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fork(2) [soylentnews.org] writes:

      Two weeks ago the fate of dozens of federally funded programs to improve STEM education in US schools was up in the air following the approval by the Senate appropriations committee of a 2017 spending bill. Science carried an article [sciencemag.org] describing the potential impact of that bill.

      Now the other branch of Congress has somewhat improved the prospects of federal support for science education. Writing in Science on July 8, Devi Shastri said, "Yesterday, the equivalent subpanel in the House of Representatives approved a spending bill covering the Department of Education and several other agencies, including the National Institutes of Health. And House appropriators were much more generous to SSAEG, allocating it $1 billion."

      SSAEG is the "Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grant" program. Shastri writes [sciencemag.org]:

It's part of the 2015 law governing elementary and secondary education that replaced the long-reviled No Child Left Behind Act. The Every Student Succeeds Act authorizes the SSAEG program at $1.65 billion, with the money to be distributed to each state through block grants. But last month the Senate appropriations panel allocated only $300 million, less than 20% of the enacted level and $200 million below what the Obama administration had requested in its 2017 budget request to Congress.

      [...]

      The SSAEG grants are supposed to provide students with a more well-rounded education, improve school conditions, and bring technology into the classroom. School districts can apply for the funds after qualifying for the program based on their student poverty rate and population. Educators say the $1 billion funding level, if ultimately adopted by Congress, should ease the competition among worthy proposals in the many areas supported by the grants.

Original Submission