By Della B. Cronin

NCTM President Diane Briars was recently on Capitol Hill telling Congressional staff about the organization’s concerns related to the pending reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). Retaining a federally-supported professional development program for math teachers was at the top of her list of priorities. Other points of discussion included the quality and types of assessments that should be part of accountability systems as well as a broad discussion of other issues important to mathematics educators, including efficient teacher preparation programs and how math is crucial to the study of all STEM disciplines. Her visits were timely, since staff in the House and Senate are working diligently to take a more comprehensive ESEA reauthorization bill forward. 
 
The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee has approved its Every Child Achieves Act (S 1177). Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has said publicly he’d like to see the bill on the floor of the Senate before the end of June, but the target date has already slipped several times. Senate offices are busily preparing for what is expected to be a full and lengthy debate of the bill. Potential amendments could address issues such as vouchers, school choice, bullying, data disaggregation, grade-span testing, among others. Supporters of the bill are hoping any amendment that might prevent passage of the bill is avoided.

Over in the House, the bill that was pulled from the floor earlier this year due to lack of support—the Student Success Act (HR 5)—is rumored to be winning over some of its opponents and could be back on the floor in July. Regardless of concerns NCTM and others have about that bill, including its lack of a professional development program specifically for math or STEM teachers, its passage would be progress in reauthorizing the 13-year old No Child Left Behind Act. NCTM and others would work toward ensuring a House-Senate negotiated version of the bill would include the Senate provisions on this point. 

In other policy matters, a bill to reauthorize the America COMPETES Act passed the House. The bill is controversial in terms of its proposals related to funding for federal research agencies, but the STEM education community supports some of its STEM education programs. That means that NCTM and others are watching the Senate to determine how that chamber might act on the bill that is long overdue for passage.

The summer is always busy on Capitol Hill. Education and research advocates will have a better sense of what might be possible this year in July. The days and weeks before Congress leaves town for its August recess are always hot ones—in so many ways.

Della B. Cronin is in a principal at Washington Partners, LCC.