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Fiscal Year 2012 Budget Summary — February 14, 2011

 

Section II. A.  Elementary and Secondary Education

• Overview
• Race to the Top
• Investing in Innovation (i3)
• Early Learning Challlenge Fund
• College- and Career-Ready Students
• School Turnaround Grants
• Assessing Achievement
• Excellent Instructional Teams
• Effective Teaching and Learning for a Complete Education
• Troops-to-Teachers
• College Pathways and Accelerated Learning
• Promise Neighborhoods
• Successful, Safe, and Healthy Students
• 21st Century Community Learning Centers
• Expanding Educational Options
• Magnet Schools Assistance
• Fund for the Improvement of Education
• English Learner Education
• Title I State Agency Programs
• Homeless Children and Youth Education
• Rural Education
• Indian Student Education
• Native Hawaiian Student Education
• Alaska Native Student Education
• Comprehensive Centers
• Impact Aid
• Training and Advisory Services (Title IV of the Civil Rights Act)
• Supplemental Education Grants (Compact of Free Association Amendments Act)

 

Overview

The 2012 request for elementary and secondary education programs supports the Administration’s comprehensive plan for reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), as outlined in A Blueprint for Reform: The Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act released in March 2010 and available on the Department of Education website at http://www2.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/blueprint/blueprint.pdf.

The reauthorization plan reflects a fundamental rethinking of the Federal role in elementary and secondary education to support innovative approaches to teaching and learning that make better, more productive use of existing resources. Maintaining the status quo in education is not an option; instead, we must reform our schools to address stubborn achievement gaps and inspire our children to excel so that by 2020 America once again leads the world in college completion.

To accomplish these goals, the 2012 request would invest in a reformed ESEA focused on raising standards, encouraging innovation, and rewarding success, while allowing States and districts more flexibility to invest resources where they will have the greatest impact. In particular, the request funds programs that encourage State and local innovation, including a $900 million investment in the Race to the Top program, which has already motivated States to reform their laws and make new plans to better support educational improvement and innovation, and the 2012 request would open the Race to the Top competition to school districts. The 2012 budget also includes $300 million for a new round of grants under the Investing in Innovation (i3) fund to provide incentives for the development and expansion of innovative strategies and practices that have been shown to be effective in improving educational outcomes for students.

The $14.8 billion request for the College- and Career-Ready Students program, which would replace Title I Grants to LEAs, also would emphasize rewarding success through a proposed $300 million Title I Rewards program that would reward high-poverty schools or LEAs that are making significant progress in improving student outcomes and closing achievement gaps.

The 2012 budget would help launch a new approach to early learning through the $350 million Early Learning Challenge Fund, which would make competitive grants to challenge States to establish model systems of early learning for children, from birth to kindergarten entry, that promote high standards of quality and a focus on outcomes across settings to ensure that more children enter school ready to succeed.

In addition, the Administration’s reauthorization plan would consolidate 38 existing authorities into 11 new programs that would give communities more choices in implementing activities and using rigorous evidence to fund what works. Competitive grants would support a focus on programs that are achieving successful results, while safeguards would be put in place to ensure that geographic location does not dictate results. In particular, programs will be structured to ensure that rural communities have a fair chance to compete successfully. The following table shows the ESEA and related programs that would be consolidated under the Administration’s 2012 request:

ESEA Reauthorization Consolidation Crosswalk

Race to the Top

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	—	—	$900.0

This program, modeled after the Race to the Top program authorized by the Recovery Act, would be included in the reauthorized ESEA. The purpose of the program would be to create incentives for comprehensive State and local reforms and innovations designed to produce significant improvements in student achievement, high school graduation rates, and college enrollment rates, and to significant reductions in achievement gaps. The program also would encourage the broad identification, dissemination, adoption, and use of effective policies and practices and the cessation of ineffective ones. The 2012 request also includes an emphasis on increasing educational productivity in a time of tight budgets through the implementation of reforms that improve student outcomes while saving money.

Under the reauthorized program, the Department would have the authority to conduct both State- and district-level Race to the Top competitions. The 2012 request would be focused on supporting district-level plans addressing the implementation of more rigorous standards and assessments, improving teacher equity and effectiveness, using data to improve instruction, and turning around low-performing schools. The district-level competition would challenge local communities to develop reform plans that meet the needs of all students, including students with disabilities and English learners, and would be structured to reflect the needs of rural communities and ensure that rural districts are able to compete for funds.

Investing in Innovation Fund (i3)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	—	—	$300.0

The request would support a newly authorized ESEA program, modeled after the i3 program authorized by the Recovery Act, that would make grants to develop and validate promising practices, strategies, or programs with potential to improve student outcomes but for which efficacy has not yet been systematically studied. Grants also would support expansion of innovative practices, strategies, or programs that have been proven effective in improving student outcomes. The Department would include a priority for projects in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, and competitions would be structured to ensure that applicants proposing to serve rural districts and schools are able to compete successfully for i3 funding. Funds could also support a productivity prize competition that would reward States or LEAs that achieve real savings through cost-cutting or improvements in efficiency while also improving effectiveness, the new "Pay for Success" authority (modeled on the social impact bonds concept), technical assistance, dissemination, and other national activities.

Early Learning Challenge Fund

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	—	—	$350.0

The request would fund the first year of the Early Learning Challenge Fund under the reauthorized Elementary and Secondary Education Act. These funds would support competitive grants to States to establish model systems of early learning for children, from birth to kindergarten entry, that promote high standards of quality and a focus on outcomes across settings to ensure that more children enter school ready to succeed. The new program is a central component of the President’s early learning agenda and would complement, coordinate, and streamline existing and proposed Federal and State early learning investments in Head Start and Early Head Start, home visitation, the Child Care Development Fund, and the IDEA.

College- and Career-Ready Students

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$14,492.4	$14,492.4	$14,792.4

The request supports the Administration’s reauthorization plan for Title I, Part A of the ESEA (currently Title I Grants to LEAs), which would include changes in the areas of standards and assessments, accountability and support for schools and LEAs, and teacher and leader effectiveness. States would adopt statewide standards that build toward college- and career- readiness (CCR) and implement high-quality assessments that are aligned with these CCR standards and capable of measuring individual student growth toward CCR. These new standards and assessments would give families and communities the information they need to determine whether their students are on track to college- and career-readiness and to evaluate their schools' effectiveness.

The reauthorization proposal would replace the adequate yearly progress (AYP) measure in current law, which is based primarily on a single, static snapshot of student proficiency on academic assessments, with a broader, more accurate measure of school performance that looks at student achievement, student growth, and school progress. Performance targets would be aligned with the objective of ensuring that by 2020 all students are graduating or on track to graduate from high school ready for college and a career.

The schools, districts, and States that are successful in reaching performance targets, significantly increasing student performance for all students, closing achievement gaps, or turning around the lowest-performing schools (at the district and State levels) would be eligible for rewards under the proposed Title I Rewards authority, which could include financial rewards for the staff and students in high-poverty schools and flexibility for LEAs and schools in the use of ESEA funds. The 2012 request includes $300 million for Title I Rewards.

States would differentiate school improvement assistance across schools and, in a shift from current law, local officials would have flexibility to determine the appropriate improvement and support strategies for most schools.

First, States and LEAs would be required to implement one of four rigorous school turnaround models in the lowest-performing 5 percent of schools in each State. Second, States and LEAs would implement research-based, locally determined strategies in schools that fall between the fifth and tenth percentiles in performance. And third, in schools that are not closing significant, persistent achievement gaps, LEAs would be required to implement data-driven interventions— which could include expanded learning time, supplemental educational services, or other strategies—to support those students who are farthest behind and help close those achievement gaps.

The Administration’s reauthorization proposal also would require States to develop definitions of "effective" and "highly effective" teachers and principals that would be used in the development of State and local teacher and principal evaluation systems. In addition, both States and LEAs would be required to develop meaningful plans to achieve the equitable distribution of effective teachers and leaders. LEAs would use up to 20 percent of their Title I, Part A allocations to implement effective school improvement strategies and carry out strategies designed to ensure the equitable distribution of effective teachers and school leaders.

Finally, the ESEA proposal would strengthen Title I "comparability" requirements to ensure that the high-poverty schools in each LEA receive State and local funding (for personnel and relevant non-personnel expenditures) comparable to those received by the LEA’s low-poverty schools. States would be required to measure and report on resource disparities and to develop a plan to reduce those disparities.

School Turnaround Grants
(BA in millions)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$545.6	$545.6	$600.0

The reauthorized School Turnaround Grants (currently School Improvement Grants) program would play a critical role in the new Title I statewide accountability systems that would be created under the Administration’s ESEA reauthorization plan by providing significant resources for LEAs to implement rigorous school intervention models in their lowest-performing schools. While States and LEAs would have new flexibility under the reauthorized ESEA to develop their own improvement strategies and interventions for most schools, they would be required to implement specific, meaningful intervention models in their very lowest-performing schools.

States would receive formula grants and would subgrant most funds to LEAs and their partners to implement fully and effectively the Turnaround model, the Restart model, School Closure, or the Transformation model in identified schools (the same four models currently required for persistently lowest-achieving schools under the School Improvement Grants program). LEAs would receive 3-year awards totaling up to $6 million for each identified school and would be eligible for 2 additional years of funding to support a school's ongoing improvement if the school is showing progress. With the exception of the closure model, each of these models allows flexibility for locally designed plans that recognize and meet a broad range of student needs and local circumstances.

States would be permitted to reserve a portion of their allocations to build their capacity to improve low-performing schools, including by developing and implementing effective school quality review teams to assist schools in identifying school needs and in supporting school improvement, and by reviewing and ensuring the effectiveness of external partners. The Department also would be authorized to reserve funds for national activities designed to enhance State, district, and nonprofit capacity to turn around low-performing LEAs and schools. Most funds requested for 2012 would be used to pay for the third year of grants expected to be awarded in 2010; the proposed $54.4 million increase would allow States and LEAs to serve additional schools.

Assessing Achievement
(B.A. in millions)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
State Grants	$400.0	$400.0	$400.0
Enhanced Assessment Instruments	10.7	10.7	20.0
Total	410.7	410.7	420.0

The request for Assessing Achievement (currently State Assessments) would provide funding to assist States in developing and implementing assessments aligned with college- and career- ready (CCR) standards. Formula and competitive funds would support continued implementation of the assessments currently required by the ESEA, as well as the transition to CCR-based standards and assessments that would capture a fuller picture of what students know and are able to do. Grantees also could use funds to develop and implement CCR standards and assessments in other subjects, such as science and history, needed to ensure that all students receive a well-rounded education.

Excellent Instructional Teams
(B.A. in millions)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
Effective Teachers and Leaders State grants	—	—	$2,500.0
Improving Teacher Quality State Grants	$2,947.7	$2,947.7	—
Teacher and Leader Innovation Fund	—	—	500.0
Teacher Incentive Fund	400.0	400.0	—
Advanced Credentialing	10.6	10.6	—
Teacher and Leader Pathways	—	—	250.0
Transition to Teaching	43.7	43.7	—
Teacher Quality Partnership	43.0	43.0	—
Teachers for a Competitive Tomorrow
Baccalaureate STEM and Foreign Languages	1.1	1.1	—
Masters STEM and Foreign Languages	1.1	1.1	—
Teach for America	18.0	18.0	—
School Leadership	29.2	29.2	—
Total	3,494.5	3,494.5	3,250.0

The proposed Excellent Instructional Teams initiative would have 3 components: (1) the Effective Teachers and Leaders State Grants program, (2) the Teacher and Leader Innovation Fund, and (3) the Teacher and Leader Pathways program.

Effective Teachers and Leaders State Grants would provide formula grants to States and districts to support the Administration’s ESEA reauthorization proposal, which would require States to develop definitions of "effective" and "highly effective" teachers and principals that would be used in the development of State and local teacher and principal evaluation systems. In addition, both States and LEAs would be required to develop meaningful plans to achieve the equitable distribution of effective teachers and leaders. States and LEAs would have flexibility in how they use formula grant funds, but would be accountable for improving their teacher and principal evaluation systems and for ensuring that low-income and minority students have equitable access to teachers and principals who are effective at raising student achievement.

The Teacher and Leader Innovation Fund would make competitive awards to States and LEAs willing to implement bold approaches to improving the effectiveness of the education workforce in high-need schools and districts by creating the conditions needed to identify, reward, retain, and advance effective teachers, principals, and school leadership teams in those schools, and enabling schools to build the strongest teams possible.

The Teacher and Leader Pathways program would support the creation or expansion of high- quality pathways, including university- and LEA-based regular and alternative routes, into the teaching profession, and the recruitment, preparation, and retention of effective principals and school leadership teams that are able to turn around low-performing schools.

This integrated approach would be more effective than the current array of largely disconnected programs in supporting State and local efforts to: (1) promote and enhance the teaching profession; (2) recruit, prepare, develop, reward, and retain effective and highly effective teachers, principals, and other school leaders and foster excellent instructional teams, especially in high-need local educational agencies, schools, fields, and subjects; (3) ensure the equitable distribution of effective and highly effective teachers and principals; (4) increase the effectiveness of teachers and principals; (5) improve the preparation of teachers and principals, by developing, supporting, and expanding high-performing pathways to becoming a teacher or principal; (6) strengthen teacher and principal evaluation systems; (7) ensure that teachers have the knowledge, skills, data, support, and collaborative opportunities needed to be effective in the classroom; and (8) improve the management of the education workforce in States and local educational agencies.

Effective Teaching and Learning for a Complete Education
(B.A. in millions)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
Effective Teaching and Learning: Literacy	—	—	$383.3
Striving Readers	$200.0	$250.0	—
Even Start	66.5	66.5	—
Literacy Through School Libraries	19.1	19.1	—
National Writing Project	25.6	25.6	—
Reading Is Fundamental	24.8	24.8	—
Ready-To-Learn Television	27.3	27.3	—
Effective Teaching and Learning: STEM	—	—	206.0
Mathematics and Science Partnerships	180.5	180.5	—
Effective Teaching and Learning for a    Well-Rounded Education	—	—	246.1
Excellence in Economic Education	1.4	1.4	—
Teaching American History	119.0	119.0	—
Arts in Education	40.0	40.0	—
Foreign Language Assistance	26.9	26.9	—
Academics for American History and Civics	1.8	1.8	—
Close Up Fellowships	1.9	1.9	—
Civic Education
We the People	21.6	21.6	—
Cooperative Education Exchange	13.4	13.4	—
Total	769.9	819.9	835.5

The Effective Teaching and Learning for a Complete Education initiative would address the need to strengthen instruction and raise student achievement across the core academic content areas, especially in high-need LEAs, by replacing a patchwork of 15 programs and funding streams in current law with three comprehensive, coherent programs that provide increased flexibility for States and LEAs to design, develop, and implement strategies that best meet the needs of their students, including students disabilities and English learners. The initiative also would support State and local efforts to use technology and interdisciplinary approaches to improve academic instruction, promote innovation, and expand the use of evidence-based practices. Finally, while continuing to emphasize literacy and STEM, this initiative recognizes the importance of providing every student with a well-rounded education

The Effective Teaching and Learning: Literacy program would provide competitive State literacy grants to State educational agencies (SEAs) alone or in partnership with other entities (such as nonprofit organizations and institutions of higher education) in order to support comprehensive State and local efforts aimed at improving literacy instruction, especially in high-need schools for children and youth from preschool through grade 12. The program would build on the progress the Department seeks to achieve with 2010 funds for the revised Striving Readers program, which replaces reading programs segmented by grade level with a more comprehensive authorization. The program would strengthen education for literacy by ensuring that all the elements of a comprehensive literacy program are embedded in State and local strategies, by strengthening performance expectations, and by supporting the identification and scaling-up of innovative methods of teaching reading, writing, and language arts.

The Effective Teaching and Learning: STEM program would provide competitive grants to SEAs, alone or in partnership with other entities, to improve the teaching and learning of STEM subjects, especially in high-need schools. Funds could be used to (1) provide professional development for STEM teachers; (2) implement high-quality curricula, assessments, and instructional materials; and (3) create or improve systems for linking student data on assessments with instructional supports such as lesson plans and intervention strategies. The program would support the identification and scaling-up of innovative methods of teaching science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

The Effective Teaching and Learning for a Well-Rounded Education program would support competitive grants to high-need local educational agencies, alone or in partnership with SEAs or other entities, to develop and expand innovative practices to improve teaching and learning in the arts, health education, physical education, foreign languages, civics and government, history, geography, environmental education, economics and financial literacy, and other subjects.

The Department would reserve funds under the Effective Teaching and Learning for a Complete Education authority to support a range of national activities, including identification of effective programs and best practices, development of high-quality educational and professional- development content, technical assistance, and dissemination. In addition, funds would be used to strengthen the use of technology across the core academic content areas. Finally, national activities funds could be used to support efforts by public telecommunications agencies, such as the Public Broadcasting Service and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and other entities to create high-quality educational content for children.

Troops-to-Teachers

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$14.4	$14.4	—

The Troops-to-Teachers program helps to improve public education by recruiting, preparing, and supporting members of the military as teachers in high-poverty schools. By statute, the Department transfers the appropriation for the program to the Department of Defense (DOD), which provides financial assistance to participants and helps them to assess training, become certified, and obtain teaching positions. For 2012, the program would be funded directly from the DOD appropriation, which will simplify and streamline program management. The Department of Education will continue to work closely with DOD during the transition. In addition, the new Excellent Instructional Teams programs will promote the adoption of alternative routes to teacher certification, including alternative routes that reach out to nontraditional teaching candidates, such as current and former service members.

College Pathways and Accelerated Learning
(B.A. in millions)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
College Pathways and Accelerated Learning	—	—	$86.0
High School Graduation Initiative	$50.0	$50.0	—
Advanced Placement	45.8	45.8	—
Javits Gifted and Talented Education	7.5	7.5	—
Total	103.3	103.3	86.0

This program would help increase graduation rates and preparation for college matriculation and success by supporting college-level and other accelerated courses and instruction, including gifted and talented programs, in high-poverty schools. Grantees would implement such strategies as expanding the availability of Advanced Placement/International Baccalaureate (AP/IB) courses, dual-enrollment programs that allow students to take college-level courses and earn college credit while in high school, and "early college high schools" that allow students to earn a high school degree and an Associate’s degree or 2 years of college credit simultaneously. The program would fund accelerated learning opportunities for students across the performance spectrum, including those who exceed proficiency standards, in high-poverty elementary schools. Grants also would support projects that re-engage out-of-school youth or students who are not on track to graduate.

Promise Neighborhoods

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$10.0	$10.0	$150.0

This initiative would support the second cohort of implementation grants to eligible nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, and Indian tribes for the development and implementation of plans for comprehensive neighborhood projects modeled after the Harlem Children's Zone. These projects would be designed to combat the effects of poverty and improve education and life outcomes, from birth through college to career, for children and youth within a distressed geographic area. The core belief behind the initiative is that providing both effective, achievement-oriented schools and strong systems of support to children and youth in poverty will offer them the best hope for overcoming poverty and building a better life. Applicants would demonstrate their ability to sustain the Promise Neighborhood once the Federal grants end through effective partnerships with schools, nonprofit organizations, foundations, and local and State agencies. The Department also will encourage grantees to coordinate their efforts with programs and services provided by other Federal agencies, including the Departments of Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, and Justice.

Successful, Safe, and Healthy Students
(B.A. in millions)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
Successful, Safe, and Healthy Students	—	—	$365.0
Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities     National Activities	$191.3	$191.3	—
Elementary and Secondary School Counseling	55.0	55.0	—
Physical Education Program	79.0	79.0	—
Foundations for Learning	1.0	1.0	—
Mental Health Integration in Schools	5.9	5.9	—
Alcohol Abuse Reduction	32.7	32.7	—
Total	365.0	365.0	365.0

Under this proposed consolidation of several existing, narrowly targeted programs, the Department would award grants to increase the capacity of States, districts, and schools to create safe, healthy, and drug-free environments in a comprehensive manner, so that students are able to focus on learning and teachers on teaching. Further, it would provide increased flexibility for States and local educational agencies to design strategies that best reflect the needs of their students and communities, including programs to (1) improve school climate by reducing drug use, alcohol use, bullying, harassment, or violence; (2) improve students’ physical health and well-being through comprehensive services that improve student nutrition, physical activity, and fitness; and (3) improve student’s mental health and well-being through expanded access to comprehensive services, such as counseling, health, mental health, and social services.

The new program would also include a national activities authority, under which the Department would reserve funds for school emergency preparedness initiatives; comprehensive, community-wide "Safe Schools/Healthy Students" drug and violence prevention projects; a truancy prevention initiative; drug prevention and campus safety programs at institutions of higher education; and emergency response services to LEAs and IHEs under Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence).

21st Century Community Learning Centers

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$1,166.2	$1,166.2	$1,266.2

The Administration’s reauthorization proposal for 21st Century Community Learning Centers would support before- and after-school programs, summer enrichment programs, summer school programs, expanded-learning-time programs, and full-service community schools. All local projects would provide additional time for students, including students with the greatest academic needs and those who are meeting State academic achievement standards, to participate in (1) academic activities that are aligned with the instruction those students receive during the regular school day and are targeted to their academic needs; and (2) enrichment and other activities that complement the academic program. Projects could also provide teachers the time they need to collaborate, plan, and engage in professional development within and across grades and subjects. This enhanced flexibility would allow communities to determine the best strategies for enabling their students and teachers to get the time and support they need.

The $100 million increase proposed for 2012 would support the broader range of programs and strategies proposed under reauthorization and enable grantees to provide higher-quality programming to students and their families.

Expanding Educational Options
(B.A. in millions)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
Expanding Educational Options	—	—	$372.0
Charter Schools Grants	$256.0	$256.0	—
Voluntary Public School Choice	25.8	25.8	—
Parental Information and Resource Centers	39.3	39.3	—
Smaller Learning Communities	88.0	88.0	—
Total	409.1	409.1	372.0

The proposed Expanding Educational Options initiative includes three separate authorizations: (1) Supporting Effective Charter Schools grants; (2) Promoting Public School Choice grants; and (3) the Magnet Schools Assistance program. The Supporting Effective Charter Schools grants program would support competitive grants to State educational agencies (SEAs), charter school authorizers, charter management organizations (CMOs), local educational agencies (LEAs), and other nonprofit organizations to start or expand effective charter and other autonomous public schools. Funds would also be available for competitive grants for charter schools facilities programs. The Promoting Public School Choice grants program would support competitive grants to LEAs, individually or in a consortium, and to SEAs in partnership with one or more high- need LEAs, to develop and implement a comprehensive choice program that increases the range of high-quality educational options available to students and improves the academic achievement of students attending low-performing schools. The Magnet Schools Assistance program would support competitive grants to LEAs implementing a court-ordered or federally approved desegregation plan for the support of high-quality magnet schools, with an emphasis on raising student academic achievement and reducing minority group isolation. The new programs would also include a national activities authority under which the Department would reserve funds to support research, data collection, technical assistance to grantees, and dissemination activities.

Magnet Schools Assistance

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$100.0	$100.0	$110.0

The request would provide $107.8 million for new and continuations awards to local educational agencies to operate magnet schools that are part of a court-ordered or court-approved desegregation plan to eliminate, reduce, or prevent minority group isolation in elementary and secondary schools while strengthening students’ knowledge of academic subjects. Magnet schools address their desegregation goals by providing a special curriculum that attracts a diverse student population and fosters education reform. The Administration’s reauthorization proposal would expand and improve options for students and increase diversity by placing a greater emphasis on funding magnet school programs (particularly whole-school programs) or models that have a record of effectiveness in raising student achievement and reducing racial isolation. The Department would reserve about $2.2 million for evaluation and dissemination activities.

Fund for the Improvement of Education
(B.A. in millions)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$125.5	$136.2	$63.0

The Fund for the Improvement of Education (FIE) supports nationally significant programs to improve the quality of elementary and secondary education at the State and local levels and help all students meet challenging State academic achievement standards. The request includes $50 million in discretionary funding to support activities of the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Education (ARPA-ED), a new initiative modeled after similar research programs in the Department of Defense and Department of Energy that would pursue breakthrough developments in educational technology and learning systems, support systems for educators, and educational tools. The Administration is seeking an additional $40 million in mandatory funding in 2012 from the Wireless Innovation Fund for ARPA-ED to support the improvement of early childhood through postsecondary education.

Other funded activities would include $5 million for a Data Quality Initiative that helps ensure that program management decisions are based on sound information, $1 million for continuation costs for an education facilities clearinghouse, and $7 million for new initiatives. The decrease from the 2011 CR level reflects the elimination of one-time earmarks and directives.

English Learner Education
(B.A. in millions)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$750.0	$750.0	$750.0

Currently authorized under Title III of the ESEA, this program awards formula grants to States based on each State’s share of the Nation’s English Learners (ELs) and recent immigrant students. Grants help States design and implement statewide activities to meet the educational needs of their ELs. The Administration’s reauthorization proposal supports strengthened professional development for educators, improved accountability, and the development and implementation of innovative and effective programs. The proposal also would strengthen the conditions governing States’ receipt of formula funds and would authorize more funds for competitive grants in order to support the development and implementation of high-quality programs for ELs, including dual-language and transitional bilingual programs.

Title I State Agency Programs
(B.A. in millions)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
Migrant Education	$394.8	$394.8	$394.8
Neglected and Delinquent	50.4	50.4	50.4
Total	445.2	445.2	445.2

Migrant Education State Grants provide formula-based assistance in meeting the special educational needs of approximately 247,000 children of migrant agricultural workers by helping States identify and pay the higher costs often associated with serving those children. The Department also uses a portion of funding to improve inter- and intra-State coordination of migrant education activities, including State exchange of migrant student data records through the Migrant Student Record Exchange System. The Administration’s reauthorization proposal would change the State allocation formula so that it better reflects shifts in State counts of migrant students, improve the targeting of services to high-need migrant students, and require States to track and report on the academic achievement of migrant students.

The Title I Neglected and Delinquent program provides formula grants to States in order to support education services for neglected and delinquent children and youth in local and State-run institutions, attending community day programs, and in correctional facilities. The request would help an estimated 132,000 neglected and delinquent students return to and complete school and obtain employment after they are released from State institutions.

Homeless Children and Youth Education

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$65.4	$65.4	$65.4

This program provides formula grants to States, which subgrant most funds to local educational agencies for services that help homeless children enroll in, attend, and succeed in school. In addition to academic instruction, the program helps ensure access for these children to preschool programs, special education, and gifted and talented programs. The Administration’s reauthorization proposal would improve the funding formula so it better reflects shifts in State counts of homeless students and targets funds where they are most needed. The proposal also would require States to track and report on the academic achievement of homeless students.

Rural Education

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$174.9	$174.9	$174.9

The Rural Education Achievement program (REAP) authorizes two programs to assist rural school districts in carrying out activities to help improve the quality of teaching and learning in their schools. The Small, Rural School Achievement program provides formula funds to rural school districts that serve small numbers of students, and the Rural and Low-Income School program provides funds to rural school districts that serve concentrations of poor students, regardless of the district’s size. Funds appropriated for REAP are divided equally between these two programs. The request would maintain support for rural, often geographically isolated, districts that face significant challenges in meeting ESEA requirements. The Administration’s reauthorization proposal would address technical problems with the current authority and align the authorized activities with national priorities.

Indian Student Education
(B.A. in millions)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
Grants to Local Educational Agencies	$104.3	$104.3	$104.3
Special Programs for Indian Children	19.1	19.1	19.1
National Activities	3.9	3.9	3.9
Total	127.3	127.3	127.3

Indian Student Education programs supplement the efforts of State and local educational agencies and Indian tribes to improve educational opportunities for Indian children. The programs link these efforts to broader educational reforms underway in States and localities in order to ensure that Indian students benefit from those reforms and achieve to the same challenging academic standards as other students. The Administration’s reauthorization proposal would simplify the process of identifying eligible Indian students and would give grantees additional flexibility to conduct programs that can improve the achievement of Indian students, including language immersion and language restoration programs and activities aligned with the Administration’s broader ESEA reauthorization priorities.

Grants to Local Educational Agencies provide formula grants to public schools and schools supported by the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Indian Education for activities to improve the educational achievement of Indian students. Special Programs for Indian Children includes (1) $8.2 million in competitive grants for the American Indian Teacher Corps and the American Indian Administrator Corps to support training of Indians to become teachers and administrators in schools that serve concentrations of Indian children, and (2) $10.7 million for competitive demonstration grants to improve educational opportunities for Indian children in such areas as early childhood education and college preparation.

The request also provides $3.9 million for National Activities, which funds research, evaluation, and data collection designed to fill gaps in our understanding of the educational status and needs of Indians and to identify educational practices that are effective with Indian students.

Native Hawaiian Student Education

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$34.3	$34.3	$34.3

This program supports the provision of supplemental education services to the Native Hawaiian population by awarding competitive grants to eligible applicants for a variety of authorized activities in such areas as teacher training, family-based education, gifted and talented education, special education, higher education, and community-based education learning centers. The reauthorized program would promote greater alignment of these activities with the Administration’s broader education reform goals. The program also supports the activities of the Native Hawaiian Education Council, which helps coordinate the educational and related services and programs available to Native Hawaiians. The request would discontinue support for the HEA Giugni Memorial Archives earmark, authorized under Title VIII, Part Z of the Higher Education Act, and other earmarks in the annual appropriations act.

Alaska Native Student Education

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$33.3	$33.3	$33.3

The Alaska Native Education Equity program supports supplemental educational programs and services to Alaska Natives by awarding competitive grants to eligible applicants for a variety of authorized activities, including the development and implementation of curricula and educational programs, professional development activities for educators, the development and operation of home instruction programs that help ensure the active involvement of parents in their children’s education, family literacy services, student enrichment programs in science and mathematics, and dropout prevention programs. The reauthorized program would promote greater alignment of these activities with the Administration’s broader education reform goals and would eliminate the program’s statutory earmarks.

Comprehensive Centers

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$56.3	$56.3	$56.3

The Comprehensive Centers provide intensive technical assistance to increase the capacity of State educational agencies (SEAs) to help districts and schools implement ESEA programs and requirements and meet State targets for student achievement. The current system includes 16 regional centers that work with SEAs within specified geographic regions to help them implement ESEA school improvement measures and objectives. In addition, 5 content centers provide in-depth, specialized support in key areas, with separate centers focusing on (1) assessment and accountability; (2) instruction; (3) teacher quality; (4) innovation and improvement; and (5) high schools. Each content center pulls together resources and expertise to provide analyses, information, and materials in its focus area for use by the network of regional centers, SEAs, and other clients. In 2011, the Department is providing the existing centers with a seventh year of funding in order to allow adequate time to assess the educational needs in the regions and plan a new competition that is aligned with the current ESEA priorities. The request would support first-year awards to a new set of grantees.

Impact Aid
(B.A. in millions)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
Payments for Federally Connected Children:
Basic Support Payments	$1,138.0	$1,138.0	$1,138.0
Payments for Children with     Disabilities	48.6	48.6	48.6
Facilities Maintenance	4.9	4.9	4.9
Construction	17.5	17.5	17.5
Payments for Federal Property	67.2	67.2	67.2
Total	1,276.2	1,276.2	1,276.2

The Impact Aid program provides financial support to school districts affected by Federal activities. The property on which certain children live is exempt from local property taxes, denying districts access to the primary local source of revenue used by most communities to finance education. Impact Aid helps to replace the lost local revenue that would otherwise be available to districts to pay for the education of these children.

The $1.1 billion request for Basic Support Payments would provide formula grants for both regular Basic Support Payments and Basic Support Payments for Heavily Impacted LEAs. The $48.6 million request for Payments for Children with Disabilitieswould provide formula grants to help eligible districts meet their obligations under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act to provide a free appropriate public education for federally connected children with disabilities. The Department of Education owns and maintains 21 school facilities that serve large numbers of military dependents. The $4.9 million request for Facilities Maintenance would fund essential repair and maintenance of these facilities and allow the Department to continue to transfer schools to local school districts. The entire $17.5 million proposed for Construction would be used for competitive grants. Unlike the formula grants component of the current authorization, the competitive grants would be targeted to the LEAs with the greatest need and provide sufficient assistance to enable those LEAs to make major repairs and renovations. The $67.2 million request for Payments for Federal Property would provide formula-based payments to districts that generally have lost 10 percent or more of their taxable property to the Federal Government.

Training and Advisory Services (Title IV of the Civil Rights Act)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$7.0	$7.0	$7.0

This program supports 10 regional Equity Assistance Centers, selected competitively, that provide services to school districts on issues related to discrimination based on race, gender, and national origin. Typical activities include disseminating information on successful practices and legal requirements related to nondiscrimination, providing training to educators to develop their skills in specific areas, such as in the identification of bias in instructional materials, and technical assistance on selection of instructional materials. The request would support continuation awards for Equity Assistance Center grantees, as well as the annual administration of a customer satisfaction survey and an analysis of its results.

Supplemental Education Grants (Compact of Free Association Amendments Act)

	2010	2011 CR	2012 Request
B.A. in millions	$17.7	$17.7	$17.7

The request would maintain support for Supplemental Education Grants to the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), as authorized by the Compact of Free Association Amendments Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-188). Under this program, the Department transfers funds and provides recommendations on the uses of those funds to the Department of the Interior, which makes grants to the FSM and RMI for educational services that augment the general operations of the educational systems of the two entities.

P.L. 108-188 eliminated RMI and FSM participation in most domestic formula grant programs funded by the Departments of Education, Health and Human Services, and Labor, and created this program to supplement separate education support programs under the Compact. The request would allow the RMI and FSM to support programs that focus on improving the educational achievement of students in the two Freely Associated States.

Summary of the 2012 Budget   Special Education and Rehabilitative Services

 

For further information contact the ED Budget Service.