During August, thirteen policy analysts published reports about聽what occurred in California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Louisiana, Montana, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Vermont, and Virginia.
ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act)
Delaware: Zoi Philippakos shared the with 鈥渁n ambitious and rigorous plan addressing graduation rates, ELA and math goals, and English Language Learners.鈥�
Louisiana: Jalissa Bates also reported that was approved.
Montana: Anna Baldwin described as relying on test scores and emphasizing graduation rates and school quality. Anna describes the disconnect over the treatment of English language learners and the bottom 5% of schools.
Ohio: In her , Robin Holland relayed that after review by Governor Kasich, Ohio will submit its ESSA application to the US Department of Education in September.
Texas: In her , Teri Lesesne noted that despite stakeholders emphasizing critical thinking, raising salaries, and funding as important, the plan under review 鈥渞elies on the same old, same old measures of 鈥榚xcellence,鈥� namely, test scores.鈥�
Vermont: Anne Slonaker listed the that the US Department of Education requested of Vermont.
Virginia: Leila Christenbury described the as 鈥渇ar less draconian and also less prescriptive than previous Virginia-recommended school interventions.鈥�
笔谤别碍鈥�12
California: Laurie Stowell presented both sides of the , concluding that if it passed, California would be the first to legislate statewide school start times.
Pennsylvania: Aileen Hower on the introduction of a bill to expand Pennsylvania鈥檚 Education Savings Account (ESA) program to provide funding for low-income students at private schools. She then provided a by critics who claim that ESAs are 鈥渏ust vouchers by another name.鈥� Aileen shared that Governor Tom Wolf announced a .
Texas: Teri Lesesne shared that the Texas Education Agency (TEA) has created a new that provides information about the state test (STAAR) and Lexiles. She to Shona Rose鈥檚 blog post describing her phone call with TEA about the writing portion of STAAR. Teri also reported that would wait two years until the Texas legislature convenes again.
Higher Education
California: Referring to the 2017 IES report, Carol Olson that 鈥渃ontext (e.g., type of institution, SAT/ACT scores, age, and race) matters when it comes to remaining enrolled or graduating from programs.鈥�
Florida: Jeffrey Kaplan delineated the struggle in Florida over , with the governor wanting to expand the number of students taking virtual courses and legislators viewing such an expansion as detrimental to Florida having an 鈥渆lite鈥� higher education system.
New Mexico: Kate Mangelsdorf noted that New Mexico is 鈥渙ne of ten states in the country with the per student in higher education,鈥� even though the 鈥渧alue . . . for students in New Mexico remains high.鈥� She continued that Budget Cuts Affect University Writing Programs, with fewer students being served and successful initiatives being curtailed.
Both 笔谤别碍鈥�12 and Higher Education
Connecticut: In , Stephen Ferruci described the challenges that English language learners face in light of new ESSA requirements. He referenced H.B. 3865 that would have required bilingual education, but was never brought up on the floor, and a study concluding that dual-language programs are successful. He raised concerns over Connecticut loosening requirements for certification and employing the 鈥渦se of the Relay Graduate School of Education, a program that fast-tracks certification . . . and . . . that has been rejected by Connecticut鈥檚 Board of Higher Education.鈥�
New Mexico: Kate Mangelsdorf provided an regarding the lawsuit filed by the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) and the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty claiming that ELL, Native American, and low-income students were not receiving the 鈥渆ducational opportunities guaranteed by the New Mexico Constitution.鈥�