ORONO, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) applauded an announcement today from the U.S. Department of Education that Maine has received an additional three-year waiver from certain provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act, which expired in 2007 but continues to govern federal K-12 education policy. The wavier will allow Maine to continue to implement comprehensive, state-designed plans to ensure student success and to remain committed to college- and career-readiness for every student. Senator King has been a proponent of returning greater control of K-12 education to states and school districts. During the Senate's recent reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), Senator King helped secure a pilot program that would allow states like Maine greater flexibility to develop and test out proficiency-based assessment systems in lieu of federally-mandated statewide tests.

“I’m pleased that the U.S. Department of Education has recognized Maine’s commitment to prepare all students for college and career and will ensure that Maine schools do not have to suffer under No Child Left Behind's one-size-fits-all mandate," Senator King said. "While this is good news for Maine, these waivers only provide temporary relief, not long-term certainty. It's time for Congress to come together and pass a permanent reform of No Child Left Behind and ensure that teachers, school leaders, and states are empowered to lead on education, not Washington."

On July 16, the Senate passed the Every Child Achieves Act, which would reauthorize ESEA and eliminate the most onerous requirements of the most recent reauthorization, No Child Left Behind. The bipartisan legislation included a provision championed by Senator King that would allow states like Maine greater flexibility to develop and test out proficiency-based assessment systems in lieu of federally-mandated statewide tests. As Senator King has seen firsthand while touring schools in the state, Maine is a leader in advancing a proficiency-based learning model, and the pilot program in the Every Child Achieves Act will provide states like Maine the opportunity to innovate and advance more robust systems in the years to come.

Senator King successfully secured several other provisions in the Senate ESEA reauthorization, including parts of his Digital Learning Equity Act to close the homework gap for students and provide Internet access outside of the classroom, as well as an amendment to promote local control in education.

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