Ernst Supports Education Reform to Restore Local Control

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) released the following statement after voting for final passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA):

“As a mother and grandmother, I believe education should be handled at the state and local level, by Iowans, not Washington bureaucrats.

“The bipartisan Every Student Succeeds Act rolls back many of the failed policies established under No Child Left Behind. This legislation ends the Common Core mandate and other federally prescribed academic standards imposed on our states. In addition, ESSA moves our education system away from a Washington top down, one size fits all system based on test results. These long overdue reforms give our individual states greater flexibility to design and implement their education and accountability standards as they see fit.

“I believe this is a positive step forward to ensure our students have access to quality education, and empower our parents, teachers, local school boards, and states to make the best decision for their own students.”

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