A strong believer in the importance of a quality education as a means to allowing the next generation to reach its full potential, ensuring the long-term success of our nation’s economy, Congressman Jim Moran has consistently supported reforms to, and investments in, our public schools.
Knowing that countries who out-teach us today will be the ones who out-compete us tomorrow, one of Rep. Moran’s top education priorities is a reworking of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), also known as “No Child Left Behind” (NCLB) law. Enacted in 2001, the results of the current law have been disappointing. More than 80 percent of public schools are failing according to NCLB and 15 states have actually lowered their standards to make it easier for their kids to meet their targets. The NCLB program has never received the funding needed to provide local school systems with the necessary flexibility to comply with this law. Further, while testing and accountability should be part of an effective education system, the over-emphasis on testing in NCLB has had negative effects that need to be remedied.
Congressman Moran is a longtime advocate of universal pre-Kindergarten. Understanding the role early education plays in a child’s development, the Congressman has met with countless educators who tout the many positive short-term and long-term benefits associated with pre-K programs. These benefits include greater school readiness, increased high school completion rates, increased career earnings, reduced criminal activity and reduced reliance on welfare programs. Studies on early education programs like Head Start report a benefit-cost ratio of at least $7 in return for every $1 invested. Rep. Moran will push for continued investment in early education.
Congressman Moran supports measures to protect the rights of every child receive a quality public education, including those with disabilities. To this end, Rep. Moran has been an ardent supporter of the “Individuals with Disabilities Education (IDEA) law. He has met with families and school systems across Northern Virginia to provide the best learning environment for all young people. Knowing that children with disabilities are often enrolled in regular classroom settings, Congressman Moran supports professional development efforts to ensure all teachers have the skills necessary to work with special needs children.
The jobs of the future will require our young people to compete on a global scale in fields like information technology. Congressman Moran supports improving our ability to recruit and retain more qualified math and science teachers to give our students the skills and foundation necessary to succeed in high-tech careers.
Through his position on the Appropriations Committee, Congressman Moran has directed millions of federal dollars for educational programs in Northern Virginia, including the Adventures of the American Mind project, an innovative pilot program that trains Northern Virginia teachers how to harness the Library of Congress' vast resources and mold them into an age-appropriate classroom curriculum.
Underscoring his commitment and belief in public service, Congressman Moran supports the creation of a new “U.S. Public Service Academy” modeled after the current military service academies at West Point, Annapolis and Colorado Springs. The U.S. Public Service Academy would be a four-year tuition-free college. Students would spend four years gaining a liberal-arts education focused on public service before spending at least five years working as a civil servant at the local, state or federal level.
Over the next 10 years, nearly half of all new jobs will require more than a high school diploma. This figure is troubling given the U.S. has fallen to 9th internationally in terms of the proportion of young people with a college degree. Congressman Moran believes that education should not end in high school and will continue supporting efforts to make higher and continuing education more affordable for all Americans.
Congressman Moran supports policies that help disadvantaged students pay for college and was a strong supporter of the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009 (SAFRA). Enacted in 2010, this legislation expands federal Pell Grants to a maximum of $5,550 in 2010 and ties increases in Pell Grant maximum values to annual increases in the Consumer Price Index plus 1%. SAFRA also puts federal student loan funding in the hands of students instead of private lenders by ending the practice of federally subsidized private loans.