The Every Student Succeeds Act Loosens the Federal Grip on Education

In December, Congress passed and President Obama signed the Every Student Succeeds Act. The law reauthorizes the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and replaced the much-maligned No Child Left Behind Act, which also reauthorized the 1965 law and has governed schools since 2002.
Most notably, the Every Student Succeeds Act radically reduces the U.S. Department of Education’s authority over state curriculum frameworks, standards and testing decisions; gives states the power to use “evidence-based” models when investing in the lowest-performing 5 percent of schools; and curtails the secretary of education’s authority over state and local policy making. To make this clear, the law even states:
Nothing in this title shall be construed to authorize the Secretary or any other officer or employee of the Federal Government to mandate, direct, or control a State, local educational agency, or school’s instructional content or materials, curriculum, program of instruction, academic standards, or academic assessments; teacher, principal, or other school leader evaluation system; specific definition of teacher, principal, or other school leader effectiveness; or teacher, principal, or other school leader professional standards, certification, or licensing.
This prohibition is a critical step in reducing the federal footprint, which is arguably now the largest since the agency was created in 1979. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act’s Title I and Title II regulations, the Improving America’s Schools Act in the 1990s, and more recent Race to the Top and Common Core incentives for cash-strapped states have all contributed to this build-up of staff, resources and power. As the Department of Education’s power grew over time, so did its budget, as seen in the graph below. 

As 2016 begins, many state and national leaders are optimistic about the law’s ability to scale back the federal footprint, unravel over a decade of federal mandates and end the presumption that Washington should micromanage schools.
At the same time, there is reason to be skeptical. To paraphrase Mark Twain, the report of the Department of Education’s “death” in state and local education via the Every Student Succeeds Act is “greatly exaggerated.”
A congressional prohibition against federal control of education is not a novel idea, nor have congressional prohibitions in previous reauthorizations of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act produced less federal control over education. For starters, look no further than No Child Left Behind. In a section titled “Prohibition Against Federal Mandates, Direction or Control,” the law states:
At first glance, this sentence mirrors language in the Every Student Succeeds Act. But even though No Child Left Behind said the federal government could not “mandate, direct, or control” state standards and assessments, the Department of Education still told states how to disaggregate demographic data, how to use adequate yearly progress to guide intervention into schools in need of improvement and how to characterize a teacher as “highly qualified.”
Congress also prohibited federal control over education in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965:
Yet there is no question that the federal role in education expanded between the passage of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in 1965 through 2015. What will matter moving forward is less the codified language than how the new law actually affects states, local education agencies and schools when the rubber hits the road. If we want the Every Student Succeeds Act to work, states are going to have to stand firm and protect their right to deliver education to students. Perhaps more importantly, Washington will need to accept the fact that today, Republicans and Democrats alike have agreed that it is time to exchange the Department of Education’s dominant role for a smaller and more focused one. That compromise in itself is a remarkable feat –and it is one that should be respected.