Summary of federal policy action this past month and a look-ahead to the next few weeks/month
- White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health: On September 28th, the Biden-Harris Administration hosted the first White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health in over 50 years. In conjunction with the conference, the White House announced a package of new actions it will take in partnership with industry, philanthropic, and academic leaders to address hunger and reduce diet-related disease by 2030. The package includes five pillars: improve food access and affordability; integrated nutrition and health; empower consumers to make and have access to healthy choices; support physical activity for all; and enhance nutrition and food security research.
- Bipartisan Safer Communities Act: On October 3rd, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) opened the application for two grant programs totaling $280 million as part of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. The School-Based Mental Health Services Grant Program is a competitive grant program for state and local educational agencies to increase the number of mental health service providers delivering in-school services. The ED anticipates issuing 150 grants with an average award of $1.75 million over five years. The Mental Health Services Professional Demonstration Grant Program is a competitive grant program for local educational agencies to increase the supply of mental health professionals in schools. The ED anticipates issuing 250 awards with an average award of $800,00 over five years.
- Update on FY 2023 Appropriations: On September 30th, President Biden signed a continuing resolution bill (CR) to continue to fund the government at the current spending levels until December 16th. Congress will use this time to agree upon a budget for FY23.
Policy-related events and resources of interest, including federal funding opportunities
Events
- Upcoming Event: Nellie Mae Education Foundation will host Democracy and Public Education in Peril on October 24th at 4:00 pm EDT. More information and registration can be found here.
- Upcoming Event: Learning Policy Institute will host the webinar Whole Child Policy: Putting the Science of Learning and Development Into Practice on October 26th at 3:00 pm EDT. More information and registration can be found here.
- Upcoming Event: ACE will host the workshop Community Colleges and the Carnegie Classification for Community Engagement on October 28th at 1:00 pm EDT. More information and registration can be found here.
- Upcoming Event: National CACFP Association will host the Saturday Summit 2022 on October 15th from 11:00 am-4:00 pm EDT. More information and registration can be found here.
- Past Event: NCEE and OECD hosted the webinar OECD’s Education at a Glance 2022: Implications for the US. More information can be found here.
- Past Event: AASA, First Focus, and FRAC hosted the webinar Re-thinking the Poverty Indicators in the Education System: What else could work? Evaluating alternatives to Free and Reduced Price Meal dada as a reliable poverty indicator in education. More information can be found here.
- Past Event: Children’s Funding Project hosted How Federal Funding Tools Can Help Tribal Nations Support Child and Youth Programs. More information and registration can be found here.
Resources - Mary E. Walsh Center or Thriving Children: Report/Resource: National Guidelines for Integrated Student Support
- Institute of Education Sciences: Report: 2022 School Pulse Panel
- AASA and CRPE: Webinar Recording: Back-to-School Spotlights: ESSER Spending and Evaluation Brightspots.
- WorkforceGPS: Webinar: Announcing Next Level Now Collaborative Technical Assistance for the Workforce System.
- Office of Disability Employment Policy: Resources: National Disability Employment Awareness Month
- U.S. Department of Education: Press Release: U.S. Department of Education Awards Over $60 Million to Strengthen the Teacher Pipeline, Increase Educator Leadership, and Support Quality Teaching and Learning to Further Address Teacher Shortage.
- Inside HigherEd: News Report: Breaking Down Barriers to Internships
Funding Opportunities
- Federal Register: Education Department
- School-Based Mental Health Services Grant Program: Technical Assistance
- Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration Grant Program: Technical Assistance
- Federal Register: Workforce Development
IEL Policy Highlights
- Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff visited the United Way of Greater Lehigh Valley in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on September 15th to spotlight Community Schools and Integrated Student Supports. This visit took place on the fourth day of Secretary Cardona’s Road to Success Back to School Bus Tour, which highlighted the Administration’s pandemic recovery work in K-12 and higher education including increasing access to health and academic supports through Community Schools.