Education Reform Act (Passed)

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

I am heartily in favor of this Act and applaud Senator Kent from taking on the big issues facing our country right off the bat. Would the sponsor be open to expanding this to include non-STEM fields as well? I don't doubt the importance of the sciences, but surely we can agree that we need teachers, journalists, artists, historians, and the like. The fact that those professions are sometimes less lucrative does not diminish their value to our economy and society.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

I am heartily in favor of this Act and applaud Senator Kent from taking on the big issues facing our country right off the bat. Would the sponsor be open to expanding this to include non-STEM fields as well? I don't doubt the importance of the sciences, but surely we can agree that we need teachers, journalists, artists, historians, and the like. The fact that those professions are sometimes less lucrative does not diminish their value to our economy and society.

You make an excellent point, Senator Truman. Yes, I would be open to expanding Section 1 to apply to all the fields you mention, with the exception of artists. While art is a valuable contribution to society, it is subjective, and I don't think taxpayers should be paying for it. But other than that, I agree with what you said.

I don't see how the subjectivity of art has anything to do with it. As I understand it, the purpose of this bill is to ensure that promising, hard-working, committed students can receive an education and become informed, productive members of our society. Why should a studious, ambitious 18-year-old who wants to become an investment banker be treated differently from a studious, ambitious 18-year-old who wants to become a concert pianist? Both have worked hard to become the best in their respective fields, and both will leave college as informed citizens ready to contribute to our economy and democratic traditions. Presumably, the former field is more reliably lucrative (though the music industry creates considerable wealth and economic growth for its own part), but there are plenty of fields that pay less than six figures that are vital parts of our society. Shouldn't we encourage our brightest citizens to do what they do best, and thereby maximize their contribution to society, rather than to force them to chose between fields in which they have neither talent nor interest?

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Is there a Senate historian who knows what the current laws are college fees? In the Northeast for example college is free for Northeast citizens

I'm hardly a Senate historian (Yankee and PiT are probably the closest we'll come to someone who remembers most everything that's been done in the last five years or so), but I do know that the last college tuition bill sponsored by Sen. PiT placed a $10,000/year tuition cap on public universities receiving federal aid. That should help counter the reckless inflation anticipated by my Southern colleague.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

I support the amendment.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Here is the updated text of this bill as of the most recent amendment:

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[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Is that a no to the idea about an ACT/SAT score? Perhaps a progressive system, I. E. 23 and under for those making >$60,000 per child get no funding, 24-27: 50%, 28-31: 70%, 32-35: 90%, and 36: 100%.

I'm not a fan of this idea. For starters, the SAT and ACT are highly unreliable when it comes to measuring a student's academic potential. There are a wide array of reasons why an otherwise promising and committed student might do poorly on the SAT - in fact, many colleges no longer require SAT/ACT scores from applicants for this very reason. Keep in mind also that these tests are developed by a private entity (the College Board), and thus do not necessarily reflect the priorities of the Atlasian Republic or colleges themselves. Second (and more troublingly), success on these tests is often tied to one's ability to afford intensive "Prep Courses" which most poor and middle class families cannot afford (I know people whose parent's spent thousands of dollars for them to be tutored for the SAT). Therefore, by tying college aid to SAT scores, we run the risk of unwittingly shutting out poorer students who can't afford these programs. In general, a student's GPA is a much more reliable and holistic measurement of a student's academic success rate, as it takes into account all four year's of one's high school education as opposed to a single afternoon.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

As of Ebowed's amendment:

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[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Why do we need to encourage students to enter professions that are already growing?

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

I object to the amendment proposed by Senator Potus. As the Speaker noted, it makes more sense to propose a separate bill addressing the threat posed by ISIS that to scuttle months of hard work on this issue.

I likewise object to the motion to table and call for a final vote.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

This has already run out the legislative clock and is not as pressing. We can bring up the current text of this bill in another thread without having to put combatting ISIS through the bureaucratic circus.

I'm not sure what you mean by "bureaucratic circus." There are plenty of empty slots on the floor that could be filled by this bill: it's only a matter of the Speaker taking action (which would have to happen for this amendment to move forward as well).

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

I'll extend debate on Senator Potus's amendment for another 24 hours.


I still believe that this would be far better served as a separate bill, and if this amendment fails, I'll be happy to sponsor it as a separate bill myself.

Such a bill has already been introduced; why not bring it to the floor immediately?

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Senator Truman, in an earlier you post were you objecting to both a motion to table and a final vote, or objecting to the former and calling for the latter?

I was objecting to Potus' motion to table and introducing my own motion for a final vote. Speaking of which...

Motion for a final vote.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

AYE!

I encourage those senators voting "nay" to explain their objections to the motion for cloture and what they hope to accomplish if said motion is defeated.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

>Cough<

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Yeah, I motion for a final vote (again). Since debate has stalled for more than a week, we should be able to skip cloture and head right to a vote.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

>crickets<

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Sorry, my fault. We will now have a 24-hour vote on Senator Truman's motion for a final vote.

I don't believe this is necessary, as there has been no debate for almost three weeks.

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[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

AYE!