FIRST ON FOX: Republican Sen. Tim Scott unveiled new legislation Wednesday that he says is aimed at protecting students from learning loss caused by health emergency lockdowns and teachers union strikes.
Under the legislation, known as the Kids in Classes Act, local school districts receiving Title I funds would be required to establish a "failure to open" direct payment plan. If a school does not provide in-person instruction for more than three days, parents would receive a per-day amount based on the school's Title I funding allocation per student.
The amount paid to parents would equal the school's per-student, per-day Title I funding rate multiplied by the number of days the school remains closed beyond the three-day threshold. Families could use the funds for certain approved "qualified educational expenses."
Those expenses include curriculum, instructional materials, books, tutoring, online education programs, private school tuition, testing fees, diagnostic tools and educational therapies for students with disabilities.
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"I'm a kid that struggled in school and, frankly, as a youngster, I went to four different elementary schools by the fourth grade, so I have a passion for education," Scott told Fox News Digital. "I understand the importance of quality education, and so I keep thinking about the COVID time where we saw kids locked out of the classroom and I believe that locked them out of the best future that they could have and so having legislation that says we are going to backpack those Title I dollars, allowing a child whose school closes for more than three days, allowing them to go to a different school is a really important part of because at the end of the day opportunity should not be closed down even if your school is."
Over the past few months, teachers unions have received increased scrutiny for promoting what critics call a far-left agenda and mobilizing teachers and students to protest against President Trump's immigration agenda.
Additionally, teachers unions strikes across the country have made headlines in recent weeks, including in San Francisco last month, when a teachers union strike left 50,000 children out of school.
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"Teachers' unions have inordinate control over the future of kids," Scott said. "I think we should have an education system that puts kids before adults. Let's make good decisions for kids in the classroom more than we are for the education apparatus around them that so often is about power and not about the kids themselves. And so, yes, teachers' unions have certainly destroyed the educational process for too many kids, especially poor kids and minority kids in big blue cities."
The bill, accompanied by companion legislation in the House of Representatives from GOP Rep. Burgess Owens, applies to public elementary and secondary schools that receive Title I funds. It amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require participating districts to implement the payment system as a condition of receiving federal funding.
In a statement, Owens explained that "education is the greatest gift we can give the rising generation, and after lengthy school closures due to the pandemic and union strikes, our children are falling behind."
"Every hour lost in the classroom is time students don't get back. Our students and our teachers need to be in class. The Kids in Classes Act puts parents back in the driver's seat, ensuring that when schools shut down, funding follows the student instead of the system. Every child in America deserves a fighting chance, no matter their circumstances or zip code."
Scott added in a press release, "Education should never be held hostage to politics."
