Monday, June 8, 2020

Police-free schools movement advances — Several governors seek funds to support remote learning — Colorado private schools complain to DeVos

Delivered daily by 10 a.m., Morning Education examines the latest news in education politics and policy.
Jun 08, 2020 View in browser
 
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By Nicole Gaudiano

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Quick Fix

— The police-free schools movement is picking up steam, with another push toward removing officers from Denver schools as protests continue over the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, while in police custody.

— First look: Several governors hope to use grant funding under the CARES Act's $3 billion Governor's Emergency Education Relief Fund to support remote learning, according to a POLITICO review of funding applications. The Education Department is also posting the applications on its site today.

— The Colorado Association of Private Schools is appealing to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos for help in a fight with the Colorado Department of Education over a share of CARES Act funding.

IT'S MONDAY, JUNE 8. WELCOME TO MORNING EDUCATION. Got news to share? Please send tips to your host at ngaudiano@politico.com or to my colleagues, Juan Perez Jr. at jperez@politico.com, Michael Stratford at mstratford@politico.com and Bianca Quilantan at bquilantan@politico.com. Share event listings: educalendar@politicopro.com. And follow us on Twitter: @Morning_Edu and @POLITICOPro.

Driving the Day

POLICE-FREE SCHOOLS MOVEMENT ADVANCES: A majority of the Denver Public Schools Board of Education members is expected to support a resolution — possibly on Thursday — to remove police from the city's public schools. "WE HAVE THE VOTES!!!!!" tweeted Denver School Board Director Tay Anderson, highlighting the story by Chalkbeat Colorado.

— The effort follows the Minneapolis Public Schools Board last week unanimously voting to terminate its more than $1 million school resource officer contract with the police department in the city where Floyd died. In Portland, Ore., the superintendent announced on Thursday that the district was "discontinuing the regular presence of school resource officers," The Oregonian reported.

"We've been calling for the last two years to remove police or SROs out of our schools, and now with George Floyd's death, people are upset, and this is just the moment to say ... these are the same police that are killing people like George Floyd and many others around the country," said Elsa Bañuelos of Padres & Jóvenes Unidos, a group backing the Denver resolution.

— Anderson, who has been leading protests, told Chalkbeat Colorado that the resolution would direct the schools superintendent to end the contract. The superintendent said she wants to "bring about the change that's needed," Chalkbeat reported, but she also referenced students' positive relationships with school resource officers and the need to think of safety.

— Activists argue such policing in schools has a disparate impact on students of color. The Advancement Project National Office, a nonprofit that focuses on racial justice, says the movement is gaining traction in a host of other cities across the country.

— The Chicago Teachers Union is pushing for an end to the public schools contract with police, but Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Friday said that isn't happening. "We are not going to do that, unfortunately we need security in our schools," Lightfoot said, according to ABC in Chicago.

— Happening today: President Donald Trump is meeting with a law enforcement panel and presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is meeting with Floyd's family in Houston.

DEMOCRATS TO UNVEIL POLICE REFORM PACKAGE: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Congressional Black Caucus Chair Karen Bass and other congressional Democrats will unveil legislation today to "end police brutality, hold police accountable, improve transparency in policing and create meaningful, structural change that safeguards every American's right to safety and equal justice," Pelosi's office announced.

— There's hope for a bipartisan response to Floyd's death, Melanie Zanona, Sarah Ferris and Heather Caygle reported. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said he believes the two sides can "easily find common ground."

— The National Education Association and American Federation of Teachers last week joined 400 other civil rights organizations in calling on congressional leaders to pass police reform legislation. Today, the two unions are seeking signatures from their state and local leaders on a joint letter to America's students, pledging solidarity with those who are protesting and calling for racial justice following Floyd's death.

— The letter says they recognize the "deep frustration and anger" people feel "as a new generation of young African Americans watch the violence of modern-day lynchings and brutality by police." The unions encouraged students to continue organizing, saying it will ensure that the country elects decision-makers in November "who will act on reform."

 

HAPPENING TOMORROW 11 a.m. EDT – "INSIDE THE RECOVERY" PART III: PLAYBOOK INTERVIEW WITH NEW JERSEY GOV. PHIL MURPHY: How is the governor from one of the states hit hardest by the pandemic handling concurrent health, economic and social crises? Join POLITICO Playbook co-authors Anna Palmer and Jake Sherman for a virtual interview with Governor Phil Murphy (D-NJ) to discuss his state's reopening, how the Garden State is handling protests and unrest, and what New Jersey is looking for from the Trump Administration in the weeks and months ahead. REGISTER HERE.

 
 
In the States

FIRST LOOK: GOVERNORS SEEK TO BOOST REMOTE LEARNING: The Governor's Emergency Relief Fund is designed for governors to allocate money at their discretion to support schools and colleges hard hit by the coronavirus. The application specifically asks whether the state intends to use any of the funds to support remote learning and technology access. Many of the states say they will, including using it to boost connectivity or access to devices.

— School districts in New York "may" use the funds to support remote learning, but the state's application added that districts "must be afforded maximum flexibility" to use the funds to support ongoing operations "in light of the catastrophic financial damage to state and local economies amid this public health crisis."

— Some governors or their representatives simply signed the application form, but many others went into detail about how they intend to use the funds. These grants are based on a state's student-aged population and poverty levels.

— Several described surveys that they have completed or planned to conduct to determine the extent of students' technological needs and barriers to implementing effective remote learning. Some states are reserving funding to help train educators on remote learning.

— "Without knowing what the future holds, additional training for our educators around remote learning will be key to whatever the fall and beyond looks like," the Delaware application stated.

— Kansas wants to steer a "large portion" of the funds toward public colleges and universities, though a portion may be reserved for emergency assistance grants for school districts to help students with disabilities and additional needs.

— Massachusetts is considering standing up a statewide online K-12 learning platform that all schools can use, "either as their primary solution or as a supplement to local remote learning systems." New Hampshire, meanwhile, hopes to provide support for special education and direct relief to low-income families through scholarship organizations while also boosting remote instruction through a common learning management platform that would span the K-12 and post-secondary learning environments.

PRIVATE SCHOOLS PUSH BACK: In appealing to DeVos, the Colorado Association of Private Schools is pushing back against the Colorado Department of Education's interpretation of a CARES Act provision, the Colorado Springs Gazette reported — and the group is likely to find a receptive ear.

— The provision involves how much funding school districts should have to distribute to support private school students and teachers for services such as tutoring or professional development, respectively. Colorado — and several other states — say the CARES Act, H.R. 748 (116), calls for calculating the non-public schools' share based on students in poverty.

— But DeVos, arguing the funding is intended for all students, wants to steer a greater share of relief to private school students. She warned she would soon lay out a new emergency rule, which would be legally enforceable.

— "Private schools are struggling just as much as public schools," Tom Cathey, who lobbies for the Colorado Association of Private Schools as well as the Association of Christian Schools International, told The Gazette. "They've had to do online education and provide software for instruction and equipment for students to continue to educate the children, just like public schools."

Budget and Appropriations

PANDEMIC AID OUTLOOK: Trump and Senate Republicans acknowledge the need for additional relief to boost the economy, despite Friday's surprisingly positive jobs report, Caitlin Emma reports.

— As Congress weighs its next move, states and districts face tough budget decisions. More than a dozen education and civil rights groups are calling for education leaders to prioritize "the most vulnerable students" as resources dwindle. The organizations released recommendations to help states and districts craft an "equity-focused" response to the coronavirus.

 

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Report Roundup

The Government Accountability Office found that Bureau of Indian Education schools did not provide or account for 38 percent of special education and related service time for students with disabilities, according to the GAO's review of school documentation for a four-month period.

Syllabus

Graduates unable to attend ceremonies during pandemic wear robes to George Floyd protests: The Hill

— More universities report coronavirus cases in athletics programs: CNN

California issues official road map for how schools should reopen: POLITICO Pro

The results are in for remote learning: It didn't work: The Wall Street Journal

Dreamers' future could be in voters' hands after Supreme Court ruling: POLITICO Pro

Districts' summer school plans on shaky ground: Education Week

 

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Michael Stratford @mstratford

Nicole Gaudiano @ngaudiano

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Juan Perez Jr. @PerezJr

 

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