EDUCATION Once again we must start where men who would improve their society have always known they must begin--with an educational system restudied, reinforced, and revitalized. Education Program- President Johnson's Message to THE ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT OF 1965 Philip H. Des Marais. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (P.L. 89-10) was signed into law by President Johnson on April 11, 1965. Authorizing a total expenditure of $1.33 billion the first year of operation, the Act represents the greatest legislative commitment to the improvement of elementary and secondary education ever made by the Federal Government. HIGHLIGHTS OF THE LEGISLATION Education of Children in Low-Income Families (Title I) The heart of the bill is a three-year program of Federal grants to the States for allocation to school districts to improve the education of some five million children in families with incomes below $2,000 and other children in families receiving Aid to Families with Dependent Children. The grants are to be used to encourage and support the establishment of special programs, including the construction of school facilities where needed, to meet the special needs of educationally deprived children of low income families. Under this title, $1.06 billion is authorized for fiscal year 1966. Title I also extends for two years the provisions of P.L. 874, as now in effect, which were due to expire on June 30, 1966. School Library Resources, Textbooks, and Other Instructional Materials (Title II) A five-year program of grants is authorized, with $100 million provided for the first year, to provide school library resources and other instructional materials, including textbooks. Each State must submit a plan for making these materials available to all school children in the State. Ownership and control of such materials will be vested in a public agency, and when made available to students in nonpublic schools, the materials must be those approved for use in the public schools of the State. This legislative summary and background paper was prepared by Philip H. Des Marais, Deputy Assistant President Johnson had his first school teacher, Mrs. Katie Deadrich Loney, sitting beside him as he signed the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 at the old "Junction" school near Johnson City, Texas on April 11, 1965. Supplementary Educational Centers and Services (Title III) A five-year program of grants, with $100 million authorized for the first year, will enable local educational agencies to establish supplementary educational centers and provide vitally needed educational services not now available in sufficient quantity or quality in the schools and to develop high standard educational programs to serve as models for regular school programs. Programs could be provided for specific groups, including special courses, equipment, and teachers for highly gifted students or for the handicapped, the mentally retarded, deprived children, and others isolated from normal education opportunities. |