LULAC Concerned by Lack of Accountability Measures in New Education Bill

April 17, 2015

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, Brent Wilkes, LULAC National Executive Director, released the following statement regarding the passage of the Every Child Achieves Act of 2015 which was passed by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP).

“Although we agree that the No Child Left Behind Act is in need of an overhaul, we are disappointed that the Senate HELP Committee voted the Every Child Achieves Act of 2015 out of Committee without a single dissenting voice.

In its current form, the bill fails to provide the necessary protections for underserved and minority populations, leaving them to fend for themselves. Specifically, the legislation fails to include the subgroup accountability language needed to ensure that schools intervene and take action to assure the success of vulnerable minority populations.

Furthermore, it fails to address gaps in resource equity and lacks language requiring individual states to intervene where schools have high dropout rates.This language is necessary to ensure that minority populations are not left behind, and they need to be included in any overhaul of the No Child Left Behind Act.

As a result, LULAC opposes the bill in its current form and will continue to work with key Senators on the issue as it works its way through the Senate."

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The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation’s largest and oldest civil rights volunteer-based organization that empowers Hispanic Americans and builds strong Latino communities. Headquartered in Washington, DC, with 1,000 councils around the United States and Puerto Rico, LULAC’s programs, services and advocacy address the most important issues for Latinos, meeting critical needs of today and the future. For more information, visit www.LULAC.org.