NASSP | National Association of Secondary School Principals

Tell Elected Officials: Include Principals in Decision Making

The 2021 National Principals Conference took place last week, and NASSP CEO Ronn Nozoe issued a call to action for all in attendance: Sign a petition calling on elected officials and district leaders to adequately consult principals when making policy and decisions that will impact our schools, students, teachers, staff, and families.

Research has shown time and again that student outcomes are improved when school leaders are involved in the policymaking process. That’s because school leaders know what our students need.

To best serve our students and lead our schools forward, policymakers must hear our voices! Add your name to the petition now and help ensure that—as more decisions are made in the coming months around new funding from the American Rescue Plan (ARP), school facilities and infrastructure, discipline guidance, and more—school leaders have a seat at the table.

Sign the Petition

THIS MONTH’S TOP ADVOCACY ISSUES

Compromise Reached on Infrastructure, but K–12 Schools Left Out

Late last month, President Joe Biden and a group of Democratic and Republican senators reached a compromise deal on the broad framework for a new national infrastructure package. The proposed legislation would include $600 billion in new spending on national infrastructure with another $600 billion in spending reallocated from other programs, including some unspent emergency COVID-19 relief funding. Unfortunate for students and educators, the $100 billion in new funding for K–12 schools that was proposed in President Biden’s initial American Jobs Plan has been left out of the deal.

Despite the disappointing result, the hope of including a new investment in school facilities is not lost. Many congressional Democrats are signaling their support for moving another package alongside the bipartisan bill to address many of the areas left out of the agreement. The exact substance of that potential additional bill is still being deliberated, and right now is an opportune moment for school leaders to contact their members of Congress. You can send a powerful message today with just a few clicks.

The message is simple: Don’t leave K–12 schools out of this deal. The American Jobs Plan included $100 billion for K–12 because the most underserved schools in our country need significant upgrades to deliver the best education, and many are actually unsafe for students and staff. New HVAC systems are urgently needed in many buildings, plumbing needs to be replaced to reduce lead exposure and provide safe drinking water, and outdated schools need to be upgraded to meet the demands of delivering a 21st-century education.

TELL CONGRESS TO INVEST IN SCHOOL INFRASTRUCTURE

TWITTER TALK

Some students thrived learning from home — they deserve a permanent model: https://thehill.com/opinion/educat… #edtech #HomeworkGap

Don't miss the chance to hear from @NASSP's electric CEO @RonnNozoe on the impact principals have on preparing students for life after secondary education!

🚨School leaders!📢 Attend this @All4Ed webinar coming up on Thursday 7/22 if you can. It's critical that you work with your district office to submit an application for new Emergency Connectivity Fund dollars before the 8/14 deadline https://futureready.org/webinar/close… #homeworkgap

National Student Clearinghouse research center executive Director Doug Shapiro and NASSP CEO @RonnNozoe discuss the impact of Covid-19 on students. Listen at the link ➡️https://nassp.org/2021/06/30/nat… @NSClearinghouse #SchoolOfThought

Take Action

The White House and congressional leaders from both parties are continuing negotiations around a national infrastructure improvement package, but K–12 schools are in danger of being left out of the deal. Send a message to your lawmakers today asking them to support healthy, safe, and productive learning environments for students and educators.

Other News

The Federal Communications Commission application window for the $7.17 billion Emergency Connectivity Fund to promote connectivity for students and educators is now open through August 13. Eligible school districts may submit requests for funding for the costs associated with eligible equipment and services to meet the remote learning needs of students and school staff. Share this information with your district office, and encourage them to submit an application on your school's behalf.

NASSP partnered with the CDC Foundation to collect survey data from principals on the impact of COVID-19 on schools and mitigation strategies being implemented around the country. Recent data from the research project has been released in three new reports.

The Department of Education (ED) recently released a request for information seeking public comments on school discipline as they consider issuing new guidance to ensure more equitable and effective discipline in K–12 schools. Comments must be submitted by July 23.

ED also approved the first seven state plans for additional ARP funding earlier this month and distributed $6 billion in new funding to those states.

2021 Florida Principal of the Year and NASSP state coordinator Jen Halter presented at the release event for the Committee for Education Funding’s annual budget book, Education Matters, which provides useful information on the need to invest in education, details of federal education programs and their funding history, and examples of how these vital programs improve the lives of millions of Americans and benefit the economy.

During Pride Month in June, members of NASSP’s national network of LGBTQ+ school leaders shared their stories in a series of highlight videos.

NASSP is conducting research to better understand your concerns for the upcoming school year. Take the survey to share your thoughts.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) updated Guidance for COVID-19 Prevention in Kindergarten (K)-12 Schools. The updated guidance focuses on helping administrators in K-12 schools, along with state and local health officials, safely support in-person learning as well as sports and other extracurricular activities.

For more advocacy tweets, follow NASSP and the advocacy staff on Twitter:

NASSP
@nassp

Amanda Karhuse
@akarhuse

Zachary Scott
@zachscott33

Greg Waples
@GWaples

Missed an issue of the Policy & Advocacy newsletter?

View Archives

1904 Association Drive
Reston, VA 20191
703-860-0200 | 800-253-7746

You have been included in this email because you are a member, have attended our events, have purchased our products, or have signed up for our electronic newsletter(s).

Unsubscribe to no longer receive emails from us.