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This update on the Every Student Succeeds Act and the education plans now being refined by state legislatures is produced in partnership with ESSA Essentials, a new series from the Collaborative for Student Success. It鈥檚 an offshoot of their听听newsletter, which you can听! (See our ; explore our full archive of recent ESSA News Updates)

Delaware did 鈥� which were enough to gain approval from Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and her team last week.

Here are the week鈥檚 other top developments:

Last week, Sen. Patty Murray (a Democrat from Washington) and Rep. Bobby Scott (a Democrat from Virginia) 鈥� ranking minority members of Congress鈥檚 two education committees 鈥� to assert that her department鈥檚 new ESSA review process, which includes phone calls between the department and state officials to discuss plans before formal submission, is highly problematic.

. expressed concern about the US Dept of Ed鈥檚 new approach to reviewing states’ plans

鈥� for Student Success (@StudentSuccess)

鈥淲e are deeply concerned that this decision will result in inconsistent treatment of state agencies, leading to flawed implementation of our nation鈥檚 education law and harm to our nation鈥檚 most vulnerable students,鈥� Murray and Scott wrote.听鈥淎 verbal agreement in a nonpublic setting is not an appropriate substitute for publicly available discourse with states.鈥�听

The 鈥渟haring of knowledge,鈥� Christi Ham, chairwoman of Military Families for High Standards, 鈥渋s vital for educators devising new policies that guide the education of 1.2 million children of U.S. service members.鈥� In this piece for the Huffington Post, Ham talks about the challenges face in trying to secure a consistent, high-quality education. Repeated reassignments for their parent or parents mean students have to continually adjust to new schools and districts.

The military student identifier is something have needed for a long while:

鈥� ESSA Updates (@ESSA_Update)

Until recently, there have not been much hard data available 鈥� just 鈥渁necdotal conclusions at best鈥� 鈥� on this issue, its impacts, and its outcomes when it comes to group and individual achievement levels, preparation for college, regional quality, and academic performance. However, under ESSA, this situation is set to improve as states will be required 鈥渢o identify military students and track their test scores, attendance and graduation rates as they move from base to base and state to state,鈥� and, most important, publicly report the data.

Alabama State Superintendent Michael Sentance the state鈥檚 draft ESSA plan, which is now open for public review and comment. Recently, Sentance has taken blistering criticism from the state board for his approach to the position, as well as the department鈥檚 attempt to take over the City of Montgomery鈥檚 school system. The board is evaluating Sentance鈥檚 position. This could all get even more interesting, since Alabama is taking a different approach than other states in terms of ESSA plan development 鈥� the process is being directed by a task force appointed by the governor, and Sentance is a member.

Soon after Alabama鈥檚 release, on July 31, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) the state鈥檚 draft ESSA plan for public review, with an open comment period lasting until Aug. 29, after which the plan will be submitted to the Department of Education. According to the , key initiatives 鈥渋nclude a redesigned certification framework, aligned technical assistance and interventions for low-performing campuses, and a robust network of supports for our most vulnerable student populations.鈥�

Idaho a final draft ESSA plan for public review last week. Karlynn Laraway, the state Department of Education鈥檚 director of assessment and accountability, stated, 鈥淲e will be presenting the final draft of the plan for consideration and a vote of approval by the State Board of Education at their meeting in August.鈥�

According to Idaho Ed News, the 鈥�latest version of the plan is different than previous versions, in part because it lowers the sample size of students needed for federal reporting purposes,鈥� which affects 鈥渨hich schools may be identified as low-performing and, in turn, be eligible for a boost in federal funds designed to help schools get back on track.鈥�

West Virginia also the state鈥檚 final draft ESSA plan last week. Kristin Anderson, communications director for the state agency, said the department 鈥渇elt it was important to provide time for the general public to come ask us questions and give input on the plan,鈥� adding that 鈥渨e鈥檝e had really good dialogue with parents, educators, and community members.鈥� Under the plan, schools will be judged based on five criteria: math and English proficiency, college and career readiness, high school graduation rates, attendance and behavior, and English language proficiency among students who don鈥檛 speak English as a first language. Aug. 1 marked the start of a 30-day comment period for West Virginians to share their thoughts on this final draft.

Following in , New Jersey has announced that it will a waiver from the Department of Education on ESSA requirements.

N.J. has asked Betsy DeVos for an testing waiver, joining Fla. and Ky. in their intention to ask for waivers.

鈥� Education Week (@educationweek)

New Jersey officials want their system to be exempt from having to test middle school students. The state would like 鈥渢o test its middle school students in the mathematics course in which they are enrolled, rather than with the state tests created for each student鈥檚 grade.鈥�

Kentucky also 鈥� specifically from the cap on the number of students who can take the state鈥檚 high school alternative assessments. As Education Week notes, 鈥淚n order to receive a waiver, a state must prove that what it instead proposes to do is as effective or more effective than what鈥檚 required to do under the law.鈥�

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