Senator Ted Kennedy On No Child Left Behind Anniversary

Chairman Kennedy holds roundtable discussion on law’s future and effectiveness

January 8, 2008 -- Cambridge, MA— Today, on the sixth anniversary of the No Child Left Behind Act, Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Chairman of the United States Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee, held a roundtable discussion at Harvard’s Institute of Politics. The discussion, which included stakeholders from the local and state level, teachers, superintendents, policy makers and academics, was part of an ongoing discussion on the reauthorization of the bill. Chairman Kennedy hopes to introduce a reauthorization bill for NCLB in early spring.

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Senator Kennedy said, “There are few responsibilities more important for Congress than to strengthen, support, and modernize our public education system to give every child in America a fighting chance in today’s changing economy. It’s about opportunity for our citizens and it’s about the strength of our nation’s economy and our democracy.

For many, No Child Left Behind has been a slogan for what the White House has done wrong rather than what schools can do right. We’ve learned a lot over the past six years about what works and what doesn’t work with No Child Left Behind. We’ve seen many students and schools make great progress, but we’ve also seen that some reforms don’t work.

We owe it to children, parents, and schools to get it right.”

Source: Senator Edward M. Kennedy