Congresswoman Katherine Clark proudly serves the Fifth District of Massachusetts. She was first elected in a special election in December of 2013. Katherine’s career in public service is driven by her commitment to helping children and families succeed. She is a vocal advocate for ending wage discrimination, protecting women’s health care, access to affordable, high-quality child care, paid family leave, safer schools, and other reforms to address the challenges women and families face. She believes that Congress must work to end the glaring disconnect between the needs of families at home and priorities in Washington.
As a mother, community member, and public servant, I have always believed that public education is the bedrock of our democracy. In 2001, I served in my first-ever elected office as a member of the School Committee in my home town of Melrose. This position was one of the hardest I’ve ever had, but it gave me a profound understanding of the difficult, sometimes competing, decisions faced by policymakers, school administrators, teachers, and parents. I went on to serve as General Counsel for the Massachusetts Office of Child Care Services, and as a member of the Advisory Council for the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care. Each day spent in these positions helped me understand the importance of improving how we educate our nation’s children.
As a member of Congress, I’ve worked to ensure our federal laws better reflect the input and needs of local communities. In 2015, I worked with my colleagues to revise the outdated law known as No Child Left Behind, replacing it with a new federal K-12 policy that provided much-needed flexibility to local educators. I also believe that investments in early education are critical to basic economic fairness in America. That is why I have helped lead the charge to protect and expand access to quality, affordable child care including the Child Care and Development Block Grant, IDEA Preschool grants, and Infants and Families grants. Child care is part of our economic infrastructure; it’s essential for kids, families, and also, our economy.
In partnership with the Biden administration and Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, I’m working to enact policies that will put our students on a path toward sustained success by expanding early education, tackling college affordability, investing in career and technical education, and expanding access to mental health services.