The objective of the audit presented in this report was to determine whether the Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE) has an adequate process in place to ensure that institutions of higher education (schools) use Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) grant funds appropriately and that performance goals are met. The audit covered OPE's…

It is clear that young people bore the brunt of the pandemic's impact. Disrupted learning, sometimes stretching for two years, forced many students off track and behind academically. Leaders are now faced an unprecedented need to make smart investments with federal relief funds in efforts that accelerate student learning. District leaders should…

The American Rescue Plan Act's Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ARP ESSER) fund represent a historic investment in ensuring that all students have access to safe in-person instruction and in meeting the social, emotional, mental health, and academic needs of the Nation's students. The U.S. Department of Education is committed to…

The Federal Student Aid's (FSA's) Five-Year Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2020-24 (Five-Year Plan) establishes ambitious goals and objectives to ensure that FSA continues to provide access to higher education regardless of one's past educational experiences or socioeconomic status. This Five-Year Plan was informed by public comments; focus…

To successfully launch the 2020-2021 school year for students with disabilities, state education agencies (SEAs) have an essential leadership role to play in supporting local school systems to plan for multiple scenarios, including services delivered in-person, through distance learning, and via blended approaches. There are two overarching…

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (ESE) and the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education are deeply committed to ensuring that every student in the state has access to a high-quality education, and they have combined this commitment with an openness to innovation. After just one year of School…

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) emphasizes evidence-based interventions while providing new flexibilities to states and districts with regard to the use of federal funds, including funds that could be used to support social and emotional learning (SEL). This report is a companion to "Social and Emotional Learning Interventions Under the…

Moving schools up the performance slope takes energy, leverage, and the right research-based approaches. In 2010, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction launched an initiative to "Turn Around the Lowest Achieving Schools" (TALAS). The Southeast Comprehensive Center (SECC) partnered with the state education agency (SEA) to…

This resource was prepared in response to a request for information about how the six Phase 3 ELC States (Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Vermont) are leveraging ELC funds and other State funds to support inclusion. This information will be helpful to other States as they consider how to continue to increase the quality…

This document is from a featured presentation at the 2018 annual conference of the Science Teachers Association of Texas (STAT). The public schools are a fundamental element of our democratic society, and they have been the pathway to opportunity and a better life for generations of Americans. But at present, the American public school system is…

The Race to the Top - Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) program, authorized by Congress in 2011, is designed to improve the quality of early learning and development programs for children from birth through age 5. This discretionary grant program is administered jointly by the U.S. Departments of Education (ED) and Health and Human Services…

The Department of Education (Education) relies on collection agencies to assist borrowers in rehabilitating defaulted student loans, which allows borrowers who make nine on-time monthly payments within 10 months to have the default removed from their credit reports. Education works with 22 collection agencies to locate borrowers and explain…

The FY 2015-2019 Five-Year Strategic Plan provides the framework for Federal Student Aid to address the financial aid needs of students and families by utilizing quality data to identify trends and forecast projections which inform policy and operational decisions. Federal Student Aid's (FSA's) plan is composed of five strategic goals: (1) Improve…

When the 16 Race to the Top-District (RTT-D) victors were announced in December 2012, US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan proclaimed, "Now these winners can empower their school leaders to pursue innovative ideas where they have the greatest impact: the classroom." He backed up his statement with nearly $400 million in awards to be…

In recent years, federal education programs and policies have increasingly focused on teacher quality as a means for closing achievement gaps, in part by directing states to measure teacher qualifications and performance and to promote equitable access to qualified and effective teachers among schools within a district. This report provides a…