NEA

Our Legislative Priorities

Education Funding/Appropriations
Working for increases in funding for key education programs to ensure that all students, educators, and schools have the resources necessary to succeed. Advocacy will be necessary in finalizing appropriations for the current (FY09) fiscal year, as well as in development of budgets and appropriations bills for fiscal years 2010 and 2011.

ESEA Reauthorization/Education Transformation
Ensuring passage of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) reauthorization legislation that reflects NEA’s Transforming America’s Public Schools Initiative, including:

• Supporting the teaching profession as a desired and complex field of study and practice;
• Guaranteeing sustained funding for Title I and IDEA for special needs populations;
• Ensuring equal access to educational services and supports;
• Supporting state-led public school transformation through authentic accountability that is publicly transparent;
• Establishing high-quality educational research and development as essential to educational improvement;
• Supporting innovation and best practices to accelerate state-based improvement efforts and improve student learning based on proven teaching strategies and programs grounded in sound teaching and learning research.

Social Security Offsets (GPO/WEP)
Securing passage of incremental steps toward full repeal of the Government Pension Offset and Windfall Elimination Provision, which unfairly cut or eliminate Social Security benefits for many public employees.

21st Century Skills
Ensuring that public schools have the resources necessary to prepare students to succeed in work, school, and life. 21st Century skills include:

• Core subjects, with 21st century content such as global awareness; financial, economic, business and entrepreneurial literacy; civic literacy; and health and wellness awareness;
• Learning and thinking skills such as critical thinking and problem solving, communications, creativity and innovation, collaboration, contextual learning and information and media literacy;
• Information and communications technology literacy;
• Life skills such as leadership, ethics, accountability, adaptability, personal productivity, personal responsibility, people skills, self-direction, and social responsibility.