E-Update for February 6, 2015
E-Update for February 6, 2015
Updates
Congress continued to host hearings on reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) this week, with two hearings in the House Education and the Workforce committee and one in the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. Congressman John Kline (R-OH), Chairman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, is likely to hold a mark-up of his version of ESEA reauthorization, the Student Success Act (H.R. 5), on February 11. On the Senate side, Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) of the HELP Committee recently released a statement expressing their plan to develop a bipartisan bill to fix ESEA. Both Alexander and Murray are working quickly in hopes of moving ESEA legislation to the floor before the Senate begins the appropriations process this spring.
Events
On February 9, the Alliance for Excellent Education and Digital Promise will host a discussion-based event, entitled “Culture Shift: Making Innovation Contagious.” The discussion provides an opportunity for the education community to reflect on the strategies, practices, and policy reforms that result in more students graduating from high school prepared for college and a career. Register here.
On February 11, the American Enterprise Institute will host a conversation on the “The Future of Teach for America” with Co-CEO Elisa Villanueva Beard. RSVP here.
On February 11, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce is expected to mark-up the Student Success Act in Rayburn 2175. Additional information has not yet been announced.
On February 12, the House Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education will hold a hearing on “How Emerging Technology Affects Student Privacy” in Rayburn 2175. Witnesses have yet to be announced. Additional information will be posted here.
On February 13, the Institute for Educational Leadership will host a book talk on “The Long Shadow: Family background, Disadvantaged Urban Youth, and the Transition to Adulthood’ with author and sociologist Dr. Karl Alexander. The Long Shadow focuses on children who grew up in west Baltimore neighborhoods and others like them throughout the city, tracing how their early lives in the inner city have affected their long-term well-being. RSVP required here.
U.S Department of Education
U.S. Departments of Education and Treasury Continue Raising Awareness of Income-Driven Repayment Options for Federal Student Loans: The U.S. Treasury Department and the U.S. Department of Education will continue working with tax preparers during the 2015 tax filing season to increase federal student loan borrowers’ awareness of income-driven repayment plans. This year, two of the largest tax preparers in the country, H&R Block and Intuit, Inc., are using their online tax preparation tools to share information about repayment options, including the President’s Pay As You Earn (PAYE) plan and the Department of Education’s Repayment Estimator with student loan borrowers.
February 4, 2015
U.S. Education Department Announces Resolution of Civil Rights Investigation of Yakima School District (WA) Efforts to Address Harassment of Students: The U.S. Department of Education announced that its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has entered into a resolution agreement to resolve a compliance review of the Yakima School District, Washington. The review examined whether the District has taken appropriate action to address harassment of students on the bases of sex, race, color, national origin, and disability. Yakima School District is the 18th largest school district in Washington State with 23 schools and approximately 16,000 students. It is also the largest Latino majority district in Washington State.
February 4, 2015
Secretary Duncan’s Statement on New Legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives Concerning No Child Left Behind: U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan issued the following statement on School Improvement Grants: Progress Report from America’s Great City Schools: “Turning around chronically low-performing schools is some of the hardest and most important work in education, with direct and enormous impact on the life outcomes of young people. I want to praise the Council of the Great City Schools for their thoughtfulness in this report, which offers vitally important insights on what works.”
February 4, 2015
More than 50 Corinthian Campuses Transition to Nonprofit Status under Zenith Education Group: Zenith Education Group, a newly created nonprofit provider of career school training, announced that it had finalized its acquisition of more than 50 Everest and WyoTech campuses from Corinthian Colleges Inc., a transaction that was first announced in November. The deal will allow nearly 30,000 students to pursue their career goals without disruption, and will give those students the opportunity to complete their education under new management that is set to implement a new plan to improve the education of its students.
February 3, 2015
President Obama’s 2016 Budget on Educational Opportunity for All Students: Following the announcement of President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2016 budget, the Department of Education released information on key education investments. The Department focused on investments in increasing equity and opportunity, expanding high-quality early learning programs, supporting teachers and leaders, and improving higher education.
February 2, 2015
Congressional Headlines
House Education Democrats Host ESEA Forum: Bobby Scott (D-VA), Ranking Member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, announced a February 5 forum to more thoroughly examine issues and policy solutions pertinent to ESEA reauthorization, after criticizing committee Republicans for failing to hear from a single teacher or researcher and failing to seek any input from committee Democrats.
February 5, 2015
House Education Committee Hosts First NCLB Hearing: The House Education and the Workforce Committee hosted a hearing on “Expanding Opportunity in America’s Schools and Workplaces” on February 4. Witnesses included: Michael Pence, Governor of Indiana; Dr. Michael Amiridis, Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, University of South Carolina; Drew Greenblatt, President of Marlin Steel Wire Products; and Dr. Lawrence Mishel, President, Economy Policy Institute.
February 4, 2015
Kline, Rokita Introduce Bill to Replace No Child Left Behind: House Education and the Workforce Committee Chairman John Kline (R-MN) and Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Subcommittee Chairman Todd Rokita (R-IN) reintroduced legislation to replace NCLB. Based on a proposal passed by the House in 2013, the Student Success Act (H.R. 5) aims to reduce the federal footprint and restore local control, while empowering parents and education leaders to hold schools accountable for effectively teaching students. A markup is expected to take place on February 11.
February 3, 2015
New Legislation
H.R.5 : To support State and local accountability for public education, protect State and local authority, inform parents of the performance of their children’s schools, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Kline, John [MN-2] (introduced 2/3/2015) Cosponsors (1)
H.R.645 : To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to provide career education pathways in manufacturing.
Sponsor: Rep Brownley, Julia [CA-26] (introduced 2/2/2015) Cosponsors (None)
H.R.649 : To authorize borrowers of loans under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program to modify the interest rate of such loans to be equal to the interest rate for such loans at the time of modification.
Sponsor: Rep Pocan, Mark [WI-2] (introduced 2/2/2015) Cosponsors (10)
H.R.678 : To promote the use of blended learning in classrooms across America.
Sponsor: Rep McMorris Rodgers, Cathy [WA-5] (introduced 2/3/2015) Cosponsors (None)
H.R.701 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to expand access to Coverdell education savings accounts.
Sponsor: Rep Walberg, Tim [MI-7] (introduced 2/4/2015) Cosponsors (1)
H.R.717 : To amend section 1111(h)(1)(C)(i) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require that annual State report cards reflect the same race groups as the decennial census of population.
Sponsor: Rep Honda, Michael M. [CA-17] (introduced 2/4/2015) Cosponsors (8)
H.R.718 : To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 in order to support the community schools model.
Sponsor: Rep Honda, Michael M. [CA-17] (introduced 2/4/2015) Cosponsors (4)
H.R.736 : To authorize the appropriation of funds to be used to recruit, hire, and train 100,000 new classroom paraprofessionals in order to improve educational achievement for children.
Sponsor: Rep Serrano, Jose E. [NY-15] (introduced 2/4/2015) Cosponsors (None)
H.R.747 : To establish the Proprietary Education Oversight Coordination Committee.
Sponsor: Rep Cummings, Elijah E. [MD-7] (introduced 2/5/2015) Cosponsors (None)
H.R.754 : To amend the weighted child count used to determine targeted grant amounts and education finance incentive grant amounts for local educational agencies under title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
Sponsor: Rep Thompson, Glenn [PA-5] (introduced 2/5/2015) Cosponsors (1)
H.R.755 : To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to prohibit Federal mandates, direction, or control, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Roby, Martha [AL-2] (introduced 2/5/2015) Cosponsors (None)
H.R.769 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to exempt certain educational institutions from the employer health insurance mandate, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Messer, Luke [IN-6] (introduced 2/5/2015) Cosponsors (13)
H.R.770 : To reauthorize the Impact Aid Program under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
Sponsor: Rep Mullin, Markwayne [OK-2] (introduced 2/5/2015) Cosponsors (1)
H.R.773 : To repeal programs under the Department of Education, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Yoho, Ted S. [FL-3] (introduced 2/5/2015) Cosponsors (6)
H.R.794 : To establish a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Master Teacher Corps program.
Sponsor: Rep Honda, Michael M. [CA-17] (introduced 2/5/2015) Cosponsors (2)
S.306 : A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to encourage the use of 529 plans and Coverdell education savings accounts, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Lee, Mike [UT] (introduced 1/29/2015) Cosponsors (2)
S.308 : A bill to reauthorize 21st century community learning centers, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Boxer, Barbara [CA] (introduced 1/29/2015) Cosponsors (3)
S.311 : A bill to amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to address and take action to prevent bullying and harassment of students.
Sponsor: Sen Casey, Robert P., Jr. [PA] (introduced 1/29/2015) Cosponsors (1)
S.312 : A bill to amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 regarding school libraries, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Reed, Jack [RI] (introduced 1/29/2015) Cosponsors (2)
S.316 : A bill to amend the charter school program under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
Sponsor: Sen Kirk, Mark Steven [IL] (introduced 1/29/2015) Cosponsors (7)
S.317 : A bill to improve early education.
Sponsor: Sen Hirono, Mazie K. [HI] (introduced 1/29/2015) Cosponsors (8)
S.325 : A bill to use amounts provided for the Fund for the Improvement of Education to establish a pilot program that supports year-round public elementary schools and secondary schools.
Sponsor: Sen Kirk, Mark Steven [IL] (introduced 1/30/2015) Cosponsors (1)
S.336 : A bill to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 entirely.
Sponsor: Sen Cruz, Ted [TX] (introduced 2/2/2015) Cosponsors (50)
S.342 : A bill to promote the use of blended learning in classrooms across America.
Sponsor: Sen Hatch, Orrin G. [UT] (introduced 2/3/2015) Cosponsors (1)
S.355 : A bill to support the provision of safe relationship behavior education and training.
Sponsor: Sen Kaine, Tim [VA] (introduced 2/3/2015) Cosponsors (2)
S.363 : A bill to amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to aid gifted and talented and high-ability learners by empowering the Nation’s teachers, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Grassley, Chuck [IA] (introduced 2/4/2015) Cosponsors (4)
S.389 : A bill to amend section 1111(h)(1)(C)(i) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require that annual State report cards reflect the same race groups as the decennial census of population.
Sponsor: Sen Hirono, Mazie K. [HI] (introduced 2/5/2015) Cosponsors (None)
S.396 : Proprietary Education Oversight Coordination Improvement Act
Sponsor: Sen Durbin, Richard [IL] (introduced 2/5/2015) Cosponsors (None)
S.402 : A bill to establish a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Master Teacher Corps program.
Sponsor: Sen Franken, Al [MN] (introduced 2/5/2015) Cosponsors (None)
Publications
WWC Review of the Report “The Impact of Indiana’s System of Interim Assessments on Mathematics and Reading Achievement”: Researchers examined the use of Diagnostic Assessment Tools (DAT) on the mathematics and reading outcomes of students in 59 schools in Indiana. DAT consists of interim assessment tools that are modified to align with Indiana’s state assessments. This study is a well-executed randomized controlled trial with low sample attrition. A subset of the analyses described in the study meets What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) group design standards without reservations. The study authors found, and the WWC confirmed, that the use of DAT did not have a statistically significant impact on general mathematics achievement or reading achievement for the full sample of students in grades K–8, but that the use of DAT did have statistically significant positive effects for grades 5 and 6 in mathematics achievement and grades 3–5 in reading achievement.
February 2015