Biden-Harris Administration Proposes 13.6% Increase in Education Funding

By Kaitlyn Brennan

This weekly Washington Update is intended to keep members informed on Capitol Hill activities impacting the educator preparation community. The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of AACTE.

On Thursday, the Biden-Harris Administration unveiled their FY2024 budget proposal. Under the request, the Department of Education would receive $90 billion in total discretionary funding — a $10.3 billion or 13.6% increase over the FY 2023 enacted level of funding provided for the Department of Education. In addition to the $90 billion in discretionary spending, the proposal also calls for new mandatory spending requests which include $600 billion over ten years for universal preschool and expanded support for childcare and $96 billion over ten years in new spending to double the maximum Pell grant by 2029, and $90 billion over ten years for a new free community college program. The budget request also includes $578 million in new funding to increase the number of counselors, school psychologists, and other health professionals in schools. This increase is spread among three programs: $428 million split between the School-Based Mental Services and Mental Health Services Professional Demonstration programs and $150 million within FIPSE for colleges to address student mental health needs.

Critical programs that address the educator workforce saw proposed increases, which largely mirror the FY2023 request, including the following:

• $132 million for the Teacher Quality Partnership (TQP), which funds comprehensive educator preparation programs such as residencies.
• $30 million for the Augustus F. Hawkins Centers of Excellence Program, which funds educator preparation programs at HBCUs, TCUs, and MSIs.
• $250 million for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Part D – Personnel Preparation program (IDEA-D-PP).

Key Programs Related to Educator Support and Preparation

In a statement, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona applauded the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to education:

“As an educator and a father, I know that nothing unites America’s families more than the hopes we share for our children, and that’s why the Biden-Harris Administration is pushing for bold investments to ensure all students have equitable access to schools that welcome and support them, inspire their love of learning, and prepare them to succeed in whichever career they choose,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. “President Biden’s latest budget proposal calls on Congress to act with urgency and provide our schools with the resources needed to raise the bar in education by promoting academic excellence and rigorous instruction, improving learning conditions, and answering unmet challenges like the educator shortage and the mental health needs of our students. Our administration is also pushing for dramatic new investments in high-quality preschool that provide all our youngest learners with a sturdy bridge to elementary school success. The Biden-Harris budget also supports the Department of Education’s efforts to boost global competitiveness by expanding opportunities for multilingual learning, redesigning high schools to include multiple pathways to college and career, and supercharging state and local efforts to make free community college a reality nationwide.”

The Administration’s FY 2024 “Budget of the United States” document has separate articles for major agencies. The Department of Education starts on page 67, the Department of Health and Human Services starts on page 75, and the Department of Labor starts on page 99. The Department of Education has their own budget summary document. Congressional Budget Justifications for the Department of Education can be found online. View the the Health and Human services budget brief, which includes Head Start, child care, and preschool development grants.

Until next time, see you on Twitter! Kait @brennan_kait

Do you have a question about Washington Update? Want more information? Have an interesting story about the educator shortage in your state? Email me, let’s have virtual coffee: kaitlynbrennan88@gmail.com.

Tags: federal issues, funding, teacher quality

Kaitlyn Brennan