Committee on Education and Workforce

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Committee on Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-VA), issued the following statement on 50th Anniversary of the Head Start program, which has granted millions of children access to high quality preschool: “Fifty years ago today, President Lyndon B. Johnson announced from the White House Rose Garden that enrollment would begin for an early childhood education program called “Project Head Start” as part of his Great Society and War on Poverty programs. For the last half century, Head Start has been more than just an education program. It has helped generations of disadvantaged families and young children break through class barriers in school and life through a holistic approach that includes high quality preschool and critical support services, including family engagement, health services and good nutrition.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – House Committee on Education and the Workforce Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-VA) released the following statement today after the release of the monthly jobs report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The BLS announced that during the month of April, 223,000 jobs were created and the unemployment rate dipped to 5.4 percent – the lowest since May 2008. To date, the economy has now had a record 62 consecutive months of private sector job growth. “The jobs report released today proves that our job market is steadily growing and more Americans are being put back to work. By adding 223,000 jobs, we are successfully approaching our prerecession levels and we cannot afford to go back.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-VA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, Congressman Walter Jones (R-NC), Congressman Trey Gowdy (R-SC) and Congressman Tony Cárdenas (D-CA) introduced the Youth Prison Reduction through Opportunities, Mentoring, Intervention, Support, and Education (“Youth PROMISE”) Act (H.R. 2197). The Youth PROMISE Act will provide resources to communities to engage in comprehensive, evidence-based prevention and intervention strategies to decrease violence, gang crime, illegal drug activity and other crime. Under the Youth PROMISE Act, communities facing the greatest youth gang and crime challenges will each form a local council of representatives from law enforcement, court services, schools, social service organizations, health and mental health providers, the business community, and other public and private community-based organizations, including faith-based organizations. The council will develop a comprehensive plan for implementing evidence-based prevention and intervention strategies for young people who are at-risk of becoming involved, or who are already involved, in gangs, or the criminal justice system to redirect them toward productive and law-abiding alternatives.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-VA) and U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) introduced the Raise the Wage Act, legislation that would increase the minimum wage to $12 by 2020. The Raise the Wage Act would also index the federal minimum wage to the median wage, and gradually eliminate the subminimum tipped wage. The legislation would raise wages for nearly 38 million American workers. “Raising the minimum wage to $12 by 2020 will give hardworking, underpaid workers a pay raise that has been long overdue,” said Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA). “Bigger paychecks for working families not only help them make ends meet, it also increases consumer demand and grows our economy. No one working full-time should live in poverty, and we can’t build a strong economy on the backs of impoverished workers. America deserves a raise.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – House Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) released the following statement today after Senators Lamar Alexander and Patty Murray released details on their agreement on the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act “I commend Senators Alexander and Murray for their efforts to bring forward a bipartisan Elementary and Secondary Education reauthorization bill in the Senate. While we recognize this as an important step in the process, there is still work to do to ensure that the needs of our most vulnerable students are met. Students, teachers, parents, and communities deserve a bill that fulfills ESEA’s original civil rights promise – ensuring that all students, regardless of where they live – have access to high quality public education that prepares them for college and the workplace.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a member of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.), U.S. Congresswoman Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), and U.S. Congressman Danny K. Davis (D-Ill.) were joined by original cosponsors U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and U.S. Congressman Bobby Scott (D-Va.) in introducing the Supportive School Climate Act of 2015, legislation that would address the so-called school-to-prison pipeline by reducing suspensions, expulsions, and other overly harsh school disciplinary actions to improve youth outcomes. The bill would give every student – especially those who face abuse, neglect, or other forms of trauma – ample opportunity to form positive and trusting relationships with adults in a school environment that is supportive of their complex needs, and would encourage the use of evidence-based strategies that promote positive behavior.