Letters of Support for Democratic Amendments to GOP's ESEA Bills

by Press Staff

It has been ten years since the passage of No Child Left Behind, the most recent reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. This law ensures that all children have an equal access to a quality education no matter their background. However, there is broad agreement that the law is now outdated and is restraining schools from making the kinds of improvements needed to benefit students, communities and the economy. 

Rewriting the outdated No Child Left Behind law will only happen through bipartisan consensus that serves the interests of all the nation’s children. Unfortunately, Education Committee Republicans recently released two highly partisan draft pieces of legislation in place of a whole-scale rewrite of NCLB that do not live up to our nation’s commitment to all of our children. Many organizations have expressed serious concerns about these proposals for falling short on providing for students nationwide. Below, you will find letters of support the Democratic amendments to the Republicans' legislation:

  • STEM Education Coalition: "We appreciate Ranking Member Miller's longstanding support of STEM education as a national priority and are happy to see STEM figure prominently in the minority counter proposal.  Our Coalition is committed to working with members from both parties that share the vision that improving STEM education is essential to U.S. competitiveness in a global economy.
  • National Parent Teacher Association: "As the committee marks up H.R. 3989 and H.R. 3990, PTA would like to call attention to provisions contained in the Democratic amendments submitted for consideration; specifically, retention of state and local maintenance of effort; inclusion of state-determined and developed performance targets; codification of the cap on alternate assessment on alternate achievement standards; and inclusion of improvements to ensure universal access to high quality instruction."
  • Alliance for Excellent Education: "The federal government has a limited but critical role to play in ensuring that all students have the opportunity to receive a college- and career-ready education. Your amendment asserts an appropriate federal role into education policy, one that is supportive and flexible while upholding the protections for underserved students that have been the hallmark of federal education policy since ESEA was first signed into law in 1965. The Alliance is pleased to support your amendment, and looks forward to working with you to ensure that every student has the opportunity to excel."
  • 31 civil rights, disability, business, and education groups: "Ranking Member Miller’s amendment is a significant step in the right direction to updating ESEA. The Miller amendment ensures high expectations for the academic success of all students; requires improvement in both overall performance and closing achievement gaps between groups of students; sets meaningful graduation rate targets; and insists that struggling schools get the supports and interventions they need to gain ground. In short, the amendment envisions an innovative ESEA accountability system that allows states and districts to implement interventions that benefit students, but does not absolve states and districts of their responsibilities to fully serve all children."