Equitable Funds for Nonpublic Schools
The federal Every Student Succeeds Act, the 2015 law which governs much of the nation’s elementary and secondary education, requires that students attending nonpublic schools receive equitable services in certain specified categories, including professional development for teachers and administrators.
Under Title II, Part A of the legislation, funding for educators’ professional development can be carried out by state education agencies or local school districts. The law requires that these entities must provide written assurances, in exchange for the funding they receive, that they have provided equitable services for these activities to the private schools as well as to the public schools they serve.
Private schools in many jurisdictions may be operating without a full understanding of these provisions, and their students and teachers may as a result be receiving less support for these activities than the law requires.
Also under Title I, which supports the needs of disadvantaged students, states and school districts must provide proportional funding for students without first excluding the costs of certain expenses, which had been permitted under the previous law.
This analysis from the Center for American Private Education discusses these provisions in detail.
If you are operating a Nevada nonpublic school and are concerned that you may not be receiving the equitable resources which the federal law provides, let us know, and Nevada Action for School Options would be happy to review your situation with you.