Congressman Dan Goldman Pushes to Revitalize America’s Public Schools With ‘Green New Deal for Public Schools’
‘Green New Deal for Public Schools’ Would Transform Public School Infrastructure with Clean Energy Upgrades, Invest in Educators, Advance Equity Curriculums
Read the Bill Here
Washington, DC – Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) joined Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) and Congressman Jamaal Bowman (NY-16) in introducing the ‘Green New Deal for Public Schools.’ This landmark legislation would invest $1.6 trillion in our public education system over 10 years to improve clean energy infrastructure, invest in schools serving low-income students, and provide schools with the resources to hire hundreds of thousands of needed educators, paraprofessionals, and staff, including counselors, to support student mental health.
“The American public education system is a promise we as a country have made to students, families, and communities across the country – the promise that they will have a safe, welcoming place to learn, to thrive, and to improve their station in life,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “When school buildings are falling into disrepair, teachers aren’t receiving the support they need, and the climate crisis threatens students’ ability to learn, we are failing our children. This historic investment is an opportunity to provide American students with all the tools they need for success.”
The ‘Green New Deal for Public Schools’ would:
Create an Office of Sustainable Schools within the U.S. Department of Education to administer new grant programs in collaboration with the Department of Energy
Provide $446 billion in Climate Capital Facilities Grants and $40 billion for a Climate Change Resiliency Program to upgrade every public school building in the country – starting with the highest-need districts – to create safe, healthy, zero-carbon, and accessible learning environments for students and staff
Invest $250 billion in Resource Block Grants for schools to –
Drastically reduce student-to-staff ratios, equipping schools to approach target ratios of 12:1 forgrades K-8 and 15:1 for grades 9-12
Strengthen and diversify the educator pipeline
Better integrate local knowledge & community relationships in high-need schools
Develop and implement initiatives to support high quality teaching and learning, extracurricular and co-curricular activities, violence prevention, student mental health, and positive school climates.
Create an Educational Equity Planning Grants Pilot Program funded at $100 million to address historic school funding inequities within regions
Increase funding for Title I Part A and the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) Part B by $850 billion over ten years, including –
Quadrupling current funding for Title I Part A to reach $74 billion annually to support schools and districts with students living in poverty
Tripling current funding for IDEA Part B to reach $44 billion annually to support students with disabilities
Investing $1.6 trillion over ten years in the U.S. education system would create 1.3 million jobs annually and eliminate 78 million metric tons of carbon emissions, which is equal to taking 17 million cars off the road.
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