The Strategy for Assuring Financial Empowerment (SAFE) Report highlights the actions taken by the agencies represented on the Financial Literacy and Education Commission (FLEC) in FY 2023 and FY 2024 in furtherance of the FLEC mission. Continuing its strategic focus to coordinate, support, and encourage federal government efforts to improve…

Under section 1001 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESEA), the purpose of the Title I, Part A program (Title I, Part A) is to provide all children significant opportunity to receive a fair, equitable, and high-quality education as well as to close educational achievement gaps. The…

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) administers the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), with the mission to increase food security and reduce hunger. The study summarized here seeks to understand how the 53 SNAP State agencies -- 50 States, District of Columbia (DC), Guam, the U.S. Virgin…

Poverty & Race Research Action Council's (PRRAC's) March 2021 policy brief, "Mixed income neighborhoods and integrated schools: Linking HUD's Choice Neighborhoods Initiative with the Department of Education's Magnet Schools Assistance Program" (ED611507), highlighted an important opportunity for interagency collaboration, encouraging…

In May 2025, the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) conducted a national survey of financial aid professionals to understand how the March 2025 reduction in force (RIF) at the U.S. Department of Education (ED) and Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA)--along with related federal directives to dismantle ED--are…

The Antideficiency Act prohibits Federal agencies from incurring obligations or expending funds in excess of an appropriation. However, Congress has granted agencies limited authority to make spending adjustments following the enactment of appropriations through transfers or reprogrammings. In November 2024, Senator Bill Hagerty requested that 19…

In July 2025, the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) conducted a second national survey of financial aid administrators to assess how the March 2025 reduction in force (RIF) at the U.S. Department of Education (ED) and Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA)--along with broader efforts to dismantle ED--are continuing…

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Simplification Act made several changes to the FAFSA, including changing the formula for determining student financial assistance need and simplifying the application. The rollout of the redesigned 2024-2025 FAFSA application encountered issues that affected students' ability to apply for aid.…

BACKGROUND: Participation in the US Department of Agriculture's summer meals program is consistently lower compared to National School Lunch Program (NSLP) participation, even though the programs target the same population of children. The purpose of this study was to elucidate reasons for participation and nonparticipation in the summer meals…

Government agencies collect vast amounts of administrative data in their day-to-day activities, primarily for program operations. But the information is less often used as a research tool or fully harnessed for its evidence-building potential. This brief is the fourth in a series of publications from MDRC about the Temporary Assistance for Needy…

Magnet schools employ a variety of methods in order to enroll a diverse student body, such as targeted outreach, free and accessible transportation, encouraging choice across school districts, intentional school siting, and employing equitable lottery-based admissions policies. Many magnets also offer innovative programs around an attractive and…

This hearing of the Committee on Indian Affairs examines the U.S. Department of Education programs that work to meet the trust responsibility that the Federal Government has to Native students and elementary, secondary and post-secondary education. Opening statements were presented by: (1) Senator Cortez Masto; (2) Senator Moran; (3) Senator…

This "Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed) Plan Guidance" provides instructions for designing, operating, and reporting on all State nutrition education and obesity prevention grant program operations. It describes the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS)…

This report sheds a new light on the history of the U.S. Department of Education (ED), its abuses of policy, and recommendations for a path forward. The report's evidence, and the long-term political dispositions of America's citizenry, supports the wholesale reform of ED, but not its elimination. The authors have structured their report in this…

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) play an important and unique role in the higher education system. For example, more than one-third of African-Americans who received a doctorate in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics in 2016 obtained their undergraduate degrees from an HBCU, and many also received their doctorates…