Education

Consider the ironies. The Obama administration has rightly and in some ways, brilliantly fought for more educational options for parents through Race to the Top, Innovation Grants and promoting more charter schools. While many, like me, believe they could support more parental choice options in their K-12 policies, still, the Administration’s openness for school choice is unprecedented.

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This week, building on President Obama's announcement on Monday to recruit 10,000 new STEM school teachers, I introduced H.R. 6248, the Elevating Science Technology Engineering Mathematics Act (e-STEM). As a former science teacher and educator for 30 years, this legislation means more to me than most. Why? Because STEM education in America remains woefully ill-equipped, and it shows.

Responding to an outpouring of concern over a proposed rule called ‘Gainful Employment,’ the U.S. Department of Education recently announced it will delay publishing the rule while it considers the 90,000 or more comments it received  from the public, and while it solicits more input on the details of the rule. Read more...

I recently attended the American premiere of Waiting for Superman, the new film by director Davis Guggenheim that rightly addresses the crisis in our nation’s public education system. Guggenheim, who also directed An Inconvenient Truth, hopes that Waiting for Superman will force America to confront another inconvenient truth — that the fundamental right to an equal, quality education is not realized by every child in our great nation.

As students across the nation return to school, over 300,000 veterans and their families will be among them, headed to college on the Post-9/11 GI Bill.  In the first year of its operation, the new GI Bill has afforded veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan the chance to pursue a first class education and provided an invaluable means of transition.   The GI Bill legacy recognizes the critical role education plays in empowering our service members and reintegrating them into civilian life.  

Yesterday, President Obama gave his second annual back-to-school address.  In a speech to students at Julia R. Masterman School in Philadelphia, he urged them to take responsibility, work hard and dream big.

It’s that time of year again – it’s back to school for families across the nation. Education is the centerpiece in the development of our mind. A high-quality education is critical for our children’s future and to America succeeding in an increasingly global marketplace. More and more, job growth and job creation are going to be tied to knowledge, which is tied to our education.

Hello Philadelphia! It’s wonderful to be here. Today is about welcoming all of you and all of America’s students back to school – and I can’t think of a better place to do it than Masterman. You’re one of the best schools in Philadelphia – a leader in helping students succeed in the classroom. And just last week, you were recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School for your record of achievement. That’s a testament to everyone here – students and parents, teachers and school leaders. And it’s an example of excellence I hope communities across America embrace.

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When it comes to acquiring a college degree, there is a general assumption that Asian Americans do it best.  This assumption is both erroneous and dangerous. It is erroneous because it belies the reality that many Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) subgroups fall far short of this assumed standard, with substantial numbers never graduating high school or college. It is dangerous because this model minority myth prevents the provision of public and private resources designated specifically for minority serving institutions, exacerbating a deleterious and downward spiral among underperforming AAPI subgroups. Read more...

The National Highway and Travel Safety Administration (NHTSA) just released a study showing that one-in-five Americans age 16 and over drove a car within two hours of drinking alcohol over a one year period. And nearly one-third of them admitted they thought they were over the legal limit. That means almost 17 million drunk drivers on the roads.