Promise, Policy, and Power: Redefining the Federal Role in American Education FEDERAL LEGISLATIVE & EDUCATION POLICY OUTLOOK J.F. “Jeff” McCullers
Budget: $81.1 bn Employees: 4,000
Challenges for Secretary Complete leadership team Work with split Congress Avoid Common Core State Standards Implement Uniform Grant Guidance Provide direction to What Works Clearinghouse, the Office of Civil Rights, new Title IV program, and student loans
Chief financial officer Douglas Webster Secretary Betsy DeVos Deputy secretary Mitchell Zais General counsel Carlos G. Muñiz Chief financial officer Douglas Webster Assistant secretary for legislation and congressional affairs Peter Louis Oppenheim Undersecretary No nomination Assistant secretary for civil rights Kenneth L. Marcus Assistant secretary for communications and outreach Assistant secretary for elementary and secondary education Frank T. Brogan Assistant secretary for planning, evaluation and policy development James Blew Assistant secretary for postsecondary education Pending Assistant secretary for special education and rehabilitative services Assistant secretary for career, technical and adult education Scott Stump Commissioner, Rehabilitation Services Administration Mark Schultz Director of the Institute of Education Sciences Mark Schneider Source: Washington Post
Source: U.S. Department of Education
No Child Left Behind: Over And Done
Every Student Succeeds: In Full Force
Deleted From ESEA 100% proficiency requirement State waivers Adequate yearly progress Highly-qualified teachers Federal requirements for education paraprofessionals Secretary’s authority to waive most requirements Secretary’s ability to encourage adoption of curriculum standards
Still in ESEA Supplement, not supplant (sort of) Maintenance of effort Student testing and reporting Subgroup reporting FERPA NAEP participation Magnet Schools Assistance Program 21st Century Learning Centers Program
Added to ESEA New state plans required for school year 2017-18 2018-19 95% assessment participation requirement Support for private alternative teacher preparation programs New Teacher and School Leader Incentive Program (replaced TIF) New Title IV Student Success & Academic Achievement program “Well rounded education” State ombudsman for private school participation (Nicolle Tanner)
Data Trends for Grant Developers New ESSA plan (at last!) Audits under UGG Reconfigurations and reductions to federal programs New Title IV grant and new competitive programs Possible governmental shutdowns Congressional paralysis
New state ESSA plan Represents overlapping interests: Two different Presidents Two different Congresses Two different Secretaries of Education Florida history with school accountability measures Florida’s history with English learners.
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan December 10, 2015 School Year 2015-16 President Obama signs ESSA into law. Reauthorizes ESEA. Existing state plans will end on June 30, 2017 Existing state waivers will end on June 30, 2017.
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan January 1, 2016 School Year 2015-16 0:00:22 John King takes office as the new U.S. Secretary of Education after Arne Duncan resigns. Duncan King
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan January 6, 2016 School Year 2015-16 0:00:27 Florida State Board of Education lowers student and school cut scores to help transition to to new state assessment and accountability model.
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan May 31, 2016 School Year 2015-16 0:05:21 Secretary King announced rulemaking process in Federal Register to include requirements for: State accountability systems State school support systems State school report cards State ESSA plan
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan June 3, 2016 School Year 2015-16 0:05:25 FDOE announces public input schedule. Memorandum from Chancellor Lyons cites: Florida’s accountability history Florida progress in closing achievement gaps NAEP results for Hispanic students* Unanswered and unresolved questions about implementation
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan June 20, 2016 School Year 2015-16 0:06:10 FDOE convenes online public input on ESSA. Eventually, 912 people submit comments, including: Teachers (309) Parents and families (213) The public (77) School district administrators (73) Community organizations (63) Educator organizations (35)
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan August 1, 2016 School Year 2016-17 0:07:22 Commissioner Pam Stewart writes to Secretary John King challenging: ESSA plan timeline Authority of Secretary Requirement for parental notices to be in home language Criteria for low-performing subgroups
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan November 8, 2016 School Year 2016-17 0:10:29
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan January 20, 2017 School Year 2016-17 1:01:10 Donald Trump takes office as 45th President of the United States.
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan February 7, 2017 School Year 2016-17 1:01:28 Betsy DeVos takes office as the new U.S. Secretary of Education. DeVos
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan June 30, 2017 School Year 2016-17 1:06:20 FDOE publishes draft ESSA plan. 450 people submit 1,295 comments and suggestions.
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan July 20, 2017 School Year 2017-18 1:07:10 FDOE publishes draft ESSA waiver request that would allow Florida to: Not grade schools on English proficiency gains Not test English learners in their home language Waiver request is not submitted to Secretary DeVos.
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan September 10, 2017 School Year 2017-18 1:09:10 IRMA 134 deaths lengthy school closures $64.8 billion in losses
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan September 20, 2017 School Year 2017-18 1:09:20 MARIA 2,982 deaths Near-total loss of power $90 billion in losses 11,554 students relocated to Florida
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan September 21, 2017 School Year 2017-18 1:09:21 FDOE submits ESSA plan proposing that Florida: Will report English proficiency gains Will grade schools on all learners and not on subgroups Will not test English learners in their home language
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan December 11, 2017 School Year 2017-18 2:01:00 The President nominates Frank Brogran to be Assistant Secretary of Education for Elementary and Secondary Education. Teacher, principal, and superintendent in Martin County Florida Commissioner of Education Lieutenant Governor of Florida President of Florida Atlantic University Chancellor of State University System (Florida, then Pennsylvania)
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan December 19, 2017 School Year 2017-18 2:01:08 Secretary DeVos rejects Florida’s ESSA plan and requires resubmittal by January 4. (Deadline later extended to February 16.)
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan February 14, 2018 School Year 2017-18 2:02:04
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan April 23, 2018 School Year 2017-18 2:04:13 Florida submits revised ESSA plan. Additional waiver requests to avoid double-testing. Acknowledged Spanish as second-most spoken language. Added Asian as an additional reporting subgroup. Created parallel “Federal Percent of Points Index.”
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan September 26, 2018 School Year 2018-19 2:09:16 Secretary DeVos approves Florida’s revised ESSA plan. State accountability tests will be administered in English only. Two school accountability systems will be used side by side.
Timeline of the Florida ESSA Plan January 8, 2018 School Year 2018-19 3:00:29 Ron DeSantis takes office as 46th governor. Three Florida Supreme Court Justices retire. Commissioner Pam Stewart retires.
Not Testing In First Language State English Learners Percent Florida 268,189 9.6% Georgia 112,006 6.4% Arizona 67,195 6.1% South Carolina 42,574 5.6% Tennessee 36,398 4.1% Montana 3,299 2.2% Mississippi 9,588 2.0% SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data (CCD), "Local Education Agency Universe Survey," 2000-01 through 2015-16.
Dual System: Components School Grades Federal Percent of Points Index Current School Grades components English Language proficiency and gains
Dual System: Schools Assessed School Grades Federal Percent of Points Index General education schools Alternative schools ESE centers DJJ schools
Dual System: Subgroup Reporting School Grades Federal Percent of Points Index Economically disadvantaged students Major racial and ethnic groups Students with disabilities English Language Learners (ELLs) Lowest 25th Percent in ELA Lowest 25% Percent in Mathematics
Dual System: Subgroup Reporting School Grades Federal Percent of Points Index Economically disadvantaged students Major racial and ethnic groups Students with disabilities English Language Learners (ELLs) Lowest 25th Percent in ELA Lowest 25% Percent in Mathematics
Dual System: Improvement Status School Grades Federal Percent of Points Index Grade of “D” or “F” for one year Any subgroup below 31% for three consecutive years
Moral Of The Story All politics is local. Donald Trump Betsy DeVos Moral Of The Story All politics is local. Complicated things happen slowly. Leadership, leadership, leadership. Ron DeSantis Bill Galvano José Oliva Pam Stewart Richard Corcoran
State Implementation Concerns over new federal accountability plan and Federal Index Questions about new ESSA fiscal transparency reporting New statutes supporting charter school participation in federal grants Auditor learning curve with UGG
Federal Implementation New party in control of House; new Speaker; new committee chairs Shutdowns (split congress facing high deficits) and/or CRs More of the same regarding federal grant allocations Flat funding (possible small increases in safety or workforce programs) Rulemaking focus on civil rights enforcement and financial aid
Potential Effects on Federal Projects Special Counsel Sustained federal shutdown 2020 election campaigns 2020 Census New Courts Business cycle Disruptive events (e.g., climate events, school shootings)
Promise, Policy, and Power: Redefining the Federal Role in American Education FEDERAL LEGISLATIVE & EDUCATION POLICY OUTLOOK J.F. “Jeff” McCullers
Notes on Images Image of Lyndon Baines Johnson Department of Education Building. n.d. General Services Administration. Public domain. Portrait of President Trump. 2017. White House. Public domain. Portrait of Secretary DeVos. 2017. U.S. Department of Education. Public domain. Image of President Bush signing NCLB. 2002. White House. Public domain. Image of President Obama signing ESSA. 2015. White House. Public domain. Image of Secretary Duncan. U.S. Department of Education. Public domain. Image of Secretary King. U.S. Department of Education. Public Domain. Image of President Trump taking the Oath of Office. White House. Public domain.