Our collaboration with the Congress has resulted in numerous other important legislative accomplishments for education.  A little over two years ago, I signed into law on the same day two major bills—­one benefiting elementary and secondary education and the other, postsecondary education.  The Education Amendments of 1978 embodied nearly all of my Administration’s proposals for improvements in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, including important new programs to improve students’ achievement in the basic skills and to aid school districts with exceptionally high concentrations of children from low-income families.  The Middle Income Student Assistance Act, legislation jointly sponsored by this Administration and the Congressional leadership, expanded eligibility for need-based Basic Educational Opportunity Grants to approximately one-third of the students enrolled in post-secondary education and made many more students eligible for the first time for other types of grants, work-study, and loans.

Just three and a half months ago, my Administration and the Congress successfully concluded over two years of work on a major reauthorization bill that further expands benefits to postsecondary education.  Reflected in the Education Amendments of 1980 are major Administration recommendations for improvements in the Higher Education Act—­including proposals for better loan access for students; a new parent loan program; simplified application procedures for student financial aid; a strengthened Federal commitment to developing colleges, particularly the historically Black institutions; a new authorization for equipment and facilities modernization funding for the nation’s major research universities; and revitalized international education programs.

Supplementing these legislative accomplishments have been important administrative actions aimed at reducing paperwork and simplifying regulations associated with Federal education programs.  We also launched major initiatives to reduce the backlog of defaulted student loans and otherwise to curb fraud, abuse, and waste in education programs.

To insure that the education enterprise is ready to meet the scientific and technological changes of the future, we undertook a major study of the status of science and engineering education throughout the nation.  I hope that the findings from this report will serve as a springboard for needed reforms at all levels of education.

I am proud that this Administration has been able to provide the financial means to realize many of our legislative and administrative goals.  Compared to the previous administration’s last budget, I have requested the largest overall increase in Federal funding for education in our nation’s history.  My budget requests have been particularly sensitive to the needs of special populations like minorities, women, the educationally and economically disadvantaged, the handicapped, and students with limited English-speaking ability.  At the same time, I have requested significant increases for many programs designed to enhance the quality of American education, including programs relating to important areas as diverse as international education, research libraries, museums, and teacher centers.