Andrews serves as one of seven House Democrats and 13 House members on the committee negotiating the final product with President Bush.  "An effort that began on Dec. 21, 2000 when I traveled to Texas to meet with then President-elect Bush is nearing completion this fall," Andrews said.  "Today, my visits to five South Jersey schools will demonstrate the need for and promise of the new law".  Rep. Andrews highlighted four key initiatives--student nutrition, school accountability, special education funding for school districts to reduce property taxes, and school safety--that are critical for better schools.

Next week, the House-Senate Conference Committee is expected to meet to discuss the legislation.

"America will only grow stronger when our schools reach higher," Andrews said.  "The two political parties need to work together to pass this law." 

STUDENT NUTRITION

Rep. Andrews visited a school breakfast program at the Charles School in Palmyra to address the issue of better nutrition as a path to better student performance.  7.5 million students each day enjoy the nutritious benefits of the federally supported School Breakfast Program.  Harvard Medical Center researchers reported that children who participated in school breakfast not only showed improvement academically (including improvements in math scores averaging an entire letter grade), they also behaved better in interactions with peers and adults and they were less likely to be anxious or depressed.
Andrews supports an increase from $1.4 billion in the FY 2001 budget to $1.579 billion in the FY 2002 budget for the school breakfast program that will provide nearly a million more students with breakfast next year.  Recognizing this correlation, Rep. Andrews has supported federal funding for this initiative.

  
ACCOUNTABLE SCHOOLS

Next, Rep. Andrews visited the Whitehall School in Williamstown, named this year by the United States Secretary of Education as a "Blue Ribbon School".  Only 264 schools in the nation qualified as Blue Ribbon Schools.  The Whitehall School is the first school in Gloucester County to qualify for such a distinction.

To help them win this distinction, Whitehall students, parents, teachers, administrators and staff worked together to prepare students for the Terra Nova test-a national standardized test for 2nd, 3rd, and 5th graders voluntarily administered by school districts to weigh their students achievements against their peers across the Nation.  For 2001, the Whitehall School students' scores ranked in the mid 80th percentile, which far exceeds the national average (50th percentile). "Regular rigorous testing does not stigmatize struggling students, Andrews noted.  "Instead, it benchmarks student achievement, shows what works, and enables us to use success strategies to help students and schools achieve at a higher level." 

PROPERTY TAX RELIEF

Rep. Andrews continued his day by visiting the Raymond W. Kershaw Elementary School in Mt. Ephraim to show his support for a major increase in federal special education funding that is proposed in the new education bill. "One of the reasons New Jersey residents bear an unreasonable property tax burden is the skyrocketing cost of special education," Andrews stated.  "In order to ensure that special needs students get the best education we can offer and to provide property tax relief, I want to see a major federal increase," he said.

In 1974, Congress passed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), guaranteeing a high quality education to special needs students.  That law promised that the federal share of special education costs would be forty percent.  The federal government has never honored that promise.  In Mt. Ephraim, for example, $1,377,162 is spent on special education out of a total school budget of $6.1 million.  The federal government provides $118,436 or 8% of those funds.  If the Senate bill Andrews supports is accepted by the House and by President Bush, Mt. Ephraim's share would rise to approximately $557,345.  This would provide funds for some combination of property tax relief and higher spending on mainstream student programs.  

"I will fight hard in this conference for property tax relief and better education for all of our students", Andrews said.

KEEPING SCHOOLS SAFE

Next, Rep Andrews joined with Senator Robert Torricelli to visit the Bell Oaks School in Bellmawr to highlight a provision--the School Environmental Protection Act (SEPA)-- spearheaded by Torricelli in the Senate and Andrews in the House that will require school districts to notify student's parents when pesticides have been applied in a particular school.  Experts have determined that pesticide poisoning affects intellectual functioning, motor skills, and the ability to focus attention.  

"Children spend the majority of their time in school, and their smaller body size and rapid cell growth makes them more susceptible than adults to pesticide poisoning," said Andrews. I am working with Senator Torricelli to ensure that our children are provided with a safe and a healthy learning environment."  The SEPA provision does not ban the use of any pesticide and should not pose an undue financial burden to school districts. 

REDUCING SCHOOL VIOLENCE

Rep. Andrews concluded his day addressing the issue of keeping students safe while they learn.  Andrews commended the students who participated as mediators in Eastern High School's Peer Mediation Program last year.  Andrews wrote a provision in the House education bill that would permit $475 million of federal funds to be used throughout the nation for Peer Mediation Programs like the one at Eastern.

The primary purpose of the Peer Mediation Program is to mediate disputes that arise between students at the student level before the dispute elevates into a violent action that must be adjudicated by the school administration.  Students attribute the success of the program to the ability of peer mediators to relate to the mind set of the parties they are working with to resolve a dispute and the commitment of all involved individuals to resolve the dispute without it escalating further.  Rep. Andrews will work to ensure that this Peer Mediation funding is included in the final text of legislation to be sent to the President to be signed into law.