Statement: Voices applauds Senate committee passage of education bill

The Senate is making progress on a long overdue renewal and reform of No Child Left Behind (also known as the Elementary and Secondary Education Act). After passing the Senate education committee, the bill will now be considered by the…

New report: 37 states scaled back child care aid last year

Thirty-seven states last year scaled back their child care services, according to a new report by our friends at the National Women’s Law Center. “Families are not only worse off in 2011 than they were in 2010, but are…

Nobel Laureate explains the importance of early education

The U.S. deficit problem is really a child development problem, argues Nobel Laureate James Heckman. In a letter to the congressional “super committee,” Heckman explains that our long term prosperity relies on developing a more skilled workforce, and “deficits…

Breakfast in the classroom?

Some education and health experts are dismayed by the higher numbers of children who are eligible for free and reduced-price breakfast but aren’t taking advantage. They cite busy schedules and social stigma as possible reasons for kids missing breakfast. Their…

Arizona member leads successful education town hall meeting

Children’s Action Alliance, our Arizona member, just had a very successful town hall meeting with a member of Congress on education issues. Our member reports that Congressman Raul Grijalva was well engaged by the crowd on importance of education reform…

Pell Grants targeted for cuts, hurting college chances for kids

We’ve talked a lot about proposed budget cuts for the very young, but the college-bound could also suffer. The House budget plan would cut almost $6 billion from Pell Grants, the popular financial assistance program that helps low-income college students…

NJ Supreme Court orders state to increase education funding

It seems New Jersey has been underfunding some schools so badly that they’re violating students’ rights. In a 3-2 decision, the New Jersey Supreme Court ordered Governor Chris Christie to fund an additional $500 million for some of the…

Promising experiments in dual-language education

California eliminated most bilingual school programs more than ten years ago, but some experimental programs there in “dual-language immersion” programs are showing promise, reports the L.A. Times. In one class they profile, students begin speaking 90 percent Italian and…

How to fix education

Catch one of our child advocates in a PBS interactive segment on how to fix education. Elizabeth Burke Bryant, executive director of Voices member Rhode Island KIDS COUNT, explains how reading is key.

“The biggest problem in American education…

States experiment with common education standards

Forty-two states are committed to teaching children according to a single set of new standards, and many class lessons are changing already, reports the New York Times. This is a key development in the education of our kids.…