BIPARTISAN LEADERS RE-LAUNCH ‘PUBLIC SCHOOL CAUCUS’ TO HIGHLIGHT BEST PRACTICES BENEFITING CHILDREN IN AMERICA’S PUBLIC SCHOOLS

WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Congressman Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA), and twelve of their colleagues re-launched the Public School Caucus, a bipartisan congressional caucus aimed at elevating practices in public school settings to better serve children across the country.   

Caucus Co-Chair Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), a passionate STEM advocate, said, “STEM is the future, and it’s critical that all children, especially those in underserved communities, have access to the best our country has to offer. Working together across party lines, the Public Schools Caucus aims to ensure our hard-working and dedicated teachers can share invaluable insight on educational success to ensure today’s youth are best preparation for the careers of the future.”

“From reading comprehension to mathematics, education is vital for children to learn the necessary skills to grow and become productive members of society,” said Caucus Co-chair Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA). “However, it is increasingly apparent that every child does not have the same educational needs. That is why I am proud to join Rep. Adriano Espaillat in launching the Public Schools Caucus, a caucus dedicated to advocating for children, parents, educators, administrators, and policymakers to ensure that every child, no matter the zip code, socioeconomic status, or background, has the opportunity to succeed. I look forward to working together and creating an educational landscape that upholds high academic standards and produces the best outcomes for our kids.”  

Looking at what works best in both public district and public charter schools, the Caucus aims to draw attention to successful elements in America’s classrooms to help educators continually improve access, quality, opportunity, and outcomes for the next generation of leaders. The Caucus will host a series of three events this Congress, showcasing the leading public school education practices across the country. 

The first event, scheduled for tomorrow, December 12th, at 9AM on Capitol Hill will focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) programming.  Hosted by Congressman Mike Gallagher (R-WI), Congressman Ritchie Torres (D-NY), and Congressman Brandon Williams (R-NY), the event will focus on Achieving STEM Excellence in Public Education and feature a discussion about the importance of STEM excellence in K-12 classrooms. 

Education expert and President of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, Michael Petrilli, will lead the discussion alongside Success Academy Charter Schools CEO, Eva Moskowitz, Department of Defense Education Activity Director, Thomas Brady, and East Syracuse Minoa (New York) Central School Superintendent, Donna DeSiato.  

In addition to the co-chairs, the initial members of the Public Schools Caucus include an equal number of Republicans and Democrats: Reps. Julia Brownley (D-CA), David Trone (D-MD), Lisa McClain (R-MI), Chris Pappas (D-NH), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Melanie Stansbury (D-NM), Andrew Garbarino (R-NY), Mike Lawler (R-NY), Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Ritchie Torres (D-NY), Brandon Williams (R-NY), and Burgess Owens (R-UT).  

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Representative Espaillat is the first Dominican American to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives and his congressional district includes Harlem, East Harlem, West Harlem, Hamilton Heights, Washington Heights, Inwood, Marble Hill and the north-west Bronx. First elected to Congress in 2016, Representative Espaillat is serving his fourth term in Congress. Representative Espaillat currently serves as a member of the influential U.S. House Committee on Appropriations responsible for funding the federal government’s vital activities and serves as Ranking Member of the Legislative Branch Subcommittee of the committee during the 118th Congress. He is also a member of the House Budget Committee and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), where he serves in a leadership role as the Deputy Chair as well as Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI). Rep. Espaillat is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) and serves as a Senior Whip of the Democratic Caucus. To find out more about Rep. Espaillat, visit online at https://espaillat.house.gov/.

Media inquiries: Candace Person at Candace.Person@mail.house.gov