Last year I had the privilege of being elected by the Nebraska Legislature to serve as the chair of the Education Committee. This is a role that I have not taken lightly. Parents across the State rightly care deeply about their children’s education and have valid concerns about how our schools are funded, what students are learning, safety, teacher shortages, ensuring quality pathways from an education to a career, and more. I’m pleased to say that the Education Committee has made improvements in all of these regards. 

The State has made major improvements towards funding our schools. Nebraska has created foundation aid that adds $1,500 to schools per student and created the Education Future Fund- a $1 billion investment fund for our public schools. The Legislature has rightly recognized that a student’s zip code shouldn’t determine the quality of their schools but instead, the State has a responsibility to fund public education. The committee has also done great work in increasing financial support for special education students. 

Nebraska has also made solid advances toward creating more transparent schooling. The Education Committee has heard repeatedly from parents about wanting more transparency and involvement in their child’s education. Because of this, we’ve worked to require districts to create stronger transparency and parental involvement policies. 

Another concern has been school safety. The Education Committee has worked hard to allocate funds to improve school infrastructure, improve mental health resources, and ensure first responders have the resources, such as updated building map software, to respond to various emergencies quickly. Keeping kids safe is our highest priority. 

One of the major challenges in education, both nationally and in Nebraska, is a teacher shortage. The Education Committee has worked to create additional teacher certification programs available to allow those who already have a degree, but not specifically in education, to be able to receive their teaching certificate with a lower-cost simple training process. The Committee also funded grants for first-time and student teachers to recruit and retain the best talent in our schools. 

Finally, the committee has worked hard to create better pathways from education to a career. One of the ways we’ve worked towards this is through the creation of the career scholarships program which helps students receive higher education and pairs them with an internship or apprenticeship in certain high-demand career fields such as nursing, engineering, and education. This program has been good news for our students, our community colleges and universities, the STEM fields, and the future Nebraska economy.

To conclude, Nebraska has a proud history of great education, great schools, and great teachers. The Education Committee has been working hard to ensure that our schools have the funding, guidance, and support they need to ensure that every student in Nebraska receives a quality and safe education that meets their individual needs and prepares them for the future. In my first session as chair of the Education Committee, we’ve made great progress, and I look forward to continuing that progress even more.