Alexander Statement on Fourth Anniversary of Fixing No Child Left Behind
“We should remember that the best decisions about increasing student achievement and fixing the lowest performing schools are usually made state by state, community by community.”
WASHINGTON, December 10, 2019 — U.S. Senate Education Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) made the following statement on the fourth anniversary of the Every Student Succeeds Act becoming law:
“Four years ago, President Obama signed the Every Student Succeeds Act, calling it a ‘Christmas Miracle.’ Today, states are taking advantage of what the Wall Street Journal called ‘the largest devolution of federal control to the states in a quarter-century.’
“Under ESSA, every state plan for spending federal dollars has now been approved by the U.S. Department of Education. More than half of states have already improved those plans with amendments based on feedback from superintendents, principals, teachers, parents and students. Less time is being focused just on test scores. States have begun to identify their lowest performing schools and provide extra support during this school year.
“Elementary and secondary education involves 50 million students, more than 3 million teachers, and 100,000 public schools. On this fourth anniversary, we should remember that the best decisions about increasing student achievement and fixing the lowest performing schools are usually made state by state, community by community.”
On December 10, 2015, President Obama signed into law the Every Student Succeeds Act, the bill to fix No Child Left Behind, and called it a “Christmas miracle.” The bipartisan bill that Alexander sponsored passed the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 359-64 before being passed by the U.S. Senate 85-12.
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