Virginia Foxx

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to announce that a familiar figure within North Carolina's history will soon be featured here in the United States Capitol. On July 22, I came to the floor and spoke about how the first Republican majority in the North Carolina legislature in over 40 years voted in 2015 to replace the current statue of Charles Aycock in the Capitol with a statue of Billy Graham. A week later, on July 29, a committee within the North Carolina's General Assembly unanimously approved a model of Reverend Graham's statue and commissioned a sculptor to create a life-sized model. The level of expediency in this process is a true testament to how Reverend Graham was revered not only in North Carolina, but also across the world. Recently, President Trump has expressed his support for a statue of Reverend Graham to be commissioned, and he even suggested that Reverend Graham would be memorialized in a new statuary park known as the ``National Garden of American Heroes.'' Reverend Graham came from humble beginnings in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he was raised on a dairy farm in the early 1920s. During his lifetime, he counseled foreign dignitaries, numerous Presidents, members of the Royal family, and many other significant public figures. However, his work was not solely consigned to the upper echelons of government or politics. His life's work was dedicated to the millions of people around the world who sought Jesus Christ as their one true Lord and savior. He once described being a Christian as, ``more than just an instantaneous conversion. It is a daily process whereby you grow to be more and more like Christ.'' In 2018, Reverend Graham passed away at the age of 99, and to say that he left an indelible mark on society would be an understatement. For years, I have advocated for Reverend Graham to have a place within the hallowed Halls of the Capitol, and I am so pleased that the millions of people who visit the Capitol every year will soon be able to view his statue.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, our colleagues say that this administration is doing nothing to help minority students. One of the biggest things that we could do to help minority students is to give them a choice about where to go to school. We talked about this yesterday, and we are talking about it again today. Minority students thrive in charter schools. Recent test scores show these students doing much better. Our colleagues are saying that choice creates segregation. I don't believe that, Madam Speaker. Choice creates the opportunity for success, and we know that. The research shows that over and over again. We can look at New York City and the results that Success Academy is getting for the students there. They are primarily minority students-- but it is because minority parents are choosing to send their children there--and they are succeeding. They are graduating at a very high rate; they are going to college at a very high rate. So giving choice to children of all races and all economic groups results in better achievement. That cannot be denied. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I have before me some very, very excellent results in terms of freedom of choice programs, and I would like to share those with the body. The largest private school choice program in America got more solid evidence of its effectiveness Monday. The lower-income, mostly minority students using the Florida tax credit scholarship to attend private schools are up to 43 percent more likely to enroll in 4-year colleges than White students in public schools and up to 20 percent more likely to earn bachelor's degrees according to a new study released Monday by the Urban Institute. I don't think the Urban Institute is a conservative group. The outcomes are even stronger for students who use the scholarship 4 or more years. Those students are up to 99 percent more likely to attend a 4-year college than their public-school peers and up to 45 percent more likely to earn bachelor's degrees. The new findings build on a 2017 study that was the first of its kind, but also more limited. The previous study found scholarship students were more likely to enroll in college and earn associate's degrees, but not significantly more likely to earn 4-year degrees. However, the 2017 study included only data from public colleges in Florida, and the researchers cautioned that as a result our results may understate the true impact of FTC participation on college enrollment and degree attainment. Madam Speaker, this is solid evidence that having programs like the Florida Student Scholarship Program is working for minority and low- income students. And I find it incredible that our colleagues continually come out on the side of teacher unions, trial lawyers, and others who want to see gains for themselves but no gains for the children they should be serving. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I stated in my opening comments, Republicans do not believe in segregation. Segregation was not good for this country. But segregation was settled, we believe, despite what has been said by our colleagues, by Brown v. Board of Education. I find it very interesting that this bill is about a private right of action and, yet, it has become the discussion about segregation and about, again, Secretary DeVos and what she has or has not done. My knowledge of the Secretary is that she has worked all her life to expand opportunities for low-income and minority students. That is what giving choice to those students and those parents is all about-- expanding opportunities for them to choose where to go to school. And we even know that when we expand opportunities and we have school choice, that even the public schools get better. I just read statistics about what is happening in Florida, the largest place for school choice and for scholarships for low income and minority students to choose where they want to go to school. It shows what a great gift that has been to them, and how poorly, unfortunately, the students in the public schools are doing. Consigning students to public schools and not giving them a choice is not a good thing. It is totally unfair. But this bill is about a private right of action, which the Supreme Court has said does not exist in this legislation--the legislation that already exists. What it is is a gift to trial lawyers. And the implication is, from what we are hearing, is to go back to unequal opportunity. That is not what we want for low-income and minority children, or any children in this country. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, I have a motion to recommit at the desk.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. I am in its present form.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, as you have heard throughout this debate, Republicans agree that discrimination and segregation are repugnant and immoral. Unfortunately, this bill does nothing to address these problems. Instead, Democrats are trying to sneak in a radical partisan rewrite of civil rights law under the guise of an education bill. However, before the House takes action on this legislation, we have one final opportunity to address one particular flaw in this bill. On September 11, 2019, President Trump issued an executive order establishing the policy of the executive branch to consider discrimination against Jews to be illegal discrimination under title VI when such discrimination is based on an individual's race, color, or national origin. If this House is going to radically rewrite title VI, as this bill does, we should use this opportunity to show commitment to combating anti-Semitism. With anti-Semitism on the rise around the world, the need for this amendment is clear. In fact, here in the United States, we have seen horrific acts of violence against our Jewish friends over the last few years. In October 2018, 11 congregants lost their lives at a synagogue in Pittsburgh, the worst killing of Jews in American history. In December of last year, a gunman targeted a Jewish kosher deli, leaving six dead. This motion does one simple thing. The underlying bill requires recipients of funding from the Department of Education to designate title VI compliance coordinators. My motion inserts language into this provision directing such compliance coordinators to consider anti- Semitism to be illegal discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin under title VI. Madam Speaker, we have an opportunity with this amendment to achieve an important goal. We can ensure that recipients of Federal education funding are doing all they can to protect members of our communities from horrific anti-Semitism. I urge a ``yes'' vote on my amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the amendment, although I am not opposed to the amendment and have great affection for the introducer.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, this amendment does nothing to correct the flaws of the underlying bill, but it doesn't make the bill any worse either. The amendment includes language that would ensure applicants are judged on their ability to meet the fundamental purposes of the bill, which should be done with all grant applications and by anyone receiving taxpayer funding, and that makes sense. However, the amendment doesn't change the fundamentally flawed approach this bill takes to tackle a problem we all agree that school districts should address. But nothing in the amendment itself is objectionable--in fact, it may be helpful--so I will support the amendment. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the gentleman's amendment and urge my colleagues to support it. I applaud the gentleman from Georgia for offering such an alternative. As has been said, it builds on bipartisan, bicameral agreements to ensure nearly every school district in the country has Federal funds to pursue the goals of the underlying bill rather than affording this opportunity to a select few school districts. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the amendment.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I want to repeat something I said earlier. Republicans and Democrats agree that discrimination and State-sanctioned segregation are repugnant, illegal, and blatantly immoral. Action should be taken to achieve greater equality for our Nation's students and in our schools. We believe we should strive toward a future where all students, regardless of race or color, have the chance to succeed. Education and hard work are the paths out of poverty for millions, and education provides students with the tools and skills they need to build a successful life. My colleague mentioned that she didn't see the difference between her amendment and Representative Allen's amendment. Well, Representative Allen's amendment provides a way for all schools to achieve worthy goals through grant programs. This goes to the fundamental way schools are evaluated and would be a major change in policy. I, again, urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on this amendment. We should be debating this issue when we are debating the issues related to title I. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I claim the time in opposition to the amendment, although I am not opposed to the amendment.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my colleague's comments, and, as I said, this is a very small step in the right direction. I wish that there were more people in the gentleman's party who wanted to see this. We have tremendous evidence that school choice is the tide that lifts all boats in education. It does everywhere. It breaks my heart when I see places like New York City where people there--particularly, the mayor there, has done everything he can to snuff out choice and to snuff out the opportunities that exist there, such as Success Academy, which not only has provided extraordinarily high-quality education to the students, but has really helped raise the level in a very minor way in the other public schools there. We have way too many situations in this country where the teachers unions want to stop all opportunities for choice. And I will take a tiny, tiny step as a good faith movement in the direction of providing all students, particularly low-income students, with the opportunity for choice, because we know where there is choice, the quality increases. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today in opposition to H.R. 2639, the Strength in Diversity Act. Republicans and Democrats agree that discrimination and State- sanctioned segregation are repugnant, illegal, and blatantly immoral. Studies have shown that integrated schools promote greater understanding, tolerance, and improved educational outcomes. I don't disagree with the intentions behind this bill but have major reservations about its efficacy. Will this bill stand the test of time? Will these ideas have helped the ongoing effort to achieve greater equality for children? Sadly, the answer is no. The Education and Labor Committee has a long history of reaching across the aisle and finding common ground to effect meaningful reform for our Nation's schools and students. The legislation before us today was another opportunity for committee Republicans and Democrats to find bipartisan compromise. Unfortunately, committee Democrats ignored commonsense approaches to this problem to impose a top-down, Big Government mandate that would have the Federal Government decide how best to address the issues of racial and socioeconomic isolation in America's schools. As we have seen many times before, additional government mandates and burdensome red tape are not the answer. Congress has already set up the Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants, a block grant created to give school districts flexibility to pursue local solutions to their communities' educational challenges. Local and State leaders and those with their feet on the ground know how best to combat these challenges, not the Federal Government. That is why Representative Allen will offer a Republican alternative later today that will provide this House a bipartisan solution that could easily garner an overwhelming majority of support in this Chamber if every Member chose to focus on the importance of actually addressing racial and socioeconomic isolation in schools. His amendment would ensure that nearly every school district in the country would have the flexibility with Federal funds they may need to tackle this problem. This is how legislating for solutions, rather than legislating for headlines can work. Republicans want nothing more than to see all American children prosper. That means expanding opportunities for marginalized students to gain access to an education that prepares them for lifelong success. It also means school districts taking action to reduce racial and socioeconomic isolation in schools. A bipartisan path forward to make that possible is achievable, but Democrats would rather score political points than work with Republicans on solutions that will make a significant difference in the lives of our Nation's children. Instead of building upon a program that has bipartisan, bicameral support, Democrats' H.R. 2639 sets up a new grant program within the Department of Education that will inevitably be underfunded, if it is funded at all. Creating more government programs that have to scramble for funding in order to operate successfully is the last thing we need to foster the best environment for all students to learn. H.R. 2639 also ignores the biggest problem facing low-income students and students of color--a lack of high-quality educational options. Committee Republicans stand ready to work with our colleagues in the majority to expand educational opportunities to all families. But rather than bring a bill to the floor that would expand the availability of charter schools or offer marginalized families the kind of educational freedom that the wealthy exercise for themselves, Democrats decided teachers unions are more important to them than real families who are desperate for access to a better education for their children. My Republican colleagues and I believe that expanding opportunities for students should be a priority. We know school choice gives families the opportunity to break the cycle of poverty and enroll their children in challenging environments that better develop their skills and intellect, encouraging them to reach higher. In fact, studies show that when students are given the freedom to attend school in a learning environment best suited to their abilities, they pursue and complete postsecondary opportunities at higher rates. Access to opportunities, freedom to climb, these are aspects of a student's education that must be equal for all children nationwide. No one-size-fits-all structure can deliver on those essentials. Separate was never equal, but equality cannot simply mean uniformity if that uniformity doesn't prepare students for lifelong success. Equality is affirming that all children are fundamentally the same in dignity, importance, and worth but also understanding that not all children's needs are the same. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Allen).

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentleman.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Bishop).

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to rise today and recognize Mary Kay Csanyi from Kernersville, North Carolina. Since 2004, Mary Kay has served as an administrative assistant with the Kernersville Chamber of Commerce. The title she holds does not do justice to the impact she has at the chamber or in Kernersville. To me, she was the sunshine in the room, no matter where she is. Her ray of sunshine will be sorely missed. In her capacity, she has coordinated numerous craft shows, festivals, and events within the Kernersville community. After 15 wonderful years at the Kernersville Chamber, Mary Kay retired on August 26 and celebrated alongside her colleagues and friends with a drive-in celebration. Mary Kay, as you enter this new stage of your life, I know that you will continue to serve your community, impact the lives of your friends and neighbors, and be a ray of sunshine wherever you are. May God continue to bless you; Bob, your husband of 40 years; and your family.