C/O New York City Parents Union | 225 Broadway, Suite 1902 | New York, NY 10007 E: admin@nationalparentsunion.org P: (646) 481-5760 W: www.nationalparentsunion.org

Chairperson Gwendolyn Samuel- CT Connecticut Parents Union Founders Rhonda Gatch - GA Moms for School Choice Mona Davids - NY New York City Parents Union Kelly Bolar-Williams - OH Ohio Parents Union Hamlet Garcia - PA Pennsylvania Parents Union

VIA EMAIL:

July 9, 2014

The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20500 The Honorable Arne Duncan U.S. Department of Education Secretary Office for Civil Rights U.S. Department of Education Lyndon Baines Johnson Department of Education Bldg 400 Maryland Avenue SW 400 Maryland Avenue SW Washington, DC 20202 Washington, DC 20202

RE: SUPPORT for Excellent Educators for All Initiative with Recommendations for Accountable Parent Participation in Development of Equity Plans Dear Secretary Duncan : This letter is to express the National’s Parents Union support, with recommendations, for Excellent Educators for All Initiative which will help states, school districts and parents support great educators for all students, especially the ones that need effective teachers the most. It goes without saying, all children are entitled to a safe and high-quality educational experience regardless of their race, zip code or family income; yet too many of America’s children, especially African-Americans, Hispanics, those living in poverty and rural areas are denied equitable access to resources which include access to effective teachers. Our hope, as parents, is that the U.S. Department of Education will ensure that the actual consumers of education, parents, students, and taxpayers, will be included in the process of implementation to enable impartial and balanced decision making. Simply put, parents would like to respectfully recommend the following amendments to the initiative:

a. Parents recommend that the Parental Involvement Title 1, Part A section be changed from Non-regulatory guidance to regulatory guidance to hold local and state boards of education accountable for meaningful engagement in equity plan development well beyond the required parent sign in sheets that are meant to validate parent participation.

b. Parents recommend that this initiative should address efforts to make sure that

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C/O New York City Parents Union | 225 Broadway, Suite 1902 | New York, NY 10007 E: admin@nationalparentsunion.org P: (646) 481-5760 W: www.nationalparentsunion.org

poor performing teachers are not allowed to continue to teach. c. Parents recommend that educators in rural and low-populated school districts

have access to high quality digital learning. d. Parents recommend that a transparent mechanism be put in place to track the

spending of all monies that are allotted to this initiative. e. Parents recommend that the U.S. Department of Education include all

stakeholders – parents, students and community members – when developing initiatives to ensure a fair and balanced approach to education policy.

In the Vergara v. California lawsuit, the judge ruled it unconstitutional to deny any student access to an effective teacher. We feel that the best way to guarantee equal access for all children is if parents, students and community members have a voice in the implementation of this initiative. This initiative, allows us, as a nation, to address challenges addressed by the Vegara v California lawsuit as it relates to identifying and retaining great teachers. Furthermore the initiative may help to address New York parents’ and students’ concerns identified in the most recent filing of the David’s lawsuit in New York, in which eleven students – all children of members of the New York City Parents Union — filed a lawsuit to protect all children’s Constitutional right to receive the opportunity to receive a sound basic education.

This initiative has the potential to provide all students with equal access to high quality teachers. For these reasons, the National Parents Union is pleased to support this important initiative with the outlined recommendations. Sincerely,

Gwendolyn Samuel President National Parents Union