E-Update for July 8, 2016
Highlights
- On July 6, the U.S. Department of Education (USED) released the pre-publication Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)’s provisions on Title I, Part A assessment (as agreed upon during negotiated rulemaking) and Title I, Part B innovative assessment pilots. The NPRM will officially appear in the Federal Register on Monday, July 11. USED’s press release is available here and its fact sheet is available here.
- On July 7, the House Education and the Workforce Committee voted unanimously to pass a bipartisan bill to reauthorize the Perkins Career and Technical Education Act.
- On July 7, the House Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee approved their Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 funding bill for consideration by the full House Appropriations Committee. Notably, the bill contains significant cuts to the Pell Grants program, and unlike its Senate counterpart, does not restore year-round Pell Grants for students. More information is below. The bill provides increases for programs including the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Head Start, and the Child Care Development Block Grant (CCDBG).
U.S. Congress
House Education Committee Passes Bipartisan Perkins CTE Reauthorization: The House Education and the Workforce Committee unanimously passed the House’s rewrite of the Perkins Career and Technical Education Act. H.R. 5587, the “Strengthening Career and Technical Education (CTE) for the 21st Century Act,” would give states more flexibility over how they spend federal funds; increase the focus on employability skills, work-based learning opportunities, and credentialing; place a priority on serving low-income students; and align performance standards for programs with states’ obligations under ESSA and the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA).
July 7, 2016
House LHHS Appropriations Subcommittee Approves Funding Bill for Full Committee Consideration: The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies held a markup of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 Labor, Health and Human Services (LHHS) funding bill. The Subcommittee approved the bill by a voice vote, sending the bill to the full Appropriations Committee, with support from Republicans and opposition from Democrats. Several amendments were offered by Democrats, mainly aimed at restoring funding for programs cut by the House bill, such as funding for Pell Grants, and enabling the Center for Disease Control (CDC) to conduct research into gun violence. None of the amendments offered were accepted. A press release from the House Appropriations Committee is available here.
July 7, 2016
House Democrats Send Letter Urging Appropriations Committee to Increase Computer Science Funding: Over 20 House Democrats sent a letter to the House Appropriations Committee seeking new funding for computer science through the Computer Science Development Grants program. The letter requested that appropriators fund new competitive grants to expand computer science in school districts, especially for underrepresented students.
July 6, 2016
Democrats Urge GAO to Investigate Financial Stability Challenges Faced by HCBUs: Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA), House Education and the Workforce Ranking Member Bobby Scott (D-VA), Ranking Member of the Senate Subcommittee on Children and Families Bob Casey (D-PA), and Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus G.K. Butterfield (D-NC) wrote a letter to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting the office to investigate challenges facing historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs)when those institutions seek to finance capital projects through the HBCU Capital Financing Program.
July 1, 2016
Administration
USED Releases Proposed Rules on Assessments and Innovative Assessment Pilots: USED released the pre-publication Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)’s provisions on Title I, Part A assessment (as agreed upon during negotiated rulemaking) and Title I, Part B innovative assessment pilots. The NPRM will officially appear in the Federal Register on Monday, July 11. The NPRM on assessment is available here; the NPRM on assessment pilots is available here.
July 6, 2016
USED Releases Report on State and Local Expenditures on Corrections and Education: USED released a report entitled, “Trends in State and Local Expenditures on Corrections and Education.” The report found that state and local spending on prisons has increased at triple the rate of funding for public education for preschool through grade 12 in the last three decades. The full report is available here.
July 7, 2016
USED Settles Sexual Assault Case with Minot State University: USED’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) entered into a resolution agreement with Minot State University, North Dakota, after finding the university in violation of Title IX. OCR found that the university had failed to take steps to address the hostile environment a student experienced, after having reported being sexually harassed by one of her professors for two years.
July 7, 2016
Events
On July 14, the College Board’s Access and Diversity Collaborative will host a webinar entitled, “Unpacking Fisher II and its Possible Implications for Institutions.” The webinar will include discussion of the elements of the decision as well as potential implications for other institutions, featuring EducationCounsel’s own Managing Partner Art Coleman and Senior Legal and Policy Advisor Terri Taylor, as well as Brad Quin, the Executive Director of the College Board. Register here.
On July 15, Dr. Ruth Neild will speak about federal education research policy issues, addressing some of the criticisms she wrote about in her recent article, “Federally-supported education research doesn’t need a do-over.” She will speak at the Institute for Educational Leadership from 12:00pm to 2:00pm. Details here.
New Legislation
H.R.5644
To authorize the Attorney General, in consultation with the Secretary of Education, to establish a pilot program to make grants to historically Black colleges and universities to provide educational programs to offenders who have recently been, or will soon be, released from incarceration, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Hill, J. French [R-AR-2] (Introduced 07/06/2016)
Committees: House – Education and the Workforce, Judiciary
H.R.5641
To amend the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 in order to improve career and technical education, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Davis, Susan A. [D-CA-53] (Introduced 07/06/2016)
Committees: House – Education and the Workforce
H.R.5635
To promote effective registered apprenticeships, for skills, credentials, and employment, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Pocan, Mark [D-WI-2] (Introduced 07/06/2016)
Committees: House – Education and the Workforce
H.R.5622
GPA Act
Sponsor: Rep. Aguilar, Pete [D-CA-31] (Introduced 07/05/2016)
Committees: House – Education and the Workforce
H.R.5617
Underwater Student Borrowers Act
Sponsor: Rep. Pocan, Mark [D-WI-2] (Introduced 07/01/2016)
Committees: House – Ways and Means
Publications
The Impact of Computer Usage on Academic Performance: Evidence from A Randomized Trial at the United States Military Academy: This is a quick review by the Institute for Education Sciences of a study that compared the performance of students in classes prohibiting the use of Internet-enabled laptops or tablets in a college level course with those in classes that either allowed restricted use or permitted unrestricted use of these devices. The study found that students with unrestricted or partially restricted access to Internet-enabled devices had lower exam scores than students who did not have access to Internet-enabled devices during class. The IES quick review found the study met What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) evidence standards without reservations.
July 7, 2016
Identifying Early Warning Indicators in Three Ohio School Districts: This IES and REL Midwest study was designed to identify a set of data elements for students in 8th and 9th grade in three Ohio school districts that could be used to serve as accurate early warning indicators of their failure to graduate high school on time and to comparatively examine the accuracy of those indicators. There was significant variability with regards to which indicators were the most accurate in each school district and in each grade, suggesting that it is important for school districts to examine and analyze their own student-level data in order to develop their own early warning systems.
July 6, 2016