U.S. Representative Chrissy Houlahan, ’89, joined Graduate School of Education Dean Dan Schwartz and Senior Lecturer Denise Pope for a discussion about her career and what Congress can do to provide educational opportunities to all students.

Houlahan, who earned her engineering degree at Stanford, is a U.S. Air Force veteran and entrepreneur who also served in Teach for America at Philadelphia’s Simon Gratz High School. "I went into Teach for America as a mid-40-year-old person having already served in the military, already having grown a variety of different businesses, and the single-hardest thing I did was teach chemistry," she says.

On this episode of "School’s In," Houlahan discussed the importance of service and how education is critical to helping the country find a common ground. In November 2018, Houlahan was the first woman ever elected to serve Pennsylvania’s 6th District, and she explains how that could mean good things for education in the 116th Congress. "The education and labor committee historically has been a place where people don’t want to be. There was an absolute brawl for it this time because there were so many people who had experience in it – and frankly, so many women – who thought education is key."

This episode of "School’s In" was recorded live in front of an audience of Stanford alumni and friends in Washington, D.C., as part of the GSE’s Improving Lives Through Learning tour.

You can listen to "School’s In" on SiriusXM Insight channel 121, Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, Stitcher and Soundcloud.