Press Releases

The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday passed landmark legislation to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, also known as No Child Left Behind. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) includes an amendment from Congresswoman Frederica S. Wilson to allow states to use Title IV funds to establish and improve dropout prevention and re-entry programs. As a result, more schools will be able to provide students with the support and resources they need to stay invested and engaged in their educations. The Florida lawmaker, who sits on the Education and Workforce Committee and is the ranking Democrat on the Workforce Protections Subcommittee, served on the conference committee that crafted the bipartisan bill.

"Like most legislation, ESSA is an imperfect bill, but it is an important step toward delivering on the promise of a quality education for all children, no matter where they live, the color of their skin or their family's annual income," said Rep. Wilson. "No Child Left Behind broke that promise by forcing educators to focus more on high-stakes testing that severely undermined their ability to help students develop critical thinking skills and impeded the students' desire to learn."

Click here to hear the congressman's remarks on the House floor during debate on the bill. And, to learn more about the Every Student Succeeds Act, visit democrats.edworkforce.house.gov/EveryStudentSucceeds.

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Congresswoman Frederica S. Wilson is a third-term Congresswoman from Florida representing parts of Northern Miami-Dade and Southeast Broward counties. A former state legislator and school principal, she is the founder of the 5000 Role Models for Excellence Project, a mentoring program for young males at risk of dropping out of school. Congresswoman Wilson also founded the Florida Ports Caucus, a bipartisan taskforce that coordinates federal action in support of Florida's harbors and waterways.