Carolina Connection – March 2011

March 2011

Get information on:

Hire a Hero
February in NC
Putting Our Students First
CIAA

From Kay

There's a phrase I say pretty much every place I go to in both North Carolina and Washington — and it's true — North Carolina is the most military-friendly state in the nation. More than a third of our population is either in the military, a veteran, spouse, surviving spouse, parent, or dependent of someone connected to the military, and we pride ourselves on our support for those who sacrifice so much to keep us safe.

A large component of our military population is the 25,000 North Carolinians serving in the National Guard or Reserve. These patriots train year-round for both military and humanitarian missions, and many of them have been recently deployed to everywhere from Haiti to Iraq. Meanwhile, they are also working in our North Carolina communities as teachers, doctors, business owners and in many other professions.

But I have grown increasingly concerned about the high level of unemployment among our National Guard and Reserve Members. Right now, the national unemployment rate is estimated to be as high as 21 percent among Guard and Reserve forces. We know our Guard and Reserve have the skills to thrive in the workplace, and this staggering figure is unacceptable.

That is why I was proud to introduce the bipartisan Hire a Hero Act in February with Sen. Scott Brown, a Republican from Massachusetts. The bill, which does not add to the deficit, will provide tax credits of up to $4,000 to businesses that hire members of the Guard and Reserve. The bill would also make this tax credit permanent for veterans.

As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, I will work with Senator Brown and my Republican and Democratic colleagues to advance this important bill in Congress and to connect our returning heroes with employment opportunities in North Carolina and across the country.

Sincerely,

Hire a Hero

Click on the video to learn more about Senator Hagan's bipartisan "Hire a Hero" bill

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February in North Carolina

After fighting to get appointed to the Senate Banking Committee, Hagan spent the February Congressional in-state work period traveling across North Carolina to listen to concerns about the state's economy. Hagan, who is working to create a better business climate in the state, met with business leaders, banking leaders, and local officials in Raleigh, Wilmington, Greensboro, High Point and Charlotte where she gathered a number of excellent ideas that she is bringing back to Washington.

In Wilmington, Hagan hosted a roundtable with area businesses and banks to listen to their concerns about the economy and to discuss ways to work together to create jobs, including freeing up capital for businesses, small and large, to invest.

At the Metropolitan Mayors Coalition Winter Meeting in Greensboro, Hagan talked about the need for Democrats and Republicans to work together to tackle the mounting national debt. Hagan is leading other moderate Senators to find sensible ways for the federal government to tighten its belt just like families, farmers and business people in North Carolina do every day. And in High Point, Hagan toured Harland Clarke, one of the country's largest check-printing manufacturing facilities, which employs 312 people.

Hagan ended the week in Charlotte, where she hosted a meeting with area business leaders to discuss the economy and how she can help the city and state through her hard fought appointment to the Senate Banking Committee. She also toured the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts and Culture in celebration of Black History Month.

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Putting Our Students First

As Congress prepares to rewrite our federal education law, Senator Hagan is leading a group of moderate Senators in pushing for commonsense goals for fixing public education. Hagan believes that with unemployment still at 8.9 percent nationally, and 9.9 percent in North Carolina, it is critical to act now to reform education in this country so that we can keep the jobs of the future here in America.

Senator Hagan's goals include encouraging innovation in schools, recruiting great teachers and rewarding them for exceptional performance, and turning around low performing schools.

Last Monday, Hagan visited the Maureen Joy Charter School in Durham. The school's success is amazing – last year, 71% of the students passed the End-Of-Grade test, an eight percent increase from the previous year. Hagan visited the school to gather ideas from the school's teachers and principal, Alex Quigley, to get an on-the-ground understanding of what is working at this school, and to hear their ideas on reforming our public education system.

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CIAA

Hagan attended the CIAA tournament in Charlotte — one of the three largest college basketball tournaments in the country. She spoke at the CIAA Women's Luncheon about the tournament's impact on the Charlotte economy and the importance of supporting Historically Black Colleges and Universities. She also mingled with CIAA attendees at the Toyota Fan Experience at the Charlotte Convention Center.

Remarkably, Raleigh's own Shaw University won both the men and women's tournaments, and Hagan was thrilled to congratulate both teams for their accomplishments: "This year's CIAA tournament was packed with great basketball, stiff competition, and unmatched energy and enthusiasm. As a huge college basketball fan, I was so excited to participate in tournament festivities, and I could not be more proud that one of North Carolina's outstanding colleges took home both titles."

Last week, Hagan invited Shaw University President, Dr. Irma McClaurin, to be her guest at the White House to watch the Charlotte Bobcats vs. the Chicago Bulls with President Obama.

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