A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

III. The Department's Administration of the Waiver Authorities

To help states and school districts make the most of waiver authorities, the Department has encouraged educators to focus first on defining effective strategies for improving the academic achievement of their students, and then capitalize on any or all of the available flexibility measures as tools to help achieve their goals for students. Immediately following the enactment of the waiver authorities, the Department initiated several efforts to make educators aware of the waiver provisions and to provide information on applying for a waiver. The Department developed non-regulatory guidance that explains the waiver authorities and how to apply for a waiver, and mailed this guidance to all local school superintendents, state-level federal education program coordinators, chief state school officers, and numerous education associations and interest groups.

The Department maintains a Waiver Assistance Line for callers and regularly posts waiver guidance and other information on waivers on the Department's Internet Home Page ^{[ 10 ]}. In addition, the Department publicizes the availability of waivers and has sponsored workshops on preparing waivers (for state and local educators) at its annual regional Improving America's Schools conferences.

Waiver Action Board Members Assistant Secretary, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (Chairperson) Assistant Secretary, Office of Vocational and Adult Education Director, Office of Bilingual Education and Minority Languages Affairs Special Advisor to the Secretary on Teaching Deputy General Counsel, Office of the General Counsel

The Department's Waiver Action Board, consisting of senior officers, helps ensure that requests for waivers receive consistent, expeditious, and thorough reviews. The members of the Waiver Action Board bring critical perspectives and interests to the waiver process. The Board considers each waiver request and makes recommendations to the Deputy Secretary, to whom the Secretary has delegated his waiver authority.

Each waiver request is reviewed thoroughly by the staff responsible for administering the affected program and by other Department officials who provide general policy and legal reviews of each request. The Waiver Action Board has developed a base of knowledge that is useful not only for reviewing new waiver requests, but also for analyzing the effectiveness of waivers and applying lessons learned to future legislation proposals and regulations.

The Department strives to review each waiver request within 60 days of its receipt. Each of the applicants whose waivers are approved meet the statutory criteria with specific plans for using the affected federal programs to improve teaching and learning. Each time a waiver is disapproved, the Department offers applicants guidance and information on obtaining technical assistance to support their objectives or prepare to reapply for a waiver.

In November 1996, the Department began establishing annual deadlines for submitting waiver requests. The deadlines for waivers to be considered by the Department are April 1 (for waivers to be implemented beginning in the fall of the following school year) and October 1 (for spring implementation). The deadline for waivers to be implemented at the beginning of the 1999-2000 school year is April 1, 1999.

Footnotes:

^{[ 10 ]} See http://www.ed.gov/nclb/freedom/local/flexibility/index.html [ Return to text ]

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