January 25, 2016

Education, like Wheaties, is good for you

Dear Friend,

A quality education can unlock so many doors. It can broaden our horizons. It can help people pursue a new career. It can empower someone to make it in America.

Education all starts with memorable teachers that make a difference. I see that when I run into someone who was inspired after having had my mom or dad as a teacher in school. I’m reminded of it when I think of the instructors that made an enormous impact on my life. And it’s something I touched on while marking my dad’s retirement after 50 years of teaching last year.

I saw the power of teaching up close when I visited Nate Gibbs-Bowling’s classes at Lincoln High School two weeks ago. There is a reason that Nate is a finalist for the 2016 National Teacher of the Year award (we’re keeping our fingers crossed!). For over an hour I took questions from engaged, knowledgeable kids. I left the visit thinking that they could teach Congress a thing or two about how our government is supposed to work.

In the 21^st century, education is increasingly important for participating in our economy. For some, that means valuable vocational educational opportunities. For others, it means college education.

As we look at the economic trends, it’s clear that more and more jobs in the next decade are going to demand at least some college education. Increasingly, folks will need certificates and degrees to compete for good jobs.

That was a big part of the conversation I had with Nate’s students. I asked the class how many of them intend to go to college, and nearly every hand in the auditorium went up. Then, I asked, “How many of you will depend on financial aid to do it?”. Once again, nearly every hand went up.

I want to make sure that Nate’s students - and all students - can pursue their dreams. And I want to make sure they can do so without being buried under a pile of student debt. So I enjoyed explaining to them how I’m trying to make college more affordable for those looking to start higher education.

I’ve recently introduced a new bill to restore the purchasing power of the Pell Grant program to better fit the needs of students today and help them stay out of debt. To learn more about the history of Pell Grants and how my bill would revamp the program please take a look at my Medium page. As someone who finished paying off my own student loans just a few years ago, and as a dad preparing to help my two girls go to college, the issue of student debt is personal to me. I’m hoping we can make progress on this front!

A Special Guest

Speaking of progress, more than 30 million people tuned in to watch President Obama’s last State of the Union address – and many more shared their thoughts on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

If you followed along on my Facebook page, then you saw a few shots I snapped with my guest Sarah Creachbaum, Superintendent of Olympic National Park...including our chance encounter with Batman! (circa Tim Burton’s movies for those keeping track).

It was an honor to invite Sarah to shine a spotlight on what Olympic National Park means to our region. Everyone who visits leaves with a memory they won’t soon forget. Whether you are spending time hiking through the Hoh Rainforest or paddling down the Elwha River, a trip into Olympic National Park stays with you.

For me, the park wasn’t just a place where my family could pile into the car for some hiking or camping. My grandfather even helped pave a portion of the road up Hurricane Ridge. For folks like my grandfather and countless others, the park is a driver of our economy. It’s given opportunities to entrepreneurs who started restaurants in Grays Harbor, or companies in Clallam County offering guided tours, or small business owners who run hotels for visitors to stay near...or even road paving crews.

As the national parks celebrate their centennial this year, I brought Sarah to Washington D.C. to remind Congress why the parks and the park service deserve our support. I’ll continue to fight to ensure the system receives the investments it needs to enjoy another successful 100 years.

As for the speech itself, while partisanship is still a fact of life in our nation’s capital, I admire President Obama’s willingness to focus on the year ahead as an opportunity to get things done for the American people.

We need to keep working to build bipartisan consensus around the issues that unite us, like strengthening the economy, keeping our nation and those who serve it safe, protecting our most cherished natural resources and expanding opportunity to every American.

I’ll continue to hold my hand out to anyone willing to partner with me in that regard because that’s ultimately the only way we’ll move our country - and our Congress - forward.

Working to Solve a Crisis

Since my last update, our community has taken a critical step towards dealing with the mental health crisis in Pierce County.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) gave the green light for the Alliance for South Sound Health to build a psychiatric hospital in Tacoma. When built, it will mean 120 psychiatric beds will be available for folks in need.

We’ve gotten to this point because folks came together to work on solving a problem. With the two largest health care providers in the lead, our community formed the South Sound Behavioral Health Coalition. The coalition includes health care experts, social service providers, law enforcement, local elected officials, labor, business, and faith leaders who came up with a plan for this new facility.

There is still a long way to go but it’s great to see what has been accomplished so far.