Contact: Will Potter , NEA Public Relations (202) 822-7823

July 3, 2007

Presidential Candidates United on Reforming No Child Left Behind

Clinton, Edwards, Dodd address more than 9,000 educators at NEA Representative Assembly

PHILADELPHIA—The first three presidential candidates to address more than 9,000 school employees at the National Education Association’s Representative Assembly were united on key public school priorities, and reforming No Child Left Behind was at the top of their lists.

Senators Hillary Clinton, John Edwards and Christopher Dodd noted that the law has led to a narrowing of curriculums and pressure on educators to teach to the test. “The message from all three candidates, that a child is more than a test score, clearly resonated with more than 9,000 experts on the issue here today,” said NEA President Reg Weaver.

Clinton said teachers “are all invisible to this president” but “they’re not invisible to the National Education Association and they won’t be invisible to the next president of the United States.” Clinton was emphatic that vouchers, using public tax dollars to fund tuition for private schools, would not be a part of a Clinton administration.

Edwards, a former United States Senator from North Carolina, used the occasion of his NEA RA appearance to announce his intention to raise the national minimum wage to $9.50 per hour if he is elected President. The current minimum wage is slated to increase to $5.85 per hour later this month. “No one who works full-time should have to live in poverty,” said Edwards. “I will raise the minimum wage and put our economy back on the side of working families.”

Dodd, a primary sponsor of the No Child Left Behind Reform Act, said he opposes disproportionate emphasis on testing, and favors measurements that reflect the variety of circumstances under which students learn and grow. “It’s time we get this law right,” Dodd told NEA RA delegates.

During the Representative Assembly, delegates from around the country discuss, debate and vote on critical issues facing public education, such as teacher recruitment and retention and education funding. A major topic at the Representative Assembly has been No Child Left Behind, the Bush administration’s controversial education reform program up for congressional reauthorization this year.

Along with setting NEA’s agenda for the coming year, delegates at the Representative Assembly will hear eight presidential candidates—seven Democrats and one Republican—lay out their visions for the future of America’s public schools. The Representative Assembly, one of the largest democratic decision-making bodies in the world, runs through Thursday, July 5, in Philadelphia.

To request media credentials, please call (202) 822-7823.

For more information and a full listing of scheduled events:
www.nea.org/annualmeeting

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 3.2 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty,
educational support professionals, school administrators, retired educators and students preparing to become teachers.