MN) today joined Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA), Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Chairman Todd Rokita (R-IN), Rep. Martha Roby (R-AL), and Rep. Luke Messer (R-IN) in hosting a roundtable event at Two Rivers Public Charter School to discuss with parents and school leaders the important role charter schools play in empowering parents and providing students with more education options.

Following the roundtable, members held a press conference on the Student Success Act (H.R. 5), legislation that will support high-quality charter school growth, encourage parental engagement, and promote state and local flexibility and education innovation. Watch a video of the press conference below:

Rep. John Kline (R-MN):

We were talking with the parents [about] how thrilled they were to have ‘won the lottery’ …[so] their children have this wonderful chance to succeed. It breaks my heart to think of the hundreds who didn’t win the lottery and are hoping for a chance for their kids to succeed… We have legislation we’re going to be bringing to the floor here soon – perhaps as soon as this week – and part of that legislation will make it easier for good charter schools to replicate and expand because we need to have more parents who ‘win the lottery’ and fewer who are left standing.

Rep. Eric Cantor (R-VA):

The Student Success Act… is a bill that speaks to parents and kids that would like an experience like this. It institutes reform in our education process, and it will expand the ability for Two Rivers and others to accept more students and see more success.

Rep. Todd Rokita (R-IN):

The Student Success Act [encompasses] the idea that teachers and parents care for our children more, by definition, than anyone at the federal Department of Education... We trust them. We trust ourselves, we trust the states, we trust localities to determine what success is and how to achieve it… Better decisions can be made at the local level.

Rep. Martha Roby (R-AL):

The Student Success Act [gives] flexibility… to parents and teachers and superintendents in AL to make the choices that are best for kids in Alabama. I say all the time that Washington bureaucrats that have never visited a school in Alabama certainly shouldn’t be making decisions about my child’s education. Being the parent of a child in public school, I am really grateful to be on this committee and to be a part of this legislation… to ensure parents like me can be in the drivers’ seat.

Rep. Luke Messer (R-IN):

This is a spectacular example of what can happen when parents have a choice. I believe the legislation before us, the Student Success Act… is based on the premise that when parents have a choice, kids have an opportunity. None of us can rest until we return to being a nation where every child has the opportunity to go to a great school.

To learn more about the Student Success Act, click here. To see a photo album from the members’ visit to Two Rivers Public Charter School, click here.

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