Congressman Dingell is a strong proponent of public education, and voted in August of this year to save the jobs of 242 teachers in Michigan’s 15th Congressional District and 4,700 teachers across the state of Michigan.  He has been a consistent critic of the lack of funding for the No Child Left Behind Program, and believes that it is vital to fund our schools to keep our teachers where they belong – in the classroom.  Congressman Dingell was an early and strong supporter of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which invested more than $2 billion in Michigan schools for special education, programs for at-risk students and filling the state’s education budget deficit which helped to keep thousands of teachers in the classroom.

Congressman Dingell has also be focused on making higher education and job retraining, both critical to the success of Michigan, particularly in our challenging economic climate, more affordable.  He has fought for numerous pieces of legislation including the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act, which cut waste from the student loan program by ensuring that all loans from the Direct Loan program, rather than through private loan companies.  The legislation also raises the maximum award for Pell Grants.