Education Committee

In most states, education is the single largest expenditure and often the top priority for lawmakers and their constituents. The Education Committee focuses on educational systems at all levels and investigates ways in which states are ensuring that Southern students receive the best possible education. Recent issues investigated by the Committee include autism and schools, reforming student assessments, higher education alignment, educational technology, and teacher compensation.

Other issues in which the Committee has long-standing interest include the No Child Left Behind Act; early childhood education; reinventing high schools; school accountability; school financing; creating a P-16 education system; educational assessment; recruiting, training and retaining teachers; and school safety. The Committee also has addressed ways that states can slow the increase in administrative spending for education programs without sacrificing quality, and the international implications for building a world-class education system in the United States to assure the nation’s competitiveness with a quality, well-equipped workforce for the future.