Louisiana 2nd state approved for ESEA funding waiver

“Louisiana became the second state to receive a federal waiver from certain K-12 funding requirements , allowing the state to consolidate funding streams and direct more money toward improving student achievement, according to a Wednesday announcement from the U.S. Department of Education. Louisiana's waiver reflects the one approved in January for Iowa. Both states will be able to combine four federal education funding streams into one. In Louisiana's case, the Education Department estimates an $18 million savings over four fiscal years from reduced state-level compliance costs. Cade Brumley, Louisiana’s superintendent of education, told K-12 Dive on Wednesday that the waiver will allow the state to "break down some of the funding silos" and direct the cost savings toward priority areas such as reading and math instruction, improvements to high school experiences and teacher professional development. "We're excited about the opportunity to utilize this funding around state priorities, and we understand, too, that with this opportunity comes responsibility, so we want to make sure that we are serving our students and families well with the opportunity that's been given to us," Brumley said. Accountability concerns The application for waivers under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, known as Returning Education to the States waivers, was announced last year and gives U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon authority “to waive any statutory or regulatory requirement” related to ESEA, with a handful of exceptions. ESEA, which was originally approved by Congress in 1965, addresses educational inequities and seeks to improve educational quality by holding states accountable to certain regulations and requirements. Kirsten Baesler, the Education Department's assistant secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, told K-12 Dive on Wednesday that the department is talking with 10 other states interested in seeking ESEA federal education funding waivers. In addition to funding waivers, states can seek flexibility for federal accountability and assessment requirements. Additionally, the Education Department has approved applications from 18 states — including Louisiana — for Ed-Flex authority. The Ed-Flex program allows approved state education agencies to waive select statutory or regulatory requirements for districts and schools without first submitting the waivers to the U.S. Department of Education for review and approval. The Education Department under the Trump administration has sought to reduce the federal education footprint by proposing several block grants to states through the annual appropriations process. The department has also developed interagency agreements with other federal agencies to manage certain K-12 programs . The Education Department, however, has faced pushback — and legal challenges — in the wake of some of its downsizing decisions. There is also opposition to the Returning Education to the States waiver program. Eric Duncan, director of P-12 policy at EdTrust, said a major concern with the ESEA waiver program is that when federal funding streams dedicated to supporting certain student groups like English learners are consolidated, it makes it harder to determine whether or not those student groups are benefiting from the pool of money. "The way the federal government has worked and is intended to work is to allocate resources to help states supplement the funding needed to support their most vulnerable students, their highest need communities, and students that have traditionally not gotten the requisite services that they need to be successful," Duncan said. He adds that the K-12 ESEA funding streams are taxpayer dollars dedicated for specific purposes, and that the Education Department's role is to hold states accountable for using those funds as intended. EdTrust, a nonprofit that supports educational equity and helps students overcome racial and socioeconomic barriers, is tracking the status of state ESEA waivers . Louisiana's Brumley said the state's waiver approval does not mean the state is backing down from being accountable for the performance of certain student groups. "In fact, we think the illumination of academic performance is especially important for families and the broader community, so we have a stake in the ground on accountability, specifically relative to certain demographics of students," he said. Brumley added, "We feel like this flexibility gives us an opportunity to be more efficient in the way in which we serve various student populations in our state." Measuring the waivers’ impacts Specifically, Louisiana’s waiver allows the state’s Department of Education to consolidate funds for the following ESEA programs through fiscal year 2029: Title II, Part A — Supporting effective instruction. Title III, Part A — English language acquisition. Title IV, Part A — Student support and academic enrichment. Title IV, Part B — 21st Century Community Learning Centers. Baesler emphasized that the ESEA education funding waivers for state-level activities do not impact the amount of funding going to districts. She added that states approved for this specific waiver program will need to file annual reports on how their waiver led to reduced administrative burdens, how the waiver contributed to improving student achievement, and other particulars from the process. "That's the reason behind all of this work that we're doing is it's rooted in improved academic outcomes and transparency and accountability," Baesler said. For his state, Brumley said, the waiver will "save tremendous manpower hours having to deal with various bureaucracies that are no longer going to be in place for us because we will be more efficient in the delivery of an education to the students of Louisiana.”

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