Mr. President, today I rise to join my good friend from Illinois, Senator Durbin, in reintroducing the Homeland Security Education Act. Our legislation would improve science, math, and foreign language education in the United States by offering incentives for students to study these subjects and provide much needed funding to elementary, secondary, and post secondary institutions to improve educational programs in these critical subject areas.
As my colleagues know, the demand for individuals with technical and language expertise is growing. In 2001 the United States Commission on National Security/21st Century, also known as the Hart-Rudman Commission, concluded that America's need for many skilled people in science, math, computer science, and engineering is not being met. If we do not address this problem, America's position as a global leader would be challenged. With the acceleration of the internationalization of science and technology activities, assets, and capabilities, U.S. advantages in many critical fields are shrinking and may be eclipsed in the years ahead.
While science, math, and engineering skills are especially critical for the defense and homeland security industries, expertise in these fields is also critical to the United States' success in the global economy. America's ability to lead depends particularly on the depth and breadth of its scientific and technical communities. Our education system must produce significantly more scientists and engineers to meet demand and maintain our global leadership in science and technology. We need to develop more qualified math and science teachers and provide educational incentives to encourage students to pursue careers in these fields. However, there will not be enough qualified workers to perform new technology jobs – including those jobs critical to maintaining national security. It is more important than ever that we prepare the children of today with the skills necessary to succeed tomorrow.
Also critical for success in today's world is proficiency in foreign languages. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, placed renewed emphasis on the need for individuals possessing critical language skills. Shortly after the terrorist attacks, FBI Director Robert Mueller made a public plea requesting speakers of Arabic and Farsi to translate intelligence documents, left untranslated due to the lack of foreign language speakers.
The investigations surrounding the attacks underscore how critical foreign language proficiency is to our national security. The joint Congressional Intelligence Committee inquiry into the terrorist attacks found that prior to September 11th, the Intelligence Community was not prepared to handle the challenge of translating the volumes of foreign language counter-terrorism intelligence it had collected. Agencies within the Intelligence Community experienced backlogs in material awaiting translation, a shortage of language specialists and language-qualified field officers, and a readiness level of only 30 percent in the most critical languages used by terrorists. These backlogs still exist. Our foreign language needs have grown significantly over the past decade with increasing globalization and a changing security environment. Foreign language skills are needed to support traditional diplomatic efforts and public diplomacy programs, military and peacekeeping missions, intelligence collection, counter-terrorism efforts, and international trade.
Unfortunately, the United States faces a critical shortage of language proficient professionals government-wide. According to the General Accounting Office, agencies have shortages in translators and interpreters and an overall shortfall in the language proficiency levels needed to carry out their missions. Our national security would be enhanced if our law enforcement officers, intelligence officers, scientists, military personnel, and other federal employees could decipher and interpret information from foreign sources, as well as interact with foreign nationals.
America needs people who are fluent in local languages and who understand foreign cultures. The stability and economic vitality of the United States and our national security depend on American citizens who are knowledgeable about the world. We need civil servants, area experts, diplomats, business people, educators, and other public servants with the ability to communicate at an advanced level in foreign languages and understand the cultures of the people with whom they interact.
The good news is that there has been a recent jump in enrollment in foreign language courses at the university level, according to the Modern Language Association. A total of 1.4 million students enrolled in foreign language classes in the Fall of 2003. This is a 17.9 percent jump since 1998 and represents the highest foreign language enrollment ever.
At the same time, many foreign language programs at the elementary school level have suffered deep cuts. Many school districts are responding to funding shortages by reducing or eliminating their foreign language programs. In some districts, French and German programs have been cut to save Spanish programs, while less commonly taught languages, such as Russian and Japanese, are being phased out altogether. Although my own state of Hawaii leads the nation in cutting edge foreign language immersion programs for elementary school students and is one of the top nine states in the nation in the percentage of public primary schools offering foreign language immersion programs, more must be done.
Experts tell us we should develop long-term relationships with people from every walk of life all across the world, whether or not the languages they speak are considered "critical" at the time. Experts also tell us that an ongoing commitment to maintaining these relationships and language expertise helps prevent crises from occurring and provides diplomatic and language resources when needed.
They are right. We cannot afford to seek out foreign language skills after a terrorist attack occurs. The failures of communication and understanding have already done their damage. We must provide an ongoing commitment to language education and encourage knowledge of foreign languages and cultures.
In 2001, my good friend and former colleague, the late Senator Paul Simon said, "In every national crisis, our nation has lamented its foreign language shortfalls. But then the crisis goes away, and we return to business as usual. One of the messages of September 11 is that business as usual is no longer an acceptable option." Senator Durbin and I are reintroducing this important legislation today in order to reaffirm our ongoing commitment to foreign language and science education.
In addition to the legislation we are introducing today, I have also introduced, with Senator Durbin and several of our colleagues, S. 589, the Homeland Security Federal Workforce Act, to address these skill shortfalls in the federal government. The Senate passed S. 589 in November, and the bill is pending before the House. However, we must now ensure that we not only provide incentives to recruit individuals with these skills, but also ensure that there is a talented applicant pool from which to recruit. This new bill, the Homeland Security Education Act, will do just that.
The Homeland Security Education Act would provide incentives for students to obtain degrees in science, math, and foreign languages by offering to repay the interest on their student loans. Our legislation would also strengthen science and math instruction in elementary and secondary schools and promote foreign language education at all levels of study by encouraging greater training of foreign language teachers and the development of more rigorous foreign language education. These measures could have a significant impact on strengthening our nation's expertise in areas critical to national security.
I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation and improve our science, math, and foreign language education programs.
I ask unanimous consent that this statement be printed in the RECORD.
