Federal law requires public school districts to provide funding to private school teachers and students through the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which was first created by Congress in the 1960s and has to be reauthorized by Congress every five years.
The most recent reauthorization is called the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which replaced the No Child Left Behind Act.
Full implementation of the ESSA won’t take effect until the 2017-18 school year. The 2016-17 school year is a transition year where programs will continue as they have.
Under the new ESSA program, private schools will receive more funding and will have better opportunities for timely and meaningful consultation of how Title monies will be used. In addition, federal law requires every state to appoint an Ombudsman to evaluate if private school students and teachers are being served as required by law.
WCRIS is working with the DPI state lawmakers to have the Ombudsman position constructed in such a way as to actually fulfill its function, rather than being lost in the bureaucratic maze of other DPI programs.
In the meantime, you can get access to the federal program dollars your teachers and students are are entitled to by:
- Review the DPI’s ESEA spreadsheet to learn how much Title money has been allocated to your local public school district.
- Contacting your local public school district business manager and asking how the district plans to apportion title funds among the private schools in their district.
- Talking to your public school district’s Title Programs administrator to consult on how the funds will be used for your students and teachers. Do not sign off on the Private School Affirmation forms until you agree with what the district is doing.
Districts have to submit their Title applications to DPI by August 31 and need private school sign-off before they can submit an application.
