Issue Position: Education

Issue Position

Issue Position: Education

Congresswoman Musgrave is a former school board member, teacher, and the only Representative from Colorado currently serving on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. She has worked hard to serve as a strong voice for our state and, as a result, has accomplished several things that will help provide parents greater opportunity to advance their children's education.

In particular, she led the effort and succeeded in getting the U.S. Department of Education to revise its guidelines in establishing "persistently dangerous" schools. Parents will now be provided more information on the safety of their children's schools and have a greater voice in ensuring their children are protected at school.

Through her work on the Education Committee, the Congresswoman worked for important improvements to Head Start that strengthen academic results and better prepare our children for kindergarten.

She introduced legislation to lend congressional support to home-school families and called for six changes to federal laws that currently have a negative impact on home-schooled children. Many of the current statutes are a result of congressional neglect, not intentional harm to home schooling.

Earlier in this session of Congress, she helped pass a bi-partisan bill to enhance opportunities for students and improve states and local communities vocational and technical education programs, which is a valuable component of our nation's educational system. This legislation increases the focus on student academic achievement and streamlines federal funding to help states and local communities make the most of federal resources.

Last Congress, as a freshman Member, Marilyn Musgrave had the rare opportunity to offer an amendment during re-authorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act that would have changed current law to allow public school districts a new option in how they deliver services to special-needs school students. Her amendment received 176 "yes" votes, which is a significant increase of support in Congress from previous education choice bills.

The federal government only contributes about seven cents on the dollar to local schools, yet it establishes many of the policies, regulations and rules for local education programs. This makes no sense. That is why Marilyn Musgrave is fighting to return more of the decision making and dollars spent on education back to parents, teachers and local officials who best know how to meet the needs of children.

For instance, due to Representative Musgrave leadership, the Title V Innovative Education Program received $200 million in federal funds for 2005 after she succeeded in passing a critical amendment to restore funding originally omitted. The Title V funds allow local educators the flexibility to address local needs, whether they are school safety, lowering class size, remedial reading, drop-out prevention, or support for charter schools. This program is the most popular among the states because it provides such much flexibility.

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