Title I Nat. Ass'n of State Title I Directors

Election Education Issues

2008-10-23T11:18:00.000-07:00

Candidates Differ on Key Issues for Principals

NASSP has a new website section that showcases responses from the Obama and McCain campaigns to a recent presidential questionnaire on pressing school reform issues.

To view the questionnaire and responses, visit www.principals.org/s_nassp/sec.asp?CID=1621&DID=58461.NASSP asked the education advisers to the presidential candidates to weigh in on issues that would affect you and your school. Along with the candidates’ positions on each issue, the advisers were asked to submit quotes or links to verbiage that support that position. The following documents contain their verbatim responses.

Documents

No Child Left Behind and Adequate Yearly Progress

Federal Education Funding and Professional Development

National Standards and Graduation Rates Addressing the Dropout Crisis

Literacy and Numeracy

School Safety, Charter Schools, and Vouchers

The National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) is a non-partisan 501(c)(3) organization that does not endorse, support, advocate for, or encourage people to vote for any political candidate or party. The information provided on the 2008 presidential candidates does not reflect the opinion of or endorsement by NASSP.Webcast Archive: Education and the Next President

Webcast Archive: Education and the Next President

Register to view the archive of this Webcast now.View “Education and the Next President,” a live debate that took place at Teachers College, Columbia University, between

Linda Darling-Hammond, education adviser to Barack Obama, and
Lisa Graham Keegan, education adviser to John McCain.

The event was exclusively Webcast by edweek.org.

Campaign '08 Coverage: See Education Week's continuing coverage and interactive resources of the 2008 presidential campaign to learn more about where the two candidates and their running mates stand on education.

Also read the edweek.org blog, Campaign K-12, for more analysis of the candidates' views. -->Register for the Archived Webcast now.

Read the Full transcript

http://www.edweek.org/ew/marketplace/webinars/webcast_ed_next_president_transcript.html

NCLB UPDATE

2008-07-18T07:02:00.000-07:00

from U.S. Department of Education
ED REVIEW
July 18, 2008

The Department has published Fiscal Year 2008 Title I allocations by school district. Under the No Child Left Behind Act, districts must spend an amount equal to 20% of their Title I, Part A allocation to cover public school choice-related transportation costs and pay for supplemental educational services (SES). Districts have some discretion to determine the allocation of funds between the activities, but they must use at least one-quarter (5%) of the 20% "reservation" on each activity, if the cost of satisfying demand for each exceeds 5%. Moreover, for each student receiving SES, districts are required to pay the lesser of the actual cost of such services or an amount equal to the district's Title I, Part A allocation divided by the number of poor children within the district, as determined by Census Bureau estimates. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE GO TO http://www.ed.gov/about/overview/budget/titlei/fy08/. (Note: Due to state-level adjustments of Title I allocations, the amounts received by districts will be smaller than shown.)Speaking of SES, on July 7, the Department's Office of Innovation and Improvement (OII) announced a new grant competition to encourage the establishment or expansion of partnerships between supplemental educational services programs and 21st Century Community Learning Centers projects, in order to increase the academic achievement of low-income students in Title I schools identified for improvement, correction action, or restructuring. Through this demonstration, OII will fund proposals that will serve as national models of how these two federally authorized after-school initiatives can be coordinated so that a greater number of students enroll in, participate in, and complete academic after-school services. A "notice of intent" to apply is due July 21, while the deadline for applications is August 12. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE GO TO http://www.ed.gov/programs/sesdemo/. (Note: In the near future, the Department will be holding a technical assistance conference call for interested applicants. Details will be posted on the program's web site.)

Decision on Connecticut NCLB lawsuit

2008-04-29T12:33:00.000-07:00

Judge Kravitz's April 28th, 2008 decision on the administrative appeal aspects of Connecticut's NCLB suit is linked here: C:\Documents and Settings\mbell\Desktop\NCLB DECISION on summary judgment 4-28-2008 (3).htm
The decision finds that the Secretary’s decisions denying Connecticut’s requests to test ELL students after three years and to test students with disabilities at their instructional rather than grade level, per their IEP, are consistent with the statute and regulations and thus not arbitrary and capricious.
The ruling finds that Connecticut waived any claim with regard to a hearing on those requests and that it never presented to the Secretary (and so could not have decided in court) a claim under the Unfunded Mandates provision with regard to those requests.

2007-11-08T06:53:00.000-08:00

House/Senate Conference Report on Appropriations

2007-11-08T06:33:00.000-08:00

House/Senate Ed Appropriations Selected Education Programs
Program FY07 Enacted LHHSED HR 3043 ConferenceReport Difference
Title I (LEA's) $ 12,838.00 $ 14,311.40 $ 1,473.40
Title I (Basic) $ 6,808.40 $ 6,808.90 $ 0.50
Title I (Con) $ 1,365.00 $ 1,365.00 $ -
Title I (Targete)$ 2,332.00 $ 3,068.60 $ 736.60
Title I (EFI) $ 2,332.00 $ 3,068.60 $ 736.60
Reading First $ 1,029.20 $ 400.00 $ (629.20)
Striving Readers $ 31.80 $ 36.00 $ 4.20
Even Start $ 82.30 $ 62.60 $ (19.70)
School Improvement Grants
$ 125.00 $ 500.00 $ 375.00
All numbers in millions

CEF chart outlines key programs

2007-10-16T11:08:00.000-07:00

Federal Funding for the next school year

2007-10-16T10:43:00.000-07:00

The fiscal year began on October 1st with a continuing resolution in place. For education programs this has little impact as our funding for this school year was appropriated last year. However, it is important for next year. IRA members routinely report that one of the key problems with NCLB is the lack of funds.

This week the Senate is expected to take up their appropriations bill. The Senate bill is above the President in its proposed spending for education, but below the president. In gross terms:

FY 07 President 08 House 08 Senate Committee 08
$67.2 $62.6 $65.6 $63.6 (in billion)

The problem is the overall spending level for non-defense appropriations. The President is pushing for a lower figure and may well veto any spending bill over his budget. The Senate a coalition of Democrats and Republicans are saying that they want an increased allocation so that they can put more into education. In the House they made a higher allocation to education and are trying to expand support for a higher Senate level – in both Republican and Democratic circles. They want to have a bill that is “veto-proof.”

Current timing is for the Senate to vote this week and then quickly move to a House-Senate conference and then send the bill to the president. Most likely it will be vetoed and then more cuts will be made OR an over-ride.

The Committee for Education Funding (CEF), a coalition of over 100 education groups, including IRA, is pushing for the entire education community to push for a vote in the Senate and then for the higher numbers in the House. For IRA members who wish to support higher spending, call your Senator this week (202-224-3121) and ask for your Senator to support the higher allocation for education. There are a lot of discussions going on now to determine what program will get what specific funding amount.

First Lady Endorses Yarmuth's Striving Readers Act

2007-05-14T12:16:00.001-07:00

Congressman John Yarmuth

Representing Kentucky's 3rd Congressional District

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday May 14, 2007

MEDIA CONTACT

Stuart Perelmuter 202.225.5401

First Lady Endorses Yarmuth's Striving Readers Act
Legislation, Introduced Today, Focuses on Youth Literacy

(Washington, DC) Today, Congressman John Yarmuth (KY-3) introduced legislation that, by 2012, will work to improve lagging literacy levels for students in grades 4 - 12. The bill, which Congressman Yarmuth hopes will be a key piece of the reauthorized No Child Left Behind law, received an unexpected endorsement at the 'National Summit on America's Silent Epidemic' from First Lady Laura Bush.

"[No Child Left Behind] will expand the Striving Readers program, which uses research-based instruction to help middle and high school students read at grade level or better..." the First Lady said from the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center last week. "By learning to read well, these students were preparing for every other subject -- for history, for math, for science, for language, for art. They were building a strong academic foundation for high school and college, and for the rest of their lives."

Seventy percent of America's middle and high school students read below their grade level, putting them in danger of dropping out of school. Research shows that the Striving Readers pilot program makes great strides in bringing students up to speed and helping them master college preparatory material.

The program would create a 5-year grant program to help states and local education agencies establish literacy programs. States and schools would use these funds to create school literacy teams, provide adolescent literacy training for teachers and school leaders, improve reading curriculum, and involve parents in adolescent literacy instruction. The legislation is modeled after the Striving Readers pilot program, which serves eight districts nationwide, including one in Danville, Kentucky.

Currently, nearly $4 billion is spent annually on remedial education, but Yarmuth's legislation would reach children earlier, ensuring that they have the resources, personal attention, and parental involvement they need to address the problem early.

"The Striving Readers pilot program has been very effective, right here in Kentucky, at helping students, who are on the verge of dropping out of high school, graduate and become legitimate candidates for a full college education," Congressman Yarmuth said of the bill which has already received broad bipartisan support and has been endorsed by the National Education Association, the Kentucky Reading Association, the National Association of Secondary School Principals, and dozens of other education organizations and professional associations.

Brenda Overturf, President of the Kentucky Reading Association recently presented Congressman Yarmuth with a stack of letters from educators in the community, thanking him for his commitment and initiative in the area of education. "This bill will make a tremendous impact in literacy nationwide, and I am so thankful to be represented by Congressman Yarmuth, who has taken the initiative to make it happen."

The bill will be referred to committee and Congressman Yarmuth is hoping to include the bill in the No Child Left Behind reauthorization this summer.

###

FY 2008 Senate Budget Resolution: Education

2007-03-15T11:32:00.000-07:00

The FY 2008 Senate Budget Resolution rejects the President’s proposed cuts in education and training and adds significant new resources for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), No Child Left Behind Act, and Pell grants. It provides an increase for discretionary funding for the Department of Education of $6.1 billion (including $2 billion in additional 2009 advance appropriations) above the President’s request.

From: SUMMARY, FY 2008 SENATE BUDGET RESOLUTION
PREPARED BY: DEMOCRATIC STAFF, SENATE BUDGET COMMITTEE
March 14, 2007, http://budget.senate.gov/democratic/documents/2007/BudRes08summary031407.pdf

NCLB update

2007-03-08T08:44:00.000-08:00

NCLB
Reauthorization hearings are scheduled for March and April. A bi cameral (both Senate and House) hearing on NCLB issues is scheduled for March 13th. Witnesses: Roy Barnes - Aspen Institute Commission on No Child Left Behind; Elizabeth Burmaster - Council of Chief State School Officers; Mike Casserley - Council of Great City Schools; Wade Henderson - Leadership Conference on Civil Rights; Ed McElroy - American Federation of Teachers; Arthur J. Rothkopf - Business Coalition for Student Achievement; Reg Weaver - National Education Association

Future Hearings Topics: High school reform, AYP, teacher quality, special education, ELL. Field Hearings throughout the country are expected in the spring. The Senate and the House hope to have NCLB reauthorization bills introduced before the August recess.

Funding
On March 13, Secretary Margaret Spellings will testify before the House Labor, Health & Human Services and Education (L, H&HS&ED) Appropriation sub committee. The Secretary will testify on the President’s budget proposal for education for FY08. The budget was released in early February. http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/fy2008/pdf/appendix/edu.pdf

Since no appropriations bill for L, H&HS&ED has been passed, a continuing resolution* (CR) will fund education programs for FY07. The suggested levels for FY07 are based on continuing funding at FY06 levels. The Department of Education is expected to release program funding levels within 30 days.

Higher Education
The Senate hopes to introduce the higher education reauthorization in early summer with the House to follow in late summer. The Higher Education Act governs all federal policy concerning teacher preparation programs.

Head Start
The Senate has reported out of committee its Head Start reauthorization S556 which calls for more prewriting, prereading skills and prenumeracy skills to be included in Head Start curriculum. A summary will be posted to the blog, when completed. The House is expected to introduce its version of Reauthorization within the month.

House to move NCLB

2007-02-22T11:05:00.000-08:00

February 22, 2007 – Today the Democratic staff of the Education and Labor Committee of the House of Representatives met with representatives of the education and civil rights communities to talk about their plans for the upcoming reauthorization of NCLB. The tentative hearing schedule has three hearings in March – looking at topics such as AYP, special education and NCLB, and ELL and NCLB. While the dates and topics are subject to change the first one may be on March 21st at the full committee level. The staff said that the chairman is interested in several core elements of NCLB being retained – closing the achievement gap and universal proficiency among them. The chairman has been visiting schools around the nation and is well aware that there are statutory and implementation issues that need to be addressed in reauthorization. He is hoping to get a bill through the House by the end of this calendar year.

President's FY08 budget request

2007-02-05T08:13:00.000-08:00

President Bush released his budget request for FY08. Below is a summary of the request.

SUPPORTING NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND REAUTHORIZATION
The request would provide $24.5 billion to support the Administration's reauthorization proposal for the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. This proposal would provide additional resources at the high school level, encourage more rigorous instruction and coursework in our middle and high schools, make available more meaningful choice options to students in low-performing schools, and significantly increase the resources available to States and LEAs to support school improvement efforts, particularly through a stronger emphasis on fundamental staffing and governance changes in schools undergoing restructuring. These and other reauthorization changes are discussed in more detail in the section on Elementary and Secondary Education. Key parts of the request that support the reauthorization include:
• $13.9 billion for Title I Grants to Local Educational Agencies, an increase of $1.2 billion, or 9.4 percent, primarily to drive more Title I funding to high schools so that they have the resources to implement the reforms and interventions that are working to improve achievement at the elementary level.
• $500 million in first-time funding for Title I School Improvement Grants to support strong and effective State leadership in helping to turn around low-performing schools and school districts. Funds would be evenly split between building State capacity to lead LEA and school improvement efforts and additional resources for LEAs working to turn around low-performing schools.
• $411.6 million for State Assessment Grants to maintain support for strong State assessment systems and support the development and implementation of 2 years of high school assessments that would be required by the Administration's reauthorization proposal for Title I.
• $300 million to expand private school choice and tutoring options for America's students and families, including $250 million for Promise Scholarships, a new formula program to give low-income students in restructuring schools the opportunity to transfer to private schools or public schools in other districts, or to obtain intensive tutoring; and $50 million for Opportunity Scholarships, which would award competitive grants to a broad range of entities, including municipalities, non-profit organizations, and other entities, to carry out innovative programs that give students in low-performing schools the opportunity to transfer to another public or private school or obtain intensive supplemental services.
• A $365 million increase to support the American Competitiveness Initiative by strengthening the capacity of our schools to improve instruction in mathematics and science:
o $125 million for the Math Now for Elementary School Students initiative, modeled after Reading First, to implement proven practices in math instruction, including those that will be recommended by the National Math Panel, that focus on preparing K-6 students for more rigorous math courses in middle and high school.
o $125 million for a new Math Now for Middle School Students initiative, based on the principles of the Striving Readers program, to support research-based math interventions in middle schools.
o A $90 million increase for Advanced Placement to provide a new emphasis on training teachers and expanding opportunities for students, particularly in high-poverty schools, to take high-level Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses in math, science, and critical foreign languages.
o $25 million for the Adjunct Teacher Corps to create opportunities for qualified professionals from outside the K-12 educational system to teach secondary-school courses in the core academic subjects, with an emphasis on mathematics and the sciences.
• A $68.4 million increase for the Striving Readers program, funded for the first time in fiscal year 2005, to significantly expand the development and implementation of research-based interventions to improve the skills of teenage students who are reading below grade level.
• $1.0 billion for Reading First State Grants and $117.7 million for Early Reading First to maintain support for comprehensive reading instruction, grounded in scientifically based reading research, that enables all young children to read well by the end of third grade. The request for Early Reading First, which consolidates this program with the Early Childhood Educator Professional Development program, would also help strengthen partnerships between preschool providers and institutions of higher education that provide professional development to early childhood educators.
• $2.8 billion for Improving Teacher Quality State Grants to help States ensure that all teachers of core academic subjects are highly qualified and to strengthen teachers' subject-matter knowledge and teaching skills.
• $199 million for the Teacher Incentive Fund to expand support for State and local efforts to develop and implement performance-based financial incentives for teachers and principals. This program helps close the equity gap in access to the best teachers and principals by rewarding those who raise student achievement, close achievement gaps, and work in hard-to-staff schools.
Link to Department of Education budget request:

http://www.ed.gov/about/overview/budget/budget08/summary/edlite-section2a.html#title1lea

NCLB news

2007-02-05T08:02:00.000-08:00

NCLB “Insiders” Forecast Delay in Reauthorization, Minor Tweaks to Legislation
In January, the Thomas B. Fordham foundation released the results of a survey of “Washington insiders” on No Child Left Behind reauthorization. According to the survey, those often considered to be “in the know” on NCLB don’t believe its reauthorization will occur until at least 2009. 11 out of 12 respondents chose “2009 or later” for the timing of NCLB reauthorization, but one did predict it would occur this year. Additionally, most respondents believed that the law would only undergo relatively minor changes based mostly on ongoing NCLB related initiatives at the Department. For more information:http://www.edexcellence.net/doc/CrystalAppleNCLBBrief.pdf

Commission on Civil Rights to Examine SESThe U.S. Commission on Civil Rights announced it will convene three expert panels on the implementation of the supplemental education services (SES) provisions of NCLB. The panel discussions will take place on February 26 and the Commission is seeking public comment until that date. Each panel will feature experts, school officials, and parents. A number of experts and stakeholders in NCLB will speak at the event, including Eugene Hicock, former deputy secretary of education, superintendents from Detroit, Camden, NJ, and Newark, NJ, and parents from New Jersey, Texas, and Michigan. For more information: http://www.usccr.gov

Business Roundtable, US Chamber Form Coalition for NCLB Reauthorization
The Business Roundtable and U.S. Chamber of Commerce have formed a coalition in order to facilitate the reauthorization of NCLB this year. The Business Coalition for Student Achievement is co-chaired by Craig R. Barrett, Chairman of Intel; Arthur F. Ryan, Chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial, Inc.; and Edward B. Rust Jr., Chairman and CEO of State Farm and promises to use its resources and connections to push for a timely reauthorization of NCLB. For more information: http://www.biz4achievement.org

Bush Ready to Sign Off on Spending Bill

2007-02-01T08:59:00.000-08:00

By ANDREW TAYLOR

The Associated Press
Wednesday, January 31, 2007; 2:42 AM

WASHINGTON -- The White House has signaled its embrace of a $463.5 billion omnibus spending bill, removing doubts that the measure will soon be on President Bush's desk.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/30/AR2007013000391.html

$2.3 billion increase for important health and education programs

2007-01-30T09:20:00.000-08:00

The FY 2007 Joint Funding Resolution filed tonight in the House includes a $2.3 billion increase for important health and education programs over the previous year’s funding level.

The President’s FY 2007 Budget proposed an almost $5 billion cut for programs under the jurisdiction of the Labor, HHS, Education appropriations bill. During the budget resolution debate, the deeming resolution debate, and eventually the markup of the FY 2007 Senate LHHS bill, Senators Harkin and Specter fought not only to restore those funds but to add the additional monies needed to bring those programs back to the FY 2005 level – an increase of $7 billion over the President’s budget. The 109th Congress adjourned without completing the FY 2007 discretionary appropriations bills; as a result those programs need to be funded through this joint funding resolution. This Joint Resolution for FY 2007 includes the funding level requested by Senators Harkin and Specter – a full $2.3 billion above the 2006 continuing resolution level and $7 billon above the President’s FY 2007 budget.

The Joint Funding resolution will include a number of important program increases compared to the FY 2006 funding levels.

Department of Education
• Pell Grants: $13.6 billion, an increase of $615.4 million to increase the maximum Pell grant by $260 to $4,310. This increase – the first in four years – will help over 5.3 million students pay rising college expenses.
• Special Education: $10.7 billion for IDEA Part B state grants, an increase of $200 million to help school districts serve 6.9 million children with disabilities.
• Title I K-12 Grants: $12.8 billion, an increase of $125 million to provide approximately 38,000 additional low-income children performing below grade level with intensive reading and math instruction. This would reverse the decline since 2005 in Title 1 support for elementary and secondary schools – at a time of record enrollments (55 million students in 2006) and pressures for more accountability from No Child Left Behind requirements.
• Title I School Improvement Fund: $125 million for this new program to target assistance to the 6,700 schools that failed to meet No Child Left Behind requirements in the 2005-2006 school year, enabling them to implement improvement activities, such as teacher training, tutoring programs, and curriculum upgrades. The Education Department reports that 80% of high-poverty districts cannot afford these improvements.
• Head Start: $6.9 billion, an increase of $103.7 million to help prevent a drop in Head Start enrollments. Since 2002, Head Start has been cut by 11 percent in real terms, which has forced centers across the country to cut hours, transportation, and educational instruction in order to sustain enrollments.

Congressional Budget Action Postponed

2006-11-21T13:15:00.000-08:00

The Associated Press reports that Senate leaders have decided to push back consideration of remaining FY 07 spending measures until the 110th Congress convenes in January. This leaves the Department of Education funded at current year levels until further consideration.
This means that all of the current programs will maintain their funding at last year’s level. When the 110th Congress convenes on January 3rd, the Democrats will be responsible for completing the appropriations process.

Senate Dear Colleague Letter on Funding

2006-09-30T07:19:00.000-07:00

The overall education funding for the fiscal year (FY) 07 is slated to be cut – but we are hoping for a Specter – Harkin amendment to restore funding to FY05 levels.

Contact your Senator’s Office ask him/her to sign the Specter-Harkin “Dear Colleague” letter requesting an additional $7 billion for the Labor, Health & Human Services and Education appropriations bill (the federal education funding bill). A “Dear Colleague” letter is a request by a member to other members asking for their support.

Capital Switchboard 202-225-2121 Tell them your members name, they will connect you to the office.

The following Senators have already signed the Dear Colleague letter, call and thank them for supporting additional funding for the appropriations bill.
Republicans
DeWine
Snowe
Lugar
Collins
Chafee
Smith
Coleman
Roberts
Hatch
Burns
Murkowski

Democrats
Harkin
Akaka
Baucus
Bayh
Biden
Bingaman
Boxer
Cantwell
Carper
Clinton
Dayton
Dodd
Dorgan
Durbin
Feingold
Feinstein
Inouye
Jeffords
Johnson
Kennedy
Kerry
Kohl
Landrieu
Lautenberg
Leahy
Levin
Lieberman
Lincoln
Menendez
Mikulski Murray
Nelson,
Nelson
Obama
Pryor
Reed
Rockefeller
Salazar
Sarbanes
Schumer
Stabenow
Wyden

Senate Cuts Reading First.

2006-08-02T10:16:00.000-07:00

Read details below. We will keep you informed.

On July 20th, the Senate appropriations full-committee approved the FY07 Labor-HHS-Education funding bill (HR 5647) by voice vote with $55.8 billion for education.

Senator Byrd (D-WV) offered the only amendment which would have increased Title I funding by $6.1 billion. The amendment failed by voice vote.

Chairman Specter (R-PA) indicated his great disappointment with the funding levels, “constituting what I view as really the disintegration of the appropriate federal role of health, education and worker protections.”

Senator Harkin (D-IA), ranking member, stated that he would work with Senator Specter to add $2 billion more to the bill later in the process.

All numbers are in millions.

Program Increase

Striving Readers +$5.3

Title I- School Improvement +$100

Math and Science Partnerships +$12.8

Advanced Placement Fees +$7.8

Arts in Education +$1.2

Elminated Programs:

Even Start -$99

Comprehensive School Reform -$7.9

State Grants for Innovative Education Programs (title V) -$99

Credit Enhancement for Charter School Facilities -$36.6

Dropout Prevention -$4.9

Smaller Learning Communities -$93.5

Programs Cuts

Reading First State Grants --$29.2

Early Reading First -$3.1

Improving Teacher Quality State Grants -$140

Javis Gifted and Talented -$4.6

Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities, national programs -$10.0

Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities, state grants -$36.5

Teacher Quality Enhancement Grants -$2.9

Reading First - US Department of Education Report

2006-08-02T08:47:00.000-07:00

July 24, 2006 US Dept of Ed. Press Release- New Report Shows Progress in Reading First Implementation and Changes in Reading Instruction:
Children in Reading First classrooms receive significantly more reading instruction and schools participating in the program are much more likely to have a reading coach, according to the Reading First Implementation Evaluation: Interim Report, released today by the U.S. Department of Education. The report shows significant differences between what Reading First teachers report about their instructional practices and the responses of teachers in non-Reading First Title I schools, which are demographically similar to the Reading First schools.
"The goal of Reading First is to help teachers translate scientific insights into practical tools they can use in their classrooms," Secretary Spellings said. "The program is helping millions of children and providing teachers with high-quality, research-based support. As we push towards our ultimate goal of every child reading and doing math on grade level by 2014, Reading First is a valuable help to our efforts."
The report shows Reading First schools appear to be implementing the major elements of the program as intended by the No Child Left Behind legislation. Reading First respondents reported that they made substantial changes to their reading materials and that the instruction is more likely to be aligned with scientifically based reading research; they are more likely to have scheduled reading blocks and spend more time teaching reading; they are more likely to apply assessment results for instructional purposes, and they receive professional development focused on helping struggling readers more often than non-Reading First Title I schools in the evaluation.
The report is based on data collected from surveys completed in spring 2005 by 6,200 K-3 teachers, 1,570 principals and 1,320 reading coaches in nationally representative samples of 1,090 Reading First schools and 540 non-Reading First Title I schools and from interviews with Reading First state coordinators and reviews of states' applications for Reading First awards. As of July 2006, states have awarded sub-grants to approximately 1,600 local school districts, and these districts have provided funds to 5,300 schools nationwide. A final report in 2008 will include data on changes in student reading achievement in Reading First schools.
Highlights of the report include:
· Teachers in Reading First schools reported, on average, they spent significantly more time on reading than did teachers in non-Reading First Title I schools—a difference of about 19 minutes per day, or about 100 minutes per week.
· Reading First teachers were significantly more likely than their counterparts in non-Reading First Title I schools to place their struggling students in intervention programs.
· Reading First schools were significantly more likely to have a reading coach to support teachers in the implementation of their reading programs than were non-Reading First Title I schools.
· Teachers in Reading First schools were more likely to report applying assessment results for varied instructional purposes (e.g., for planning, grouping, progress monitoring and identifying struggling readers) than their non-Reading First Title I counterparts.
The full text of Reading First Implementation Evaluation is available online at http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/opepd/ppss/reports.html#reading.

Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act

2006-08-02T08:46:00.001-07:00

Passage Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act:
Secretary Spellings on July 29th, 2006 made the following statement on the reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act:
"Congress deserves credit for making some needed reforms to the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education program. For the first time, Career and Technical Education [CTE] programs will be held accountable for continuous improvement in performance, measured by the academic proficiency of CTE students. Success will be determined through valid and reliable tests, including No Child Left Behind assessments in reading, math and science. These changes will help ensure that students graduate with the academic skills valued by employers and colleges alike. We now look forward to working with Congress to promote accountability, high standards and rigorous coursework in our high schools, essential to staying competitive in the global economy."

Title I/ELL

2006-08-02T08:46:00.000-07:00

U.S. Department of Education Regulations on Title I (ELL flexibility):
U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings today (July 27, 2006) announced a partnership with states to improve and develop fair and accurate testing designed for limited English proficient (LEP) students.
"The goal of No Child Left Behind is to give every child in America a great education and a successful start in life. This new initiative will increase the visibility of limited English proficient students and enable schools to more accurately measure their progress," Spellings said. "The 5.4 million LEP students in U.S. schools are our fastest-growing student population and are expected to make up one out of every four students by 2025. Our schools must be prepared to measure what English language learners know and teach them effectively."
Testing is the lynchpin of the No Child Left Behind Act, created to bring every child to grade level in reading and math by 2014. The best tools for this effort are valid and reliable content-based assessments in every state. The U.S. Department of Education will bring together experts from around the country to help states address the challenges of developing high-quality assessments for LEP students. The LEP Partnership with states will improve accommodations and content assessments in reading and mathematics for LEP students.
The Department is immediately inviting approximately 20 states to participate in intensive work on these assessments, but all states are welcome to participate in the LEP Partnership. These states submitted evidence for the Department's 2005-06 peer review of state assessment systems, focused on tests tailored to LEP students. In most cases the tests designed for LEP students have not yet met with full approval under NCLB.
A fact sheet on the LEP Partnership Initiative can be found at: http://www.ed.gov/nclb/methods/english/lepfactsheet.html.

Response to Intervention

2006-08-02T08:44:00.000-07:00

RTI:
IDEA final regulations- which include information on RTI - will be released on Thursday, August 3, 2006. These regulations will hopefully be available on the U.S Department of Education webpage that afternoon. Details to follow.

Senate Labor/HHS/ED appropriations

2006-07-19T14:34:00.000-07:00

The Committee for Education Funding is reporting:
Virtually all education programs are funded at the same level as FY06. No programs are eliminated.

The FY07 spending bill provides:
· $12.7 billion for Title I grants to local education agencies.
· $10.6 billion special education grants to states
· $2.7 billion to support state and local efforts to hire and retain "highly qualified" teachers, which is a cut of $140 million from FY06
· $1.1 billion Reading First state grants
· $669 million for English Language Acquisition state grants
· $100 million for states to provide funds for School Improvement grants under NCLB
· $35 million for Striving Readers

The bill includes more than $530 million for programs intended to promote American competitiveness globally, including:
· $195 million for Math and Science Partnerships
· $40 million for Advanced Placement Programs
· Restoration of $272.3 million for Educational Technology State Grants
· $26.2 million for Foreign Language Assistance programs

Senate Appropriations Allocations

2006-06-26T07:13:00.000-07:00

The Senate appropriations full committee approved its funding including almost exactly $5 billion more than the President’s requested level for Labor-HHS-Education. This is the overall amount of funds that the committee has to allocate to all of its programs.

FY06 FY07 President Senate FY07 allocation
$141,200 $137,798 $142,800

The L-HHS-ED appropriations subcommittee has scheduled its “mark up” for July 18 and full committee for July 20.

Budget Reform
House passed H.R. 4890, Legislative Line Item Veto Act, giving the President the authority to cancel certain discretionary, mandatory and tax expenditures subject to congressional approval within 45 days of passage.

The Senate Budget Committee approved Senator Gregg’s comprehensive budget reform bill, including a line item veto provision.

Voc Ed Moving??

2006-06-20T10:41:00.000-07:00

The long-stalled bill Perkins reauthorization bill could see action in summer 2006. In early June 2006, Senate and House leaders said they planned to appoint a conference committee to hash out differences between the HR 366 and S 250, a House committee chairman and congressional aides said.
Education and the Workforce Chairman Howard P. "Buck" McKeon, R-Calif., said in an interview that he expected conferees to be appointed soon. "We'll be moving on that," McKeon said.
The biggest difference between the bills is that the House version would combine the Perkins grants with a program called Tech-Prep, which offers specialized math and science courses to prepare high school students for vocational colleges, whereas the Senate bill keeps the programs separate. Some lawmakers fear that if they are merged, Tech-Prep will be gradually eliminated.
Another difference is what to call the program. The House bill calls it "Vocational and Technical Education." The Senate bill calls it "Career and Technical Education."
Bush has not threatened to veto a compromise bill, recognizing the program's strong bipartisan support. Bush has asked conferees for provisions to "ensure accountability" for the spending and direct money toward programs that improve graduation rates or job prospects

June 14th funding report

2006-06-14T08:31:00.000-07:00

The House Committee on Appropriations passed the Labor, Health & Human Services, Education and related agencies (L-HHS-ED) and related agencies appropriations bill on June 13. Education funding remains unchanged from the amount previously passed by sub-committee on June 7th.

For details go to:
http://appropriations.house.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=632&Month=6&Year=2006

Complete tables L-HHS-ED
http://appropriations.house.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=CommitteeDocuments.Home

June 7, 2006 funding report:

2006-06-13T11:57:00.000-07:00

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Committee agreed to a bill that sets total discretionary spending at $141.930 billion. The Department of Education’s budget is $400 million dollars less than FY06, a decrease of 0.7%.

Highlights of the bill: (B=billions, M=millions)

Programs that are funded at the FY06 level
Title I grants to LEA’s $12.7B
Reading First $1.02B
Early Reading First $103M
Striving Readers $35M
Impact Aid $1.2B
National Writing Project $21.5M
Head Start $6.7B
Regional Education Laboratories $65.5M
Vocational Education $1,296B

Programs that received an increase from FY06
IDEA state grants +150.1M making FY07 $11.753B
Title I, School improvements grants +$200M (new funding)
Title V-innovative state grants +$51M FY 07 $150M
Striving Readers +$5.3M FY 07 $35M
Pell Grant Maximum Award +$100 ($4,150 maximum award)
Math and Science Partnerships +$42.8M FY07 $225M
Advance Placement of +$47.8M FY07 $80M

All other higher education programs are level funded, including Trio, Gear Up, LEAP, College Work Study and Perkins loans cancellation.

Programs that received a decrease from FY06
Even Start - $29M FY07 $70M
Smaller Learning Communities -$43.5M FY07 $45.3M
Safe and Drug Free Schools state grants -$36.5M FY07 $310M
Teacher Quality state grants -$300.4M FY07 $2,587B
Comprehensive School Reform -$4.9 M FY07 $3M
School Counselors -$12.65 M FY07 $22M

The bill completely eliminates:
Education Technology State Grants -$272.3M
Drop Out Prevention -$4.5M
Arts in Education -$34M

The bill does not fund the President’s $1.5 billion high school initiative, the opportunity scholarship program, or the competitiveness initiative.

Funding Action in the Senate

2006-06-05T12:46:00.000-07:00

Senator Snow (R-ME) is seeking fellow senators to sign on to a "Dear Colleague" letter asking that the $7 billion passed in the Senate Budget process be allocated to the Labor/Health and Human Services/Education appropriations committee. This amount would restore the cuts made to those programs within the committee's jurisdiction last year and bring them back to FY 2005 levels.

The Committee for Education Funding (CEF), a coalition of over 100 education groups, is asking for calls and emails to be sent into members of the Senate asking for them to sign on to this "Dear Colleague" letter.

House Budget Finalized - Next Conference

2006-05-19T06:52:00.000-07:00

Early Thursday morning (1 am) May 18th, House of Representatives adopted the Fiscal Year 2007 (FY07) House budget resolution by a vote of 218-210.

The House budget resolution sets total discretionary spending at $873 billion, the same as the President’s request. In comparison, the Senate budget resolution sets the amount at $883.3 billion (includes Specter- Harkin increase of $7.1 bill for L-HHS-ED and $3 billion for home heating).

House moderate republicans have been made assurances that the Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill will include an increase of $4.1 billion, with an additional $3 billion added when the two Houses meet to finalize a budget resolution bill.

Funding - House Action

2006-05-10T07:54:00.000-07:00

The House Budget process has become a battle ground of conflicting priorities. Congressman Mike Castle (R-DE) had been fighting for a $7 billion amendment to the budget process to move money to the Labor-HHS-ED spending committee to bring their allocation up to what they had two years ago. It is unclear if this amendment will move forward when the House votes on its budget resolution Thursday, May 11th.

However, the House appropriation’s committee has voted its own allocation plan without the budget processes guidance. They increased the allocation to the Labor-HHS-ED spending committee by about $4.1 billion over last year’s level.

The next steps are two fold. First the budget resolution will need to move forward in the House and then to work out a joint resolution with the Senate. Parrallel to this, the House appropriators will be moving their spending plans from the overall allocation levels to making decisions about the line-by-line spending on programs.

House Budget Vote coming call by April 4th

2006-03-30T12:41:00.000-08:00

Congressman Mike Castle of Delaware will offer an amendment next week in the House, when budget debate takes place. The Castle amendment will mirror the Specter – Harkin Amendment. The Senate passed the Specter-Harkin amendment restores those cuts by providing an additional $7 billion over the President’s budget request – allowing Congress to fund the FY07 Labor-HHS bill at the level enacted two years ago, in FY05.

Castle told a crowd of Education and Health advocates Tuesday morning on Capital Hill:
“I will attempt to amend the budget resolution on the House Floor to include $7 billion the Senate added to domestic discretionary and to have 302 2 (b) allocations included in future budgets. My message is clear: I will not vote for a House Budget Resolution that would result in real cuts to critical federal investments in education, health care, housing, veterans’ services, social and community block grants AND encourage my colleagues who share these priorities to do the same.

Call 202-225-3121 to talk to your representative and ask them to support the Castle initiative.

House Budget Committee Action

2006-03-29T07:49:00.000-08:00

This is from the Committee for Education Funding (CEF).

Representative DeLauro (D-CT) will offer a $7 billion amendment for increased funding for education, health, and social services at today’s House budget committee mark-up of the FY07 House budget resolution. A vote is expected sometime around 1pm. The amendment is the same as the Specter-Harkin amendment that passed on the Senate floor two weeks ago. See attached talking points.

· Yesterday Rep. Michael Castle (R-DE) held a standing room only rally at the Capitol with education and health advocates to demand $7 billion more in funding for discretionary programs in the House budget resolution.

· Castle is leading an effort, among moderate Republicans to make sure the House budget resolution contains a $7 billion increase for education and health. If it does not, he publicly announced he and other moderates will work to defeat it on the floor.

House Budget Committee Amendment Pending

2006-03-24T12:50:00.000-08:00

The House Budget Committee is expected to begin working on their spending/revenue plan starting March 29th. It is anticipated that the following week will see the measure on the House floor.

Represenative DeLauro (D-CT) has said that she will offer an amendment to restore cuts to education, health and labor programs.

The Labor-HHS- ED appropriations bill funds the federal programs that keep America competitive and provide health, education, and job opportunities to those who need it most. But those programs are in danger under the President’s proposed FY07 budget, which would slash $4.2 billion from the FY06 Labor-HHS-ED bill and is $7 billion below the level in the FY05 bill.

Just as in the Senate the Specter-Harkin amendment, the DeLauro amendment restores those cuts by providing an additional $7 billion over the President’s budget request – allowing Congress to fund the FY07 Labor-HHS-ED bill at the level enacted two years ago, in FY05. Funding is provided by increasing the cap on FY08 advance appropriations by $7 billion.

Key Labor-HHS-ED programs that are endangered by the President’s budget

Education Programs: The President’s budget eliminates 42 programs, including all the vocational and technical education programs, Educational Technology State Grants, GEAR UP, Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities State Grants, TRIO Talent Search and Upward Bound.

Student Financial Aid: The President’s budget freezes the maximum Pell Grant award at $4,050, the same amount as four years ago, while tuition costs have risen dramatically.

National Institutes of Health: The President’s budget cuts funding for 18 of the 19 institutes at NIH. Funding for cancer research would be cut by $40 million.

Human Services for the Poor: The President’s budget cuts the Social Services Block Grant by $500 million and completely eliminates the Community Services Block Grant.

The Senate budget resolution says it has more funding for health and education than the President’s budget does. Yet it includes the same total amount for discretionary spending. Therefore, there is no guarantee that the alleged health and education increases will ever materialize in the Labor-HHS-ED appropriations bill. The only way to ensure more funding for Labor-HHS programs is to add money to the total spending level.

Every health, education, and job training program will benefit under this amendment. If Congress has to write a Labor-HHS-ED appropriations bill that’s $4.2 billion lower than last year, as the President has proposed, every program is in danger of being reduced or eliminated. Restoring funding to the FY05 level will make it possible to save programs that are on the President’s chopping block and provide increases for key health, education and workforce initiatives.

Win on the Senate Budget Amendment

2006-03-16T12:44:00.000-08:00

Thank you for all your support, your voice made a difference.

The Specter-Harkin $7 billion amendment has passed on the Senate floor by a vote of 73-27.

Senate moving a budget amendment to move education funding

2006-03-14T12:55:00.000-08:00

Sometime between Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday the Senate is likely to vote on an amendment to increase funding by $7 billion for discretionary programs with the plan that this money will go to education, health and labor programs. The $7 billion would bring funding back to the FY 2005 levels!

Please contact your Senators and ask them to support the Specter/Harkin budget amendment to increase education, health and labor programs by $7 billion.

You can call 202-224-3121 - the capitol switchboard and ask for your senator -by name or your state.

Senate Budget Amendment pending

2006-03-13T09:55:00.000-08:00

Sens. Harkin and Specter are likely to co-sponsor a bi-partisan floor amendment to the FY07 budget resolution when it goes to the Senate floor this week. The amendment may offer $7 billion over the President’s proposed discretionary cap in an effort to get the overall budget for function 500 back to the FY05 level. The amendment is not likely to include an offset.