A federal judge in California has blocked a rule issued by Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos, in response to a suit filed by Maine, seven other states and four large city school districts.  The judge’s ruling stated that the rule would unlawfully require relief funds to be diverted from k-12 public schools to private schools.

The parties to the suit are Michigan, California, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Washington D.C. and the school districts of New York City, Chicago, Cleveland and San Francisco.
The conclusion of the Judge’s brief includes:

“A preliminary injunction is granted as follows.

(1) The United States Department of Education, Secretary Betsy DeVos, and their officers, agents, employees, attorneys, and any person acting in concert with them, or at their behest, and who has knowledge of this injunction, are preliminarily enjoined from implementing or enforcing against plaintiffs the provisions in the Guidance (April 30, 2020) or the interim final rule, 85 Fed. Reg. 39479 (July 1, 2020). The injunction will remain in place pending further order of the Court.

(2) Plaintiffs are excused from posting a bond under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 65(c).

The Court sets a case management conference for September 17, 2020, at 10:00 a.m. A joint case management statement is due by September 10, 2020.”

The Judge’s brief includes many pointed remarks, and can be read in its entirety, here.

The ruling affirmed Maine Department of Education’s guidance to School Administrative Units regarding their process for determining equitable funds for private schools.

The Department of Education is seeking individuals who are invested in identifying and reducing barriers to school attendance for Maine students. The Truancy, Drop Out and Alternative Education Advisory Committee has been appointed to advise the Commissioner of Education on the development and implementation of state and local policies and programs that are needed to deal effectively with the incidence of truancy and dropouts in Maine schools. In accordance with PL 2007, c. 667, §10 (AMD), the committee will consider its mandate in a broad context to assess the causes of truancy and dropouts, the effectiveness of alternative education and prevention programs, and the social and educational programs or changes needed to encourage students to remain in school, including reintegration planning and aftercare services provided for juvenile offenders who have been released from juvenile facilities in the State and have enrolled in schools in the State.

The 15 member committee will meet throughout the year with the support of DOE staff to review and discuss current information related to student attendance, as well as examine policy and guidance practices for the State. Committee members will join for a two year period with the option to be reappointed. We are bringing together a team with diverse backgrounds including: school principals, school counselors, adult education teachers, superintendents, administrators of private schools, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Corrections, Department of Labor, staff or community members of dropout and alternative education programs, business community representatives, as well as other individuals who will contribute to the development of effective guidance and programs and who are passionate about the success of students.

We hope you are interested in joining this important work, and are looking forward to having you as part of this team.

If you have questions, or are interested in serving on the committee, please contact Maine DOE School Counseling and Mental Health Specialist Bear Shea at w.bear.shea@maine.gov or Office of School and Student Supports Director Rich Meserve at richard.meserve@maine.gov.