The Leading Edge: Policy & Advocacy Blog
The Leading Edge, AASA's policy & advocacy blog, provides up-to-date information about activities in Washington, D.C. and Capitol Hill that affect you and your school district.
Topics include new or proposed regulations and federal policies, federal funding updates and opportunities, advocacy resources and more.
Latest Posts
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December 15, 2022
USED - Office of Safe and Supportive Schools Announces Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration GrantThe Office of Safe and Supportive Schools is excited to announce that over $99M in funding is available for the Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration Grant Program.
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December 13, 2022
Dept of Ed Introduces Spring 2023 Teach to Lead SummitU.S. Department of Education’s Spring 2023 Teach to Lead Summit, titled “Raising the Bar: In Pursuit of Equitable Opportunities Through Expanded Student Experiences and the Diversifying of the Educator Pipeline,” is an in-person convening March 10-12 in Atlanta, a collaboration effort called Teach to Lead.
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December 09, 2022
Dear Colleague from Deputy Secretary Marten on Using Federal Funds to Support STEM Education StrategiesOn December 6, Deputy Secretary of Education Cindy Marten released a Dear Colleague letter to help State educational agencies (SEAs), local educational agencies (LEAs), and their partners better understand how to use Federal funds to support innovative, equity-focused pre-kindergarten through grade 12 STEM education strategies.
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December 08, 2022
ED Releases New ESSER FAQ DocumentOn December 7, ED released non-binding guidance that answers long-awaited questions from the field about how ESSER funding can be spent.
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December 01, 2022
Webinar Recap: Making the Most of Your ESSER Funds: Halftime Reflections & RevisionsThis week, we were thrilled to partner with EducationCounsel and Education Resource Strategies for our webinar presentation: "Making the Most of Your ESSER Funds: Halftime Reflections & Revisions"
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December 01, 2022
New Dept of Energy Grants Available to K-12 SchoolsThis week, the Department of Energy kicked off an $80 million grant program for critical energy upgrades in America’s highest-need K-12 school facilities.
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November 30, 2022
The Advocate December 2022: Looking Ahead Post-MidtermsThe 118th Congress will be another divided governing body with Democrats controlling the Senate and Republicans re-taking the House.
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November 29, 2022
AASA Urges Inclusion of Child Nutrition Provisions in FY23 Spending BillToday, AASA sent a letter to Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Ranking Member John Boozman (R-AR) urging them to include critical child nutrition provisions in the FY23 appropriations package.
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November 18, 2022
Webinar Recap: Re-Building Student Supports for Pandemic Impacted Times: Student Success Systems and the GRAD PartnershipWe had a blast talking about Student Success Systems with the Everyone Graduates Center at John Hopkins University.
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November 15, 2022
USDA Launches $50 Million Grant Program For Schools & Food Industry to Work Together to Strengthen School MealsLast week, USDA launched a $50 million grant opportunity to support collaboration with the food industry to develop nutritious, appetizing school meals for students.
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November 16, 2022
Congress Asks Cardona for Late Liquidation GuidanceThis week, members of Congress sent a letter to Secretary Cardona urging the Department to issue guidance on how school districts can utilize late liquidation flexibility under the American Rescue Plan.
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November 14, 2022
Cardona Issues New Guidance on Prioritizing Dual Enrollment, Apprenticeships, with ARP FundsThe U.S. Department of Education released new guidance that encourages schools to use unspent COVID relief money to expand various career options for students.
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November 03, 2022
The Advocate November 2022: School Transportation ResourcesIn the last year, AASA has stepped in to provide federal policy support to the National Association for Pupil Transportation.
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November 03, 2022
CDC Releases Monkeypox Toolkit for Schools and Early Care and Education ProgramsThe CDC has released a new resource for administrators and staff members of schools and early care and education programs related to monkeypox.
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October 28, 2022
AASA Joins 64 Organizations to Ask for Funding for Emergency Connectivity FundAs part of our ongoing advocacy around connectivity, AASA joined 64 other organizations in a letter calling for additional funding for the emergency connectivity fund.
Latest Advocacy & Policy Resources
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November 21, 2024
PEP Talk Episode 34: The E-Rate SagaType:Podcast Topics: Advocacy & PolicyOn this episode of PEP Talk: Kat Sturdevant gets into the weeds on the current saga of the FCC's Universal Service Fund and E-Rate with Jon Bernstein, an education technology and telecommunications lobbyist and president of Bernstein Strategy Group. -
October 24, 2024
PEP Talk Episode 33: Education in the 2024 ElectionType:Podcast Topics: Advocacy & PolicyOn this episode of PEP Talk: Kat Sturdevant deep dives the role of education in the 2024 presidential election with Jonathan Voss, partner at Lake Research Partners, a national public opinion and political strategy research firm. -
October 22, 2024
A New Education Vision for the 2025-29 AdministrationType:Report Topics: Advocacy & Policy, Finance & BudgetsRecommendations for how the next administration can dramatically improve educational outcomes, reduce educational inequities and ensure the students in our schools today are able to excel in an increasingly competitive global workforce.
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