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The Power of Full-Service Community Schools

Community schools are more than just educational facilities; they are hubs of comprehensive support. These schools integrate academic, social, and health services provided by partners to address the multifaceted needs of students, families, and communities. Community schools are more than their partnerships. They are founded on a community-wide needs assesment to first determine the community’s priorities. Then, partnerships are developed to fill those needs. By fostering collaboration between schools and local resources, community schools create a meaningful ecosystem where every child can thrive.

Evidence-Based Success

The FY 2023 Full-Service Community School request for proposals saw over 400 communities express interest, continuing a three-year trend of increasing demand. This surge underscores the efficacy of community schools as an evidence-based strategy. Leaders nationwide recognize that community schools play an important role in helping students achieve academically, regardless of their background or zip code.

Investment with High Returns

Investing in community schools is smart fiscal policy. Coordinating resources at the school and system levels yields impressive results. For example, for every $1 invested in a community school coordinator’s salary, the return on investment exceeds $7. This efficient use of funds ensures that students receive the support they need to succeed academically and beyond.

Addressing Urgent Needs

Community schools tackle urgent societal challenges head-on. With 20 million children ages 3-17 reporting at least one mental health concern, community schools provide essential mental health services. Additionally, they support the 12.5% of children experiencing food insecurity and offer aid to the 81,000 families and youth facing homelessness. By addressing these critical needs, community schools contribute to stronger, healthier communities.

A Call to Action

As Congress develops the 2025 appropriations bill, we must prioritize the future of our students and the economic health of our communities. The Coalition for Community Schools, along with other organizations like the Alliance for Public Schools, encourages funding the Full Service Community Schools Program at $443 million, without cuts to other education programs. By doing so, we can reinvigorate education and economic efforts in urban and rural communities, ensuring that every child has the opportunity to thrive and building a brighter future for us all.

Quickly send an email to your U.S. Senators and urge them to fund Full Service Community Schools today. Then, share it with your friends.

To learn more about the Alliance’s work to promote Full Service Community Schools, reach out to us at info@all4schools.org.

The post Investing in Full-Service Community Schools: A Pathway to Student Success appeared first on Alliance for Public Schools.

Why School Nurses Matter

For many students, the school nurse is their primary healthcare provider. With over 40% of school-aged children and teens having chronic health conditions, such as asthma, diabetes, and food allergies, school nurses ensure timely care and management. They bridge the gap between education and healthcare, promoting student health and well-being.

During routine health exams, school nurses are often the first to identify chronic health conditions. Their vigilance ensures timely interventions, preventing complications and keeps students in classrooms so they can learn. School nurses educate students and families about available health services, access to insurance, and coordination of care. Their guidance extends beyond the school walls, benefiting entire families and communities.

Every dollar invested in school nursing yields a $2.20 return. By preventing costly emergency room visits and reducing parents’ work absences due to sick children, school nurses contribute to both health and financial stability.

The Shortage Crisis

Florida grapples with a shortage of school nurses. As of March 2024, Pinellas County public schools had 32 out of 123 nurse positions open. The statewide deficit projection by 2035 includes 21,700 licensed professional nurses (LPNs) and 37,400 registered nurses (RNs). The need for competitive pay to recruit and retain nurses remains critical.

Lack of nurse educators hinders nursing schools from admitting enough students. Florida RN programs report a shortage of qualified faculty, affecting enrollment and exacerbating the deficit. Further, as the Baby Boomer generation retires, the demand for healthcare providers increases. Simultaneously, nurses leave the workforce, creating a challenging cycle.

Addressing the Crisis

Florida nursing schools must invest resources to hire more faculty to address the shortage. Increased faculty can boost enrollment and graduate more nurses.

To attract and retain nurses, districts must offer competitive salaries. For example, Pinellas County LPNs currently earn an average hourly wage of $30.73, but market forces demand more.

Communities, legislators, and educators must recognize the indispensable role of school nurses. Their impact extends far beyond health—it shapes academic success. Advocates must work together to demand resources like school nurses who help our students succeed. Sign up for our updates to stay informed of issues impacting our children, educators, and public schools.

The post The Vital Role of School Nurses: Bridging Health and Education appeared first on Alliance for Public Schools.

The FAFSA overhaul began in December 2020, in the final days of the Trump administration, when Congress passed the FAFSA Simplification Act as part of the end-of-year budget. The law required the form to go from 100 questions to 40 and changed the aid eligibility formula. According to Inside Higher Ed, “The new law also significantly expanded Pell Grant eligibility and lifted a 26-year ban on Pell for incarcerated students, along with a number of other changes aimed at making aid easier to access.”

The soft launch in late December was anything but smooth. Technical hiccups persisted, preventing the processing of completed applications. Colleges and universities were left in limbo, unable to send out aid packages to students eagerly awaiting financial clarity. The blame game ensued. The U.S. Department of Education pointed fingers at Congress, claiming they denied additional resources. Meanwhile, congressional Republicans accused the department of prioritizing student debt relief over the FAFSA overhaul. In addition, the massive FAFSA project was overshadowed by other departmental priorities of the USDOE, including school reopenings during the pandemic. The overhaul progressed slowly, and advocates worried that the new form wouldn’t be ready in time.

Consequences for Students

Families remain in the dark about their college payment options, and low-income and first-generation students may become discouraged from pursuing higher education altogether. In addition,colleges have been significantly delayed creating financial aid packages for students.

For students who are able to access the form, they report that it’s faster, less confusing, and much more streamlined. Lawmakers are calling for hearings, and investigations are underway. Students deserve better, and it’s time to untangle this mess.

The post The promise of a better FAFSA leaves students in the lurch appeared first on Alliance for Public Schools.

Education Funding: Holding Steady

The journey to this moment had many challenges. Months of wasted time were caused by the House Republican majority, which wrestled with far-right pressure to abandon the previous budget agreement from nearly a year ago. However, the majority finally acknowledged that most members in both chambers supported the original agreement.

The education funding bill closely adheres to the agreement reached during last year’s debt ceiling negotiations. Overall funding for education remains essentially level, which is a victory in itself based on the cuts that were proposed.

The Power of Advocacy

Your voices played a crucial role in shaping this outcome. The GOP majority unveiled its plan last summer to slash education funding by 30 percent and gut Title I by 80 percent but advocates like you helped shut down that harmful proposal.

The final bill includes small increases for several critical areas:

1. Title I: These grants to local educational agencies receive a boost, with an increase of $20 million above fiscal year 2023.
2. IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act): Funding for special education sees a $14 million increase.
3. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs): These institutions receive continued support.

In addition, the bill addresses additional measures:

1. Higher Education: The final legislation includes a provision which guarantees the continuation of the comprehensive National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS). NPSAS is the most comprehensive nationally representative study that measures how students and families finance postsecondary education.
2. Workforce Development: The bill includes a directive for the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to study “pay-for-success” programs as an outcomes-based incentive for employers to launch (or expand) apprenticeships. The provision in the bill directs DOL to assess the feasibility of such programs, which may inform potential further investment in pay-for-success apprenticeship initiatives at the federal level.

Looking Ahead

Two additional federal initiatives hold promise:

1. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP): By preparing students to learn, SNAP contributes to their overall well-being.
2. American Families and Workers Act of 2024: This legislation aims to reduce child poverty by raising the Child Tax Credit and encourages affordable housing construction.

This win was thanks to the voices of advocates like you. Let’s continue working together to build a brighter future for all. Sign up for our updates to stay informed of issues impacting our children, educators, and public schools.

The post Congress Passes Education Funding Bill: A Victory for Students and Educators appeared first on Alliance for Public Schools.

1. ESSER Funds and Fiscal Realities

The Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds, a lifeline during the pandemic, faced a cliffhanger. These federal dollars had bolstered schools, but their expiration loomed large. The budgets for both PreK-12 and higher education institutions were under the microscope. As the clock ticked, districts grappled with the impending funding gap, risking teacher layoffs and program cuts.

2. Deregulation and High Stakes Testing

Last year’s expansion of school choice had a ripple effect. In 2024, lawmakers doubled down on deregulation, aiming to free public schools from policies that districts viewed as cumbersome. While some hailed this as a step toward flexibility, others felt like the legislature did not go far enough. Popular proposals that would have ended the harsh consequences of high stakes testing failed in negotiations between the House and the Senate.

3. Social Media Regulations for Minors

In an era of tweets and TikToks, social media regulations became a hot topic. The legislature grappled with safeguarding minors online. Lawmakers attempted to balance free speech and protecting students. The resulting policy does not target specific platforms and applies to platforms “where at least 10 percent of daily active users are children younger than 16 who use it for two hours or more a day; that uses “addictive” features, such as infinite scrolling; and that uses algorithms that analyze user data to handpick content for users.”

Chronic Abseenteeism and the Future of Education

Despite committee hearings and public statements from legislative leaders, the chronic absenteeism crisis was never addressed. Districts continue to grapple with a high number of student absences.

Pay attention to the candidates on your ballot for school board, the state House, and the Senate. Be ready to vote on August 20th and November 5th. It will be up to advocates and voters to demand policies that empower students, elevate student voices, engage families and the community, and involve students in the solutions.

Sign up for our updates to stay informed of issues impacting our children, educators, and public schools.

The post The 2024 Florida Legislative Session: What’s in store for schools? appeared first on Alliance for Public Schools.

The Alarming Trend

The Tampa Bay Times recently reported that 31% of Florida students were chronically absent during the last school year, a significant increase from 20% in 2018. These are the students who missed at least 10% of their classes. While the numbers have slightly decreased, educators remain deeply concerned. The question arises: Why does attendance matter so much?

The Power of Presence

1. Academic Performance

Research consistently shows that attendance positively correlates with academic success. A meta-analysis revealed that attendance is the single strongest predictor of college grades. When students attend class regularly, they not only absorb content knowledge but also gain access to other critical elements:

• Contextual Information: Beyond textbooks, classroom instruction provides students with essential context, real-world examples, and practical applications.
• Resources: Classroom interactions allow students to ask questions, seek clarification, and access resources that aren’t available elsewhere.
• Belonging: Attending class fosters a sense of belonging, connecting students to their peers and instructors. Our student leaders address this very real need to connect in their work to help their peers.

2. Early Indicator of Success

Attendance serves as an early warning system. When students consistently skip classes, it often signals deeper issues—personal struggles, disengagement, or lack of motivation. Educators can use attendance data to identify students who need additional support.

3. Beyond Content Mastery

While content mastery is crucial, attendance offers more. It helps students:

• Stay on Track: Regular attendance ensures students keep pace with the curriculum. Course progression is a key component of academic success and on time graduation.
• Understand Expectations: Classroom discussions clarify assignments, expectations, and assessments.
• Build Relationships: Peer interactions and teacher-student connections enhance the learning experience.

Addressing the Challenge

1. Collaboration and Awareness

Educators, parents, and policymakers must collaborate to raise awareness about attendance’s impact. School leaders have implemented strategies like:

• Early Interventions: Identifying at-risk students and providing targeted support including programs like ours at the Alliance for Public Schools which promote student leadership and peer mentoring programs with proven results.
• Positive Reinforcement: Recognizing and celebrating good attendance.
• Community Engagement: Involving families and communities in promoting regular attendance.

2. Florida’s Response

Florida lawmakers are sounding the alarm but refused to act during this 2024 Legislative Session. Addressing chronic absenteeism requires a multifaceted approach and resources:

• Reviewing Policies: Reevaluate policies related to attendance tracking and intervention.
• Support Services: Invest in counseling, mental health resources, and family outreach.
• Engage Students: Create engaging learning environments that motivate students to attend and empower students to have a voice in school policies and engage them in finding solutions.

As we strive for academic and personal success for our youth, it’s important to know that every day counts. By prioritizing attendance, we empower students to unlock their full potential. Promoting policies that empower students, elevate student voices, engage families and the community, and involve students in the solutions will benefit us all.

To advocate for resources and policies that promote attendance, visit our Advocacy Dashboard and tell lawmakers to do more to support students.

The post Every day matters- why are so many students missing school? appeared first on Alliance for Public Schools.

Positive changes for children

Senate President Passidomo has prioritized a set of bills aimed at the “deregulation” of public schools- including changes to graduation requirements. During the lead up to session during Committee Weeks, the Senate removed a proposal within the bills that would have eliminated children’s right to daily recess after tremendous pushback from advocates and families. From the Tampa Bay Times, “Before the final vote, the Senate removed a contentious provision that would have given parents the authority to override mandatory third grade retention for low reading performance. It instead added a new alternate path to promotion, including more interventions to help struggling readers.”

“The House Education Quality Subcommittee put forth a bill (PCB EQS 24-01) with bits and pieces of the Senate proposals. It primarily focuses on eliminating requirements for specific reports and repealing repetitive or obsolete programs.

Among its more notable proposals, the House bill would remove the requirement that virtual education providers be nonsectarian. One speaker raised concerns the provision might pave the way for a publicly funded religious school similar to St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School in Oklahoma, which has become the subject of lawsuits.

It also would allow districts to charge a $100 processing fee when they review multiple book challenges brought by people who do not have a child enrolled at the school where they raised the objections. A representative from the Florida PTA backed this idea, while a speaker from Florida Citizens Alliance opposed it.”

The stark contrast between the two bills will likely result in negotiations between the two chambers at the end of session. Stay tuned for more on this as the session progresses.

Child well-being and attendance

Efforts to address chronic absenteeism provide a rare opportunity for bi-partisanship this session. Chronic absenteeism rates- when a student misses at least 10% of school- have continued to climb since the pandemic. When children are absent, they risk dropping out and miss social services like school breakfast and lunch programs. The House Education Quality Subcommittee has already held a hearing on the topic and proposed legislation is coming. From WEAR News,

“The bill has no name and hasn’t been introduced yet, but Rep. Michelle Salzman says it will track students who are absent. It will also show how often they missed school, and why.

“Basically the bill is creating a database and a dashboard and then requiring a collaborative effort not just with Department of Education but community partners as well so we can try and find the true why and what’s going on with these kids and then address each of those instances individually,” Rep. Salzman said.

Rep. Salzman says the bill would also support schools in creating teams directly responsible for determining why a student is consistently absent.” The Biden administration has made this a priority, as well.

State budget

The Florida Legislature must pass a balanced budget during its 60 day session with education funding playing a large role in that process. The governor’s proposed budget includes “increases for teacher pay”. But, it’s now up to the Legislature to determine the details of how much funding to allocate and to which priorities.

From WGCU, “Separately, 2,200 proposals, many overlapping with the House, have been submitted by senators, carrying an overall $5.2 billion price tag. Those requests are on top of tens of billions of dollars in big-picture spending on programs such as schools, health care, prisons and transportation.

DeSantis has pitched a $114.4 billion budget for the 2024-2025 fiscal year, which will start July 1. Lawmakers will use that proposal as a starting point as they negotiate a budget during the legislative session that started Tuesday.”

Visit the Advocacy Dashboard to speak up for students. We make it easy to identify and contact your legislators via email and/or social media. Together, we can advocate for policies that invest in children and families and support our future.

The post What to expect from the 2024 Florida Legislative Session appeared first on Alliance for Public Schools.

According to the Tampa Bay Times, “Simon, a Tallahassee Republican, said he had intended only to give schools more flexibility in how they allocate recess minutes, particularly on shortened class days, and not to remove recess. He pulled the section that would have altered the mandate as the bill and its companions (SB 7000, SB 7002) gained bipartisan approval from the Fiscal Policy Committee.

Angela Browning, one of the parents who led the push for recess in 2017, said separately from the meeting that “recess moms” statewide cheered the quick response to their concerns. Simon “has clearly heard us on this issue and we appreciate that authentic daily recess periods will continue for Florida’s elementary school students,” she said.”

In spite of the recess provision, parents and educators applauded the bill which removes many state regulations including drastic changes to the current testing policies. However, former Gov. Jeb Bush and his education foundation have criticized the bill. “Bush wrote a column opposing Simon’s call to stop using state tests to determine whether students get promoted from third grade and graduate from high school. Both are key pieces of the accountability plan that Bush steered into law more than 20 years ago.

Simon said “nothing could be further from the truth” than suggestions the bill sought to lower standards. He said removing the third grade retention requirement would encourage teachers to focus on children’s reading needs earlier. Deleting the graduation test requirements would allow juniors and seniors to take courses other than reading remediation, he said.

“Let’s stop dancing behind the facade that (universities and employers) are looking at these 10th grade tests,” Simon said. The time has come, he argued, to “fix the system.”

These proposals have been the priority of Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, R-Naples. Her priority bills deal with the penalties for class size violations, teacher contracts, and when students can take the General Educational Development.

“School board members and superintendents from across the state applauded the attempt to strip away restrictions that have prevented districts from being innovative as families have been offered a growing number of education options, including charter schools and private school vouchers.

Still a wild card in the debate is the Florida House, where one committee has had preliminary conversations about deregulation but has not released any bills.”

Click here to send a quick thank you to Sen. Simon and committee members for listening to parents and advocates. Tell them you support their efforts to remove harsh penalties tied to state testing. We make it easy to advocate so use our tool to send your message with two clicks.

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By Aug. 11, more than 382,000 students had received vouchers for the 2023-24 school year, giving them access to money for private school tuition, homeschooling services or therapies for children with disabilities, according to Step Up For Students, the private group that administers most of Florida’s scholarship programs.

The scholarships are worth an average of about $7,800 a year, though actual amounts vary by student’s grade level and by county. The voucher programs are still required to prioritize giving awards to children whose families earn no more than 185% of the federal poverty limit, or a family of four earning $55,000 a year or less. But everyone, whether middle class or very rich, is now eligible to apply.

Step Up for Students is the charity that administers the voucher program. They take a 2.5% fee for every voucher they process and are currently one of the 20th wealthiest charities in the nation according to Forbes.

There are many proponents of the program including the Archdiocese of Miami which has seen a significant increase in enrollment in their Catholic schools from families using vouchers.

But the new law also faces fierce critics. They worry its price tag — one estimate says it will cost the state $4 billion in its first years — will devastate public school budgets and dislike that private schools that take vouchers face little regulation from the state.

“This is the design, to undermine our public schools,” said Karen Castor Dentel, an Orange County School Board member during a board budget discussion earlier this month.

“The public dollars that they have given to private schools, those are our public school dollars that they are now giving to people to go to a private school,” Castor Dentel said. “Those are public school dollars they are now handling over to unaccountable private schools where you don’t have to have a qualified teacher.”

Private schools that take state vouchers are mostly religious schools, and they make their own decisions as far as teacher qualifications, curriculum and facilities. Some have hired teachers without college degrees and employees with criminal convictions, set up in rundown buildings and offered curriculum outside mainstream academics, the Orlando Sentinel has reported.

Providing scholarships to families whose children already were in private school or were being homeschooled “is absolutely taking away from public school dollars,” said Norin Dollard, a senior policy analyst with the Florida Policy Institute, a progressive think tank that warned back in February that the new law would cost the state billions of dollars.

Many of the private schools accepting vouchers opened their doors just after the original voucher program was established. From the Sentinel’s article from March, “Well-established or brand-new, none of these schools need to meet public school standards for teacher credentials, academics or facilities, as state scholarship laws allow private schools to set their own rules.

A private school in west Orange County, for example, hired a daycare worker — a woman without a college degree who’d been fired from her last job — as a fourth-grade teacher in 2020.

To accept state scholarships, private schools must meet only a few state rules related to building safety and employee background checks. Even schools that violate those rules are often allowed to remain in the programs.”

Proper regulations and standards should be in place to ensure that all schools receiving tax money, whether public or private, provide a high standard of education and transparency for the use of those funds.

Take action today using our simple online tools. Make sure your lawmakers know your priorities for students and public schools.

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