The Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 (ESSA) requires that recipients of grant funds monitor how these funds are used. State Educational Agencies (SEAs) must monitor the school districts that receive ESSA funds through their agencies. School districts, in turn, must monitor the schools within their districts that receive ESSA funds. Charter schools and direct service providers receiving ESSA funds must also be monitored.
The Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 shifts power from the U.S. Department of Education to the states. Less prescriptive than its predecessor, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, ESSA empowers states to develop their own K-12 education plans. By choosing accountability systems, approaches to school improvement, and interventions, each state can finally realize its own vision for ensuring educational programs are strong and serve the best interests of students.
With this newfound flexibility comes an increased focus on monitoring. While all grantees must monitor their funds, they must also notify subrecipients of their obligations to monitor and provide new assurances that their responses to monitoring reviews are truthful. The U.S. Secretary of Education also has new responsibilities. They include analyzing monitoring results and providing guidance based on the trends identified.
To facilitate the creation of strong monitoring programs, the Vander Weele Group has compiled a complete reference list with citations of ESSA monitoring requirements and links to relevant federal documents. You can download "What ESSA Says About Monitoring" from our resource library.
Additional ESSA-related resources are available through the U.S. Department of Education website.