Education Policy

TLEEC Policy Agenda for the 2021 Legislative Session

Advocate Meaningful Assessment and Fair Accountability

  • Eliminate state-required tests that exceed federally required assessments (per ESSA).
  • Remove high-stakes accountability sanctions to schools and students (i.e., grade promotion graduation requirements).
  • Promote meaningful, diagnostic and formative assessments designed to assess students’ learning without punitive measures attached.
  • Extend individual graduation committees for high school graduation approval without expiration.

Invest in Public School Students

  • Maintain full funding for education; oppose education cuts and maintain hold harmless provisions for 2020-21 attendance funding.
  • Invest in public education and critical services that support families (e.g., assistance to resolve the digital divide, healthcare).
  • Protect against privatization efforts that compromise public school resources (e.g., charters, vouchers, virtual charters).
  • Prioritize funding for historically marginalized students, such as English learners, students receiving special education services, and students from limited incomes.
  • Channel federal stimulus funds for education equitably toward districts and students that have been most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Promote Quality Bilingual Education

  • Support diverse teacher preparation programs, especially for bilingual teachers.
  • Monitor, support, and expand high-quality, effective programs for English learners, including dual language programs.
  • Protect and increase student-weight funding for English learner students in all instructional programs.

Prepare All Students for College Readiness and Success

  • Ensure that a rigorous college preparatory curriculum is available to all students, especially for students of color and from lower-income households.
  • Expand access to and affordability for postsecondary education through an increase in-state financial aid, expansion of eligibility for gift aid, and protections for student borrowers.
  • Make institutions of higher education more equitable in their faculty pay structures, internet infrastructure, and student services and resources.
  • Protect in-state tuition and aid eligibility for undocumented students.
  • Protect the Top Ten Percent Plan.

Promote Educational Equity in All Aspects of Student Learning

  • Adopt ethnic studies and support implementation through state standards.
  • Engage families in the policies and practices for school reopening.
  • Support greater mental and behavioral health resources for students, teachers and staff.
  • Support wraparound services that address all needs of school community (e.g., full-service community schools model).
  • Develop a robust, racially diverse teacher workforce and educational leadership.
  • Accurately and transparently collect and monitor data disaggregated by race-ethnicity regarding, but not limited to student engagement, discipline, and achievement to assess racial equity in schools.
  • Promote authentic methods of two-way, family-school engagement.
  • Advocate policies for racial justice in schools, including dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline, promoting professional development in racial justice and culturally responsive pedagogies and practices, and district adoption of racial equity policies.

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