I am a total product of public education. I grew up in La Marque, TX, a small town of about 15,000 in Galveston County, and attended and graduated from its public schools. Then I attended the University of Texas and the University of Texas Law School. You will find no bigger advocate for public education than this Senator. I owe so much of what I am to the teachers who took the time to help me become the best that I could be.
Teachers are the backbone of our schools.
Adding to the growth in the population of our public schools is an effort in many public school systems to hire more teachers to reduce class size. The approach I am putting forth today will ensure that more teachers are available, more can be hired, and that they are better teachers, qualified teachers, teachers with real world experience and knowledge that can be taken into the classroom. Careers to Classrooms builds upon a tremendously successful Department of Defense program that takes experienced, qualified military service men and women and helps them transition into the classroom as teachers. That program is known as Troops to Teachers. The Troops to Teachers Program seeks out and helps place into schools members of the military with at least 10 years of military service and skills in high-need areas, such as math, science, computers, and languages.