WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Wednesday, July 8, the House Subcommittees on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education and Healthy Families and Communities will hold a joint hearing to examine strategies for improving school safety, including ways to prevent violence, bullying and harassment. Recent studies show students are more likely to succeed academically and graduate when learning environments are free from harassment and violence.

The House Education and Labor Committee will hold a hearing on Tuesday, June 23 on the forthcoming draft proposal for health care reform developed by the House Ways and Means, Energy and Commerce, and Education and Labor Committees. The draft proposal is designed to achieve President Obama’s goals of controlling health care costs, preserving health care choices, and ensuring quality, affordable health care for all Americans.

The House Education and Labor Committee held a hearing on Tuesday, June 16 to examine how technology and innovative education tools are transforming and improving education in America.

The House Workforce Protections Subcommittee will hold a hearing on Thursday, June 11 to examine proposals for expanding workers’ access to paid family and sick leave. While more than 80 percent of Americans support having paid sick days, the U.S. is the only country among the 22 nations ranked high in economic and human development that doesn’t guarantee paid sick leave to workers.

The FIRST Act, H.R. 2339, provides grants to the states to implement and improve their paid family leave programs.  Healthy Families Act, H.R. 2460, mandates that businesses with 15 or more employees provide up to 7 days of paid sick days to their employees.

The House Education and Labor Committee will hold a hearing on Thursday, June 4 to examine how supporting outstanding charter schools can help build an innovative, world-class American school system that educates all students to high levels.

President Obama has repeatedly called on states to lift restrictions that limit the growth of successful charter schools and encourage rigorous accountability of them.

On Friday, May 29, the House Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness held a hearing to examine best practices for improving job training.This is the fifth hearing the committee is holding as it works toward reauthorizing the Workforce Investment Act, which provides job training, education programs, vocational rehabilitation and other services to Americans.

On Thursday, May 21, the House Education and Labor Committee will hold a hearing to examine proposals that will make historic increases in college aid by enacting reforms that will make the nation’s federal student loan programs more reliable, effective and efficient for students, families and taxpayers.

One of the proposals the committee will examine is President Obama’s FY 2010 budget proposal, which would increase the Pell Grant scholarship and other forms of student aid by almost $100 billion over ten years – and at no cost to taxpayers. The President’s plan would be paid for by ending the subsidies the federal government currently pays to lenders in the federally-guaranteed student loan programs and re-directing those savings back into additional aid for low- and middle-income students

On Wednesday, May 20, U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan testified before the House Education and Labor Committee about President Obama’s agenda for transforming American education. This marked Secretary’s first appearance on Capitol Hill to outline the President’s education goals.

On Tuesday, May 19, the House Committee on Education and Labor held a hearing to examine abusive and deadly uses of seclusion and restraint in U.S. schools. Seclusion and restraint are physical interventions used by teachers and other school staff to prevent students from hurting themselves or others