A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Shelley has been an outspoken friend of education and America's teachers. She has worked hard back in Washington to gain support for funding school construction, smaller classes and quality teaching, and for making college more affordable.

Today, I am releasing my annual back to school special report, which, once again, tells us that we are setting new national enrollment records. The report is aptly entitled "Growing Pains: The Challenge of Overcrowded Schools Is Here to Stay."

Teachers and parents here in Las Vegas know exactly what I am talking about. Las Vegas, and all of Clark County for that matter, seem to be one big construction site for new schools.

This new national report tells us that 53 million children will start school in a few short weeks, and a record 15.1 million Americans will enroll in our nation's colleges and universities. These are both new national records. Our nation's schools and colleges are bursting at their seams, and they will continue that way for many years to come.

A special new feature of this year's report gives us a preview of the 21st century. I call what's coming the "millenni-boom." We estimate that by the year 2100, 94 million young people will be going to school, an increase of 42 million over the current school-age population.

Unlike the 20th century, when we had ups and downs in the birth rate, giving us breathing room periodically between new waves of children, during the 21st century we will never go back to a time when we are free of growing pains. We have a century of growth ahead of us-a crescendo of children. Growth is the new and unwavering demographic constant.

America's challenge as we begin the 21st century is to make good choices now, so that we won't be overwhelmed later when it comes to the education of our children. We made a good choice in the last eight years to end deficit spending and to invest in education, and it is starting to pay off. Reading and math scores are up and more young people are going on to college.

Now, we have an immediate opportunity to make another good choice when it comes to building new schools and renovating olds ones. A full 226 members of the House, comprising a bipartisan majority of Republicans and Democrats, support the Johnson-Rangel school construction proposal. This legislation would leverage $25 billion in school construction bonds to help local school districts pay off all the interest on their bonds.

Nevada stands to gain a total of $93 million in bonding authority. Clark County would save $52.8 million in interest payments if Congress were to pass this legislation this year. Just think about what that means. If Las Vegas doesn't have to pay millions of dollars on the interest for school bonds, you can invest this money in better schools for your children, higher pay and better professional development for teachers, more art classes and new technology.

I hope every public official, whether they are on a local school board or running for president, will recognize the opportunity we have here to make a good choice for American education. We can immediately help the hundreds of local school districts that are struggling to overcome the growing pains associated with the baby-boom echo. Unfortunately, the Congressional leadership in the House seems to be unwilling to put this school construction bill on the floor for a vote.

I can assure you that the challenge of overcrowded schools will really be here to stay unless we get this legislation passed. And let's remember that Shelley Berkley and the majority of Republicans and Democrats in the House are prepared to pass it.

Let me make a few other observations about schooling in America based on this report.

First, much of the growth in the coming decade will take place in the South and the West. Nevada, for example, will lead the nation in the percentage increase in high school graduates, projected to be up 65.7 percent in the coming decade.

Second, America's great system of higher education is increasingly going to feel the same growing pains, and colleges and universities need to start getting ready now. Full- time college enrollment is expected to increase by 19 percent in the coming decade. In the next five years alone, we will see college enrollment increase by about one million students, rising from the current 15.1 million to just over 16 million in 2005.

Third, school districts in every part of the country, whether they are urban, suburban, or rural, are struggling to build new schools or renovate old ones.

Many rural school districts with a declining tax base are very hard pressed. Almost 80 percent of them report that they need to repair or modernize their school buildings.

Let's not forget rural America. This is one reason why I will be traveling through seven states next week on my "Success Express Bus Tour," from rural Louisiana to rural Kentucky, to make the case that rural schools need our help as well.

Fourth, we have an increasing number of young people in pre-kindergarten programs, close to eight million of them. Another four million children are not enrolled. In my opinion, any investment we make now in these early years will pay great dividends later on when it comes to our children's schooling.

Fifth, in the next 20 years we will see an increasing number of Hispanic and Asian children in our schools. The number of Hispanic students is expected to increase by 60 percent, from 7.9 million to 12.7 million. The number of Asian students is expected to increase by 64 percent, from 2.1 million to 3.5 million. In contrast, the number of African-American students will increase by only 3 percent, and the number of white, non-Hispanic students will actually decline.

Let me conclude by congratulating the people of Las Vegas and all of Nevada for your strong commitment to the education of your children. You are making the right choices now. And because you are making the right choice now to invest in your children's education, their future will be bright and promising in the years ahead. Thank you.