E-Update for June 10, 2016

Highlights

• On June 9, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved the bipartisan FY2017 Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) Appropriations bill by a vote of 29-1. The bill provides for the U.S. Department of Education (USED) $67.8 billion, which is a $220 million decrease below the comparable FY2016 level. More details on the bill are provided below.
• EducationCounsel released a policy brief and slide deck laying out a new framework for an accreditation system that is more responsive to student outcomes and better at directing time, resources, and attention to those institutions that need it the most. The policy brief and deck were developed with support from the Lumina Foundation and are available here.
• On June 14, Results for America, the National Head Start Association, and Bellwether Education Partners are holding an event entitled, “Moneyball for Head Start: Using Data and Evidence to Improve Outcomes.” EducationCounsel Principal Bethany Little will be speaking at the event; register here.

U.S. Congress

Senate Appropriations Committee Approves FY2017 LHHS Appropriations Bill: The Senate Appropriations Committee approved the bipartisan FY2017 Senate LHHS Appropriations bill by a vote of 29-1. The bill provides for USED $67.8 billion, which is a $220 million decrease below the comparable FY2016 level. Highlights of the bill include: (1) a $50 million increase (on top of the equivalent of the consolidated Title I and School Improvements Grants program funding level in FY2016) for Title I; (2) a $40 million increase for IDEA Grants to States; (3) restoration of year round Pell Grants; (4) a $25 million for Child Care and Development Block Grants (CCDBG); (5) an increase of $35 million for Head Start; and (6) level funding of $250 million for the Preschool Development Grants program. However, the bill would also rescind $1.2 billion of the Pell Grant surplus to support increases in other LHHS programs.
June 9, 2016

House Republicans Release Policy Paper on Addressing Poverty: The House Republican Task force on Poverty, Opportunity, and Upward Mobility released its policy recommendations. The policy paper rollout kicked off the launch of a series of recommendations to be made by House Republicans aimed at developing a bold, pro-growth agenda for a Confident America. The task force recommendations focused on: (1) rewarding work; (2) tailoring benefits to people’s needs; (3) improving skills and schools; (4) planning and saving for the future; and (5) demanding results. The fact sheet is available here; the full report is available here.
June 7, 2016

Sen. Warren Releases Report Raising Concerns about College Accreditor and Lack of Oversight: Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) released a report that asserts loose federal oversight of the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS), a college accreditor that has received criticism for failing to hold schools accountable for wrongdoing. Sen. Warren urged USED to “take strong, aggressive action to hold ACICS accountable for its dismal record of failure.” The full report is available here.
June 10, 2016

Administration

USED Hosts Convening on Pay for Success: USED hosted a summit to discuss “Pay for Success,” a funding model where government partners with philanthropic and private sector investors to create incentives for services providers to deliver better outcomes at lower cost. The concept is centered on the idea of government paying providers after they have demonstrated success, not based on the promise of success. The goal of the event was to create a forum to discuss and share information about potential opportunities to improve educational outcomes for at-risk students using pay for success models.
June 10, 2016

New Cities Join My Brother’s Keeper Success Mentors Initiative: USED announced that 20 new cities have joined the Administration’s My Brother’s Keeper Success Mentors Initiative. The initiative aims to combat chronic absenteeism by connecting at-risk students with school-linked adults or near-peers to provide support over the next 3-5 years. Also, USED released a new analysis that shows that chronic absenteeism impacts students in all parts of the country, and is prevalent among all races, and students with disabilities. A new website detailing chronic absenteeism was released by USED here.
June 8, 2016

FSA Announces Delay in Curbing Grant Agencies’ Access to Students’ College Preference Information: USED’s Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) announced that it would delay its plan to curb state student grant agencies’ access to college preference information that students list on their FAFSA. The grant agencies will be able to access the data for an additional year before the plan is implemented.
June 8, 2016

USED and HUD Partner to Promote Diversity in Schools and Communities: USED and the Departments of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Transportation (DOT) announced a partnership between the agencies and state and local leaders to increase diversity in their schools and communities, in addition to working to close opportunity gaps. The agencies hosted a listening session, bringing together educators, researchers, and community leaders to discuss various strategies to promote diversity.
June 8, 2016

Civil Rights Survey Finds Persistent Disparities: USED’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) unveiled new data from the 2013-14 school year in its latest Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC). The new data highlights gaps that persist in areas such as discipline, restraint and seclusion, access to courses, teacher equity, and access to early learning. The CRDC is available here.
June 7, 2016

Secretary King States Support for Promise Zone Designations: Secretary John King made a statement supporting HUD’s announcement of the final round of Promise Zones designations. Promise Zones are areas of high-poverty in select urban, rural, and tribal communities where the federal government works with local leaders to boost economic activity and improve educational opportunities. In his statement, Secretary King noted the importance of comprehensive community services for children and families in high-poverty areas.
June 6, 2016

Events

On June 14, Results for America, the National Head Start Association, and Bellwether Education Partners are holding an event entitled, “Moneyball for Head Start: Using Data and Evidence to Improve Outcomes.” EducationCounsel Principal Bethany Little will be speaking at the event; register here.

On June 15, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee will hold a hearing entitled, “Implementing the Child Care Development Block Grant Act of 2014: Perspectives of Stakeholders.” The hearing will take place at 10:00 a.m. in 430 Dirksen Senate Office Building. Witnesses will be announced in the coming days. A live webcast and more information will be available here.

New Legislation

H.R.5380 : REVAMP with Community Colleges Act of 2016
Sponsor: Rep Israel, Steve [NY-3] (introduced 6/3/2016)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans’ Affairs

H.R.5381 : College Preparation Tax Credit Act of 2016
Sponsor: Rep Israel, Steve [NY-3] (introduced 6/3/2016)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Ways and Means

H.R.5427 : To prohibit the use of education funds provided under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 for excess payments to certain retirement or pension systems.
Sponsor: Rep Dold, Robert J. [IL-10] (introduced 6/9/2016)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Education and the Workforce

S.3040 : Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2017
Sponsor: Sen Blunt, Roy [MO] (introduced 6/9/2016)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Appropriations
Senate Reports: 114-274

Publications

Outcomes-Focused, Differentiated Accreditation: A Framework for Policy and Practice Reform: This policy brief and accompanying slide deck lay out a new framework for an accreditation system that is more responsive to student outcomes and better at directing time, resources, and attention to those institutions that need it most. The framework addresses the core federal interest in ensuring that billions of annual student loan and taxpayer dollars are spent on quality higher education programs and also the need to refine the federal role to improve quality and accountability for colleges and universities. The proposed framework builds on effective and long-standing elements of the higher education accreditation process.  It relies on five pillars that can shape meaningful, constructive reform:

• Place a sharp focus on student outcomes as the basis for assessing quality;
• Use risk assessments as the key lens in accreditation;
• Differentiate accreditor engagement with institutions based on results from the risk assessments;
• Create a federal recognition process that supports and holds accreditors accountable for the transition to and use of systems that are differentiated and focused on outcomes; and
• Reduce regulatory burdens that are not fundamental to the achievement of core public or federal interests.

May 2016