The end of the school year provides us with a time to reflect and make decisions to better the student experience, and as you well know, those decisions are dependent upon funding. And that funding, well, it depends on what changes are made on Capitol Hill. So, there’s a good chance you’re paying attention. As the leader of DLAC’s Policy Protector’s PLC, I know you are. We’ve had some time as a community (shameless plug, you should totally come- our conversations are getting SO fun).
When we last met a bill had been introduced by Senator Mike Rounds (R- SD) that would essentially repeal the Elementary and Secondary Act. It would take the authority of policy down to mostly just funding streams with the exception of Title I and IDEA. Since the meeting, however, the budget reconciliation act has taken center stage. While most of the bill is centered around higher education, there is one main provision in the bill that creates a tax shelter for donations to private schools. The Educational Choice for Children Act (ECCA), according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, “would spur $126 billion in contributions to private school voucher funds over the next 10 years.”
We will continue watching this. It is likely that some version of ECCA will come to pass, but it could look very different after the Senate gets a hold of it. The provision passed the House but will be in for a long battle in the Senate.
A Time for Innovation
You may remember when the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) was going through congress to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act there were many conversations on Capitol Hill pertaining to assessments and accountability. These conversations also focused on how to encourage and provide access to technology, mental health initiatives and a well-rounded education. Ultimately, that’s what gave us Title 4A.
ESSA is full of the phrase “it is allowed”. What ultimately came to pass after all of the deliberations and even passage of ESSA under both Democrat and Republican leadership was that schools and districts that were already innovating felt better about what they were doing, but didn’t force any change.
Why Am I Telling You About This Now?
Innovation. Multiple measures for accountability. Systems of Assessments. Real-time data iterations. Next Generation Learning. All of these terms have been used for the last decade+ to discuss how we would like to improve education for students.
Currently, there are MANY differing opinions on the sweeping changes taking place in the federal landscape. When a group as diverse as the DLAC community, which is inclusive of a variety of educational models (online, blended, hybrid, charter, public, private) lands on a discussion topic on which everyone can seem to agree, it seems worth reporting. That topic? Accountability systems that work.
There are states doing incredible work on these fronts – take the state of North Dakota for example – Jessica Enderson has led her state, yes entire state, to a competency-based learning model. How did she do that? Her state allowed the flexibility of using multiple measures for accountability and innovation.
However, even the most bold states still have to follow federal regulations and guidelines. As a group, all agreed that one substantial change from, frankly, all this change will be the ability to innovate and assess students in meaningful ways without waivers or asking for permission from the federal government.
And so, let’s agree. The time is finally right to take advantage of the federal flexibilities and implement a system of accountability that makes sense for every student.