Education Actions

April is Education Month and an excellent time to gather support for the Education For All Act (H.R.2092, S.1259).
Please ask your members of Congress to cosponsor the Education for All Act*, which was introduced by Reps. Lowey (D-NY) and Bachus (R-AL) and Sens. Clinton (D-NY) and Smith (R-OR). To cosponsor in the House, contact Lucy Heenan in Rep. Lowey’s office at Lucy.Heenan@mail.house.gov or (202) 225-6506) or Jason Britt in Rep. Bachus’ office at Jason.Britt@mail.house.gov or (202) 225-4921). To cosponsor in the Senate, contact Ann Gavaghan in Sen. Clinton’s office at Ann_Gavaghan@clinton.senate.gov or (202) 224-4451), or Daniel Knezevic in Sen. Smith’s office at Daniel_Knezevic@smith.senate.gov or (202) 224-3753).
Senator Grassley: 202-224-3744
Senator Harkin: 202-224-3254
Congressman Loebsack: 202-225-6576

*What the Education For All Act Would Do
It seeks to provide basic education for all children by:
Authorizing $1 billion for FY 2008, scaling up to $3 billion by 2012. This $3 billion would represent the U.S. fair share of the global Education for All need. In FY07, the U.S. provided $485 million for basic education, far short of the U.S. fair share of the $7 to $10 billion annual financing gap of what is needed to ensure that the 77 million children of primary school age who are out of school receive at least a basic education.
Requiring the president to prioritize basic education funding and strategies for the most disadvantaged children, including girls in poor and remote areas, child laborers, the disabled, victims of sex trafficking, orphans, and those negatively impacted by HIV/AIDS.
Focusing educational support on countries that have completed, or are in the process of completing, the Education For All/Fast Track Initiative process. This process coordinates donor resources to provide timely, predictable, and effective assistance to support governments that create comprehensive national education plans. Currently, Congress does not directly invest in the Fast Track Initiative, and U.S. aid tends to be more project-oriented focused, rather than supportive of national education plans.
Supporting activities that help eliminate barriers to access, including the elimination of school fees and other charges related to education.
Including funding for the 9 million children in refugee camps and the many millions who are internally displaced or hurt by conflict.
Requiring the president to develop a comprehensive Education for All strategy and creates a new Education for All Coordinator as an ambassador-level position at the Department of State to oversee this strategy.

Support Dodd–Snowe Letter on Funding for Head Start and Child Care
Head Start and child care have been flat-funded or cut since 2002. That has resulted in fewer families and children being able to participate. According to a survey by National Head Start Association (NHSA), 77 percent of Head Start centers are “at the breaking point,” unable to absorb new cuts. The National Women’s Law Center looked at census data that confirms the obvious, that the cost of child care is a heavy burden for working families.
Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) are circulating a Dear Colleague letter inviting senators to sign a letter to the Appropriations Committee on fiscal year 2009 funding. The sign-on letter calls for an increase of $874 million for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) and $1.072 billion for Head Start in the FY2009 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations bill. RESULTS supports these levels, which would bring the programs back to pre-2002 funding levels (adjusted for inflation). Both Head Start and CCDBG have been under funded for years, causing drops in the number of children served.
Signers of the letter so far are Senators Akaka (D-HI), Bingaman (D-NM), Boxer (D-CA), Brown (D-OH), Cantwell (D-WA), Dorgan (D-ND), Durbin (D-IL), Feingold (D-WI), Kennedy (D-MA), Kerry (D-MA), Klobuchar (D-MN), Lautenberg (D-NJ), Leahy (D-VT), Levin (D-MI), Lincoln (D-AR), Mikulski (D-MD), Obama (D-IL), Reed (D-RI), Rockefeller IV (D-WV), Sanders (I-VT), Stabenow (D-MI), and Wyden (D-OR).
The deadline for senators to sign this letter is April 2.
TAKE ACTION! Call both of your U.S. senators and ask them to sign the Dodd–Snowe letter on appropriations for child care and Head Start. Overall, keep telling Congress to fund Head Start and child care in the final FY2009 budget resolution. See our alert to send a message to your representatives and senators.