Congressional Staffers Discuss NCLB High School Proposals

Thursday, October 4, the Alliance for Excellent Education hosted a forum where local, state, and national education leaders convened to discuss federal strategies for improving the achievement of the nation’s struggling high school students. The first session of the forum involved a discussion regarding High Schools and No Child Left Behind.

Panelists included:
• Jill Morningstar, House Education and Labor Committee – Majority Staff;
• Kirsten Duncan, House Education and Labor Committee – Minority Staff;
• Melissa Rohrbach, Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee – Majority Staff; and
• Lindsay Hunsicker, Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee – Minority Staff.

According to the Senate staff members, a Senate draft will likely include a second¬ary-school program modeled after Sen. Jeff Bingaman’s (D-NM) Graduation Promise Act, which will direct $2.5 billion for low-per¬forming high schools to implement comprehen¬sive improvement strategies. The Senate is also contemplat¬ing an investment parallel to Title I, specifically directed to secondary schools. In addition, the Senate may be looking at teacher preparation and profes¬sional development as a possible answer to rais¬ing high school curriculum to a level that’s more applicable to college and the workforce.

On the House side, majority policy adviser Jill Morningstar delivered good news to middle school advocates, saying the com¬mittee is looking forward to receiving Rep. Raúl Grijalva’s (D-AZ) Success in the Middle Act, H.R. 3406, as an amendment to the draft NCLB bill, once the committee moves forward with a mark up. Morningstar said the legislation will provide resources to the middle schools that feed into some of the lowest-performing high schools around the country. She was unable to provide a specific schedule for when House Education and Labor Committee Chairman George Miller (D-CA) would finally move forward with the bill, but hinted that a markup may be held sooner than later.

Resources:
Kris Kitto, “Senate Eyes High School Reform in New Law,” Education Daily, October 5, 2007.
Author: SAS