Education

When Senator Merkley was a child, his father would drive him to the first day of school each year, point to the doors of the school, and say, “Those are the doors to opportunity.  If you study hard, you can do or be just about anything.”  Throughout his life, Merkley has taken those words to heart.  He was the first in his family to go to college, earning scholarships to Stanford and Princeton. 

When Merkley first took on the challenge of running for the Oregon State Legislature, it was because he wanted to build a better education system for his young children.  As Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives, Merkley worked with the 2007 Legislature to increase funding for Oregon's pre-kindergarten/Head Start Program, allowing 75 percent of eligible children to enroll, up from 50 percent at previous funding levels.  Merkley also led the effort to more than double the funds available for student financial aid and make financial aid available to part-time students for the first time in Oregon’s history.

Education is a major factor in determining whether our children and our nation succeed in today’s increasingly competitive global economy.   As a country, we need to do a better job of supporting teachers and giving them the resources they need to provide the best possible environment for teaching our children.  If we are serious about developing a competitive and comprehensive education system, we must provide our children with quality classes in art and physical education, as well as math and reading.

Through his seat on the Senate Committee for Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, Senator Merkley is playing a significant role in crafting a policy agenda that will return America to its position as a world leader in education. 

Elementary and Secondary Education

Senator Merkley knows that Oregon’s schools are facing crowded classrooms, shortened calendar years, and a rapidly escalating need for stabilization and modernization.  Without a strong education for our children, our families and businesses cannot thrive.

In February of 2009, Merkley fought to preserve education funding in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which provided more than $750 million for Oregon schools.  These funds are essential in helping the state minimize cuts to education during this economic recession.

Senator Merkley believes that we can improve education in America by:

• Critically reexamining No Child Left Behind and adjusting it to ensure that a school’s improvement is measured not only by test scores, but by students’ improvement over time, attendance, graduation rates and state-determined standards.
• Working to fully fund the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) in order to ensure the development of resourced special education programs that comprehensively meet student needs.
• Supporting full funding for Head Start programs that give young children a proven foundation for sustained educational success.
• Fighting to provide health care coverage for all children.  Healthy children are more engaged students, miss fewer school days, and are more successful in school.

Higher Education

Many professions in the world’s evolving economy require more than a high-school diploma, but rising tuition costs have become a barrier for too many Americans looking to pursue higher education.  

This is why Senator Merkley is fighting to increase funding for Pell Grants to give more students an opportunity to reach their full academic potential.  In February 2009, Merkley worked with President Obama and Senate leadership to increase funding for Pell Grants by more than $17 billion in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Senator Merkley also supports creating a broad-based college tuition tax credit.  To help families pay for college, Senator Merkley has joined with Senator Charles Schumer of New York to co-sponsor legislation that expand and simplify higher education tax credits.  Specifically, the legislation, which is structured to benefit  both students in four-year colleges and students in technical institutes and community colleges, will combine the HOPE credit, Lifetime Learning Credit and the Tuition Deduction credits into a combined tax credit of up to $4,000.  

Along with President Obama and Senator Kennedy, Merkley will work to once again make America the nation with the highest proportion of college graduates in the world.

Educational Opportunities for Service Members and Their Families

Merkley believes government has the responsibility to assist our men and women in uniform returning from Iraq and Afghanistan by providing financial assistance to help pay for job training or a college education.  More information on Senator Merkley’s efforts in this area can be found at the National Security page and the Veterans page.