Education

By Florice Orea Hoffman

Education

Our children are our nation's most precious resource. I will fight to improve the quality of our children's education from preschool to college. Every child must have the opportunity to reach his or her highest potential. We must provide high quality early learning opportunities, smaller classes, and more individualized attention for our students, particularly students with special needs, gifts, and talents. Adequate funding must be provided for federally mandated programs.

Higher Education: Each year of post secondary school improves the income of a person from 5% to 15% over a lifetime. Again Congress is cutting Pell Grants to our neediest and is reducing student loans available to the middle class. We must make sure that our children can get both a quality higher education and an affordable higher education.

Special Education: The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) since its initial enactment, has failed its original loyalty to pay 40 percent of the average per student cost for every special education student. The current average per student cost is $7,552 and the average cost per special education student is an additional $9,369 per student, or $16,921. Yet, in 2004, the federal government is providing local school districts with just less than 20 percent of its commitment rather than the 40 percent specified by the law, creating a $10.6 billion shortfall for states and local school districts. Besides funding the law must keeps its commitment that parents are thoroughly involved in the education of their children and must ensure that teachers are receiving the professional development necessary to educate our children.