U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige today continued his tour across America with a visit to Carson Elementary School in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Paige was joined at the school by U.S. Rep. Juanita Millender-McDonald, Los Angeles School Superintendent Roy Romer, students, teachers, parents and other local leaders.

"When he took office, President Bush promised to fundamentally change the structure of our education system so every child in our public schools learns and no child is left behind," Paige told those who joined him for the visit. "Thanks to the bipartisan work of Congress and our president, our schools have a new tool to ensure that all our children get the world-class education their parents sent them to school for. And that tool is the historic education reform of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001."

During the visit, Paige also read to students in the Carson Elementary auditorium and encouraged them to spend more time reading.

"Your teachers, your president, your moms and dad and I are all working hard to help you get a great education so you can do all those things you dream of doing," Paige told the students. "But you've got to do a few things, too. One of the best things you can do is read more. Everything you need to learn and succeed in school and in life is between the pages of good books. So read, read, read."

Improving students' reading skills is a key component of No Child Left Behind. In 2002, states are slated to receive $900 million for Reading First, including $132.9 million for California.

Reading First centers on the following priorities: raising the caliber and quality of classroom instruction; basing instruction on scientific research proven to work in the teaching of reading; providing professional training for educators in reading instruction; and supplying substantial resources to support the unprecedented initiative.

Under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, which President Bush signed in January, states and school districts will develop strong systems of accountability based upon student performance. The new law also gives states and school districts increased local control and flexibility, removing federal red tape and bureaucracy and putting decision making in the hands of those at the local and state levels. Parents of children from disadvantaged backgrounds will have options under the new law to participate in public school choice programs or obtain supplemental services such as tutoring. And, teachers around the country will be encouraged to use teaching methods based upon scientific research that shows they have been proven to work.

Paige kicked off his tour in Albuquerque, N.M., in April 2002 to educate parents, educators, community and business leaders and other stakeholders about the most sweeping change in education policy in three decades — and to ask for their help in strengthening our schools and leaving no child behind. Other stops will be announced at a later date.

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