Bill Allows Decision Making For Teachers And Parents: Rep. Rice

WASHINGTON, DC — Congresswoman Kathleen Rice (D-NY-4th District)has introduced a bill that creates volunteer committees of public school teachers and families.

The Teachers and Parents at the Table Act was announced during Rice's meeting on Thursday with Jennifer Wolfe, a social studies teacher at Oceanside High School and 2021 New York State Teacher of the Year.

"No one should have a stronger say in the policies impacting our schools than those who implement them and see their effects every day in classrooms and homes across the country," Rice said in a statement. "My Teachers & Parents at the Table Act will establish new committees to elevate these local voices as we work to improve our public school system during these unprecedented times."

The Teachers and Parents at the Table Act would establish two volunteer committees, a Teachers Advisory Committee and a Parents and Families Advisory Committee, to monitor the effects and outcomes of federal education policy and report to the Secretary of Education and Congress on their findings.

"When teachers are at the table, decisions made are relevant and effective; enhancing and humanizing education for all students no matter the context of the classroom, or the money spent to educate each student," Wolfe said.

The Teachers and Parents at the Table Act was first created with the assistance of Marguerite Izzo, a teacher in the Malverne School District on Long Island and the 2007 New York State Teacher of the Year.