Kennedy said the large cuts would signal a perversion of America's purpose.

"When we hear that we have the largest cuts in education in the history of the nation, we have to ask where our leaders are, and what we're all going to do to change our priorities," he said.

While several speakers endorsed specific government programs, perhaps the most compelling testimony to the importance of government-funded educational initiatives was offered by Lawrence High School student Juan Baez.

Baez shared a personal story with the audience of a life on the streets, failing grades in school and a bleak outlook on life.

"I was doing stick-ups. I was on the streets. I wasn't passing school," Baez said.

His life was turned around, he said, when he was introduced to guidance counselor Liz Hjeltness, also a panel member, who placed him in the Safe and Drug Free Schools Program. After two years in the program, Baez was named to Lawrence High School's High honors list for the first time this semester.

Daschle concluded the forum by applauding Massachusetts' Democratic delegation to Congress as the "single finest delegation, and the all-star cast as far as education goes."

"If only my Republican colleagues could have been here today--to listen to [those] who already have had education make a profound difference in their lives," Daschle said. "Siphoning funds off from education relegates our children to second class opportunities and lost responsibilities.