周一晚上，参议院以64票对33票，批准米格尔·卡多纳(Miguel Cardona)领导美国教育部，因为全国各地的学校都试图恢复安全的面对面教学，拜登政府已将此作为其新冠肺炎应对计划的一部分。

就任总统乔·拜登他说，确保学生和教育工作者能够安全返回教室是重中之重，并包括在他担任总统的头100天内让大多数八年级学生返回学校的目标。

在参议院卫生、教育、劳工和养老金委员会的确认听证会上，卡多纳重申了这一目标，并表示他计划“正面解决不平等问题”。

“我认识到存在的沮丧、不信任和恐惧，如果被确认为教育部长，我将尽我所能确保我们重新开放学校的推广战略包括关于如何安全重新开放学校的沟通，”卡多纳上个月告诉立法者。他补充说，他认为这包括“增加对我们教育工作者的监测测试，并优先考虑我们的教育工作者进行疫苗接种。”

安娜·赚钱者/路透社，文件

教育部长提名人米格尔·卡多纳在参议院卫生、教育和劳工委员会作证

卡多纳在听证会上还指出，“在我们国家有这样的例子，学校能够安全地重新开放，同时遵循缓解策略。”

卡多纳作为州教育专员领导康涅狄格州的学校，但也曾担任小学教师和校长。根据康涅狄格教育部。

拜登过渡团队在宣布提名时表示，他也是该州第一位担任教育专员的拉丁裔人，也是该州最年轻的校长。

领导会议教育基金教育公平项目高级主任莉兹·金(Liz King)说:“卡多纳博士在康涅狄格州公立学校系统中有过低收入英语学习者的经历，他作为教育工作者(作为研究人员)的专业经验使他对我们一些最边缘化学生的经历有了批判性的看法。”

苏珊·沃尔什/池/法新社通过盖蒂图像，文件

教育部长提名人米格尔·卡多纳在参议院卫生、教育和劳工委员会作证

他的确认正值参议院开始考虑立法在众议院通过上周为K-12学校的重新开放提供了近1300亿美元。

一些国会共和党议员已经直言他们的反对在之前的两次救济后，学校得到了如此大的一笔钱。当卡多纳在听证会上被问及此事时，他说，尽管他没有参与政策制定，但从教育专员的角度来看，以前的资金“确实帮助我们保持了光明”，并说正在考虑的资金是“确保我们恢复”。

“发生了这么多变化，我们的学校需要更多的辅导员，”卡多纳告诉委员会。

“我们需要确保我们有夏季节目。我们需要确保我们有延长的一天。如果我们真的想复苏，我们真的需要现在投资，否则我们将在晚些时候支付。他说:“我觉得，现在讨论的资金确实是为了帮助我们实现长期复苏，防止裁员，因为我们需要更多而不是更少的教师。

在他确认后，国家教育协会主席贝基·普林格尔在一份声明中说，该组织期待着与卡多纳合作。

“从冠状病毒大流行和随之而来的经济危机，到长期以来阻碍太多学生的系统性种族主义，学生、教育工作者、家庭和社区面临着复杂的挑战。我们必须确保教育工作者和学校拥有有效和真实地诊断学生的学术、社会和情感需求所需的工具和资源，并支持他们的成长、发展和成功，”她说。

北卡罗来纳州共和党参议员理查德·伯尔在一份声明中说，他“很高兴能够支持”卡多纳。

伯尔在一份声明中说:“全国各地的学校关闭导致许多学生被困在家里，与同龄人脱节，并在严重的学习损失下挣扎。”“卡多纳博士致力于遵循科学，并同意优先考虑让学生快速安全地回到教室。卡多纳博士带来了在这个极具挑战性的时刻担任这个职位所需的背景、资格和气质。我很高兴今天能够支持他的提名，我期待着在这些重要的举措上与他合作。”

Miguel Cardona confirmed by the Senate as education secretary

The Senate Monday evening voted 64-33 to confirm Miguel Cardona to lead the U.S. Education Department as schools across the country attempt to return to safe, in-person instruction -- something the Biden administration has prioritized as part of its COVID-19 response plan.

Coming into office, PresidentJoe Bidensaid ensuring students and educators are able to return to the classroom safely was a top priority and included a goal to get a majority of K-8 students back to school in the first 100 days of his presidency.

At his confirmation hearing before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Cardona reiterated this goal, and said he plans to address "inequities head on."

"I recognize the frustration and distrust and fear that is out there and if confirmed as secretary of education, I'll do everything in my power to make sure that our rollout strategy for reopening schools includes communication on how to safely reopen schools," Cardona told lawmakers last month. Adding that he thinks this includes "increased surveillance testing for our educators and a prioritization of our educators for vaccination."

Cardona also noted during the confirmation hearing that there are "examples throughout our country of schools that are able to reopen safely and do so while following mitigation strategies."

Cardona led Connecticut schools as the state's commissioner of education, but also spent time as an elementary school teacher and school principal,according tothe Connecticut Department of Education.

He was also the first Latino to serve as education commissioner in the state and was the youngest principal in the state, the Biden transition team said when announcing his nomination.

"Dr. Cardona has lived experience as a low-income English learner in Connecticut's public school system, and his professional experience as an educator -- as a researcher -- equips him with a critical perspective on the experiences of some of our most marginalized students," said Liz King, the senior director of the Education Equity Program at the The Leadership Conference Education Fund.

His confirmation comes as the Senate begins considering legislation thatpassed in the Houselast week providing nearly $130 billion for K-12 schools to reopen.

Some Republicans members of Congress have beenvocal about their oppositionto such a large sum for schools following two previous relief packages. When Cardona was asked about this at the hearing, he said that though he is not involved in the policy development, from the perspective of education commissioner, the previous funding "really helped us keep the lights on," and said the funding being considered is "to make sure we recover."

"So much change has happened, we're going to need more counselors in our schools," Cardona told the committee.

"We're going to need to make sure we have summer programming. We're going to need to make sure we have extended day. If we really want to recover, we really need to invest now or we're going to pay later. And I feel that the funds that are being discussed now are really to help us with a long-term recovery process, preventing layoffs, when we need more teachers, not less," he said.

Following his confirmation, National Education Association President Becky Pringle, said in a statement the group was looking forward to working with Cardona.

"From the coronavirus pandemic and ensuing economic crisis to the systemic racism that has held back too many students for too long -- there are compounding challenges that are facing students, educators, families and communities. We must ensure that educators and schools have the tools and resources they need to effectively and authentically diagnose our students’ academic, social and emotional needs, and support their growth, development and success," she said.

Senate HELP Committee Ranking Member Richard Burr, a North Carolina Republican, said in a statement that he was "glad to be able to support" Cardona.

“School closures across the nation have left many students stuck at home, disconnected from their peers and struggling under significant learning loss,” Burr said in a statement. “Dr. Cardona has committed to following the science and has agreed to prioritize bringing students back to the classroom quickly and safely. Dr. Cardona brings with him the background, qualifications and temperament needed to serve in this position at a very challenging time. I’m glad to be able to support his nomination today, and I look forward to working with him on these important initiatives.”