More Resources Policy Letters from the Secretary and Deputy Secretary NCLB Legislation, Regulations, Updated Guidance Standards, Assessments, Accountability

These policy letters provide guidance and insight on a variety of topics of interest to State Educational Agencies (SEAs), school districts, federal program directors, and others in implementing No Child Left Behind.

• Decision letters on state accountability plans

• Approved state accountability plans

• Letters to Chief State School Officers Regarding an Update on Several NCLB Cornerstones (January 8, 2009)

  • Assessment Fact Sheet (2009)
    PDF (74K)

• Letter to Chief State School Officers regarding performance indexes. (December 2, 2008)
  MS WORD(40K) |PDF (1.3M)

• Letter to Chief State School Officers on Amendment Requests for School Year 2008-2009 (December 5, 2008)
  MS WORD (41K) | PDF (1.3M)

• Letter to Chief State School Officers on Amendment Requests for School Year 2007-2008 (November 19, 2007)
  MS WORD (40K) | PDF (1.2M)

• Letter to Chief State School Officers on Department Priorities and Future Actions (September 19, 2006)
  MS WORD (40K) | PDF (1.2M)

• This letter and attachments remind Chiefs of the amendment process and provides guidance on identifying districts in need of improvement and on addressing accountability implications that result from transitioning to grade 3-8 annual testing versus grade span testing.

  • Letter from Assistant Secretary to Chief State School Officers PDF (646K) (March 8, 2006)
  • Attachment A MS WORD (77K)
  • Attachment B MS WORD (39K)

• Process to amend state accountability plans

  • Letter from Assistant Secretary to Chief State School Officers
    MS WORD (32K) (January 27, 2005)

• Letter to Chief State School Officers regarding inclusion of students with disabilities in state accountability systems

• Determining AYP

• California

• Local educational agencies (LEAs) with fewer than 20,000 total residents
  • Alaska
  • Iowa
  • Kansas
  • Maine
  • Nebraska
  • North Dakota
  • Oklahoma

• Decision Letters on State Final Assessment Systems Under Title I of ESEA as amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001

• Decision Letters on State Final Assessment Systems Under Section 1111(e)(2) of Title I of ESEA as amended by the Improving America's Schools Act of 1994

• Assessment of English proficiency of students with limited English proficiency for students with cognitive disabilities

• Guidance on Alternate Assessments (1 percent cap)

  • Kansas
  • Minnesota
  • Montana
  • Montana2
  • Ohio
  • Ohio2
  • Ohio3
  • South Dakota
  • Virginia
  • Virginia 2
  • Virginia 3

• Standards and Assessment Peer Review Information (includes guidance, peer view program overview, and letters to Chief State School Officers).

• Letter to Chief State School Officers regarding flexibility in calculating participation rates for States when making this year's adequate yearly progress (AYP) determinations.

• This letter is a follow-up to the Secretary's announcement regarding participation rates on March 29, 2004.

• Letter to State Chiefs regarding individual student agreements and computers used in SES programs

• Letter to Chief State School Officers on calculating costs for transportation under the public school choice provision

• Letter to Chief State School Officers on district-affiliated entities becoming SES providers

• Supplemental Educational Services (SES) Policy: LEA conditions on providers

• Supplemental Educational Services (SES) Policy: SEA conditions on providers; loss of LEA eligibility to provide SES; improving outreach and information, etc.

• Press Releases, Letters, Peer Review Guidance and other information

• Differentiated Accountability Pilot States

• ED-Flex
  • Maryland

  • North Carolina

• Hurricane Katrina Flexibility Agreements

• Local Flex
  • Washington

  • Dear Colleague-Washington

• State Flex

  • Florida

• Transferability

  • Florida

• Waivers Granted Under No Child Left Behind

• See also: Supplemental Educational Services Flexibility Agreements and the Flexibility and Waivers Website

• Press Releases, Guidance, Letters, Fact Sheets and State Applications related to the NCLB Growth Model Pilot Program.

• Letter to Chief State School Officers Regarding States' Progress in Meeting the HQT Goal (July 23, 2007)

• Highly Qualified Teachers and Improving Teacher Quality State Grants Monitoring Reports

• Letters to Chief State School Officers regarding States' good-faith efforts in meeting the HQT goal. (May 12, 2006)

• Letter to Chief State School Officers regarding States' progress in meeting the HQT goal
  MS WORD (88K) (March 21, 2006)

  • Assessing State Progress in Meeting the Highly Qualified Teacher (HQT) Goals
    MS WORD (90K) (March 21, 2006)
  • Reviewing Revised State Plans
    MS WORD (12K) (March 21, 2006)

• Additional guidance

• Improving Teacher Quality State Grants web site

• Indiana

• New Hampshire

• Memo to Title I Directors on clarification of the delay provision in identifying schools for school improvement

• Press Releases, Charter, Bios, Federal Register Notices, and Meeting Agendas and Summaries related to the National Technical Advisory Council (NTAC).

• Memo to Chief State School Officers on key paraprofessional requirements
  MS WORD (26K)

• Treatment of artists as paraprofessionals (1)

• Treatment of artists as paraprofessionals (2)

• School Improvement Funding Application announcement
  PDF (592K) (October 2, 2007)

• School Improvement State Allocation Chart
  PDF (3092K) (September 4, 2007)

• Application on School Improvement Funding
  PDF (191K) (Fiscal Year 2007)

• School Improvement Fund web site

• SES Flexibility Agreements 2008-2009

• SES Flexibility Agreements 2007-2008

• SES Flexibility Agreements 2006

• SES Flexibility Agreements 2005

  • Virginia
  • Boston, MA
  • Chicago, IL

• For districts and schools identified for improvement

• For state assessments

• For professional development

• For schools not formally identified for school improvement