Education
Dear Friend,
With Congress back in session for the New Year, it’s been a busy week—but I’m glad that it ended well, with a great Memphis win over Louisville last night. I hope you’ll join me in congratulating Coach Pastner and our Tigers on their second-ever win over a defending national champion. Keep reading to learn what else happened this week.
[WASHINGTON, DC] – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) today applauded President Obama’s Administration for issuing new guidelines for public school officials aimed at cutting short the “school-to-prison” pipeline that is both expensive and disproportionately harmful to minority students. The guidelines encourage schools to redesign disciplinary policies to use alternative conflict resolution methods including counseling and recommend using law enforcement solely as a last resort in disciplinary incidents.
[WASHINGTON, DC] – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) today announced that Shelby County has been awarded a $13,161,380 grant from the Department of U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) to support Head Start projects that help promote school readiness of children from birth until the age of 5 by enhancing their cognitive, social, and emotional development.
Dear Friend,
This week, President Obama announced a plan to help Americans keep their health insurance even if their insurance companies have cancelled their plans or pushed them into more expensive plans, an extremely intelligent, hard-working and dedicated Memphian who I recommended to the President moved one step closer to being confirmed as a federal judge, and I introduced a bill in the House that would help prevent unscrupulous for-profit colleges from taking advantage of veterans and taxpayers. Keep reading to learn more.
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) today introduced legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives that would help put an end to the for-profit college industry’s predatory marketing campaigns and aggressive recruiting of veterans, servicemembers and their families. The Protecting Our Students and Taxpayers (POST) Act, which U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tom Harkin (D-IA) have also introduced in the Senate, would eliminate the loophole that allows these proprietary companies to receive more than 90% of their revenue from the federal government.
[MEMPHIS, TN] – This evening, Congressman Steve Cohen received the 2013 Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Memphis Alumni Association as part of the “Enshrinement of 1912” celebrations taking place throughout U of M’s homecoming weekend.
[WASHINGTON, DC] – Memphis native and Christian Brothers High School graduate David Carpenter is spending 5 months this fall and winter interning for Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), working behind the scenes in the Congressman’s Capitol Hill office. In addition to several other responsibilities, interns help the Congressman with constituent requests, assist with his legislative duties, attend hearings and briefings, perform important research, and give tours of the U.S. Capitol building to Shelby County residents visiting Washington.
Dear Friend,
This afternoon, I joined Mayor A C Wharton in welcoming U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius to Memphis. While she was here, we met with local partners, like Seedco Mid-South, who are helping enroll uninsured Memphians in high-quality, affordable coverage and participated in an Affordable Care Act outreach and education session at the Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library with area residents who are interested in enrolling in the Tennessee Marketplace.
[WASHINGTON, DC] – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) today introduced legislation, the Restorative Justice in Schools Act, to reduce youth incarceration in America by helping train school personnel such as teachers and counselors in innovative conflict resolution methods that are less likely to result in non-violent juveniles entering the penal system. Currently, many school systems involve the police in non-violent incidents on school property, which helps feed the “school-to-prison” pipeline that is both expensive and harmful to America’s youth.
Dear Friend,
This week, the House passed the Water Resources and Reform Development Act, a major piece of legislation to help boost our economy and grow jobs, Delta continued its long string of broken promises to Memphis, and I introduced legislation to protect your right to vote. Keep reading to learn more about what happened this week.