The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) has decided to postpone the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), sometimes referred to as the "Nation's Report Card," because of COVID-19. The NAEP 2021 assessments were scheduled to begin next month but will be delayed until 2022.

According to a US Department of Education release describing its new CARES Act information tool, "Of the $13.2 billion Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund – which was awarded to the 50 states, Puerto Rico, and Washington, D.C. – $1.6 billion, or 12% of the total had been spent. Eight recipients had spent less than one percent of their award. Of the $3 billion allocated to the Governor's Emergency Education Relief (GEER) Fund, a total of $535 million, or 18%, had been spent. Thirty-four governors had yet to spend more than one percent of their allocated funding."

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos was quoted as saying, "The CARES Act was passed to provide schools the resources they needed to protect students and teachers and ensure learning continues. We awarded the CARES Act money quickly. This portal now provides transparency into what happened next. States that neglected their obligations to provide full-time education, while complaining about a lack of resources, have left significant sums of money sitting in the bank. There may be valid reasons for states to be deliberate in how they spend CARES Act resources, but these data make clear there is little to support their claims of being cash-poor."

New York is not the only city to resist compliance with a state supreme court order siding with private schools. On November 12, the city health department in Racine, WI ordered all public and private schools within its jurisdiction to suspend in-person classes. Then, according to the outstanding folks at the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL):

"The Wisconsin Supreme Court granted an original action and issued a temporary injunction blocking the City of Racine’s school closure order on November 25...But after the Court’s November 25 injunction, Racine’s Public Health Administrator issued a communication ordering all schools, within the city limits, to remain closed for in-person learning."

In response, "WILL is asking the Court to hold the Administrator and her department in contempt and impose monetary sanctions designed to ensure their compliance with the Court’s order." Stay tuned...

From the Louisville Courier Journal:

"Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh has asked Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear to respond by Friday afternoon to Attorney General Daniel Cameron's request for the U.S. Supreme Court to rule on whether in-person classes at the state's religious schools can continue.

"Cameron and Danville Christian Academy, a private school in Boyle County serving about 230 students in preschool through 12th grade, are asking the Supreme Court to uphold U.S. District Judge Gregory Van Tatenhove's Nov. 25 ruling that said Beshear could not halt in-person classes at private, religious-based schools until early January.

"On Sunday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit overturned Van Tatenhove's ruling and upheld Beshear's executive order, which requires private and public schools in Kentucky to hold only virtual classes until Jan. 4."

As described by the Wall Street Journal, "Legislation approved late last week expands eligibility for the state’s private-school scholarship program to families earning up to 250% of the poverty line from 200%. Students in schools where at least 20% of families are low-income or that fall in the bottom 20% of academic performance for the past two years would also be eligible...Half of all students in Ohio would be eligible for a scholarship. Nearly 50,000 students already receive vouchers, which average around $4,500. That’s about a third as much as the state spends per pupil at public schools."

Governor Mike DeWine signed the bill into law November 27.

As readers of Outlook know, the US Supreme Court's landmark ruling in Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue has major implications for private schools. The Center for Education Reform (CER) and The Foundation for Excellence in Education (ExcelinEd) have released a joint analysis in the form of a legal memo co-authored by former Solicitor General Paul Clement. Advocates looking to put the Espinoza decision to good use may find it worth their time.

Students interested in space may want to consider participating in NASA's Artemis Moon Pod Essay Contest. The contest, which is open to all students in grades K-12, asks participants to imagine they are leading a one-week expedition to the Moon’s South Pole.

Entries are due Dec. 17.