The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) is the latest version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), passed in December 2015. 

Under ESSA, New York State (NYS) must develop a plan for how it will evaluate public schools, improve educational outcomes in struggling schools, and increase equity. Under ESSA's predecessor, No Child Left Behind, this meant using test scores to evaluate students, teachers, and schools. This approach failed, and it's important the new state plan focuses less on "outputs" like test scores, and more on "inputs" like: class sizes, an engaging curriculum, arts and music offerings, and a welcoming and collaborative environment. 

On Tuesday, May 30, New York State will hold its last public hearing on ESSA for the greater Rochester area. The Alliance for Quality Education and Metro Justice will be there to testify in support of indicators that prioritize educating students and not teaching to the test. We believe ESSA should include and strengthen indicators for:

-School Climate: to Make School a Place Where it is a Joy to Teach and to Learn
-Parent Voice: to Empower Our Communities
-Chronic Absenteeism: to Keep Kids in School
-Access to Small Class Sizes, High Level Courses, Art and Music
-Social-Emotional Supports: to Meet Students Social-Emotional Needs

We also believe ESSA should strengthen parts of the law that require:

-Culturally Relevant Curriculum
-Reporting of Per Pupil Spending to Increase Equitable Funding

Please join us on May 30! We must fight for measures of school quality that do not rely solely on testing and drive resources to what is important for public education.