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Aurora Institute

Letter to USED: Improving the Competitive Grants for State Assessments Program

Education Domain Blog

Author(s): Aurora Institute

Issue(s): Aurora Institute, Federal Policy, Create Space to Pilot Systems of Assessments, State Policy, Redesign Accountability Systems for Continuous Improvement, Build Balanced Systems of Assessments


The Aurora Institute recently joined education organizations KnowledgeWorks, The Center for Innovation in Education, Great Schools Partnership, and the Center on Assessment in sending a letter to USED focused on improving the Competitive Grants for State Assessments (CGSA) program. As USED prepares for the next round of CGSA, the group has outlined a series of recommendations:

  • Including an explicit focus on innovation as priority, with a clear path to support scaling and sustainability.
  • Reconsidering the award gap.
  • Allowing sufficient time for timing and implementation.
  • Encouraging equity in innovative programs.
  • Supporting innovation for assessment and accountability.

You can find the full letter here.