Republican Party on Education Party Platform

Repeal onerous higher education regulations

Federal control over higher education put Washington in the middle of issues that have always been the responsibility of institutions and states. They also increase compliance costs on institutions, forcing colleges and universities to consider raising tuition or shifting resources away from student services.

Task Force Solution: Repeal onerous higher education regulations.

Each federal rule and reporting requirement levied on schools, colleges, & universities carries its own cost that is ultimately passed onto students. Therefore, Congress must eliminate burdensome higher education regulations. These regulations are a counterproductive impediment to colleges and universities trying to serve their students. Congress can help strengthen higher education and control costs by removing burdensome and duplicative federal requirements that prevent institutions from delivering higher education in more creative, cost-effective ways.

School choice: lifeline for kids trapped in failing schools

School choice takes many forms and is an increasingly important lifeline for children trapped in failing schools. [For example], the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program school choice program has helped thousands of children in the nation's capital receive a high-quality education. In fact, 90% of students in the program graduate from high school (compared to just 64% of students in D.C. public schools). Providing all children--particularly the most vulnerable children--better educational choices will give them a better chance to succeed beyond the classroom.

Congress should build on these reforms so that every child--regardless of where they live and the difficult circumstances they face--can receive an excellent education and equal opportunity to pursue a lifetime of happiness and success.

Allow Pell Grants to be used year-round

Pell Grants must be more flexible to help meet the needs of today's students, and the integrity of the program should be strengthened to ensure it is sustainable for generations of students to come. By allowing Pell Grants to be used year-round, students will be able to accelerate their coursework, thereby completing their program more quickly and at a lower cost and with less student loan debt.

Shift to community colleges and technical institutions

The first step is to acknowledge the need for change when the status quo is not working. New systems of learning are needed to compete with traditional four-year colleges: expanded community colleges and technical institutions, private training schools, online universities, life-long learning, and work-based learning in the private sector. New models for acquiring advanced skills will be ever more important in the rapidly changing economy of the 21st century, especially in science, technology, engineering, and math. Public policy should address all these challenges and to make accessible to everyone the emerging alternatives, with their lower cost degrees, to traditional college attendance.

No federal college loans; just insure private loans

Federal student aid is on an unsustainable path, and efforts should be taken to provide families with greater transparency and the information they need to make prudent choices about a student's future: completion rates, repayment rates, future earnings, and other factors that may affect their decisions. The federal government should not be in the business of originating student loans; however, it should serve as an insurance guarantor for the private sector as they offer loans to students. Private sector participation in student financing should be welcomed. Any regulation that drives tuition costs higher must be reevaluated to balance its worth against its negative impact on students and their parents.

Neutralize governments' control of education

We the people need to neutralize governments' control of the educational battlefield. It will be impossible to win on actual public education battlefields because teachers are with the children unsupervised most of the day.

Promote school choice and home-schooling

Support voluntary student-initiated prayer in school

Limit role of federal government in education

Governor Bush’s education reforms:
• Shrink federal programs into five flexible grants.
• Allow federal dollars to follow children to the school of their choice.
• Expand choice by increasing the number of charter schools, and expanding education savings accounts.
• Let children in dangerous schools transfer to schools that are safe and prosecute youths who carry guns and the adults who provide them.
• Ensure that all children learn to read by reforming Head Start and by facilitating state reading initiatives.

Increase access to higher education with savings accounts

Republicans have given priority to programs that increase access to higher education for qualified students. The centerpiece of this effort has been education savings accounts. Also:
• Target increased benefits to students taking challenging courses.
• Form partnerships with colleges and universities to improve science and math education.
• Attract science, math, and engineering grads to low-income schools.

Strongly support voluntary student-initiated prayer

Achievement is basis for access to college