Senator Introduces Resolution to Repeal Obama Teacher-Prep Rules

Senator Introduces Resolution to Repeal Obama Teacher-Prep Rules

by | Mar 6, 2017 | Congress, Education Week, ESSA, Every Student Succeeds Act, Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), National

A joint resolution to repeal the teacher-preparation rules finalized by the Obama administration was introduced in the Senate on Thursday.

Senate Joint Resolution 26, sponsored by Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., would repeal the regulations from late last year that govern how teacher-prep programs measure the success of their students, among other factors influencing how those programs are judged (hat-tip Elizabeth Mann of the Brookings Institution). The measure has nine co-sponsors, all Republicans, including Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., the chairman of the Senate education committee. Other education committee members to back the joint resolution include Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan.

Sasse’s measure was introduced two days after a resolution to repeal Obama-era accountability regulations under the Every Student Succeeds Act was introduced with the backing of 10 GOP senators, including Alexander…

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Democrats Press Betsy DeVos for Details on Possible Education Department Cuts

Democrats Press Betsy DeVos for Details on Possible Education Department Cuts

by | Feb 28, 2017 | Betsy DeVos, Congress, Education Week, Michigan, President Donald Trump, US Department of Education, Virginia

By Andrew Ujifusa on February 28, 2017 12:13 PM

The top two Democratic lawmakers on education issues in Congress are asking for more details from Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos about her stated plans to look for ways to trim the U.S. Department of Education.

In a Feb. 24 letter to DeVos, Rep. Bobby Scott of Virginia and Sen. Patty Murray of Washington express concerns about DeVos’ comments to a Michigan radio talk show earlier this month that she would be auditing the department’s programs, and that she was confident there were unnecessary programs at the department. Those comments, the two lawmakers say, “raise questions” about what DeVos hopes to accomplish by such a review. (Scott and Murray are the top Democrats on the House and Senate education committees, respectively.)

“In fact, previous department budget requests have noted that current staff levels fall significantly short, endangering the department’s capacity to fulfill and enforce legal obligations” in several areas, from civil rights protections to data security, the joint letter states…

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Trump’s Executive Order on Regulations Has Unclear Impact on Education Dept.

Trump’s Executive Order on Regulations Has Unclear Impact on Education Dept.

by | Feb 14, 2017 | Congress, Education Week, ESSA, Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), President Barack Obama, President Donald Trump, Trump Administration, US Department of Education

On Monday, President Donald Trump issued an executive order designed to reduce the weight of federal government regulations. The announcement came the same morning Trump met with several small business owners, so the new order seems intended to please the private sector and help trigger entrepreneurism and job growth. But let’s briefly examine what it could mean for the U.S. Department of Education.

Here’s the key part of the executive order:

“Unless prohibited by law, whenever an executive department or agency (agency) publicly proposes for notice and comment or otherwise promulgates a new regulation, it shall identify at least two existing regulations to be repealed.”

The order goes on to say the head of each agency to make sure that the “total of all new incremental regulations, including repealed regulations, to be finalized this year [fiscal 2017] shall be no greater than zero.” It also directs the head of each agency, beginning in fiscal 2018, to identify which regulations are being repealed whenever a new one is adopted, and to identify that new regulation’s incremental cost…

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Exit Interview: Ed. Sec. John B. King Jr. Talks Legacy and Election Aftermath

Exit Interview: Ed. Sec. John B. King Jr. Talks Legacy and Election Aftermath

by | Feb 14, 2017 | Betsy DeVos, Congress, Education Week, ESSA, Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), k-12, Michigan, New York, Trump Administration, US Department of Education

U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. only served in his job for about a year. But in that time he’s helped lay the groundwork for implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act, the first reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in more than a decade.

And he’s traveled to more than 30 states, used his bully pulpit to argue for equitable access to education, and butted heads with education groups and Republicans in Congress over a wonky—but important—spending provision in ESSA.

In a sit-down interview, King and I talked about everything from the Obama…

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Trump White House Hits Pause on Obama’s ESSA Accountability Regulations

Trump White House Hits Pause on Obama’s ESSA Accountability Regulations

by | Feb 14, 2017 | Congress, District of Columbia, Education Week, Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), Trump Administration, US Department of Education

The Trump administration hit the pause button late Friday on a host of Obama administration regulatios, including one detailing how accountability and state plans will work under the Every Student Succeeds Act.

The regulation, which was finalized in November, doesn’t take effect until Jan. 30. On Inauguration Day, the White House issued an executive order delaying for up to 60 days the implementation of any Obama regulations that haven’t yet taken effect.

The delay in the accountability regulations, which would seem to last until late March, could throw a monkey wrench into states’ efforts to submit their accountability plans by April 3, the first of two deadlines set by the administration. The regulations outline the process for submitting plans, and flesh out details that aren’t included in the law. So far, 17 states and the District of Columbia have said they want to submit their plans in April…

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What Could Betsy DeVos Really Get Done as Education Secretary?

What Could Betsy DeVos Really Get Done as Education Secretary?

by | Feb 14, 2017 | Congress, Education Week, ESSA, Every Student Succeeds Act, IDEA, No Child Left Behind, Tennessee, US Department of Education, Washington

The prospect of Betsy DeVos as U.S. Secretary of Education has some school choice supporters riding high, while many educators, members of the civil rights community, and disability advocates are taking to the streets in anger, literally.

But what if her nomination is approved? (That looks more likely than not for now, even though a couple of GOP lawmakers said Tuesday they’re not sure about the nominee heading into the full Senate vote.) How much could DeVos really do at the U.S. Department of Education without the help of Congress or state policymakers?

The short answer: Maybe not quite…

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Education Department Withdraws Controversial ESSA Spending Proposal

Education Department Withdraws Controversial ESSA Spending Proposal

by | Feb 14, 2017 | Congress, Education Week, Every Student Succeeds Act, Trump Administration, US Department of Education

That big fight over spending rules for the Every Student Succeeds Act has ended not with a bang, but a whimper: U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King, Jr. is throwing in the towel, withdrawing a proposed regulation for a section of the law known as “supplement-not-supplant” that had strong backing in the civil rights community, but angered state chiefs, advocates for districts, and Republicans in Congress.

The proposal was all but certain to be tossed by a Republican-backed Congress and the Trump administration.

The department’s draft rule, released in August, would have pushed for districts and states to make sure they were spending roughly same amount of money—including for teachers’ salaries—in schools that serve a sizeable population of poor students and less-poor schools…

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