Why Keeping NCLB Strong Is Inherently Democratic

Blogs, Letters & Testimonials

September 30, 2007

Trying to understand why the details matter in the current battles over the reauthorization of NCLB? In this DFER Briefing Memo, Charles Barone explains what the fuss is all about – particularly in terms of what changes to the law might do to its legislative soul.

Barone, a former staffer to Rep. George Miller (D-California) and the top Democratic staff member for the House Education and Labor Committee in 2001 when NCLB was passed, traces current federal education policies back to both Brown v. Board of Education and the original Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.