Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)
The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) was signed into law in December 2015, amending the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and replacing No Child Left Behind provisions. With a strong, proven accountability system, Florida is already ahead of most of the nation as it relates to the requirements laid out in ESSA. Student performance has consistently improved since Florida introduced rigorous accountability measures.
States were required to submit a state plan describing their approach to ESSA compliance. The department held a first round of public input summer 2016 via online survey, and outreach continued throughout the school year to educator associations and stakeholder groups. The commissioner also convened a superintendents’ workgroup to provide input on major decision points. Then, a draft of the state plan was posted for public comment June 30-July 31, 2017. There were 450 respondents (1,295 comments) to the accompanying online survey. The comments were reviewed and further refinements were made. The state plan was submitted to the Governor for review, as required by ESSA. Florida received approval from the U.S. Department of Education on September 26, 2018.
On February 22, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education announced the opportunity for states to apply for a waiver of certain accountability provisions for the 2020-2021 school year. A memo was sent to school district superintendents inviting public comment on Florida’s draft waiver on March 17, 2021. Public comment was accepted from all stakeholders through March 31, 2021. Florida submitted its waiver request on April 14, 2021. (PDF) Approval was received on April 21, 2021. (PDF)
Florida’s Approved ESSA State Plan - September 26, 2018 (PDF)
- Summary of the Assessment, Accountability, and School Improvement Provisions (PDF)
- Approval Letter from the U.S. Department of Education (PDF)
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended by ESSA (PDF)
Schools Identified for Support under ESSA
- 2020-2021 School Improvement Support List (PDF). These schools are identified as Comprehensive Support & Improvement (CS&I) for the 2020-2021 School Year. The list of schools identified as Targeted Support & Improvement (TS&I) remains unchanged from the schools identified for 2019-2020.
- 2018-2019 Federal Index and ESSA Support Categories, by School (Excel): This report contains a tab with basic Federal Index data, a tab with detailed Federal Index data, and a data dictionary tab for understanding the data. These schools were identified as Targeted Support & Improvement (TS&I) or Comprehensive Support & Improvement (CS&I) for the 2019-2020 School Year.
- 2018-2019 Federal Index and ESSA Support Categories, by Subgroup (Excel): This report contains a tab with detailed Federal Index data for each of the Subgroups.
- 2017-2018 Baseline Federal Index and ESSA Support Categories, by School (Excel): This report contains a tab with basic Federal Index data, a tab with detailed Federal Index data, and a data dictionary tab for understanding the data. These schools were identified as Targeted Support & Improvement (TS&I) or Comprehensive Support & Improvement (CS&I) for the 2018-2019 School Year.
- 2017-2018 Baseline Federal Index and ESSA Support Categories, by Subgroup (Excel): This report contains a tab with detailed Federal Index data for each of the Subgroups.
- ESSA Webinar January 24, 2019 (PDF)