by Jason Russell
Washington Examiner
December 11, 2015
President Obama signed the Every Student Succeeds Act into law Thursday. The bill replaces No Child Left Behind and is the first major federal education reform in almost 14 years.
“The goals of No Child Left Behind … were the right ones: high standards, accountability, closing the achievement gap, making sure that every child was learning,” Obama said at the signing ceremony. “But in practice, it often fell short. … This bill makes long overdue fixes to the last education law, replacing the one-size fits all approach to reform with a commitment to provide every student with a well-rounded education.”
Here are details of what’s inside the Every Student Succeeds Act.
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Charter Schools
The federal charter school program now has dedicated funding for replicating and expanding high-performing charter schools. State grants can now be administered by governors and charter support organizations, rather than just state education agencies. They are also free to hire staff that meets their own unique needs. “This is an exciting moment for the charter school movement,” President and CEO of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools Nina Rees said Wednesday.
On the other hand, Jeanne Allen, founder and president-emeritus of the Center for Education Reform, called the charter school provisions a “double-edged sword.” Allen told the Washington Examiner, “There’s more money, there’s increased funding for start-up grants. … [However,] the charter grant program has become very formulaic and very regulatory.”
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