Gates Foundation Money Connects Common Core and ESSA
The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) includes the following prohibition regarding the federal government’s luring states into adopting specific standards, assessments, or content, including the Common Core State Standards (CCSS):
‘‘SEC. 8526A. PROHIBITION AGAINST FEDERAL MANDATES, DIRECTION, OR CONTROL.‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—No officer or employee of the Federal Government shall, through grants, contracts, or other cooperative agreements, mandate, direct, or control a State, local educational agency, or school’s specific instructional content, academic standards and assessments, curricula, or program of instruction developed and implemented to meet the requirements of this Act (including any requirement, direction, or mandate to adopt the Common Core State Standards developed under the Common Core State Standards Initiative, any other academic standards common to a significant number of States, or any assessment, instructional content, or curriculum aligned to such standards), nor shall anything in this Act be construed to authorize such officer or employee to do so.‘‘(b) FINANCIAL SUPPORT.—No officer or employee of the Federal Government shall condition or incentivize the receipt of any grant, contract, or cooperative agreement, the receipt of any priority or preference under such grant, contract, or cooperative agreement, or the receipt of a waiver under section 8401 upon a State, local educational agency, or school’s adoption or implementation of specific instructional content, academic standards and assessments, curricula, or program of instruction developed and implemented to meet the requirements of this Act (including any condition, priority, or preference to adopt the Common Core State Standards developed under the Common Core State Standards Initiative, any other academic standards common to a significant number of States, or any assessment, instructional content, or curriculum aligned to such standards).’’ (page 312).
However.
In August 2016, the Gates Foundation has managed to connect ESSA and CCSS in the form of two grants totaling almost $18 million.
The first is to CCSS co-owner, the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), so that CCSSO can help states with their ESSA plans:
Date: August 2016
Purpose: to support states as they develop and implement Every Student Succeeds Act plans
Amount: $10,000,000
Though CCSS is not explicitly mentioned in this $10 million Gates grant, CCSSO is Gates Foundation Money Connects Common Core and ESSA | deutsch29:
