State law requires the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) to annually report to the Legislature the number of schools participating in the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Community Eligibility Provision (CEP). The report must identify barriers to participation and make recommendations to increase participation. The CEP…

"The Regulatory Sandbox in Education" (S.B. 191, 2022) allows a school to implement an innovative education program and apply to the State Board of Education for a temporary waiver of state board rule to support an innovative education program. Under this program, local agencies approve proposed plans which are then reported to the State…

The State Performance Plan/Annual Performance Report (SPP/APR) is an important tool for states to assess local education agency (LEA) implementation of IDEA. However, reviewing LEA performance on the SPP/APR indicators must not be the only tool. This Fast Five introduces five factors (plus one!) other than the SPP/APR indicators that states should…

State governments enact hundreds of policies a year intended to improve outcomes for students. If these policies were self-executing, the impact on American education would be swift and dramatic, and the system today would look profoundly different than it did just one year ago. But the reality is that how a policy is implemented often affects…

Washington State's ClimeTime Network is a groundbreaking effort that has been implementing systemic capacity-building around climate science learning, as well as broader scientific literacy, for the past 6 years. This article provides an overview of the ClimeTime Network formation, framing, and implementation strengths and challenges.…

This annual report of College Credit Plus (CCP) reflects data from the beginning of the program in 2015-2016 through the 2022-2023 academic year. The data for this year show that more than 80,000 students participated in College Credit Plus. Ohio's dual enrollment program has provided tuition savings for students and families of over $193 million…

As a way to increase student engagement and encourage students to connect to their learning, some states have begun efforts to incorporate ethnic studies into state content standards. Ethnic studies standards focus on the "knowledge and perspectives of an ethnic or racial group, reflecting narratives and points of view rooted in that group's…

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as reauthorized in 2015, includes a provision to help protect students from sexual abuse and misconduct. ESEA Section 8546 requires states to adopt laws or policies that prohibit K-12 employers from assisting or aiding and abetting school employees, contractors, or agents in obtaining a…

As the federal government's role in the student loan industry has expanded over time, the United States has contracted with student loan servicers to help it administer its growing student loan portfolio. These servicers perform a variety of functions, including (1) communicating with borrowers regarding repayment; (2) disclosing information about…

The Running Start Summer School Pilot program was established in 2020 by House Bill 2864 and enacted as Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 28A.630.600. To determine whether the summer term should be funded under the Running Start Program, a summer pilot was created to evaluate interest in and barriers to expanding the Running Start program to…

The Washington Social Emotional Learning Committee was established in 2019 through Senate Bill (SB) 5082 to address the growing body of evidence that shows the need for improving not only a student's academic abilities, but also their social and emotional competencies which are critical to every child's development. SB 5082 requires the Committee…

In 2019, the Legislature passed Senate Bill 5082 (SB 5082), which directed the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) to establish a Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Committee to build upon the work of the previous Social Emotional Learning Indicators (SELI) Workgroup. The purpose of the SEL Advisory Committee is to promote and…

In 2012 Senate File 2284 approved competency-based education (CBE). In 2013 House File 215 provided $100,000 to be used as grants to districts/schools participating in a collaborative effort toward CBE pathways for their students and a framework toward statewide implementation. The Iowa CBE Collaborative will engage in collaborative inquiry to…

The California College Promise Policy brief outlines the policy landscape that helped fuel the growth of College Promise in California. It reflects on issues that have arisen as the state's College Promise legislation and reforms have been implemented, and offers recommendations for maximizing the equity and impact of the California model of…

Substitute Senate Bill (SSB) 5357, laws of 2017, required the Washington State Department of Early Learning, now the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF), to establish a four-year pilot project to license "outdoor, nature-based early learning and child care programs," otherwise known as "outdoor preschools." As…