Learning Forward Advocacy
Advocacy update:
January 9, 2020
The new appropriations season starts now
The White House announced this week that the President will be releasing his Fiscal Year 2021 Proposed Budget on February 10, which will kickstart the FY2021 appropriations process. We anticipate that, as he has in each of the past three years, the President will ignore Congress’ firm support for Title II-A and zero out this program, which will provide more than $2.1 billion this year to states and school districts to support K-12 professional learning. Learning Forward and its members must be vigilant to prevent that elimination and build on the $76 million increase for Title II-A that we helped achieve last year. As Learning Forward President and CEO Denise Glyn Borders announced at our annual conference, we are commencing our efforts this year to achieve an annual increase in funding as part of professional learning budgets at every level. We will still continue to push for a much needed and larger increase for Title II-A.
Our Title II-A funding goals will be both easier and harder to achieve this year. They will be easier because Congress established overall spending caps for Fiscal Year 2021 funding in last year’s budget agreement. This means that we will not need to push for a new spending agreement this year. However, our goals may prove harder to achieve this year because – with Congress aiming to leave by October 2 or earlier to allow all House members and more than one-third of the Senate to leave to campaign for reelection – this year’s appropriations process will be shorter and action-packed. Within two months of the President releasing his proposed budget, we expect hearings on the budget and before the 4th of July we may well know how much the House and Senate Appropriations Committees propose to spend on education generally and Title II-A specifically.
So, we will need to push for Title II-A funding harder and earlier than we have in year’s past. Stay tuned for bulletins from Learning Forward on federal funding developments and for requests for you to weigh-in with your US Representatives and Senators. Buckle up, this process is going to move fast.
Sign the Learning Forward PEPS Increase Today!
LEARNING FORWARD CAPITOL HILL BRIEFING:
Addressing Equity in Teaching Through Professional Learning
Click here to download the Capitol Hill Briefing PPT slides.
All of America’s teachers need access to high-quality professional learning and support to address students’ cultural contexts, social-emotional development and an ability to engage with demanding academic content. All too often, the teachers of the students who need the most support are in schools with the most limited resources for professional learning. We can turn the tide by providing ongoing, collaborative and job-embedded professional learning for all teachers and leaders.
Hear from the field about the challenges schools and districts are facing, how they have intervened with professional learning and what the impact has been. Specifically, this panel focused on how Title II-A supported initiatives are making a difference in recruiting and retaining teachers and leaders and increasing student achievement.
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