Learning Forward Advocacy
Advocacy update: August 9, 2019
President Signs Bill Raising the Spending Caps – Appropriations Process Can Move Forward
On August 2, President Trump signed a bill lifting existing spending caps for the next two fiscal years and raising the debt ceiling until 2021. This is likely good news for the education appropriations process as more dollars are now available for both non-defense and defense programs. Senate Appropriators should receive their separate bill allocations this week and we are hopeful that the Labor HHS Education will get its fair share.
Going forward, we expect that the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee's and Full Committee's mark-ups of FY20 Labor HHS Education Appropriations will occur in mid to late September. Once the Appropriations Committee is finished marking up this bill, it will be paired with Defense Appropriations and brought to the Senate floor. After this mini-bus bill passes, it will be conferenced with the House version that passed a few months back. The conference negotiations is where the rubber will meet the road as we don’t know what the difference will be and where conference negotiators will land.
Between now and September 30, Learning Forward will call on our stakeholders to help us in reaching out to House and Senate Appropriations committee members to share data about the impact of Title II funding in your state, district or school. This will be a critical time for action. Please be sure that you are signed up for the Learning Forward A-Team and get your data ready!
ICYMI: Capitol Hill Briefing
Learning Forward’s Capitol Hill briefing on September 27 was a great success as we shared data at the national, state, district, and school levels providing evidence that professional learning is making a positive impact on teacher practice and student outcomes.
We encourage all educators to watch the briefing and to join us in documenting and providing evidence as we ready for next year.
Download the Congressional briefing presentation.
Evidence, evidence, evidence
Evidence of impact is not optional. From your ESSA plans to Title II to talking with your district superintendent, everyone wants to know when professional development is making an impact and how you know. Learning Forward is here to help. We invite you to join your peers from across the U.S. to share your successes here.
Tell us what Title II funds in your school or district, and most important, what outcomes you see as a result. Outcomes might include improved graduation rates or assessment scores, improvements for specific populations of students, or other indicators that students are experiencing more meaningful learning.
ESSA Toolkits
A New Vision For Professional Learning: A Toolkit to Help
States Use ESSA to Advance Learning and ImprovementSystems. This toolkit helps leaders leverage professional learning as
an essential tool in overcoming systemic inequities and guaranteeing
excellence for all.
Agents for Learning Toolkit: A Guide to Amplifying Teacher
Voice and Stakeholder Engagement. This toolkit suggests ways to cultivate teacher voice and agency in policy decisions and the implementation of professional learning.
Webinar series: Speak up for Title II
Learning Forward hosted a series of advocacy webinars designed to help educators build their advocacy skills. Each free webinar provides background information, the legislative status of Title II, and offers practical steps for how you can engage in this critical fight.
Interested in learning more about upcoming webinars?
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Director, Policy/PartnershipsWhat people are saying
I love the emphasis on advocacy for our field – the sample templates Learning Forward shares to communicate with state reps regarding policy, the up-to-date info about policy and legislation that could impact our field. I also really appreciate that Learning Forward is the standard-bearer for professional learning standards and provides a framework that supports calibrated understanding of quality and how to strive for it. — Rhonda