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Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., has had a relatively strong record on

As the 2004 presidential race shapes up, President Bush has criticized the presumed Democratic nominee John Kerry of having shifted stances on issues such as the war in Iraq, trade and the Patriot Act. But the story will be different when it comes to education. Kerry, a Massachusetts senator, has a strong and consistent record on educational issues. He has voted almost without fail in favor of bills that increase federal funding to financial aid and school renovation. But on affirmative action, Kerry may have demonstrated some of the fence-hopping Bush has accused him of on other issues. Though Kerry says he is a strong supporter of affirmative action, statements he made in the early 1990s about the negative effects of affirmative action may come back to haunt him. But many still agree that education will be one of Kerry’s powerful political weapons. “I don’t think there’s any question about it,” said Michael Dukakis, a visiting UCLA professor who worked with Kerry when he was governor of Massachusetts and Kerry was lieutenant governor in 1982.

A history of support Kerry has voted to preserve or increase federal funding for education grant programs and public schools all but once, according to voting records that go back to 1992. The senator’s support for higher education has largely been manifested in his support for financial aid, especially the Pell Grant program, the principle form of federal financial aid which provides billions of dollars to college students every year. Kerry also supported six different pieces of legislation that came through the Senate between 1992 and 2004 which sought to provide funding to other financial aid programs, lower the fees on student loans and increase the tax deduction for college tuition costs. He has also rejected legislation that funds other programs at the expense of education. In fact, the only time in that 12-year span Kerry voted against an increase in funding for education was in 1997. Kerry voted against an amendment that would have provided an additional $528 million to the Pell Grant program to be offset by reduced funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program. The amendment was rejected by the Senate. The senator’s voting record has put him eye-to-eye with many major education institutes. The National Education Association, one of the country’s leading education lobbying groups, has given Kerry a rating of 100 since the year 2000, meaning Kerry has voted along NEA policy lines nearly 100 percent of the time. “He’s been a great friend of public education,” said Dan Kaufman, a spokesman for the NEA. Kerry’s support for education can be traced back to 1982, when he worked as lieutenant governor to strengthen state research universities and helped turn the City of Worcester, Mass., and the University of Massachusetts’ medical school located there, into a leading center for biotechnology research. Dukakis said Kerry has always believed the federal government should take “an aggressive role” in education. “You can’t be a senator in Massachusetts and not understand the importance of the research university,” Dukakis said. “And he’s always been a strong supporter of federal financial aid.” It is Kerry’s support for financial aid that attracts many higher education associations. Education officials usually encourage the government to fund grants over student loan programs because grants do not need to be paid back. “With the Pell Grants, (Kerry) has been very consistent in his support there, and that’s a recognition that the Pell Grant program is the backbone of federal support for higher education,” said Richard Harpel, the director of federal relations for the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges. A big education issue that will likely be at the forefront of the presidential race is Bush’s No Child Left Behind Act, which requires students in primary and secondary schools nationwide to meet standards through proficiency tests. Schools that receive federal funding and fail to meet standards can face sanctions. Kerry voted for the act, which passed with overwhelming bipartisan support. But he has since joined many Democrats and some Republicans in saying the act is underfunded and sets impractical standards. The Bush administration has criticized Kerry for changing his position and says Bush has fully funded the act. But Bush’s criticism will probably not have a big impact on Kerry’s record on education, said Elaine Kamarck, a Harvard public policy professor and adviser to the Al Gore campaign in 2000. “The Democrats did not anticipate the way it was funded or under-implemented,” she said. “People across the country are very angry about what (the act’s supporters) are doing.”

Affirmative action Kerry has a solid record on education, but his stance on affirmative action may be less clear. Though Kerry has said he is a strong supporter of increasing diversity at schools and the workplace, remarks he has made in the past seem to indicate he has had reservations on this issue. Currently, Kerry says he supports affirmative action, and he has vigorously defended his stance against critics. When Missouri Rep. Richard Gephardt, once a fellow candidate for the Democratic nomination, questioned Kerry’s position on affirmative action, Kerry responded quickly. “I have fought for civil rights and equal opportunity for every American my whole life. ... I have worked to open the doors of opportunity for every citizen so that we all can fully participate in the American dream,” he said in a statement. His voting record bears him out. In 1995, he voted against a bill that would have banned affirmative action practices when it involved funds from the legislative branch. And in 1998 he voted to kill an amendment that would have repealed the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Program, which requires the federal government to give at least 10 percent of its construction projects to businesses owned by minorities or women. After the U.S. Supreme Court voted to uphold affirmative action practices at the University of Michigan in June, Kerry released a statement praising the university for working “hard to create an admissions program that recognizes diversity” and encouraging the country to “take common sense steps to ensure that our schools and workplaces reflect the full face of America.” But critics have wondered whether Kerry’s position was always so clear-cut, pointing to a speech Kerry made at Yale University in 1992. Kerry professed his support for affirmative action in the speech, but also described a “negative side” to the consideration of race and gender. Kerry suggested affirmative action comes at a cost, saying: “Not only by legislation, but by administrative order and court decree, a vast and bewildering apparatus of affirmative action rules and guidelines has been constructed.” “And somewhere within that vast apparatus conjured up to fight racism there exists a reality of reverse discrimination that actually engenders racism,” he said. Kerry’s remarks caused concern among leaders of national civil rights groups, including the NAACP and the Rainbow/PUSH coalition. Some questioned whether Kerry was being deliberately vague on the issue to pander to white voters. Since then, Kerry has sought to clarify his remarks. And as the senator draws closer to seizing the Democratic nomination and looks toward minority groups who typically vote Democratic, it is less likely people will question his stance on affirmative action. Rev. Jesse Jackson, a national civil rights leader, said he is not concerned about remarks Kerry has made in the past. “I am convinced, as a Democratic nominee, (Kerry’s) support for affirmative action and workers’ rights will be a clear one,” he said.

A minor role for education As a senator largely concerned with heading investigations and crafting foreign policy, Kerry hasn’t had many opportunities to take the lead on education legislation. But his record so far has been “encouraging,” Harpel said. It is uncertain how great of a part education will have in November 2004. In an election year where national security and the economy will be the most prominent issues on voters’ minds, education – especially higher education – will most likely be relegated to a minor role. “If higher education ever became a key platform from which a presidential candidate would campaign, I would be shocked,” Harpel said.