The senators called on Secretary DeVos to issue guidance to encourage states to support students with parents in the National Guard or Reserves in addition to children whose parents are on active duty




WASHINGTON- U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Patty Murray (D-WA) urged the Department of Education to take action to ensure children of National Guard and Reserve members receive the same level of support in school as children of active duty service members. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requires states, school districts, and schools to report on academic outcomes for “military-connected students.” While ESSA only requires this definition to include children with a parent who is a member of the Armed Forces on active duty, states have the ability to use a more inclusive definition that includes reporting on children of National Guard and Reserve members. The senators called on Secretary DeVos to issue guidance to encourage states to use a definition of military-connected students that includes children with parents in the National Guard or Reserves, in addition to children whose parents are on active duty, and to collect and disseminate information on how each state is defining military-connected student for the purpose of meeting the ESSA requirement.

“We write to urge you to act immediately to encourage state officials to use the most inclusive definition of ‘military-connected student’ possible when collecting data and reporting on academic outcomes for such children,” the senators wrote. “Using a more expansive definition will help schools and school districts understand the unique needs of the children of all of our nation’s service members and help them provide resources to help these children succeed.”

The full text of the letter can be found below:

Dear Secretary DeVos,

We write to urge you to act immediately to encourage state officials to use the most inclusive definition of “military-connected student” possible when collecting data and reporting on academic outcomes for such children. Doing so will help schools understand the unique challenges children of National Guard or Reserve members face, and help them design interventions to meet their needs.

As you know, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requires states, school districts, and schools to report on academic outcomes for military-connected students. While ESSA only requires this definition to include children with a parent who is a member of the Armed Forces on active duty, states have the ability to use a more inclusive definition that includes reporting on children of National Guard and Reserve members. While some states already use a more inclusive definition that includes children of Reserve and National Guard members, others do not. As a result, children of National Guard or Reserve members often do not receive services that could benefit them because their schools are unaware of their parents’ service, yet these students often experience the same effects of deployments as children whose parents are on active duty.

Using a more expansive definition will help schools and school districts understand the unique needs of the children of all of our nation’s service members and help them provide resources to help these children succeed.

Specifically, we ask that you:

1) Issue guidance to encourage states to use a definition of military-connected students that includes children with parents in the National Guard or Reserves, in addition to children whose parents are on active duty; and

2) Collect and disseminate information on how each state is defining military-connected student for the purpose of meeting ESSA’s reporting requirement under section 1111(h)(1)(C)(ii).

Thank you for your attention to this critical matter.

Sincerely,
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