House passes Student Success Act

Washington, D.C. - The House today passed the Student Success Act, a bill to replace No Child Left Behind and reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The bill includes Congressman Steve Scalise’s amendment to eliminate certain federal mandates on local school systems.

“House passage of this bill today is a significant step forward for education systems across the nation and makes major progress toward getting the federal government out of the classroom,” said Scalise. “The Student Success Act reduces the federal footprint on our nation’s education system by granting more power to state and local school systems to encourage innovation. By eliminating more than 70 wasteful and duplicative programs, this bill takes a common-sense approach to rewriting the outdated policies included in No Child Left Behind and improving the education of our children. The Student Success Act also protects the autonomy of state school boards and prohibits the federal government from forcing states into adopting Common Core academic standards.

“The federal government has no business micromanaging teacher evaluation programs, which are more effectively run at the state and local level. By removing the mandate that allows the federal government to dictate teacher evaluation programs, my amendment to the Student Success Act stops Washington bureaucrats from overriding the successful education reforms that are improving school performance in states like Louisiana. The education reforms in New Orleans are recognized as a national model for public education transformation, and serve as prime examples of why states and local school systems are better suited to determine student achievement than the federal government. I’m proud to spearhead this amendment and support this bill which takes significant steps towards getting the federal government out of the classroom.”

The Scalise Amendment to the Student Success Act specifically eliminates mandates forcing states to adopt federally required teacher evaluations, and gives states and local education authorities the power to develop and implement their own evaluation methods.

Click here to watch Congressman Scalise discuss his amendment on the floor of the House.