School Reform & Dropout Prevention

This letter to U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan outlines the Center’s concerns regarding the Department of Education’s plan to waive some of the requirements for states under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA, or No Child Left Behind). Most states have indicated their intention to for these.  In evaluating the requests, it is imperative that the Department maintain core provisions of ESEA’s accountability system, such as the requirement that states, districts, and schools demonstrate continued progress toward and be held accountable for improving student academic achievement and graduation rates. This is especially critical among subgroups of students.  The Center urged the Department to require states that get waivers to collect and disseminate data on graduation rates, academic assessments, and any other indicators of student performance that are fully disaggregated, including by gender, and cross-tabulated by gender and race/ethnicity.