蜜桃影视

This update on the Every Student Succeeds Act and the education plans now being refined by state legislatures is produced in partnership with ESSA Essentials, a new series from the Collaborative for Student Success. It鈥檚 an offshoot of their聽聽newsletter, which you can聽! (See our recent ESSA updates聽from previous weeks right here.)

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos Oct. 17 that all state plans 鈥� submitted by 34 states and Puerto Rico 鈥� are 鈥渃omplete and ready for peer review.鈥� DeVos identified this as 鈥渁nother key step in implementing ESSA,鈥� and that the department had 鈥渨orked closely with each state to ensure their plans were ready for peer review.鈥�

Department staff and peer reviewers will now take a look at the plans for compliance with the federal law. (Bellwether and the Collaborative will also be working with more than 40 education experts to these plans, as they did with the first round states.)

Alabama was one of the last states to approve and submit its plan after being granted a hurricane-related delay. WSFA 12 News that when approving the plan, the Alabama State School Board said that 鈥渃hanges will be needed in the future.鈥�

Parents and advocates of special education students raised concerns regarding the plan because it 鈥渁llows any sub-group (such as special needs) with less than 20 kids in a school鈥� to 鈥渘ot count in the evaluation process.鈥澛營nterim Superintendent Ed Richardson said that he hopes 鈥渢o set up future meetings to help come up with a few priorities for the concerned parents, which could then be brought to the school board,鈥� and 鈥渃reate a framework to make sure those concerned with issues like special education can get their voices heard.鈥�

Military Student Identifier and helping military-connected students

The U.S. Navy’s Proceedings magazine last week about the education for military-connected students and the readiness of our armed forces written by Jim Cowen, executive director of the Collaborative for Student Success, and Marcus Lingenfelter, vice president of state and federal programs for the National Math + Science Initiative.

One 鈥渒ey factor in the degradation of military readiness,鈥� they write, 鈥渋nvolves a very personal element: service members and their young families.鈥� Any service member with kids 鈥渨ill tell you that the quality of education for their children is of top priority,鈥� and military families 鈥渁re making choices about whether to accept a particular duty station or, worse, leave the armed forces based in part on the quality of the military bases鈥� schools.鈥� Cowen and Lingenfelter highlighted ESSA鈥檚 Military Student Identifier as a watershed local-level development.

Amelia Harper at also has military-connected students in mind, writing about a new District Administration brief that notes school leaders 鈥渘eed to be aware of how the experiences of military families create special challenges in the way students connect to the world, the social and emotional challenges they face, and the educational needs they have.鈥�

Now, the new ESSA law 鈥渞equires schools to identify children in military families and provide support for students who face multiple school transitions in their lives as well as the stress of having one or both parents deployed for long periods of time.鈥� In addition, schools with large numbers of military families are 鈥渆mploying 鈥榤ilitary family life consultants鈥� to assist in school transitions or creating 鈥榖uddy programs鈥� to connect these students to their new students in an attempt to smooth the process.鈥�

Colorado doubles up on quality systems for state schools

Chalkbeat that, in 鈥渁n effort to keep federal dollars flowing to Colorado classrooms,鈥� the State Board of Education has voted 鈥渢o create two quality systems for the state鈥檚 schools 鈥� the existing one designed in 2009 by state lawmakers, and a new one that meets federal requirements.鈥�

Why? After Colorado became the epicenter of the opt-out movement in 2015, the state board 鈥渁dopted a policy that forbid the state from lowering a school鈥檚 quality rating if they missed the 95 percent participation requirement.鈥� But this move 鈥減roved to be a sticking point when state officials submitted Colorado鈥檚 plan for complying with鈥� ESSA. Federal officials 鈥�, saying the opt-out provision didn鈥檛 comply with the new law.鈥� The compromise focuses on 鈥渟chool quality ratings that don鈥檛 penalize schools for high opt-out rates.鈥�

Oregon parents concerned graduation requirements could risk transition services

are concerned that 鈥渁 change to modified diplomas could risk transition services鈥� for their children, according to the Portland Tribune. Under ESSA, all states must 鈥渦se one high school diploma 鈥� the one that a 鈥榩reponderance鈥� of students earn 鈥� to count as their graduation rate.鈥�

A state Senate bill was drafted to match graduation requirements with ESSA, but some parents of students with disabilities are worried 鈥渢hey will have to pick getting a diploma for their child or getting them the services they were promised until age 21.鈥� This 鈥渨ould make those students鈥� dreams of attending college or getting a job much more difficult,鈥� according to a special education advocate.

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