| FOR RELEASE: February 6, 2006 |
Contacts: Susan Aspey, Chad Colby, Valerie Smith (202) 401-1576 |
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Washington — President Bush today announced a FY 2007 Department of Education budget request that reaffirms his historic commitment to close the achievement gap among our nation's students and provide a quality education for every child. The President's budget includes funding for No Child Left Behind that would increase to $24.4 billion, up 4.6 percent from 2006 and up 40 percent since 2001. Support for Title I Grants to local educational agencies is strong at $12.7 billion, an increase of 45 percent since the enactment of NCLB. The budget includes $380 million for new or increased funding for math and science programs aimed at giving students the skills they need to become competitive workers in the global economy of the 21st century.
In a budget season marked by the President's determination to support what works and cut the Federal budget deficit in half by 2009, the Education budget demonstrates an effort to eliminate underperforming programs while increasing resources that promote the competitiveness of our students and our nation. President Bush requests $54.4 billion in discretionary appropriations for the Department of Education in fiscal year 2007, a decrease of $3.1 billion, or 5.5 percent, from the 2006 level. Much of the decrease is based on a 2006 funding level inflated by one-time costs for Hurricane Katrina relief. Even with the proposed reduction, discretionary appropriations for education would be up more than $12 billion, or 29 percent, since fiscal year 2001.
"This budget request soundly targets resources where they are needed most and working best," said Secretary Margaret Spellings. "It will enable us to continue to deliver results for all children under No Child Left Behind, and it tackles our vital priority to improve our global competitiveness by targeting achievement in math and science. The President made all of this possible in a post-Katrina environment while upholding his commitment to reduce the deficit."
This year's 4.6 percent increase in NCLB spending includes increased resources under the American Competitiveness Initiative, promoting stronger instruction in math, science and foreign language in early grades and more challenging coursework in high schools. Math Now programs giving students solid instruction in math, increased incentives to take and teach Advanced Placement courses, and programs to encourage foreign language instruction from K-12 and beyond will ensure that our students are better prepared to complete college and compete in the global workforce.
To bring high standards and accountability to our nation's high schools, the President proposes $1.475 billion in High School Reform formula grants to focus more attention on at-risk students struggling to reach grade level in reading and math. The High School Reform initiative provides funding for activities such as dropout prevention and efforts to increase the rigor of the high school curriculum and require reading and math assessments in two additional high school grade levels to give educators better data to keep all students on track towards graduation. Achieve, Inc., a bipartisan non-profit organization with the goal of helping states raise academic standards, found that only one out of five high school students say they were challenged by their high school academic expectations. The nation's high schools must serve students better.
In this sixth year of funding for No Child Left Behind, states and school districts have more comprehensive data than ever before to identify which schools and districts are in need of improvement. The FY 2007 request provides support to states to help turn around low-performing schools that are in need of improvement or restructuring. The request maintains support for Title I Grants to local educational agencies at $12.7 billion and, for the first time, the President proposes $200 million for the Title I School Improvement Grant Program for schools identified in need of improvement, corrective action or restructuring.
These increases for new initiatives and priorities are possible through $3.5 billion in savings by eliminating funding for 42 duplicative or unnecessary programs. The reductions reflect the President's priority to decrease the federal deficit and target taxpayer dollars to those programs with the greatest promise of improving student outcomes.
"Since the implementation of No Child Left Behind, we have seen that high standards, good teachers and accountable schools help every student make great strides in performance," said Secretary Spellings. "Yet as we survey the global landscape, it is clear that our international competitors have learned from our example. To ensure that America's students become the groundbreaking researchers and leaders of tomorrow, we must transform the way we educate our children today.
"Cementing our status as a world leader in innovation requires stronger, earlier math and science instruction, rigorous coursework throughout a student's career and particularly in the crucial stage of high school, and the understanding of the world that starts with mastering a foreign language. These simple, measurable steps will benefit generations of Americans for years to come.
"These new priorities will not undermine our long-standing commitments to help every child receive a quality education. We are funding new Title I programs, proposing funding for dropout prevention, increasing special education grants to States, and giving parents more and better choices to stay involved in their children's education. If this is a new day for American competitiveness, we live in the same era of unswerving excellence in education."
Among the highlights of the FY 2007 budget request are:
Preparing America's Students for Global Competition. $380 million under the American Competitiveness Initiative will strengthen math and science instruction in our elementary and secondary schools, including:
- $125 million for the Math Now for Elementary School Students initiative, modeled after Reading First, to prepare K-7 students for more rigorous courses in later years;
- $125 million for a new Math Now for Middle School Students initiative, based on the principles of the Striving Readers program, to support research-based math interventions in middle schools;
- $10 million for a National Mathematics Panel to identify key mathematics content and instructional principles to create a research base for teachers and guide the implementation of the Math Now programs;
- $5 million for an Evaluation of Mathematics and Science Programs that would determine which federal education programs are the most effective in raising achievement in math and science and how they can be coordinated to save taxpayer money;
- A $90 million increase for Advanced Placement to train 70,000 additional teachers for math, science and foreign language AP-IB courses and increase the number of students taking and passing AP-IB tests in those subjects; and
- $25 million for the Adjunct Teacher Corps to encourage qualified professionals to teach high school courses with an emphasis on math and science.
Applying High Standards and Accountability to our High Schools. $1.475 billion in High School grants will support interventions and high school assessments in two additional grade levels. The program aims to improve the academic achievement of those students at greatest risk of not meeting state academic standards or completing high school.
- $100 million for the Striving Readers Program would significantly expand research-based interventions to improve the skills of students who are reading below grade level.
Increasing National Security and Global Competitiveness through Foreign Languages. A $35 million increase, for a total of $57 million, for the Education portion of the President's National Security Language Initiative is designed to significantly increase the number of American students and workers learning critical need foreign languages such as Arabic, Chinese, Korean and Russian.
Extending the Spectrum of Improvement Under No Child Left Behind. With the key elements of assessments, accountability systems, choices for parents, and highly qualified teachers already in place, states and school districts require support to turn around schools identified as in need of improvement. That support will include:
- $12.7 billion for Title I Grants to Local Educational Agencies, the same as the 2006 level, to help state and local efforts to meet the accountability and teacher quality requirements of NCLB;
- $200 million for a new Title I School Improvement Grant program to help states build statewide support systems for LEA and school improvement to meet NCLB proficiency goals; and
- $55 million for Statewide Data Systems, an increase of $30 million, to increase support for state longitudinal data systems, to improve graduation and dropout data, and to help states comply with federal reporting requirements.
More Options for Parents. While states have made improvements to implement NCLB choice options, there are still too few alternatives in many districts for parents seeking a quality education for their children. The 2007 would increase this range with:
- $100 million for a new America's Opportunity Scholarships for Kids program, which would provide parents of students enrolled in schools identified as in need of restructuring with more opportunities to transfer their children to a private school or obtain supplemental services.
Achievement for Students with Disabilities. No Child Left Behind is helping to complete the work launched by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 30 years ago. The FY 2007 request includes yet another increase for IDEA, including:
- A $100 million increase for IDEA Part B State Grants, for a total of $10.7 billion—an increase of 69% since 2001.
Helping Students Afford Higher Education. The Higher Education Reform Act reduces unnecessary subsidies and payment to lenders, guaranty agencies, and loan consolidators and makes more assistance available to students, including:
- $850 million for Academic Competitiveness and National SMART Grants to provide grants of up to $1,300 to high-achieving first- and second-year students who have completed a rigorous high school curriculum. Third- and fourth-year students majoring in math, science, technology, engineering or critical foreign languages and maintaining a 3.0 average could receive up to $4,000 annually;
- $17,500 per teacher in expanded teacher loan forgiveness for highly qualified math, science and special education teachers serving challenging, low-income communities;
- $12.7 billion for Pell Grants, to maintain the maximum award at $4,050 for 5.3 million students, an increase of 59,000 students over 2006.
Spending Taxpayer Dollars Wisely. To save $3.5 billion in taxpayer dollars, the President's budget recommends eliminating 42 programs proven ineffective.
- For information about improving accountability in programs across the Federal government, please visit the new website http://www.expectmore.gov/. With this website, taxpayers can see which programs work, which do not, and what the Federal government is doing to improve. ExpectMore.gov will improve not only transparency, but also accountability in all Federal programs.
Information about the Advanced Placement Incentive Program, Choices for Parents, the Math Now programs, and the National Security Language Initiative are available at www.ed.gov.
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