State and Legislative Updates from SEF’s Government Affairs Team

The weeks of 8/31 – 9/11

Good Afternoon,

Today, we acknowledge the 25th anniversary of 9/11. We pause and reflect in honor of the lives lost and those forever changed, and move forward with courage, resilience, and compassion. In today’s newsletter, you will find updates spanning the entire education continuum. Please see below for state developments impacting early childhood education and child care and K-12 education, including school vouchers and shrinking enrollment figures:

Early Childhood Education

  • In Louisiana, the legislature allocated about $79 million for the state’s child care assistance program this year, and federal funding is about $66 million below its pandemic peak. This summer, the program served about 10,000 fewer children than it did four years ago, all while thousands more eligible families have waited months, or years, for assistance.
  • In Missouri, momentum behind early childhood education is colliding head-on with fiscal reality, as state funding reductions and administrative barriers force school districts and private providers to make difficult financial choices.
  • In Texas, state leaders are trying to expand access to preschool by encouraging school districts to partner with private child care centers.

K-12 Education

  • As Florida school districts confront shrinking enrollment, the idea of closing and consolidating schools continues to gain traction.
  • A new report from the Public School Forum of North Carolina finds that switching the state to a weighted student funding formula without new funding would cut state funding for many of the state’s traditional school districts and charter schools.
  • In Texas, the Comptroller is asking state legislators to double the private school voucher program to $2 billion.

As always, we hope you find the resources below helpful and meaningful to your work to support students across the South.

The Latest from SEF:

  • Upcoming Webinar: Public School Students First: Ensuring the New Federal Tax Credit Program Works for Public School Students – Join us on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, 2-3 PM ET for a discussion where SEF will be joined by a panel to examine what we know about the new federal education tax credit program and what it could mean for students, families, and districts. We will also discuss the important role states should play in ensuring that historically underinvested public school students are prioritized and benefit the most in states that are participating in the effort. Learn more about the webinar and register here.
  • New Report: Examining Child Care in the Rural South: Perspectives for Policy and Practice – The report provides practical recommendations to help policymakers, employers, educators, and community leaders strengthen child care access across the South. Read the full report and press release here.

State Updates

Alabama

  • The state constitution provides clues about students’ poor educational outcomes – This year, the state legislature has placed several proposed constitutional amendments on the November ballot addressing public education. Yet none will alter the restrictions on generating school funding that have persisted since Alabama’s 1901 constitution. (State Court Report) Read More 

Florida

  • State proposal would regulate AI use at all 28 state colleges – The Florida Department of Education is proposing a rule that would require all 28 Florida College System institutions’ boards of trustees to outline how AI may be used, its limitations, and which tools are approved. (Spectrum News 13) Read More
  • School districts plan more school closures. Researchers call for caution – As Florida school districts confront shrinking enrollment, the idea of closing and consolidating schools continues to gain traction. (Tampa Bay Times) Read More
  • State moves to enact AI rules across K-12 and Higher Education – Florida is moving to regulate how artificial intelligence is used across its public education system, putting the state on track to establish AI policies spanning classrooms from prekindergarten through the university level. (The EDU Ledger) Read More

Georgia

  • Georgia House Blue-Ribbon Study Committee discusses teacher retention in Columbus meeting – The Georgia House Blue-Ribbon Study Committee on Education Performance Metrics and Workforce Stability met in Columbus to find solutions that help keep experienced teachers in classrooms and tend to their financial needs. (WRBL) Read More

Kentucky

  • Kentucky higher education officials push for all university students to use AI – The state-funded group that oversees public universities in Kentucky said it wants all students, regardless of their major, to be proficient in using artificial intelligence. (Lexington Herald Leader) Read More
  • How a controversial tax credit could help public schools, why Beshear encourages it – Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear vetoed a bill in this year’s legislative session authorizing federal tax credits for donations to private schools, but he says he doesn’t oppose a new effort by an education group to direct some of those donations to public schools. (Lexington Herald Leader) Read More

Louisiana

  • Thousands of eligible Louisiana parents face long waits for childcare assistance – In Louisiana, the legislature allocated about $79 million for the state’s child care assistance program this year, and federal funding is about $66 million below its pandemic peak. This summer, the program served about 10,000 fewer children than it did four years ago, all while thousands more eligible families have waited months, or years, for assistance. (The Advocate) Read More

Missouri

  • State funding cuts straining Missouri’s pre-K system – Across the state, momentum behind early childhood education is colliding head-on with fiscal reality, as state funding reductions and administrative barriers are forcing school districts and private providers to make difficult financial choices. (News Tribune) Read More

North Carolina

  • Families face higher back-to-school costs as school year begins – North Carolina families and educators warned that rising back-to-school costs are putting additional pressure on households and public schools as students return to classrooms. (NC Newsline) Read More
  • Opinion: Public schools risk missing out on new federal scholarship money – Public school systems in other states are already lining up to tap into funds from the Trump administration’s new federal school choice tax credit. But in North Carolina, districts could be left behind unless they act soon. (Carolina Journal) Read More
  • Report: Without new money, most public school districts, half of charters lose under weighted funding formula – Switching North Carolina to a weighted student funding formula without new funding would cut state funding for 73 of the state’s 115 traditional school districts, plus 111 of its 212 charter schools, according to a new report from the Public School Forum of North Carolina. (Carolina Journal) Read More
  • As 11 new charter schools seek approval, how has school choice affected NC students? – More charter schools want to open in North Carolina during a time when school choice is having major impacts on traditional public schools in some counties. (The News & Observer) Read More

Oklahoma

  • Governor Kevin Stitt’s tenure ban is costing Oklahoma’s rural universities their top candidates – Gov. Stitt’s decree ending faculty tenure is already costing regional universities top-choice hires and other applicants, making it harder for schools in remote locations to attract academic talent. (Oklahoma Watch) Read More

Tennessee

  • Tennessee is looking into changing how it evaluates schools – The state is seeking to overhaul how it evaluates school and district performance. (Nashville Banner) Read More
  • Tennessee’s free community college program ‘pays for itself,’ working paper finds – The Tennessee Promise program — the first of its kind in the country — successfully boosted college enrollment and attainment, analysis showed. (Higher Ed Dive) Read More

Texas

  • State Comptroller requests $2 billion to expand school voucher program – The Comptroller is asking state legislators to double the private school voucher program to $2 billion. (Texas Public Radio) Read More
  • More than a dozen Texas school districts close to triggering state takeover law in 2027 – More than a dozen Texas public school districts are at risk of triggering a potential state takeover if they do not improve student academic performance before the next year’s A-F accountability ratings, data shows. (The Texas Tribune) Read More
  • Community colleges to receive less state funding than expected – Community colleges across Texas will see millions of dollars missing from their state funding next fiscal year despite promises from the state. Now, they’re asking lawmakers to right the wrong. (Spectrum News 1) Read More
  • State rejected an AI-driven school’s bid to open a charter. Then the state approved it for the voucher program. – Just one year after the state rejected Alpha’s charter school application, Alpha has roughly quadrupled its Texas private schools, with more than 30 virtual and in-person campuses, most of which were accepted into the voucher program, ProPublica and The Texas Tribune found. (The Texas Tribune) Read More
  • As the state expands public pre-K, longtime childcare providers struggle to keep their place – Texas is trying to expand access to preschool by encouraging school districts to partner with private child care centers. (KERA News) Read More
  • School closures are not a local failure; it’s a statewide trend – This resource demonstrates Texas public school closures and consolidations, including districts that have approved closures and districts that have publicly discussed closures. (Our Schools Our Democracy)  Read More

Virginia

  • Virginia voters to decide on 1% sales tax for school construction, NoVa transit funding – Voters in 47 Virginia jurisdictions will weigh a 1% sales tax to fund school construction and modernization costs. In Northern Virginia, the revenue could also support transportation projects. (Virginia Mercury) Read More
  • State education board updates graduation requirements, expands course options for students – The Virginia Board of Education has approved updates to its list of approved courses, clarifying expanded graduation requirements for schools. (Virginia Mercury) Read More

West Virginia

  • State charter board considering seeking same border privileges as traditional public schools – West Virginia’s small system of virtual and physical public charter schools is setting its sights on attracting students from border states if the legislature agrees to make changes to state law. (West Virginia News) Read More

National/Federal Updates

K-12 Education News and Resources

  • School leaders mobilize as FCC weighs future of E-Rate – The FCC is examining whether E-Rate should continue operating in its current form, and whether it should be narrowed or reoriented. Education officials urged schools to submit comments to the commission. (GovTech) Read More
  • U.S. Department of Education launches learning agenda playbook to support state education leaders and improve student outcomes – As the Trump Administration works to return education to the states, the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) today unveiled the Learning Agenda Playbook,  a resource developed alongside states to strengthen their capacity, enable them to take greater ownership of education, and drive improvement at the state and local levels.  (U.S. Department of Education) Read More
  • How states recruit and retain rural teachers – Nearly one-third of U.S. schools are rural, serving nearly 1 in 5 students. Yet these schools often struggle to attract and retain high-quality teachers due to limited tax bases, less competitive salaries, and reduced access to educator preparation programs. (Education Commission of the States) Read More 
  • Can lighter-touch tutoring programs benefit kids too? – Intensive tutoring is supposed to be one of the most effective routes to raise student achievement. But it doesn’t always work out that way. (EducationWeek – Subscription Required) Read More
  • U.S. moves up in PISA test score rankings because other countries are doing worse – The U.S. has gained relative standing in recent decades. Today, U.S. students score well above average in science and reading. Math scores, long America’s weakest subject, are now on par with other developed countries. (Chalkbeat) Read More
  • Trump extends anti-DEI push to private schools, eyeing their tax-exempt status – Private K-12 schools that give racial minorities preference in admissions and scholarships and other targeted supports would lose their status as tax-exempt nonprofits under newly proposed U.S. Treasury regulations. (EducationWeek – Subscription Required) Read More
  • ‘We won’t be erased’: Academics defend Black studies amid program cuts – At a time when DEI efforts face local and federal backlash, some academics say that Black studies programs—several of which have been scaled back at colleges and universities across the nation—are more crucial than ever. (ABC News) Read More

Higher Education News and Resources

  • Basic needs supports in community colleges – Basic needs are a particular concern for community colleges, which generally serve more low-income students and student parents than four-year colleges and universities. (Community College Research Center) Read More
  • College Costs: The Cost of Raising a Graduate – Created in partnership with New York Life Investment Management, this visual provides context on the college costs families may face and the role that early financial planning can play. (Visual Capitalist) Read More
  • Cash-strapped colleges are draining their endowments to survive – A college endowment is supposed to last forever, supporting students, professors, and research in perpetuity. Instead, many cash-strapped schools are draining their nest eggs just to stay alive. (Fortune) Read More
  • How to Measure What Matters: A Practical Guide to Assessing Postsecondary Value – This guide provides a step-by-step approach for anyone interested in using data to evaluate postsecondary value within a state, institution, or community. (Institute for Higher Education Policy) Read More
  • Proposed changes to the Department of Education’s grant rules would be harmful to community colleges – Last week, the U.S. Department of Education proposed changes to its rules that would undermine community colleges’ ability to serve students using federal funds. (ACCT Now) Read More
  • ‘Utter paralysis’: Legacy admissions ban faces tough road in Congress – Momentum for banning legacy admissions practices has seemingly tapered over the past two years, as legislation has stalled in state legislatures, the fate of bipartisan congressional bills is in doubt, and the Trump administration hasn’t indicated any interest in taking up the issue. (Higher Ed Dive) Read More

Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns, and if we can assist with any government affairs or advocacy issues moving forward.

Sincerely,

Fred Jones, Senior Director of Public Policy and Advocacy,

fjones@southerneducation.org  

Darian Burns, Legislative and Public Policy Analyst,

dburns@southerneducation.org  

Allison Boyle, Research and Policy Specialist,

aboyle@southerneducation.org