On September 25, 2017, after half a year of committee meetings, public outreach and comments, writing, and revising, the New Hampshire Department of Education submitted the New Hampshire Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Consolidated State Plan to the US Department of Education. In the cover letter, Frank Edelblut, the Commissioner of Education, proclaimed, “the plan embraces key values of education in New Hampshire”[1] which include the following: personalization, student and family support; goals and indicators of student achievement; educator and leader support; accountability and reporting.[2]
Almost three months later, on December 20, 2017, NH received a letter of feedback about its plan from the US Department of Education requesting clarification or additional information on various aspects of the plan. The following are some of the revisions requested by the US Department of Education, as indicated in the table attached to the letter.[3]
- Provide additional information about languages other than English spoken by the student populations, specifically the most populous language
- Provide performance for all indicators and requirements for ‘multi-race’ students, as this is an ethnic and racial group NH-DOE included in the State plan
- Include baseline data for all students and each subgroup to meet statutory requirements about grade-level proficiency and adjusted cohort graduation rate (ACGR)
- Provide clarity for the Graduation Rate indicator and the extended year adjusted cohort graduation rates; also provide disaggregated graduation rate data
- Revise School Quality or Student Success indicator to include all high school students or all 12th graders, not just graduating seniors, and show how indicator is valid and reliable
- Specify the number of years which schools identified for comprehensive support and improvement must meet exit criteria
- Address how low-income and minority children will not be served by ineffective, out-of-field, and inexperienced teachers
- Describe how NH will support migratory preschool children with measurable objectives and outcomes
- Add objectives and outcomes to assess Title 1, Part D program effectiveness in improving the academic, career, and technical skills of children in the program
- Specifically detail how educators will improve their skills in identifying and teaching children with disabilities, children who are English learners, children who are gifted and talented children with low literacy levels
- Describe how the state will use data to evaluate effectiveness of programs to improve the skills of educators
- Clarify implementation of entrance and exit procedures for English learners, specifically how it will consult with LEAs (Local education agencies)
- Describe procedures or criteria for reviewing applications and awarding subgrants and how it will implement a rigorous peer review process
- Provide information how NH will ensure equitable access to and participation in programs described in state plan for students, teachers, and beneficiaries with special needs.
The response from the US DoE asked that NH resubmit the plan with suggested revisions and clarifications by January 5, 2018. It’s not certain whether or not NH will need to address all of these requests from the US DoE for clarification, explanation, and additional information. Other states have resubmitted their plans without making all of the requested revisions and they’ve been approved.[4]
At the point of this written analysis (January 13, 2018), it’s not clear whether or not NH resubmitted a revised Consolidated Plan by January 5, 2018.
[1] NH Department of Education Consolidated State Plan https://www2.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/stateplan17/nhconsolidatedstateplan.pdf
[2] NH Department of Education Consolidated State Plan https://www2.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/stateplan17/nhconsolidatedstateplan.pdf
[3] https://www2.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/stateplan17/nhinterimfeedbackletter.pdf
[4] http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2017/12/betsy_devos_essa_nebraska_hawaii_wisconsin_kentucky_new_hampshire.html