March 2023 IEL Federal Policy Update - Institute for Educational Leadership

Summary of federal policy action this past month and a look-ahead to the next few weeks/month

Fiscal Year 2024 Budget Request: On March 9^th, President Biden released his budget for Fiscal Year 2024, including $90 billion for the Department of Education.  The President’s budget includes $368 million for Full-Service Community Schools, $20.5 billion for Title I, $16.8 billion for IDEA, $3 billion for teacher preparation programs, $120 million for the Youth Mentoring Program grant, and $500 million to establish a discretionary grant program to provide up to two years of free community college for students enrolled in high-quality programs that lead to a four-year degree or a well-paying job. IEL celebrates this proposed budget for the fiscal year 2024 as it makes critical investments in programmatic support for children, families, and communities. However, it is unlikely to pass with the Republican-controlled House looking to make significant spending cuts.

The House Passes H.R.5: On March 23^rd, the House passed the Parents Bill of Rights with a 5-vote margin (213-208). The Parents Bill of Rights requires schools to post curriculum and library book lists publicly, requires school boards to allow parents to address them, teachers to offer at least two in-person meetings to parents each academic year, and that “parents have a say” in the development of school privacy policies and procedures, and for schools to notify parents of violent activity occurring on school grounds. The bill will now proceed to the Senate, where it is unlikely to pass. To counter this bill, Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR-1) introduced House Resolution 219, in which IEL signed on in support of, demonstrating the effectiveness of parent, teacher, and school partnerships in the lives and educational outcomes of students. H.Res.219 affirms that many of the proposed “rights” in H.R.5 already exist and reinforces the harm that will be done to LGBTQ+ and other marginalized communities if allowed to become law. To better understand the differences between and impacts of H.R.5 and H.Res219, read this article by Brookings entitled The Dueling Parents’ Rights Proposals in Congress: What the Evidence Says about Family-School Collaboration.

Pay Teachers Act (S. 766): On March 9^th, Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Chair of the Senate HELP Committee, introduced the Pay Teachers Act. This bill, a companion to the House’s American Teacher Act, requires states to pay teachers a minimum annual salary of $60,000, authorizes $550 million for the Teacher Quality Partnership grant program, provides $300 million for IDEA Part D to support the growth of special education teachers, and seeks to increase teacher diversity by providing $150 million to be spent on the Augustus F. Hawkins Centers for Excellence Program. Additionally, the Pay Teachers Act calls for significant federal investments in public schools, including tripling Title 1-A funding ($36.77 billion), increasing funding for Rural Education programs ($430 million), doubling funding for Impact Aid Basic Support Payments ($1.46 billion), and providing an additional $1 billion in spending for the Bureau of Indian Education. If this bill passes in the Senate, it is unlikely to pass in the House.

Policy-related events and resources of interest, including federal funding opportunities

Events

Upcoming Event: The Hunt Institute will host the webinar Women’s History Month: Everyday Superwomen: The Lessons and Best Practices of Women Leaders in Politics, Education, and Philanthropy on Wednesday, March 29^th at 2:00 pm ET. More information and registration can be found here.
Upcoming Event: FutureEd will host the webinar: Teachers Like Us: Strategies for Increasing Educator Diversity on Tuesday, April 4^th at 12:00 pm ET. More information and registration can be found here.
Upcoming Event: National Conference of State Legislatures will host the webinar Part 1: K-12 Education Funding and Teacher Policy on April 5 at 3:00 pm EST. More information and registration can be found here.
Upcoming Event: Learning Policy Institute will host the webinar Whole Child Policy: Investing Resources Equitably and Efficiently on April 12 from 3:00-4:00 pm EST. More information and registration can be found here.
Past Event: Ed Choice hosted a conversation Common Ground: Black Parents’ Views on K-12 Education at SXSWedu with Jay Artis-Wright, Dr. Charles Cole III, Constance Lindsay, and Janell Wood. More information can be found here.
Past Event: Education Week hosted the webinar Classroom Strategies for Building Equity and Student Confidence. More information can be found here.

Resources

Education Week: Report: How Technology is Shaping Reading Instruction—For Better or Worse
Education Commission of the States: Report: Governors’ Top Education Priorities in 2023 State of the State Addresses
Learning Policy Institute: Report: Federal and State Resources for Students Experiencing Homelessness
Urban Institute: Report: Union-Based Apprenticeships for Young People
American Enterprise Institute: Podcast: Student Loan Forgiveness in the Court with Beth Akers and Adam White
New America: Policy Brief: How to Plan High Quality, Non-Degree Workforce Programs at Community Colleges
Child Trends: Report: States Can Address Medicaid’s Unwinding Challenge for Early Intervention for Kids with Disabilities

Funding Opportunities

Federal Register: Education Department
NIA: Grant for Personnel Development to Improve Services and Results for Children with Disabilities Program (Deadline to apply is April 24, 2023)
NIA: Grant for Educational Technology, Media, and Materials for Individuals with Disabilities—Center on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics for Young Children with Disabilities (Deadline to apply is April 24, 2023)

IEL Policy Highlights

From March 20-22, IEL hosted the 59^th annual Washington Policy Seminar, the capstone event of the Education Policy Fellowship Program, in which approximately 220 fellows from across nine sites came to Washington, D.C., to learn about education policy from inside the Beltway. Fellows attended plenary sessions and workshops, participated in a Congressional role play, and visited the Hill to meet with members of Congress and their staff.
IEL signed on in support of H.Res.219, sponsored by Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR-1), who “introduced the Bill of Rights for Students and Parents because we need an inclusive, affirmative vision for public education. . . [and] collaboration between parents and their children’s educators.”