For Immediate Release: December 8, 2015

Contact: Renee Rybak Lang, renee.lang@nasbe.org, 703-740-4841

 NASBE Awards Delaware, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, and Wyoming Stipends for Policy Work in Standards and School Discipline

Alexandria, VA. – The National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) is pleased to announce that five state boards of education—Delaware, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, and Wyoming—have been awarded stipends under two of its programs: “Leading a Standards-Based System: Alignment Policy to Standards Network” and “State Initiatives to Improve School Climate and Discipline.” Maryland is the only state to receive stipends under both programs.

State boards of education in Delaware, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, and Wyoming will receive $15,000 per year for two years under the Leading a Standards-Based System: Alignment Policy to Standards Stipend initiative. Over the next two years, these states will work with each other and with NASBE to move from a phase of standards adoption to one of policy alignment that results in integrated standards-based leadership. Each state was selected through a competitive application process on the basis of their internal capacity, willingness for change, and ability to collaborate with other state agencies and organizations to improve educational outcomes for students.

The Maryland State Board of Education has also been awarded a grant under NASBE’s State Initiatives to Improve School Climate and Discipline stipend program. During the six-month project period, Maryland will use the $8,000 stipend to conduct a review of state-level school climate and discipline data. These data will inform technical assistance plans that recognize models of excellence and support local systems struggling with persistent challenges. They will also launch the Professional Learning Institute on Culture and Climate to strengthen local systems’ capacity to implement strong, evidence-based practices that improve school culture and climate. The project will demonstrate the need for well designed, integrated state-level school climate and discipline data and highlight the state’s role in holding districts accountable for providing equal educational opportunities to all students.

Both stipend initiatives advance NASBE’s ongoing mission: to increase the capacity of state boards of education to ensure excellence in education for all students. NASBE’s work in school climate, discipline, and equity is funded in part by the Open Society Foundation, and the State Initiatives to Improve School Climate and Discipline stipend project is funded as part of that grant. The Leading a Standards-Based System: Alignment Policy to Standards stipend initiative is funded through the generous support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The National Association of State Boards of Education represents America’s state and territorial boards of education. Our principal objectives are to strengthen state leadership in education policymaking, advocate equality of access to educational opportunity, promote excellence in the education of all students, and ensure responsible lay governance of education. Learn more at www.nasbe.org.

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