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Archived entries for Department of Education

ED’s civil rights office expanding breadth of investigations of schools, states

Following a pledge by U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan in 2010 to aggressively combat discrimination in the nation’s schools, Education Week reports that U.S. Department of Education’s (ED) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has opened 74 “compliance reviews” in states, school districts, and higher education institutions. As it conducts compliance reviews, OCR is striving to provide technical assistance to schools and universities.

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Nine states awarded Race to the Top funds for early childhood programs

According to an Associated Press (AP) report in the Washington Post, nine states will share $500 million in grant money won in a high-profile competition intended to jump-start improvements in early childhood programs. California, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island and Washington will see funding for innovative efforts in often-overlooked pre-K schooling.

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U.S. Dep’t of Ed study finds 13 states’ anti-bullying laws address off-campus bullying

Education Week reports that the U.S. Department of Education (ED) has released a study on state anti-bullying laws finding that only 13 states give schools the ability to intervene when behavior off campus creates a hostile environment at school. The review also rated states, 46 of which have bullying laws. Of those, only Maryland and New Jersey have all of the key components the researchers were looking for.

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ED and DOJ issue diversity guidelines for college/university admission policies and K-12 student assignment plans

The U.S. Departments of Education (ED) and Justice (DOJ) have issued new guidelines replacing a 2008 document that essentially warned colleges and universities against considering race at all, reports the New York Times. For kindergarten through 12th grade, the guidelines tell school districts that they can shape policies on locating schools, drawing attendance boundaries and governing student transfers to achieve a better racial mix.

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U.S. Ed Dep’t study says poor schools get shortchanged on funding

Education Week reports that the U.S. Department of Education (ED) has issued a study finding that nearly half of all high-poverty schools, including schools that get Title I money, were at least 10% below the average school in their district in terms of state and local aid. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said the “findings confirm an unfortunate reality in our nation’s education system. Many schools serving low-income children aren’t getting their fair share of funding.”

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Massachusetts and others seeking NCLB waiver

Massachusetts has submitted a proposal to the U.S. Department of Education (ED) seeking to replace some of the No Child Left Behind Act’s (NCLB) strictest provisions with a more flexible system that would require the state’s public schools to show steady improvement over the next six years, says the Boston Globe. The state’s proposal would give schools more latitude to reach academic goals than NCLB currently allows. Additional reports indicate eleven states have thus far submitted such waiver requests.

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North Carolina district agrees to policy changes after civil rights group files federal complaint on behalf of Latino students

The Associated Press (AP) reports in the Record that Durham school district has agreed to changes in policies affecting Latino students and parents to resolve a complaint against it by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). The school district will strengthen its existing anti-discrimination policy, provide parental notifications and other documents in the native language of a student’s parents and provide interpreters for parents with limited English skills in understanding school policies, among other changes.

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Most Idaho school districts named in Title IX complaint cleared

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) has confirmed that allegations of federal Title IX violations against 77 Idaho school districts, and more specifically 95 high schools, have been tossed out of a larger complaint filed in June 2011, says the Times-News.

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Federal investigation prompts Los Angeles district to improve educational opportunities for African-American and English-learning students

According to an Associated Press (AP) report in Education Week, a 19-month civil rights investigation by the U.S. Department of Education (ED) found that Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) failed to provide an equal education to English-learners and African-American students, resulting in wide academic disparities. LAUSD has agreed to remedy the disparities through a variety of measures, including a complete overhaul of its English-learning program and improving resources such as computers and library books to schools with predominantly black student bodies.

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ED Sec. Duncan outlines federal plan to provide flexibility on NCLB’s accountability standards

In a September 23, 2011 letter to Chief State School Officers, U.S. Education Sec. Arne Duncan announced the issuance of the Department of Education’s (ED) formal application for waivers from the No Child Left Behind Act’s (NCLB) accountability standards. ED also made its guidelines and application available on its website.

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