AASA’s advocacy team invites you to journey with them into the weeds of federal education policy at the national conference in New Orleans. From chronic absenteeism to best practices for using the J-1 visa program, there’s a wide range of content for those interested in how the federal government intersects with K-12 education.
On Thursday, March 6, start your day at 10:15 a.m. with a session on Navigating Federal Funding for School Safety: Strategies for Successful Applications, presented by the Greenlight Grants Initiative. Securing federal funding for school safety requires a clear understanding of available programs, eligibility criteria and the application process. This session pairs a grant project manager and a school violence prevention researcher to give you tips for a successful application to commonly used federal funding mechanisms.
During the annual Federal Relations Luncheon at noon on March 6, Josh Cowan, professor of education policy at Michigan State University and author of The Privateers: How Billionaires Created a Culture War and Sold School Vouchers, will discuss how vouchers are impacting states budgets and education funding.
On Friday, March 7, begin the day with an early morning discussion on the trends, trajectories and current state of chronic absenteeism with Nat Malkus of the American Enterprise Institute. Then at 12:45 p.m., join AASA’s advocacy staff for a full federal update, covering everything happening in Washington that impacts education.
At 2:30 p.m. on March 7, a panel of superintendents will share best practices for using the J-1 visa program to address staff shortages. Then wrap up your day at 3:30 p.m. with the latest updates on immigration policy changes and how to prepare to support your students.
In addition, this year the staff will have an Advocacy Center in the exhibit hall where attendees will be able to advocate in real time with their members of Congress, underscoring the importance of public education.
You can follow the goings-on of the advocacy team and the conference’s policy sessions on the AASA blog and by following @AASAdvocacy and the advocacy team on Twitter: Noelle Ellerson (@Noellerson), Sasha Pudelski (@SPudelski), Kat Sturdevant (@K_Sturdevant) and Tara Thomas (@TaraEThomas1). Or you can follow along by downloading the AASA Advocacy app, available on the App Store and Google Play.
