Lawmakers at FRN Conference support funding increases for special education

"IDEA has been causing a lot of problems for you," he says. "You got the responsibility. You didn't get the money. We've approved an increase for IDEA every year. We'll do it again this year."

But while IDEA funding is a major priority of NSBA, Lott presented a view on school choice contrary to NSBA's determination to oppose any public aid to nonpublic schools.

Urging the FRN members to "think outside the box," Lott spoke in favor of tuition tax credits to help parents pay for educational expenses at any school. And he said students should be able to use public dollars to transfer from an unsafe or failing public school to "go across the street to a better school."

One FRN member was applauded by the audience when he asked Lott why we should let only a few students leave a troubled school instead of improving the school for all students.

Lott, however, did come closer to NSBA's views on vouchers when he agreed that private school students with vouchers should have to take the same tests taken by public school students.

Stating that "Education must be the top priority in Congress," Lott said education is one of three areas for which he wants to increase funding, along with health research and defense.

Lott says his education priorities in Congress include more flexibility for how schools and districts spend federal money, transforming Head Start into more of an educational program, more discipline in schools, more accountability for teachers and principals, training for teachers to use technology, incentives to train and recruit teachers, safe and drug-free schools, and consolidation of programs in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which is being reauthorized this year.

Regarding the Title I program in ESEA, Lott promised to ask school boards what they think needs to be changed.

Sen. Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) also spoke about the need for more funding for IDEA, and he said more needs to be done to ensure special education students can be removed from the classroom if necessary. "We are all concerned about violence, handguns, and bombs in schools," he says. "Why do we make exceptions for certain people?"

He described an incident in Nashville, Tenn., where a group of students was caught with guns. The district could not expel three of them because they were in special education. They were sent back to school "where they were a potential danger, and that's not right."

Frist noted that he had offered an amendment last year to treat all students equally if they bring a weapon to school.

Frist, the sponsor of the education flexibility initiative enacted last year, told the FRN members that removing bureaucratic barriers continues to be one of his major priorities. "We don't want federal bureaucrats dictating what goes on in schools," he says. "We want to encourage innovation and creativity."

NSBA presented Frist with a special recognition award for his outstanding commitment to local governance of public education.

Rep. Dale E. Kildee (D-Mich.) called the voucher movement a "dark cloud" over Congress for the past five years. Last year, several attempts to enact voucher legislation were beaten back, but Kildee says voucher proponents are gaining momentum.

"They are pushing vouchers as the great panacea of education," he says. "I consider it a great destructive force for education."

He urged school board members to reach out to the business community to support public education. "Too many business leaders are being led by the right wing to support vouchers for private education," he says. Public education advocates need to get them back by showing them the "wondrous things" public schools could do if they had up-to-date buildings, fully qualified teachers, and enough resources.

Kildee also says, "from the beginning, I had serious questions about charter schools," especially when they have "nebulous connections" with a public body. He says charter schools "should be connected to a local public school board or an intermediate school board, not to some small college 400 miles away."

Kildee says he wants the federal government to honor its commitment to pay for 40 percent of the costs of special education. And he proposed using the federal surplus for special education instead of tax cuts.

To Kildee, the chief education priority in Congress this year is passage of ESEA. So far, the House has taken a piecemeal approach, passing several bills last year addressing different sections of ESEA. "It will be put together in conference," he predicts.

Kildee expressed concerns with the Straight A's bill, which would consolidate several ESEA programs into a block grant. "Once a program loses its identity, it loses its advocacy, then it loses its dollars," he warned.

Reproduced with permission from the Feb. 8, 2000, issue of School Board News. Copyright © 2000, National School Boards Association. Opinions expressed in this newspaper do not necessarily reflect positions of NSBA. This article may be printed out and photocopied for individual or educational use, provided this copyright notice appears on each copy. This article may not be otherwise transmitted or reproduced in print or electronic form without the consent of the Publisher. For more information, call (703) 838-6789.