In a significant move aimed at lifting student achievement, the Maryland State Board of Education has unanimously voted to adopt Learning Forward’s Standards for Professional Learning. The board’s 10-0 vote on June 25 signals a strong commitment to elevating the academic success of students by ensuring high-quality teaching practices in all 24 school districts. State…

On Thursday, August 1, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved on a 25-3 vote its Fiscal Year 2025 Labor HHS Education bill. Significantly, Title IIA, which had been eliminated in the House bill, was level-funded in the Senate bill. The committee’s legislative report that accompanies the bill included this statement: “The committee notes that Title II,…

The federal Title IIA grant program supports the professional growth and expertise of about 2 million teachers annually, and those dollars matter a lot to states and districts working to improve teacher and leader quality and, ultimately, increase student success. As champions for Title IIA and the critical work it supports, Learning Forward holds policy…

Learning Forward’s Paul Fleming has been chosen to speak with leaders across the K-12 spectrum about the value of professional learning and leadership development for principals and the teachers they lead. He will shine a spotlight on the under-recognized but research-supported role principals play in improving instruction for students. On Monday, July 15th, Fleming will…

Today, the House Appropriations Committee unveiled the legislative report for its fiscal year 2025 Labor HHS Education bill, which it will mark-up on July 10 (Update: The committee voted 31-25 to approve the appropriations bill on July 10.) Overall, the report details how the House Appropriations Committee plans to slash approximately $11.1 billion from the…

Why is she coming to our team meeting again? Will she come into my classroom today? What will she say and “recommend”? I don’t need any help!  All these questions and comments raced through my head as I walked into the classroom. I was fully aware of the passive aggressive behavior that my colleagues exhibited…

Washington, D.C. – *Update* The May 22 National Title II-A Day of Action successfully activated educators from around the U.S. to send messages en masse to their Congress members urging their support for an increase in funding for Title II-A. The educators’ ask to Congress: $2.4 billion for Title II-A in FY 2025. Yesterday’s effort…

Learning Forward celebrates the work of teachers all year long, but during Teacher Appreciation Week, we turn up the volume. This year we’re offering a free bundle of wellness-centered articles to show our appreciation for teachers everywhere. These short articles were written by expert contributors for the 2023 “Focus on Wellness” column in The Learning…

After Congress finally completed work on fiscal year 2024 appropriations in late March, it immediately began work on fiscal year 2025 Appropriations by holding hearings on the President’s budget and developing new funding bills. Learning Forward has also begun ramping up its work in support of Title II-A, which received level funding in the FY…

Nearly one year into their engagement in a Learning Forward Curriculum-Based Professional Learning network, educators from Montgomery County Public Schools are poised to describe their promising new practices supporting curriculum-based professional learning and showcase early improvements they’re seeing for both educators and students. Three educators from the Maryland district recently joined a Standards for Professional…