Earlier today, the Senate appropriations subcommittee tasked with setting funding levels for early learning programs approved its FY13 spending bill. As we’ve mentioned before, this is just the first step in a long process that will likely extend beyond the November elections and into next winter’s lame duck session, with many potential hurdles and tough negotiations likely to unfold between today’s mark-up and a final bill.
Just in case your summer reading list was light on wonkiness, the U.S. Department of Education released last month its preliminary plan for the Race to the Top – District competition. The good news: there are real opportunities for districts to focus on early learning. Even better news: the Department is inviting comments to make the draft plan stronger. Less good news: unearthing the early learning-applicable portions sprinkled throughout the draft isn't the simplest task, and comments are due Friday, June 8, at 5:00 pm EDT.