Every Student Succeeds Act includes Meehan provision

U.S. Rep. Patrick Meehan (R-PA), along with 358 of his colleagues from both sides of the aisle, voted in favor of the Every Student Succeeds Act, S. 1177, on Wednesday.

The bipartisan act serves as a compromise version of major K-12 education bills that were passed earlier this year by the House and Senate. It provides sweeping reforms to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, which is the primary statute authorizing federal support for K-12 education. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2002 was the last time that reforms to the statute took place.

“No Child Left Behind was a well-intentioned step towards bringing more accountability to our schools and classrooms,” Meehan said.“But in the almost 15 years since it was enacted, we’ve learned that many of its mandates and requirements are simply unworkable. The one-size-fits-all metric of ‘Adequate Yearly Progress’ is broken, the testing regimen is ineffective, and a dizzying array of Washington directives are tying the hands of our administrators and school boards.”

The Every Student Succeeds Act is aimed at addressing such problems, ending “Adequate Yearly Progress” and providing more freedom to states in determining how to measure school performance. Additionally, the legislation gives flexibility to states in how federal education dollars are directed.

“It will help us identify struggling schools that need help and what needs to be done to get them back on track,” Meehan said. “And it prohibits Washington from imposing Common Core on local school districts.”

The legislation also improves safety for schools through a provision championed by Meehan and Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick (R-PA) that prohibits the transfer of child predators to other local schools or districts.

“This bipartisan compromise has earned the support of a broad range of stakeholders in our education system: school boards, PTA associations and the National Education Association,” Meehan said. “Giving states and schools more flexibility will help them better meet student needs and keep property taxes low. It will empower parents, teachers, students and taxpayers. It’s good news when Republicans and Democrats can come together to do what’s best for our kids’ educations.”