AASA State Affiliates Urging Congress to Support Waivers on Assessment, Accountability
March 19, 2020
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
James Minichello
703-875-0723
703-774-6953 (cell)
jminichello@aasa.org
Alexandria, Va. – March 19, 2020 – The executive directors of all of the state affiliates under the umbrella of AASA, The School Superintendents Association, are calling on Congress to support “narrow-in-scope waivers related to assessment and accountability in the context of the current national crisis related to COVID-19.”
The directors sent a letter today to the leaders of the U.S. House and Senate education committees, urging U.S. Sec. of Education Betsy DeVos to grant the authority because “as our country’s public school superintendents are working to support our students in a new remote-learning environment, it is clear that the status quo is not enough.”
The letter states, “With more than three-quarters of our states issuing statewide school closures—closures that are increasingly likely to last the remainder of the school year—it is clear there will be an impact on our ability to comply with assessment and accountability requirements.”
The letter was sent to Senate HELP Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.); Washington Sen. Patty Murray, the committee’s ranking Democrat; House Education and Labor Chairman Bobby Scott (D-Va.); and North Carolina Rep. Virginia Foxx, the committee’s ranking Republican.
The letter affirmed, “It is imperative the U.S. Dept. of Education is able to address this emergent need by issuing a blanket, statewide, narrow-in-scope waiver to expedite the process by which states can pursue and receive the necessary relief related to uncertainty over how assessments and accountability will play out and how/if flexibility will be granted.”
Click here to read the letter.
For specific questions, please contact Noelle Ellerson Ng, AASA associate executive director, advocacy & governance, at nellerson@aasa.org.
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About AASA
AASA, The School Superintendents Association, founded in
1865, is the professional organization for more than 13,000 educational leaders
in the United States and throughout the world. AASA’s mission is to support and
develop effective school system leaders who are dedicated to equitable access
for all students to the highest quality public education. For more information,
visit www.aasa.org.
