General Information for ESSA

On December 10, 2015, Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), was signed into law. ESSA is a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). ESSA replaces its predecessor, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB).

ESSA offers LEAs greater flexibility for using federal funds to effectively implement comprehensive, districtwide research-based initiatives that maximize student academic outcomes, particularly for those students at risk of not meeting challenging state academic assessment standards.

ESSA renews the U.S. Department of Education’s emphasis on comprehensive needs assessments and improvement planning. The new regulations increase LEAs’ responsibilities for monitoring student outcomes, coordinated use of federal funds, and for offering high-quality guidance and technical assistance to schools engaged in continuous improvement planning.