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February 6, 2008Education Department Says Budget Strengthens Nation's Commitment to No Child Left Behind |
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From Education Newsfeed: Secretary Spellings today highlighted President Bush's historic support for No Child Left Behind (NCLB), and said, "This budget provides the necessary resources for critical programs that equip American students with the skills they need to compete and succeed in the knowledge-based economy." Spellings made special mention of the budget request to restore funding for Reading First and to target resources to schools and students who need it most. All of these programs are essential to ensuring that our children not only have access to a rigorous education, but one suited for the global economy. The increase in funding will also provide more choices for students and parents and encourage more effective restructuring of chronically low-performing schools. To better prepare students to succeed in the global economy, the President proposes $175 million for the American Competitiveness Initiative to strengthen instruction in math, science, and critical foreign languages. Increased funding for the Math Now and Advanced Placement programs will enable students to take more rigorous coursework in high school and graduate high school prepared to succeed in college and the workforce. $70 million for Advanced Placement to help prepare teachers in high-poverty high schools obtain the training needed to teach Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) courses. $24 million for Advancing America through Foreign Language Partnerships to support partnerships with school districts for language learning from kindergarten through high school and into advanced language study at the postsecondary level. To save $3.3 billion in taxpayer dollars, the President's budget recommends eliminating 47 programs that are duplicative, narrowly focused, or unable to demonstrate effectiveness.
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