Senator Hassan Votes to Confirm Miguel Cardona as Education Secretary

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH), a member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, voted today to confirm Dr. Miguel Cardona to be the next Secretary for the Department of Education.

“As an experienced public educator, Dr. Cardona is well-equipped to take on the exceptional challenges that are facing our education system amid this pandemic,” Senator Hassan said. “I was glad to question Dr. Cardona during his nomination hearing, where he made clear that one of his top priorities will be to reopen schools safely and get teachers and students back into the classroom. I look forward to working with Dr. Cardona and my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to better support students during this challenging time, including by bolstering support for behavioral and mental health services, strengthening workforce training, expanding broadband to students who are learning remotely, and bringing down the cost of higher education.”

As a member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, Senator Hassan is working across the aisle to ensure that all students have access to a high-quality education. The bipartisan government funding and COVID-19 relief package that Senator Hassan helped to negotiate and was signed into law included substantial education funding for states, K-12 schools, and institutions of higher education, including $259 million to New Hampshire. Additionally, earlier this year the Senator introduced the bipartisan Gateway to Careers Act to support career pathways strategies, which combine work, education, and support services to help individuals earn recognized postsecondary credentials. Furthermore, Senator Hassan successfully worked on a bipartisan basis last year to ensure that the Department of Education allows financial aid administrators to adjust financial aid packages for students who are financially impacted by COVID-19 and other economic downturns in the 2021-2022 school year and moving forward. Senator Hassan also joined her colleagues in urging the Federal Communication Committee to take long overdue action and utilize the E-rate program to help close the “homework gap” during the COVID-19 pandemic, and recently applauded the inclusion of legislation that she cosponsored in the House’s COVID-19 relief reconciliation proposal that would add more than $7 billion in funding for the E-rate program.

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