Issue Position: Education

Issue Position

Senator Jeanne Shaheen: A Leader for Education

Jeanne Shaheen, a former school teacher, has fought to make education more accessible and affordable throughout her career. During Shaheen's first campaign for governor, she promised to expand access to public kindergarten in state. She did just that, and has continued to improve New Hampshire's and the nation's education
system by fighting for early childhood education, keeping student loan interest rates low, allowing student loan debt to be refinanced at lower interest rates, and working to ensure that today's youth will have the skills they need to compete in tomorrow's economy. Jeanne is co-chair of the new Senate STEM Education and Workforce caucuses that she helped found. She has received an "A" rating from the National Education Association since she joined the Senate in 2009.

Early Childhood

* Public Kindergarten -- As governor, Jeanne made public kindergarten a reality for tens of thousands of children in New Hampshire.

* Head Start -- Jeanne is a strong supporter of Head Start, Early Hard Start and the Child Care Block Grant. Jeanne is working to replace the sequester, which has cut millions of dollars from Head Start.

* Smaller Classes -- Jeanne supported the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that helped keep teachers in the classroom.

Higher Education

* Pell Grants -- Jeanne supported legislation to increase the maximum Pell Grant to $5,500 to help lower- income students afford college.

* Student Loans -- Jeanne backed 2013 legislation that froze student loan interest rates and supported bipartisan legislation in 2014 to keep those rates low. And Jeanne has introduced legislation to let students refinance their student loan debt at lower interest rates.

* Student Debt -- Jeanne supported important student loan reforms that help students manage their debt and reward public service with loan forgiveness after 10 years of service. Jeanne has introduced legislation to give students comprehensive tools to manage and repay their student loan debt.

* Saving for College -- As governor, Shaheen helped New Hampshire families pay for college by launching a tax-free college tuition savings plan.

STEM

* STEM Leader -- Jeanne helped launch and serves as co-chair of the new bipartisan Senate STEM Education and Workforce caucus.

* Jobs for Tomorrow -- Jeanne has introduced bipartisan legislation to encourage today's students to explore the careers in STEM fields that will dominate tomorrow's job market. Jeanne's legislation would help local school districts encourage students to explore STEM careers through non-traditional activities like robotics competitions.

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