Public
Policy Update
September 2013
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News
from NAPE
Check out NAPE's newly updated policy pages at
www.napequity.org/public-policy!
Administration
Martha Kanter,
a former community college chancellor, is leaving the U.S. Department
of Education to return to academia. She will remain in the position
until a replacement is on board. As under secretary Kanter oversaw
the federal higher education portfolio.
On August 1, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Deborah Lee James
as Secretary of the Air Force. James is currently President of the
Technology and Engineering Sector at Science Applications International
Corporation (SAIC). In addition, the Senate confirmed Samantha Power
as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.
Jo Handelsman,
a Yale University microbiologist was appointed as associate director
for science at the White House Office of Science and Technology
Policy (OSTP), succeeding Carl Wieman, the physics Nobelist who
stepped down in June 2012 for health reasons.
On August 22, President Barack Obama announced his plan to improve postsecondary
education access and affordability. The President's
plan builds on his previous support for community colleges and access
to higher education for low-income students.
Congress
On
August 5, Congressman Paul Tonko (D-NY) announced legislation to
Strengthen Engineering Programs in Schools Across the US. His bill
is "designed to introduce and strengthen engineering
programs at schools across the" United States. The bill would
require schools to integrate engineering concepts "into their
baseline science educational curriculums." Rep. Tonko hopes the
legislation would also help encourage private-public partnerships
between companies and schools.
The Workforce Investment Act (WIA) turned 15 years old this month,
but is 10 years overdue
for reauthorization.
In budget news, FY 2013 funding for federal government operations
expires on September 30. There is the possibility of a government
shutdown if Congress and the President do not act by October 1 on
either the FY 2014 appropriations or a continuing resolution (CR) that
will extend government funding for a short period of time.
States
As
reported by ACTE, a recent report from the
National Education Association (NEA) shows the cuts in
federal education funding, including Perkins, state-by-state in
Fiscal Year (FY) 2013. Based on the most recent estimates from the
U.S. Department of Education, the tables illustrate the significant
reductions in federal support to states in the wake of sequestration.
In FY 2013 most federal education programs were cut by 5.2 percent
below the previous year. This is the result of a combination of the
5% sequester cut that went into effect on March 1, 2013, and an
additional across-the-board reduction of .2%t in the final FY 2013
Continuing Resolution that will fund the federal government through
the end of September. For CTE, this means $58 million cut in Perkins
funding for the 2013-14 school year.
The U.S. Department of
Education announced that states whose waivers from
certain provisions of federal education law will expire at the end of
the 2013-2014 school year will soon be able to request renewals of
their reform plans, for up to 2 more years.
In addition, on August 20, the U.S. Department of approved Pennsylvania's
application to waive key requirements of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). Pennsylvania's waiver
was the 41st waiver that has been approved and includes CTE programs
of study since 2011.
Iowan Senator Herman Quirmbach filed an education appropriations bill
requesting $13.5 million to support adult basic education, career
pathways programs and navigators, and regional industry sector
partnerships. The bill was inspired by the Iowa Skills2Compete
Coalition policy agenda. In August, Iowan Governor
Terry Brandstad signed legislation providing $10.5 million in state funding to support
the bill.
NAPE
Partners
The
National Coalition
of Women and Girls in Education (NCWGE, of which NAPE
is a member) submitted comments on mandatory Civil Rights Data
Collection (CRDC) on August 20, 2013. The comments advocated for
Title IX rights to be guaranteed to every student and for ensuring
that Title IX meets its promise of equal educational opportunities
for all students, from kindergarten through postgraduate school,
regardless of sex.
NCWGE agreed with proposed changes to the CRDC, such as (1) the
proposed inclusion of a new question asking local education
authorities whether they have "civil rights coordinators for
discrimination against students on basis of sex, race, and disability
(and contact information)"; and ( 2) the proposed addition of
data collection on bullying and harassment incidents against students
on the basis of their sexual orientation and religion.
NCWGE urged the Department to reconsider its proposal to eliminate
current CRDC questions on whether a district or school has written
policies prohibiting harassment and bullying.
Many organizations and individuals marched and/or committed to action
on key civil rights issues to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the
March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The march is best known for
beginning a new era of civil rights in the United States, which ended
Jim Crow and saw the passage of the civil rights and voting rights
legislation as well as Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have
A Dream" speech.
Over the past six months, National Skills
Coalition's (of which NAPE is a member) staff,
leadership, and members have been weighing in with the White House on
innovative strategies for addressing long-term unemployment in local
communities.
The National Skills Coalition received a request from
members of the House Committee on Education and Workforce this April
to provide input on potential policy changes and amendments to
improve the Higher Education Act (HEA), which is set to expire at the
end of this year. The recommendations
include:
- Tuition
assistance and other financial aid for nontraditional students
- Better
data collection and reporting through inclusive, aligned and
market relevant data systems
- Strengthening
of partnerships between postsecondary education institutions and
employers and industries
- Improvement
in remedial and adult basic education (ABE) programs associated
with postsecondary education
ACTE's priorities
for reauthorization include:
- Reducing
barriers to short-term higher education
- Ensuring
adequate access to financial aid programs for all students
- Supporting
CTE teacher preparation programs and alternative paths to
certification
- Evaluating
data collection requirements to reduce burden and ensure program
integrity
Publications and Resources
- A
new Quick Figures by IWPR reveals that gender segregation of
training services within Workforce Investment Act (WIA)-funded
programs reinforces the gender wage gap. IWPR notes that more
proactive career counseling may encourage women's entry into
higher earning, high-demand fields and enhance their chances of
reaching economic self-sufficiency.
- IWPR's
working paper on Student Parents and Financial Aid, a
collaboration with the Institute for Higher Education provides
an overview of key federal financial aid programs and policies
and their implications for college students with dependent
children.
- A
working paper, Prepping Colleges for Parents, outlines a variety
of promising supports and services that colleges and universities
(and sometimes community service providers) have implemented to
mitigate common challenges faced by students with dependent
children.
A
Fordham Institute
survey demonstrates what parents want from education,
including a strong core curriculum in reading and math; an emphasis
on STEM education; and the instilment of strong study habits,
critical thinking skills and communication skills. Parents listed
skills that were critical for their children including hands-on
training. CTE was viewed by some parents as important in schools.
General
News
Education Week
reports that "For the 24th straight year, high school sports
participation increased from the year before, according to the latest
High School Athletics Participation Survey from the National
Federation of State High School Association (NFHS)." Girls'
participation in high school sports also reached a new all-time high
in 2012-13.
The National
Alliance for Partnerships in Equity (NAPE) is a
national, nonprofit consortium of state and local agencies,
corporations, and national organizations that collaborate to create
equitable and diverse classrooms and workplaces where there are no
barriers to opportunities. Through its Education Foundation, NAPE has
been involved in a number of initiatives to increase diversity in
America's workforce and to increase opportunities in high-skill,
high-wage, high-demand careers. Among these is the National Science
Foundation-funded STEM
Equity Pipeline Project, which works with educational
systems to increase the participation of underrepresented populations
in STEM education.
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