A new report by the Heartland Institute underscores the myriad school safety risks facing students today, proposing for “states to create a Child Safety Account (CSA) program, which would allow parents to immediately have their child moved to a safe school…as soon as parents think...
According to Louisiana’s school performance scores, almost half (35 out of 72) of New Orleans schools in the all-charter district scored a D or F, “meaning nearly half of local public schools were considered failing, or close to it, in the school year ending in...
Six school districts, two associations, and two individuals are “pushing back against a new state law aimed at improving school transportation for students in foster care,” Christie Renick reports for the Chronicle of Social Change. This law (HB 18-1306)—which helps Colorado comply with ESSA’s foster youth transportation provision—allocates nearly...
Charles Lussier reports for The Advocate that as the East Baton Rouge Parish public school system works to “quickly” spend a $2.2 million federal school improvement grant, a number of school choice advocacy groups are pressing school officials to use this ESSA-based funding to “expand ‘high quality options’ as...
Alyson Klein asks, has U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos being “a big cheerleader for school choice,” and the fact that some states have been “adopting tax-credit scholarships, education savings accounts,” and more, “translated into a big bonanza for school choice” in state ESSA plans?...
Alyson Klein reports for Education Week that while school choice may be “having a big moment in K-12 policy,” you would “never know it from reading” state ESSA plans. An Education Week review of all state plans reveals “that few are taking advantage of the...
Wisconsin submitted its ESSA plan to the U.S. Dept. of Education “over objections from Gov. Scott Walker and conservative groups that it didn’t do enough to embrace innovative ideas, such as expanding taxpayer-funded private school choice programs.”
RealClearEducation examined how U.S. Sec. of Education Betsy DeVos is “encouraged” to see states expand school choice under ESSA. The piece identifies local efforts in Arizona, Colorado, and Florida. In a statement to RealClearEducation, DeVos was pleased “to see so many states pass pro-student and...
Secretary of Education Betsey DeVos testified before Congress on the Trump administration’s 2018 budget proposal. During the hearing, DeVos discussed Title I funding and school choice, and underscored her belief in local control. She stressed that she “believes states should continue to have flexibility in...
Education Week finds that few state ESSA plans are mentioning charter school efforts. Jennifer Thomsen, the author and director of the Education Commission of the States Knowledge and Research Center, argued that, “what we’re really seeing in most of the accountability sections is that district...
