Design expierience
ABOUT THE REPORT
As part of our Equity & Excellence Project (EEP), the National Urban League has reviewed the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Consolidated State Plans for 36 states and the District of Columbia where we have Urban League affiliates. Under ESSA, the U.S. Department of Education tasked each state with developing a consolidated, streamlined set of requirements for states to address in their plans and submit for federal approval. All plans were approved as of September 2018. These plans provide a preliminary indicator of how states intend to implement the new law and represent a blueprint for state- and district-level decisions that will work to move each state from promise to practice during implementation.
During our analysis, we assessed how well states incorporated equity into their plans and developed a series of report cards that use a green-yellow-red highlight system to rate the plans on 12 Equity Indicators including: early childhood learning, supports for struggling schools, and resource equity. These indicators were selected based on the evidence demonstrating their effectiveness for advancing equity and excellence for vulnerable students in our nation’s public schools.
These report cards do not constitute an assessment or analysis of a state’s school system. Rather, they identify the extent to which states have included the 12 equity indicators in their ESSA plans. Each state’s ranking was determined based on its weighted average performances across each of our 12 equity indicators. Extra weight was placed on those areas that the National Urban League believes are especially critical to advancing equity—subgroup performance, supports, and interventions for struggling schools and for resource equity.
We believe these Consolidated State Plans are a reflection of each state’s priorities and represent a road map that will guide a state’s investments in districts, schools and communities. We hope that the absence of information in a state’s plan is not an indication of its commitment to these education equity priorities and we remain optimistic that states and districts will continue to adopt these 12 equity levers into their plans as they move into implementation.
For more information on our findings, please read our executive summary and full report.
REVIEW YOUR STATE REPORT CARD
The 2018 elections brought change in political leadership for many states and each new year holds possibilities for amendments to consolidated state plans. As we continue to advocate for students through the implementation phase of ESSA and prepare for possible amendments, the National Urban League believes these resources should be readily available for use. Click on your state in the map below to see the details of your state report card.
What to do next
Congress should hold hearings on the areas of concern and oversight that the National Urban League has identified. These areas include, but are not limited to: resource equity, states’ efforts to amend their previously submitted ESSA plans, data transparency and accessibility, and the federal role in oversight as well as how to determine whether the approved states’ plans meet statutory requirements.
State leaders should learn from one another and adopt promising practices from their peers where we identified areas for improvement. Advocates and state leaders should use the law and public reporting requirements to analyze expenditures and to make sure budgets prioritize students with the greatest need.
Advocates should encourage states to amend their plans based on the National Urban League Equity Report Cards. Community Stakeholders—community-based civil rights partners, educators, community leaders, equity advocates, parents, students, families, and administrators—should hold their school districts accountable for the equitable implementation of ESSA. The National Urban League advocated for the inclusion of family and community engagement in the ongoing implementation and continuous improvement of ESSA. That partnership is crucial to ensuring that ESSA meets the promise that each child receives an equitable and excellent education that ensures his or her success in college, work, and life.