Senator is proud of work done f or education
Posted on Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Another school year has begun ! Like so many moms and dads across our state, I look forward to taking my children to their first day of school. The beginning of the school year is a time to meet new teachers and reunite with classmates before settling down for a year of learning and work.
In a couple of weeks, Congress is also set to reconvene to complete our work. I am proud that we have taken steps this session to work on issues affecting Arkansas students, teachers, and school administrators.
For instance, we know that in order for children to succeed in school, they must receive proper nutrition. After all, how can we expect a hungry child to be able to concentrate in the classroom ? Sadly, in our nation of plenty, more than 13 million children live in households that are food insecure. According to the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance, approximately 80 percent of supplemental nutrition assistance goes to households with children, many of them in working families, including military families. In the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, better known as the Farm Bill, we addressed this need by committing $ 10. 36 billion to continue the fight against hunger. This represents the largest amount of funding for nutrition programs in our nation's history. One billion dollars is allocated specifically to the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, which provides free fresh fruits and vegetables to low-income children in schools nationwide.
I am proud to serve on the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee, which wrote the Farm Bill.
In addition to helping Arkansas students have access to healthier foods, I've also worked to ensure they have healthy minds. School counselors, psychologists, and social workers play an essential role in helping students achieve a bright future. Unfortunately, many schools have limited access to these crucial support service personnel. Our students, whether they are first-generation college-bound students, children coping with the absence of a military parent deployed overseas, or students with special needs, all face unique challenges that can hinder their ability to succeed in school. All these students deserve the opportunity to receive assistance when it is needed. That is why I introduced legislation, the Increased Student Achievement through Increased Student Support Act, to increase the number of school counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists in high-need school districts, many of which are located in rural and lower-income areas.
I am also working to increase the federal investment in rural afterschool programs. Studies show that afterschool programs keep children safe and increase their learning while helping out working families who need afterschool care assistance. Students who regularly attend quality afterschool programs have better grades and behavior in school, better peer relations and emotional adjustment, and a lower incidence of drug use, violence, and pregnancy. In our rural communities, this investment is especially needed. Afterschool programs in many isolated communities must contend with high transportation costs, a lack of private partners, competition for limited community facilities, and difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff.
As we look ahead to the next Congress, one of my top priorities will be strengthening the No Child Left Behind (NCLB ) bill. Last year, I conducted a week-long listening tour throughout Arkansas and visited with parents, teachers, administrators, students, business leaders and other concerned citizens about NCLB. Their comments were extremely helpful in determining how our federal education policy impacts Arkansans. Their input guided me in writing a bill that I have introduced to give schools more flexibility to meet standards while maintaining accountability measures already in place.
Education is not just another social program–it's a national investment in our most precious resource, our children. The knowledge and training that we provide them today are the tools that they will carry with them for the rest of their lives. As we look down the road, the United States'ability to lead responsibly in the world, to effectively confront emerging threats, and to compete in the global economy will depend on providing all our children with a quality education.
As families across Arkansas prepare to send their children back to school, I want you to know that there are those of us in Congress committed to ensuring that our children and our teachers have the resources at their disposal to succeed.
By working together to find solutions, the ultimate winner will be our children.
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