Education is at the core of our democracy. Education preserves our nation’s civic institutions and allows our economy to compete with the rest of the world. This Congressional district is home to 95 Title I schools – schools that depend on federal funding that are at risk. Our school system must give every kid in every zip code an opportunity to succeed and the tools to be great citizens in their communities. Archie is a product of South Carolina public schools and will be an advocate for our students, teachers, and families.
For too many of our families, getting the higher education necessary to compete in the 21st Century economy is either not an option at all or comes with the specter of crippling student debt. We believe that if we’re going to reverse this trend, we have to start right now by reducing interest rates on student loans, integrating apprenticeship programs into our K-12 curriculum and making our technical schools and community colleges free to all.
Investing in a truly educated workforce is not only the key to creating new, high-paying jobs; it’s the right thing to do; it’s the only right we can do.
In addition, Archie Parnell supports:
Raising teacher salaries,
Closing the school-to-prison pipeline,
Rebuilding a state-of-the-art K-12 infrastructure,
Expanding access to early childhood education,
Making all community colleges and tech schools tuition free,
Establishing new apprenticeship programs particularly in high-tech industries,
Recruiting our best teachers for our most disenfranchised schools, and
Eliminating the racial disparity affecting our public schools.
