On the eve of the Inauguration, Representative Jim Himes and myself had the privilege of meeting with members of the Trumbull High School Marching Band. We wished them luck and congratulated them for receiving the honor of representing Connecticut in the Inaugural Parade.

For photos from my meeting, visit my flickr page.

I would like to take a minute and wish all the luck to Anthony Mullen of Greenwich, a special education teacher at ARCH School. Mr. Mullen, having already been awarded Connecticut’s teacher of the year, is one of four finalists for national teacher of the year. In a profession that is all too often taken for granted, it’s nice to see such a dedicated educator get the recognition he so strongly deserves.

WASHINGTON -- Three Wilton women urged President-elect Barack Obama and Congress Tuesday to enact legislation to protect disabled children from abusive seclusion and restraint practices in public schools.

Connecticut approved such protections in 2007, but a report released Tuesday by the National Disability Rights Network shows that about 40 percent of the states in the nation have no laws, policies or guidelines concerning restraint or seclusion use in schools.

This morning I gave my opening statement to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee at the nomination hearing of Secretary-Designate of State, Hillary Clinton. I have had the pleasure of working closely with her on a wide range of issues for many years, and I look forward to our continued partnership and to her leadership as Secretary of State. I have no doubt she will do a remarkable job.

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), a senior member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and Chairman of the Subcommittee on Children and Families submitted the following statement today for the hearing to confirm Arne Duncan as the Secretary of Education:

"Today, we all recognize that if our children fall behind for a decade, America falls behind for a century. It’s that simple. But the flip side of that equation is that if we get the challenge of educating our children right—and I believe we can—everything else will follow. Whatever the issue, America’s leadership—its economic and national security—rests on her commitment to educate and prepare our children to succeed in a global economy, from pre-k to college... It is clear, Mr. Duncan, that we have much work to do... I believe you have the experience and heart needed to excel as Education Secretary, Mr. Duncan, and I look forward to working with you, Chairman Kennedy, and my colleagues on the Committee to provide a quality education to all children."

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), a senior member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, and Chairman of its Subcommittee on Children and Families, today issued the following statement on President-Elect Obama’s selection of Arne Duncan to be Secretary of Education.

“With the nomination of Arne Duncan to be Secretary of Education, President-Elect Obama has reaffirmed his commitment to strengthening America’s education system.  Reforming the inflexible No Child Left Behind Act will be one of our most urgent priorities in the coming months.  Arne Duncan understands the scope of the challenges we are facing, and I am confident that he will be an outstanding advocate for the education and enrichment of our nation’s children.”

Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Joe Lieberman (ID-CT) congratulated the Trumbull High School Golden Eagle Marching band on being chosen to represent the State of Connecticut in the 56^th Inaugural Parade in January. Trumbull High School was chosen from more than 1300 organizations who submitted application to participate in the parade.

CHESHIRE - U.S. Senator Christopher Dodd (D-Conn) fielded questions from more than 120 high school juniors and seniors Tuesday and defended his support of the $700 billion bailout - or what he called a "workout."

"The idea isn't so much to have a bailout as a workout," Dodd said.

The Senate has passed a bipartisan resolution sponsored by Senators Pete Domenici (R-N.M.) and Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) establishing the 2008 National Character Counts Week to call the nation’s attention to the benefits of good character and character education.

The Senate resolution establishes Oct. 19-25 as the 2008 National Character Counts Week.  The Character Counts program is built on the “Six Pillars of Character,” which are promoted through school and community based character education programs across the country.  The six pillars are: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship.

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), a senior member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the Chairman of its Subcommittee on Children and Families, today announced that October 16, 2008 will be recognized as “Lights on Afterschool Day,” a national celebration of afterschool programs.  This designation was made possible by this weekend’s Senate approval of a resolution introduced by Dodd and Senator John Ensign (D-NV).  Dodd and Ensign are co-chairs of the Senate’s Afterschool Caucus.