Issue Position: High Quality Public Education, Career Training and Affordable College

Issue Position

Education and career training are the keys to securing a strong economic future for families in Minnesota. And as the proud wife of a former teacher and mother of four sons -- three in college and one at Rosemount High School -- I understand the importance of a great education for all children.

When I'm elected to Congress, I'll prioritize funding for public education and ensure that our teachers have access to the resources they need to be successful. We must invest in pre-K education to bridge any learning gaps before kids start school, stabilize funding for K-12 education, and ensure that career training is available to all students.

It's critical that we fully fund special education so that every child has the resources they need to learn and grow and school districts can better manage their budgets.

We also must give our teachers the respect they deserve by protecting their right to organize and collectively bargain, and giving tax credits to those who spend their own money on classroom supplies.

Giving Teachers A Raise
Part of giving teachers the tools they need to succeed is making sure that teachers are paid fairly. We owe it to all of our children to make sure that we're attracting the best and the brightest to education today to help build and shape the best and the brightest of tomorrow. When we raise teacher pay, we can recruit, and keep, the best possible teachers for our children.

It's not enough, though, to just tell cash-strapped schools and districts that they need to pay their teachers more. We need to make sure that they have the resources to do so. When I go to Congress, I'll work to end the carried interest loophole, a tax policy that allows hedge fund and private equity managers to misrepresent earned income as capital gains, letting them pay a lower tax rate. We can send that nearly $16 billion back to the states to help them raise wages for all of our teachers.

Cost of college and career training
One of the biggest issues facing families is the nearly prohibitive cost of higher education. 70% of Minnesota's college graduates have taken on some form of debt in order to complete their education, with the average price tag amounting to $31,579. That kind of debt causes our young people to delay major milestones, like buying a home or starting a family. Not only is it bad for our graduates -- it's bad for the economy.

In order to stay globally competitive, we must make higher education affordable and re-emphasize the range of career options available to young people, from colleges to technical degrees to apprenticeships. As a member of Congress, I would support legislation to make the first two years of post-secondary education free -- whether it is technical education, earning an associate's degree, or the first two-years of a bachelor's degree. That's how we build the workforce of the future and attract the industries of the future.

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