Congressman Colin Allred (TX-32) hosted a roundtable in Richardson with education leaders and educators from the Richardson Independent School District, Richland College, the University of Texas at Dallas and the American Federation of Teachers. The topics of discussion included ensuring our teachers have the resources they need, making higher education more affordable and accessible for our students, funding our public schools and making pre-kindergarten available for all students.
“I was raised by a public school teacher and as a proud product of North Texas public schools, I know first hand the importance of our public school system,” said Allred. “One of the best ways folks can better their lives and live their version of the American Dream is a good education. Whether it is teacher pay, increasing access to federal scholarships and grants or funding our public schools — we must all work together to ensure our education system in North Texas gives everyone the opportunity to succeed.”
Allred’s record on education and job training:
- Voted to invest in better schools and job training in the recently passed spending bill for the 2020 fiscal year. Programs for education for the disadvantaged will receive $17 billion, $453 million above 2019 and a record level. Job training programs will receive $5.4 billion, a $134 million increase.
- A lead cosponsor of the Better Service to Borrowers Act. The legislation would require the Department of Education to create a common loan servicing manual to ensure that no matter who services their student loans, borrowers receive the same basic quality of service.
- Introduced the Helping Student Parents Succeed Act. The bill requires higher learning institutions to post on their website their policies regarding leaves of absence related to pregnancy or adoption of a child, as well as any policies related to making up missed work, lactation accommodations, the availability of child care, and housing for students with dependents.
“I thank the dedicated administrators, policymakers, and educators for joining me for this important discussion,” Allred concluded.
