E-Update for July 17, 2015
EducationCounsel E-Update for July 17, 2015
U.S Congress
Senate Passes the Every Child Achieves Act: The Senate passed S.1177, the Every Child Achieves Act, by a vote of 81-17 on Thursday, July 16. In committee, 29 amendments were adopted to the bill before it was sent unanimously to the floor on a vote of 22-0. On the Senate floor, 178 amendments were considered and 66 were adopted. Notably, a modified version of Sen. Burr (R-NC)’s amendment #2247 to alter the Title I funding formula was agreed to by a roll call vote of 59-39. The amendment will only impose changes to the formula once Title I funding exceeds $17 billion. Also of note, Sen. Murphy (D-CT)’s accountability amendment #2241 was not agreed to by a vote of 43-54. The amendment, also cosponsored by Senators Booker (D-NJ), Coons (D-DE), Warren (D-MA), Durbin (D-IL), Mikulski (D-MD), and Feinstein (D-CA), would have required states to identify the lowest performing schools and create measurable goals for all students and categories of students on metrics such as academic indicators, graduation rates and other indicators.
July 16, 2015
Senators Daines and Blumenthal Introduce SAFE KIDS Act: Sens. Steve Daines (R-MT.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) unveiled their student data privacy bill on July 16. The Senators say there are no protections at the FTC for safeguarding student data collected by third-party vendors. They say that the bill – the Safeguarding American Families from Exposure by Keeping Information and Data Secure Act or SAFE KIDS Act – would empower the FTC to oversee and enforce the collection, storage and use of students’ personally identifiable information. It would ban third-party vendors from using student data to target advertising to students or selling student data. And it would allow parents to access and correct their children’s information. Read the bill here.
July 16, 2015
House Fiscal Year 2016 Labor-HHS Bill and Report Filed: Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK) filed the House Committee on Appropriations FY2016 Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill and report (H.R.3020).
July 10, 2015
U.S Department of Education
Secretary Duncan Responds to Senate Passage of the Every Child Achieves Act: On July 16, the U.S. Secretary of Education released a statement on the passage of the Every Child Achieves Act (S. 1177) by the Senate. The Secretary applauded the progress made by the Senate toward replacing the “flawed No Child Left Behind Act,” noting that the bill would give states more flexibility and reduce the testing burden while still ensuring parents and educators know how students are doing every year. He also said that he was “particularly pleased that the bill would expand access to high-quality preschool and direct taxpayer dollars toward proven innovative strategies”. However, he said, the “bill still falls short of truly giving every child a fair shot at success by failing to ensure that parents and children can count on local leaders to take action when students are struggling to learn.”
July 16, 2015
U.S. Education Department Reaches Agreement with Chicago Public Schools to Increase Athletic Opportunities for Girls: The U.S. Department of Education (USED) announced that its Office of Civil Rights (OCR) had reached an agreement with the Chicago Public Schools to ensure that Illinois’ largest school district complies with Title IX, the federal law that prohibits sex discrimination in education. This agreement was prompted by an OCR investigation which had revealed significant disparities between the enrollment of female students and their participation in high school interscholastic athletics at the majority of district high schools. OCR determined that 6,200 additional athletic participation opportunities would be available if girls’ enrollment and participation were proportionate.
July 9, 2015
Events
On July 21, the American Council on Education will host a release event for a report entitled, “Race, Class, and College Access: Achieving Diversity in a Shifting Legal Landscape.” The event will feature both the release of the report’s key findings and a series of conversations with experts on ensuring diversity in higher education. EducationCounsel’s own Art Coleman will moderate a discussion on the current policy and legal landscape at 11am. Register here.
On July 22, the Interagency Policy Board (IPB) will host a meeting at the U.S. Department of Education from 4:00-5:30pm. The meeting will include a public input session for a U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services policy statement on family engagement. View the webcast live here.
On July 22, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee will hold a hearing entitled, “Reauthorizing the Higher Education Act: Exploring Barriers and Opportunities within Innovation.” The hearing will take place at 10am in room 430 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building, and will be available to view online here.
On July 23, the Alliance for Excellent Education will host a webinar entitled, “Reinventing America’s High Schools: SIG-Approved Evidence-Based Whole-School Reform.” The webinar will describe an overview of the Institute for Student Achievement (ISA)’s high school reform model to turn around persistently low-performing schools. Register here.
New Legislation
S.1788 : A bill to require operators that provide online and similar services to educational agencies, institutions, or programs to protect the privacy and security of personally identifiable information, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Daines, Steve [MT] (introduced 7/16/2015) Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation
H.R.3020 : Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2016
Sponsor: Rep Cole, Tom [OK-4] (introduced 7/10/2015) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Appropriations
H.R.3022 : To require that Grambling State University be eligible to receive funds under the Act of August 30, 1890.
Sponsor: Rep Abraham, Ralph Lee [LA-5] (introduced 7/10/2015) Cosponsors (5)
Committees: House Agriculture
H.R.3033 : READ Act
Sponsor: Rep Smith, Lamar [TX-21] (introduced 7/13/2015) Cosponsors (3)
Committees: House Science, Space, and Technology
H.R.3067 : To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to authorize local educational agencies and schools to carry out child sexual abuse awareness and prevention programs or activities.
Sponsor: Rep Clark, Katherine M. [MA-5] (introduced 7/15/2015) Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Education and the Workforce
Publications
From Statehouse to Schoolhouse: Anti-Bullying Policy Efforts in U.S. States and School Districts: The report, produced by the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN), examines the anti-bullying policies of all 13,181 school districts across the country. Specifically, the report explores whether district policies protect students on the basis of a variety of personal characteristics, require professional development for educators on bullying and district accountability for incident reporting, or have an impact on school climate for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students.
July 17, 2015
Education and Certification Qualifications of Public Middle Grades Teachers of Selected Subjects: Evidence From the 2011–12 Schools and Staffing Survey: This Statistical Analysis Report examines the postsecondary majors and teaching certifications of public middle grades teachers. Using data from the 2011–12 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS), which is a sample survey of elementary and secondary schools in the United States, this report examines the percentages of middle grades public school teachers who have a major or certificate in their main teaching assignment.
July 16, 2015
Education and Certification Qualifications of Departmentalized Public High School-Level Teachers of Selected Subjects: Evidence From the 2011–12 Schools and Staffing Survey: This Statistical Analysis Report examines the postsecondary majors and teaching certifications of public high school-level teachers of departmentalized classes. Using data from the 2011–12 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS), which is a sample survey of elementary and secondary schools in the United States, this report examines the percentages of high school teachers who have a major or certificate in their main assignment in a selection of 11 broad subject areas and 9 subfields.
July 16, 2015
What Works Clearinghouse Review of the Report “Interactive Online Learning on Campus”: This study measured the impact of using hybrid forms of interactive online learning in seven undergraduate courses across seven universities in the University System of Maryland. Interactive online learning can involve video lectures, opportunities for discussion and interaction with instructors and peers, and online assignments and exams. Hybrid forms of such courses combine online learning components with traditional face-to-face instruction. Specifically, the authors measured the impact of the hybrid instruction on learning outcomes (course pass rates, student grades, and performance on exam questions that were common across the intervention and comparison conditions), controlling for SAT scores, student GPA, family income, and other student background characteristics.
July 7, 2015