When I was in high school, I was told that I had the grades to be in the senior honors program, but that I had to come up with $200 for the books and extra materials. My family didn’t have a lot of money, and that wasn’t an option for me — but I raised such a ruckus, the school gave me the books for free.
I had friends and classmates from working families in the same position, but they didn’t say anything, and they didn’t get into the honors program. I didn’t think that was right, so I petitioned to change the school board – A fight I ultimately won and became the youngest school board member in history when I was 20.
I believe our schools and our teachers should be given the resources they need to allow every student to reach their full potential — regardless of where they live or where they were born. Today, I join so many others to #ThankATeacher as part of Teacher Appreciation Day. Will you add your name to mine to say thanks to our teachers?
While I was studious and got good grades, I struggled with public speaking. I know, it’s hard to imagine a U.S. Senator ever having a problem with talking, but when I was a schoolkid, I would do all the classwork, but refuse to stand up in front of the class and speak.
Miss Gail Harper changed all that.
She saw potential in me, so she would keep me after class and have me to recite short stories, poetry, and speeches long after my classmates had left. Miss Harper even made me speak on stage in front of the entire student body as the narrator in a school production.
Thanks to Miss Harper, I realized that I could do anything if I worked at it. She gave me a voice, and I learned I could use public speaking to be a voice for others — like my classmates who couldn’t afford books for the honor program.
It’s because of my parents and public school teachers like Miss Harper that a kid from a tenement in Union City was able to get a law degree from Rutgers and become a U.S. Senator. That’s what a strong public education does — and why it is the foundation upon which the American Dream has been built for generations.
I got my start in politics fighting for the public schools in my hometown and I’ll never stop fighting for public education. Add your name to mine and send thanks to all of our teachers, here in New Jersey and all over the United States.
Thank you.