Washington, D.C. - Rep. David Price (D-NC) today decried the plans of General Assembly Republicans to dismantle two education programs of national significance, the Teaching Fellows program and the NC Center for the Advancement of Teaching.

"Almost nothing we need to do to improve and reform public education will be possible without a quality teaching force," Price noted. "North Carolina's programs to recruit and retain teachers have not only served our state well but have served as national models. I have drawn on both in crafting federal legislation."

"It is not my usual practice to comment in detail on state-level measures, but in this case I must speak out—as a citizen and as a national legislator aware of the excellence of these programs and the example they have provided nationwide."

The General Assembly budget—vetoed by Governor Bev Perdue and slated for override votes this week—phases out the Teaching Fellows program, which provides scholarships for prospective teachers and has attracted many to long-term teaching careers. The budget also nearly halves resources for the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT), the state's premier teacher retention and continuing education program.

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