Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)
On December 10, 2015, President Obama signed the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), reauthorizing the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) and replacing the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), the 2001 re-authorization of ESEA. Overall, the new law provides states more authority on standards, assessments, accountability, supports, and interventions while preserving the general structure of the ESEA funding formulas. Most of the new provisions do not take effect until the 2017–18 school year, making the 2016–17 school year a transition year for local educational agencies (LEAs).
Title I
Purpose: Title I, Part A federal funds help to meet the educational needs of low-achieving students in California’s highest-poverty schools. Funds are used to support effective, research-based educational strategies that close the achievement gap between high-and low-performing students and enable the students to meet the state’s challenging academic standards. Title I-funded schools are either targeted assistance schools or school-wide program schools.
Alternative Supports
In order to ensure an orderly transition to ESSA, LEAs with schools identified in PI Year 2 and beyond must provide alternative supports to eligible students in the 2016–17 school year. LEAs may include types of alternative supports and the criteria used to identify eligible students for such additional support in their LCAP. Alternative supports referenced in the LCAP must be consistent and aligned with local priorities for the 2016–17 school year.
Public School Choice
LEAs must allow students who previously transferred to another public school under the NCLB Act to remain in that school until the child has completed the highest grade offered in that school. On-going transportation will be provided to these students.
Title I Schools
Title III
LEAs identified for improvement in the 2014–15 and 2015–16 school years will continue to implement improvement activities in the 2016–17 school year, consistent with the revised LEA plans. For areas of improvement to be implemented in the 2017–18 school year, LEAs should address any areas of improvement through the LCAP for local accountability purposes. There are no more Annual Measurable Achievement Objectives; however, beginning in the 2017–18 school year, accountability for Title III will be incorporated into the accountability system for Title I.
The English Learner Master Plan (ELMP) – English Version, Spanish Version