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Conference Report on S. 1177, Student Success Act

Floor Speech

Date: Dec. 2, 2015
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights K-12 Education

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Ms. FUDGE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

I thank both the chair and ranking member for their leadership. It has been a privilege to work on this with both of you.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to express my strong support for the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. It is long overdue. For years, our Nation's students, their parents, and teachers have implored Congress to address the flaws in No Child Left Behind.

Today we finally have a bill that addresses many of the most difficult issues. Though not perfect, this bill is a significant improvement over No Child Left Behind.

Education is our Nation's great equalizer. Education opens the doors of opportunity to all of our Nation's children. This year we commemorated the 50th anniversary of President Johnson signing the original ESEA.

Fifty years ago, as part of the Great Society legislation, we passed ESEA as a civil rights law that affirmed the right of every child to a quality education. It further underscored the belief that poverty should not be an obstacle to student success.

The bill before us protects title I funding, ensures equitable allocation of resources to schools. It recognizes the importance of afterschool education and maintains subgroup disaggregation of data for reporting.

Further, the Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants program is formula based and distributes dollars that fill resource and opportunity gaps based on the need and population.

While ESSA does give States and local districts more flexibility, it does not absolve the Federal Government of its responsibility to protect the civil rights of underserved students. Make no mistake. The Department of Education maintains its authority to oversee implementation of the law and take action against States and districts that aren't honoring the civil rights legacy of the ESEA.

It was my goal that the final bill provide equal educational opportunities for all children, regardless of race, ethnicity, income, language, or disability. I believe the Every Student Succeeds Act achieves this goal by striking a balance in the best interest of all of our Nation's students.

I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

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