NCLB

May 14, 2008 -- Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal today, in an appeal filed with the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, is seeking to uphold a provision of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act that bars the federal government from imposing unreimbursed costs on towns and cities.

The appeal seeks to recover hundreds of millions of dollars that Connecticut towns and cities are being forced to spend - illegally, without federal reimbursement - in order to comply with NCLB.

Blumenthal is appealing from the U.S. District Court, which declined to rule on the actual merits of his case. Blumenthal has asked the court to uphold that the Unfunded Mandates Provision under NCLB means what it says it means:    » read more »

April 22, 2008 -- WASHINGTON, DC— Today, Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, released the following statement in response to the new regulations for No Child Left Behind announced by Margaret Spellings, the Secretary of Education.

Abandoned school, Indiana: Photo by Christopher Titzer (CC)

“The regulatory changes announced by Secretary Spellings include important improvements for implementing No Child Left Behind, even as Congress considers further reforms to the law.    » read more »

Additional Funding Would Improve Educational Guidance for Students and Families

April 10, 2008 -- Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) is leading an effort to increase federal funding for school counseling programs to ensure our nation’s children are getting the educational, social, and health services support they need as students.

An abandoned school in Detroit: Photo by Derek Farr (CC)    » read more »

GAO Report Reveals Flaws

Washington, D.C. -- March 25, 2008 -- With more than 10,000 schools across the country identified as low-performing under the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLBA), a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report written at the request of U.S. Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Arlen Specter (R-PA) has found that the Education Department failed to properly oversee one of the most critical sources of NCLBA funding.    » read more »

3/18/2008 -- Today the Bush Administration took a step forward in addressing the systemic problems in No Child Left Behind through a pilot that will allow 10 states to create more nuanced systems of school accountability. While a small pilot, this is a long overdue step in the right direction.

By allowing states to differentiate between schools that need modest improvements and those that are chronically failing, this pilot will provide some much-needed flexibility.    » read more »

March 18, 2008 -- WASHINGTON, DC— Today, Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Chairman of Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, released the following statement in response to Secretary Spelling’s announcement on No Child Left Behind this morning.

“I’m glad that Secretary Spellings recognizes the need to adjust the No Child Left Behind Act. I wish President Bush was serious about funding it.    » read more »

February 21, 2008 -- U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings today joined Missouri Commissioner of Education Dr. D. Kent King for a meeting with the State Board of Education in Jefferson City, Mo., where she delivered remarks and discussed how the Federal government can support and facilitate further academic gains made by Missouri students under No Child Left Behind. Secretary Margaret Spellings applauded Missouri's efforts to increase accountability and discussed opportunities for improvement and innovation under No Child Left Behind.    » read more »