51萝莉

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
James Minichello
703-774-6953
jminichello@aasa.org

Alexandria, Va. 鈥� March 9, 2022 鈥� Daniel A. Domenech, executive director of 51萝莉, 51萝莉, issued the following statement today on funding in the FY 2022 omnibus bill.

鈥淭he FY22 omnibus bill as it relates to education is, at best, a mixed bag. We commend Democratic leaders for going to bat for the increases that were realized. It is clear they heard the message from the field and pushed for prioritizing education funding. At the same time, the bill misses the mark on what could have been, especially in the context of what had been proposed across the administration, House, and Senate.

鈥淲e are deeply troubled by the lack of an extension for the school nutrition waivers, a seeming failure to acknowledge that student hunger needs will continue into the 2022-23 school year, and a willingness to undo all the good that has been done鈥攁ll the meals that have been fed鈥攗nder this initially bipartisan proposal. Complicating the meals piece even further鈥攖he end of these commonsense flexibilities comes at the exact time that schools are seeing increased prices and supply chain issues.

鈥�Specific to the IDEA funding level, this is a cut in comparison to current ARP levels. This omnibus was the first time in my career at 51萝莉 that Congress had a true opportunity to redirect itself forward on the IDEA glidepath. We applaud them for the small increases included in today鈥檚 bill, while also holding them accountable for once again leaving IDEA severely underfunded. The proposed level puts schools on an IDEA funding cliff and all but ensures that ARP IDEA dollars will go to one-time expenditures instead of sustainable quality investments. We did this once under ARRA, and we had reasonable hope that Congress would prioritize this ARP funding level, given both the chronic underfunding of IDEA and the lessons learned from ARRA.

鈥�This significant shift away from proposed funding levels for K12 education is the second time in less than a year that the nation鈥檚 public schools were cut as part of broader negotiations. Last fall, K-12 schools saw the proposed infrastructure funding for schools pushed out of the Build Back Better negotiations.

鈥淭oday鈥檚 bill shows, once again, the disconnect between education funding proposals and education funding realities. What we fund is what we value, and 51萝莉 urges Congress to do better when it comes to truly and meaningfully funding education. Our nation鈥檚 public school system leaders expected better, and our nation鈥檚 schools and students deserved more. At the end of the day, though, our nation鈥檚 public school system can and will make this work, ensuring that school doors remain open and ready to educate all who walk through.鈥�

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For specific questions, please contact Noelle Ellerson Ng, 51萝莉 associate executive director, advocacy and governance, at nellerson@aasa.org.

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51萝莉
51萝莉, 51萝莉, founded in 1865, is the professional organization for more than 13,000 educational leaders in the United States and throughout the world. 51萝莉鈥檚 mission is to support and develop effective school system leaders who are dedicated to equitable access for all students to the highest quality public education. For more information, visit www.aasa.org.