Advocacy and Meetings

DC Council Testimony on Proposed Bill B25-0501

November 30, 2023

Cathy Reilly Executive Director of the Senior High Alliance of Parents, Principals and Educators (SHAPPE)

I appreciate this opportunity to testify on the proposed bill to require that DC high school students be required to complete and file a FAFSA form as a pre-requisite to receiving a high school diploma.

I meet monthly with the DCPS high school communities and have for the last 25 years.  There is universal agreement on the benefits of attaining Pell Grants. There are many ways to incentivize the FAFSA completion rates of our students, which are already higher than many jurisdictions according to the narrative in the bill.  We do not believe this has to come at the possible expense of students graduating from high school.  This is one requirement unlike completing the necessary courses and fulfilling the community service hours that is not in their control.  The FAFSA requires the parents or guardian to fill out the necessary income information. The waiver, currently without specifics on whom files it and what the criterion is – is not a sufficient guardrail. 

The bill seems to assume that there is insufficient accountability and motivation for families to fill out the FAFSA, thus this threat to a student graduating is necessary.  The experience in the high schools is that this is not the reason.  More college counselors and support for the transition to postsecondary options, stable relationships, information and understanding would address the reasons.  

There are a number of reasons that challenge families and thus student as the schools work to support a higher FAFSA completion rate. 

There will be a new streamlined FAFSA for school year 2024-2025.  For families who do not speak English the FAFSA requires one on one support to fill out.  The current OSSE workshops on filling out the FAFSA were excellent for those that could attend.  Many are not able to make those times and for others there are also additional barriers. 

Challenges that could be addressed with additional support, a number of students are also not eligible through no fault of their own.  A waiver is another layer, another point at which they may fall through unintended cracks in implementing something with this heavy of a consequence.     

·         Students who are not citizens are not eligible. We welcome these students into our schools. 

·         Unaccompanied minors are also handicapped with this requirement; it requires a family or guardian willing to submit this information for a young person under 18. 

·         Concern with the effects for students with special needs and the high numbers that are not now earning a diploma.  Will that ironically increase with a requirement like this – it will require more one on one staff time, and puts in a potential additional barrier to graduation.               

·         Parents for many different reasons are reluctant or will not submit their social security #, identity, income, lack of income information.  For immigrant parents and those here without legal status, the FAFSA and the waiver are deeply problematic and potentially for them pose a threat. 

·         Grandparents, legal guardians and more informal guardians find the process challenging and are also reluctant to participate- more information on this barrier is necessary as well as how many are affected. 

·         While the intent is to address equity – this will potentially widen the gap. Those families who understand the consequences will attain outside help or leverage the resources within the system.  Schools with a high number of families that will need extra support to either fill out the FAFSA or the waiver are understaffed to take this on. 

Instead of an offering of support this requirement comes in the form of a threat. While a waiver may apply to those entering the military or going straight to a job opportunity, the way the requirement is worded this is a ding on the school and LEA.  It also stratifies students.

Other Options

·         Expand the personnel that support students in making the transition to post-secondary options.  There are college counselors but there are already too few to adequately serve the population that we have. 

·         Continue to address stability – maintaining relationships and reducing turnover. The individuals who know students and families over years are not simply interchangeable with new staff. 

·         Expansion of the dual enrollment opportunities to all students would increase motivation, confidence and ability to succeed in college.  

o   Concern however with number of colleges not accepting credits from dual enrollment

o   Does participation in dual enrollment courses affect first time college entry opportunities? 

·         DC TAG remains at 10,000 – for many in state colleges and universities this is no longer sufficient.  While this is a federal program, can DC advocate for an increase that reflects the rising costs of college?

We do not have control over how you vote on this – at a bare minimum implementation of any requirement of this magnitude cannot happen this year as the law states.  Besides the outstanding question on the criterion and process for the waiver, there is a question on whether a student who fills out a waiver will still be able to file a FAFSA at a later date? 

In conclusion, we appreciate the intent to ensure more DC high school students have access to federal funds for post-secondary opportunities.  We believe graduation requirement changes should be with the advice, consent and vote of the DC State Board of Education.  We do not believe this bill should move forward, however the intent for greater support and focus on high schoolers is deeply appreciated and we would like to continue to work with you on this.   Thank you. 

DC Council Testimony on School Improvement Amendment Act of 2023

November 20, 2023

Cathy Reilly – Director of SHAPPE and facilitator of C4DC and the Ward 4 Education Alliance

I appreciate this opportunity to testify.  As a public school advocate for over 35 years in DC, I have seen many efforts and policies to support school improvement.  I think we have learned a lot.  We know that the goal is to support students across all schools that are experiencing challenges and we know that the school community itself does not control all the factors that influence students achieving and thriving. 

That said supporting school communities to better serve their students is vital and important, and effectively targeting resources becomes more critical as federal funding is declining post-pandemic. 

I am grateful for the Council’s focus on literacy through law 23-91. Tthe recommendations of Decoding Dyslexia’s Sheila Carson Carr outlined some of the policies, supports and resources still needed to ensure that more of our students are fluent readers throughout their K-12 education. The recently released Literacy report supplements the body of knowledge we have gained about what it takes to be able to read and access more content. 

There is a significant amount of work underway that is an important underpinning for any successful strategy to address DCPS’ abysmal literacy rates:

·         The Adequacy Study that is being conducted by the Deputy Mayor of Education (DME) will further give information to you, Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE), DC Public Schools (DCPS), the DME and the Public Charter School Board (PCSB) about what the baseline should be and what is equitable.

·         Digital Equity has given you a roadmap of what is needed to ensure that students have access to the technology tools that will serve them all in advancing their education.

·         Advocacy groups across the spectrum have highlighted the need for mental health supports. 

·         EmpowerEd has given you consistent recommendations on the needs of our teaching staff, those whose work is being monitored with this amendment. 

·         DC Fiscal Policy Institute (DCFPI) and the Fair Budget Coalition will be looking at the budget needs that include addressing homelessness and food shortages which directly affect our children’s ability to attend school and have their focus on learning. 

There are [two/three] key issues that I urge the Council to address:

1.       I urge you to consider continuous supports for improvement for every student and not to limit the scope to a revolving group of students that falls into the bottom 5%. This arbitrary 5% number is a federal stipulation that relies heavily on test scores. We don’t have to use this.  I don’t think the case has been made that the challenges exist because of a lack of accountability which is a major focus of this amendment.   

2.   I urge you to amend the heavy-handed approach, which I do not think has been effective, where OSSE will dictate a framework potentially affecting school finances, policies, and culture. As the Council is aware, given the variance among DC schools, this approach is likely to be ineffective. Instead, the Council should encourage a bottom-up approach where individual schools are supported  with developing a plan for how to best use their resources to achieve improvements and are provided the financial and other guidance needed for success.  This is the current language in the proposed bill requiring OSSE to come up with a model where OSSE may address designated school finances, policies and culture and requiring application of that model to designated schools by 9-1 2025. 

3.       Invest in more one-on-one instruction and smaller group time for students, which may include reduced class sizes. We know that increasing adult-student interactions has additional benefits beyond content knowledge and evidence shows can improve student mental wellness.

In all humility, these are difficult issues that need the constant energy and thoughtfulness of those in our school communities and all of us coupled with the work that is already being done by those noted above.