National Center for Families Learning Applauds Congressional Passage of Every Student Succeeds Act

LOUISVILLE, Ky., Dec. 9, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, the U.S. Senate easily approved a long-overdue measure to reauthorize the No Child Left Behind Act, sending the bill to President Barack Obama for a signature. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which was approved by the House of Representatives last Wednesday by a large margin, is a bi-partisan, bi-cameral effort to update America's public school system.

Among its many benefits for America's children, families and school systems, ESSA affirms the important role that parents play in the education of their children. "I am pleased to see that family literacy and family engagement are demonstrated priorities in ESSA," President and Founder of the National Center for Families Learning (NCFL), Sharon Darling remarked. "When parents are treated as an integral part of the learning process, children, families, schools and communities all stand to benefit. This bill compliments NCFL's belief that all parents – regardless of socioeconomic or education level – can help their children succeed in school and life," she added.

Specifically, the bill contains the following provisions:

• The authorization of the Literacy Education for All, Results for the Nation (LEARN) Act
• The establishment of Statewide Family Engagement Centers
• The establishment of a minimum set-aside for family engagement in Title I
• A priority for family literacy for migrant education

President Obama is expected to sign ESSA into law before the end of the calendar year.

About the National Center for Families Learning:
The National Center for Families Learning (NCFL) is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving literacy and lives by engaging all family members in learning — individually and as a family. Pioneered by NCFL, the two-generation family literacy approach harnesses the power of parent-child bonds to help those who are most at risk of failing economically, emotionally, and socially reach their full potential. We target two generations to break the achievement gap cycle and achieve the strongest results, and have helped families make educational and economic progress together since 1989. We develop and utilize innovative programming and tools that focus on empowering families. Our programs are evidence-based and have been shown to improve student attendance, achievement and behavior (including decreased absenteeism) while simultaneously building adult capacity for college and career readiness.

SOURCE National Center for Families Learning

Related Links

http://www.familieslearning.org