| Dear Friends,
Today, other countries around the world are outpacing American students in math, reading, and science; the United States now ranks 36th in the world. Our approach to education must change if we want our country to remain on top. We already have a tested solution to improve our K-12 schools, increase graduation rates, close the college-readiness gap, and strengthen our public education system: Charter schools.
Charter schools are public schools that are independently run and free from the bureaucracy imposed upon traditional public schools and have a greater flexibility over their operations and curriculum. It’s my opinion that schools operate better and children learn more when big government bureaucracies are not mandating a one-size-fits-all approach to education like Common Core. Charter schools develop and implement inventive curriculum tailored to student needs and give parents, teachers, students and other local stakeholders an active voice in school governance. Most importantly: charter schools give parents more choices when it comes to how they decide that their children should be educated.
In January 2014, the California Charter School Association (CCSA) reported that Los Angeles County charter schools graduate four times as many students who are college–ready compared to traditional schools in the district. Additionally, charter schools experience higher graduation rates at 79% compared to traditional district schools with 66%. Those are real results.
As Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, I’ve witnessed first-hand the global importance of education. In the past, the United States led the way in scientific and technological discovery. Many innovative companies, such as Apple and Google, were started right here in California by talented engineers proficient in engineering and computer science. If we want to ensure that the jobs of the future are created here at home, we must provide a quality education to every student that puts them on the path to success in college.
Last year, I voted for and cosponsored the Success and Opportunity through Quality Charter Schools Act (H.R. 10). This bill strengthened existing charter school programs, provided grants for new charter schools and allowed for the expansion and replication of existing high quality charter schools. As National School Choice Week draws to a close, I am recommitting to ensuring a quality education for all of our students and will work tirelessly to make that happen.
Sincerely,
Ed Royce
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News for Jan. 23 - Jan. 30, 2015
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Chairman Royce Leads the Way on Combating Human Trafficking
This week, Rep. Royce, as Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, guided House passage of three House Foreign Affairs Committee measures to combat human trafficking. They were:
Human Trafficking Prioritization Act (H.R. 514), which elevates the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons to the level of a Bureau within the State Department to better prioritize the fight against human trafficking without increasing the size of the Federal Government. Similar legislation passed the Committee and the House last year.
International Megan’s Law to Prevent Demand for Child Sex Trafficking (H.R. 515), which protects children from sex trafficking by providing foreign governments with advance notice of intended travel by registered child-sex offenders. Similar legislation passed the Committee and the House last year.
Human Trafficking Prevention Act (H.R. 357), which requires certain State Department personnel to undergo training to identify victims of human trafficking around the world. Similar legislation passed the Committee and the House last year.
Chairman Royce said, “While some progress has been made in our long fight against human trafficking, more than 20 million people remain subject to the horrors of this form of modern-day slavery. With more work to be done, I am pleased that we have chosen to make this issue a focus. The passage of these important anti-human trafficking bills represents a concerted effort by the House of Representatives to combat this appalling injustice.”
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Rep. Royce Meets with Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens
This week, Rep. Royce met with Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens in his Washington, D.C., office. The Orange County Sheriff's Department, led by Sheriff Hutchens, is a multi-faceted law enforcement agency made up of approximately 4,000 sworn and professional staff members and over 800 reserve personnel. They discussed ways that Rep. Royce can continue to support Sheriff Hutchens as she leads the effort to protect and serve 3 million Orange County residents.
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| Rep. Royce, USAID's Rajiv Shah Discuss Ending Global Poverty at Cal Poly Pomona |
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A leading member of the House of Representatives hosted the Indian American Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development at Cal Poly Pomona to discuss ways to end worldwide hunger as part of an event on Jan. 11 entitled “The Fight to End Global Poverty by 2030.”
Rep. Ed Royce, R-Fullerton, who chairs the House’s Foreign Affairs Committee and has been a key figure in U.S.-India relations since the 1990s, brought USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah to Southern California for an interactive discussion of how to end global poverty within the next 15 years.
USAID is a leading agency focusing on United States’ development overseas; the Foreign Relations Committee watches over the work ofUSAID.
“Over the past five years, Administrator Shah has been leading [usaid] efforts to address humanitarian crises and combat poverty,” Royce stated. “From Gujarat to Tacloban, I have witnessed the fruit of these efforts first hand.”
Nearly 200 people attended “The Fight to End Global Poverty by 2030” event, which was held in the Bronco Student Center at Cal Poly Pomona.
While “The Fight to End Global Poverty by 2030” might seem like an ambitious goal, Royce reminded the event’s attendees that significant progress has been made around the world since the 1960s, thanks to advances in agricultural technology.
“Think back to the 1960s and what things looked like in terms of the level of starvation we’d seen on this planet, literally 1 billion lives were saved, 1 billion lives credited to the work done with agricultural technologies that helped nations like India and the Philippines transition from food aid to trade,” Royce said. “It’s remarkable to see the impact.”
Royce also commended the decreasing rates of child mortality, malaria and polio.
Read more
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| Royce Office Hosts Military Academy Night in March |
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Every year, Rep. Royce has the privilege of nominating high school students from California's 39th Congressional District to our nation's prestigious military academies.
This March, his staff will host a "Military Academy Night" that will serve as an informational session for students and parents interested in learning more about the application and nomination process. Past graduates from the academies and official liaison officers will also be on hand. Event details are below:
Date: Monday, March 16th
Time: 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Location: Buena Park City Hall
6650 Beach Blvd.
Buena Park, CA 90622
For more details or to RSVP, contact Stephanie Hu at:
(626) 964-5123 or Stephanie.Hu@mail.house.gov.
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