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The U.S. Department of Education announced Wednesday, July 14, the approval of Oregon's American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ARP ESSER) plan and distributed remaining ARP ESSER funds to them. Oregon's plan details how the state is using and plans to use ARP ESSER funds to safely reopen and sustain the safe operation of schools and equitably expand opportunity for students who need it most, particularly those most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. "Our schools are important to families, communities, and the economy," said Rep. Suzanne Bonamici.
A group of Oregon lawmakers led by U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR) is encouraging the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to make efforts to maximize wildfire preparedness initiatives. Merkley and DeFazio, chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which oversees FEMA, have joined U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and U.S. Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Kurt Schrader (D-OR), Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), and Cliff Bentz (R-OR) in forwarding correspondence to FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell regarding the matter.
U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici is requesting $902,500 in funding for a landslide mitigation project in Astoria that would help protect a neighborhood from common winter flooding or the Big One — the Cascadia Subduction Earthquake that would impact a 600-mile fault located 70-100 miles off the West Coast of North America.
On Tuesday, Breitmeyer and student Miranda King participated in a panel of educators who met with U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona and U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici in Beaverton. The goal of the session was to provide Cardona with information and feedback to use in crafting and promoting President Joe Biden's American Families Plan. A component of the plan is a proposal for free community college. Breitmeyer said such a move would be a game-changer for the nation. Community college is already free for many recent high school graduates in Oregon under the Oregon Promise Grant.
BEAVERTON, OR [7/15/21] – This week Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici hosted U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona in Oregon to discuss their efforts to provide students with pathways to affordable higher education, including two years of free community college.
The Secretary and Congresswoman also saw how historic investments in education from the American Rescue Plan are expanding summer programs like the bilingual summer enrichment program in Hillsboro.
"I hear from so many students frequently about how higher education is more expensive and many are facing an affordability crisis, even before the pandemic," Bonamici said. "And we know that the pandemic has had a disparate effect on communities of color and parents, exacerbated by existing inequities in the system."
Bonamici thanked students in her closing remarks and said their resilience is inspiring. "It's clear that community colleges are going to have a really important role in our economic recovery," she said.