FY 2022 

Annual Performance 

Plan

U.S. Department of 

Education

Message from the Secretary i

For more than a year, COVID-19 has caused the 

nation to face disruptions in many aspects of our 

daily lives, has taken the lives of too many of our 

loved ones, and has exacerbated inequities that 

existed prior to the pandemic. Students, families, 

educators, community leaders, policymakers, and 

other stakeholders share a concern for the future of 

education beyond the pandemic. We are all aware 

that the transformative power of education is a 

driving factor to fulfill students’ dreams, increase 

opportunities, enhance communities, and 

strengthen the economy. For this reason, I stand 

with you in seeking the best for our nation’s 

students. As part of the Biden-Harris Administration, I believe that America is the land of 

endless possibilities. This is why the U.S. Department of Education is supporting schools in 

their efforts to safely reopen, supporting the training and professional development of educators 

and administrators, and tackling the inequities that exist in school systems and colleges around 

the nation. 

As schools and campuses begin to reopen safely, the Department supports the education 

community as determinations are made about the needs of students most affected by the 

disruption and has provided resources to help students, families, educators, schools, and 

campuses. We will continue to share promising practices and evidence-based strategies to 

strengthen students’ learning environments so they are safer and more inclusive. The 

Department’s goal is to accelerate learning and ensure access to an affordable higher 

education for students, particularly those most impacted by the pandemic, so they can all 

pursue their dreams.

Message 

from the 

Secretary 
ii FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

In order to strengthen student learning in a supportive environment, it is essential to recruit and 

retain qualified teachers and hire engaged and dedicated faculty members. The Department is 

dedicated to encouraging the training and professional growth of a diverse cadre of educators to 

ensure they have the knowledge and skills to create a positive learning experience and 

environment for every student. 

In Executive Order 14000, Supporting the Reopening and Continuing Operation of Schools and 

Early Childhood Education Providers, President Biden stated, “Every student in America 

deserves a high-quality education in a safe environment.” It is time that all students have access 

to high-quality schools, opportunities, and resources despite the systemic barriers. The academic 

disparities can be seen by analyzing the trends in student achievement on the National 

Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). While the NAEP 2012 trend analysis showed that 

underserved students made gains over the past 40 years, those gains have not been enough to be 

comparable with their peers. Additionally, data from the Census Bureau reveal that students of 

color are far less likely to earn a degree or credential that will give them the opportunities to 

succeed in their careers. Disparities have also been highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic, 

both in the K–12 and the higher education systems, as many schools transitioned to virtual 

classrooms, leaving behind students who did not have sufficient broadband access or computers 

at home. I join with President Biden in promoting equity so that all students are prepared for 

higher education and for the global workforce. 

I look forward to working with the education community to meet the needs of all students. We 

will partner together to expand students’ horizons and opportunities by providing them with 

resources that will allow them to strengthen our communities and our nation. We have faced 

adversity together, and, from it, we will emerge better than before. En la unión está la fuerza. 

In unity, there is strength. 

Miguel A. Cardona, Ed.D. 

Secretary of Education 
Table of Contents iii

About the Department............................................................................................. 1

The Department’s Mission........................................................................................................ 1

Department Overview............................................................................................................... 1

FY 2020 and FY 2021 Agency Priority Goals.......................................................................... 2

Organization Structure .............................................................................................................. 4

FY 2022 APP Overview........................................................................................... 5

FY 2018–2022 Departmental Strategic Goals.......................................................................... 6

FY 2022–2026 Departmental Strategic Plan Framework......................................................... 6

Strategic Goal 1: P–12 Education........................................................................... 7

Goal 1 Budgetary Resources ..................................................................................................... 8

Goal 1 Overview ..................................................................................................................... 11

Strategies and Activities to Achieve Goal 1 ........................................................................... 12

Goal 1 Performance Measures ................................................................................................ 18

Strategic Goal 2: Postsecondary Pathways .........................................................19

Goal 2 Budgetary Resources ................................................................................................... 20

Goal 2 Overview ..................................................................................................................... 24

Strategies and Activities to Achieve Goal 2 ........................................................................... 25

Goal 2 Performance Measures ................................................................................................ 31

Strategic Goal 3: Data Accessibility and Use ......................................................33

Goal 3 Budgetary Resources .................................................................................................. 34

Goal 3 Overview ..................................................................................................................... 35

Strategies and Activities to Achieve Goal 3 ........................................................................... 36

Goal 3 Performance Measures ................................................................................................ 41

Strategic Goal 4: Management and Reform........................................................43

Goal 4 Budgetary Resources ................................................................................................... 44

Goal 4 Overview ..................................................................................................................... 45

Strategies and Activities to Achieve Goal 4 ........................................................................... 46

Goal 4 Performance Measures ................................................................................................ 50

Appendix: Glossary of Acronyms and Abbreviations........................................51

Table of 

Contents 
iv FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

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About the Department 1

The Department’s Mission

The U.S. Department of Education’s mission is to promote student achievement and preparation 

for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access. 

The Department promotes equity and accomplishes its mission by administering programs 

that support services from early intervention to employment training programs. Many of these 

programs provide grants to states or local educational agencies (LEAs) and support underserved 

students and families from vulnerable populations. These programs also provide grants and 

loans to postsecondary students and facilitate research that examines ways that states, schools, 

districts, and postsecondary institutions can improve America’s education system. In addition, 

the Department fulfills its mission through the vigorous enforcement of civil rights laws that 

provide equal access to programs or activities receiving federal financial assistance from 

the Department.

Department Overview

The following statements describe some of the administration, core functions, and funding 

responsibilities of the U.S. Department of Education: 

• The Department is the smallest Cabinet-level federal agency. Its full-time equivalent staffing 

on board as of the end of fiscal year (FY) 2020 was 3,974. 

• The number of programs administered in FY 2020 was approximately 114. 

• In FY 2020, the Department provided or oversaw $176.3 billion in education funding, 

excluding emergency education funding provided per the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and 

About the 

Department
2 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Economic Security (CARES) Act. This amount includes program funding, new student loans, 

and federal administration. It breaks down as follows: 

o $81.1 billion for congressional appropriations for program activities (both formula 

and competitive). These funds are used for grants to state educational agencies and 

LEAs, institutions of higher education (IHEs), and other entities; contracts; and 

subsidies for direct and guaranteed student loans. 

o $92.8 billion for new student loans. Postsecondary education student loans are issued 

and overseen by the Department. 

o $2.4 billion for federal administration. Department salaries and expenses totaled 

1.2 percent of the FY 2020 dollars for aid to education. 

• The Department provided close to $31 billion in aid to education that was appropriated in the 

CARES Act primarily for emergency grants to elementary, secondary, and postsecondary 

schools to help them prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus. 

• In FY 2021, Congress appropriated an additional $81.9 billion for Department COVID-19 

pandemic assistance under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental 

Appropriations Act, 2021 enacted on December 27, 2020.This amount included $54.3 billion 

in new Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund grants to states 

and LEAs as well as $22.7 billion in funding for postsecondary students and institutions 

under the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF).

• Also in FY 2021, Congress enacted the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP), signed 

into law by President Biden on March 11, 2021, which provided nearly $170 billion for 

pandemic-related programs and activities at the Department, including $122 billion in new 

ARP ESSER Fund awards to states and LEAs and almost $40 billion for new HEERF awards 

to postsecondary students and institutions. 

• The Department is responsible for a portfolio of outstanding student loans that totaled 

approximately $1.566 trillion as of the end of FY 2020. 

• Federal funds from all federal agencies represent a small but important proportion of 

P–12 education funding and provide or guarantee a very large share of postsecondary 

education funding. In 2018–2019, federal education funds represented 7.1 percent of funding 

for elementary and secondary education in the United States and 57.6 percent of all student 

financial aid (including student loans) provided to postsecondary students. 

FY 2020 and FY 2021 Agency Priority Goals

In collaboration with the Office of Management and Budget, the Department established 

five Agency Priority Goals (APGs) for FY 2020 and FY 2021 that align with the U.S. 

Department of Education’s Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2018–22. While the Department 
About the Department 3

continues pursuing efforts of the FY 2020 and FY 2021APGs to improve customers’ 

experience with Federal Student Aid, awareness of and access to career pathways that support 

job skills development and career readiness, and student privacy and cybersecurity at IHEs,

quarterly progress reporting to Performance.Gov is currently paused while the Biden-Harris

Administration establishes updated goals, priorities, and a management agenda in meeting the 

intent of the Government Performance and Results Act Modernization Act of 2010 (GPRAMA). 

The Department will develop FY 2022 and FY 2023 APGs that focus on the priorities of the 

current Administration. The following table provides the goal impact statements for the FY 2020 

and FY 2021 APGs. 

Education Freedom: Improve awareness of and access to high-quality K–12 education opportunities for students and 

families.

Multiple Pathways to 

Success:

Improve nationwide awareness of and access to career pathways that support job skills 

development and career readiness.

Federal Student Aid 

Customer Service:

Leverage the Next Generation Financial Services Environment (Next Gen FSA) to improve and 

personalize customers’ experience with Federal Student Aid (FSA).

Student Privacy and 

Cybersecurity:

Improve student privacy and cybersecurity at institutions of higher education (IHEs) through 

outreach and compliance efforts.

Regulatory Reform: Provide regulatory relief to education stakeholders as necessary and appropriate.
4 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Organization Structure

The following shows the Department’s coordinating structure as of March 2, 2021. 

1The Deputy Secretary is the Chief Operating Officer of the agency. As Chief Operating Officer, the Deputy Secretary is 

responsible for improving the management and performance of the agency and providing overall organizational management to 

improve agency performance and achieve the mission and goals of the agency through the use of strategic and performance 

planning, measurement, analysis, regular assessments of progress, and use of performance information to improve the results 

achieved. GPRAMA, Pub. L. No. 111-352, January 4, 2011, 124 Stat 3866; 31 U.S.C.A. §§ 1123 (a) and (b)(1).
FY 2022 APP Overview 5

The FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan (i.e., fiscal year (FY) 2022 APP) is required by the 

Government Performance and Results Act Modernization Act of 2010, and guidance for its

development is provided by the Office of Management and Budget’s Circular No. A-11, Part 6. 

The U.S. Department of Education’s Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2018–22 established the 

four Strategic Goals that are highlighted in this FY 2022 APP. The Department is currently 

developing its FY 2022–2026 Strategic Plan, to be published in February 2022, which will 

introduce Strategic Goals and objectives and performance indicators that will be used to assess 

progress toward this Administration’s priorities. 

This FY 2022 APP includes strategies and activities that advance the Administration’s priorities, 

such as supporting underserved students; helping meet the needs of high-poverty schools and 

students with disabilities; promoting equity in education, including through civil rights 

enforcement; and expanding access to college. The activities and strategies in this FY 2022 APP 

will lay the foundation to address both the aforementioned priorities and seek to advance the 

Department’s Strategic Goals. Also included in this FY 2022 APP are selected key performance 

measures that are used as indicators of the Department’s progress toward its Strategic Goals and 

objectives. 

FY 2022 

APP 

Overview 
6 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

FY 2018–2022 Departmental Strategic Goals

The following table presents the Department’s existing FY 2018–2022 Strategic Goals. 

Strategic Goal 1:

P–12 Learning

Support state and local efforts to improve learning outcomes for all P–12 students in every 

community. 

Strategic Goal 2:

Postsecondary Pathways

Expand postsecondary educational opportunities, improve outcomes to foster economic 

opportunity and promote an informed, thoughtful and productive citizenry.

Strategic Goal 3:

Data Accessibility and Use

Strengthen the quality, accessibility and use of education data through better management, 

increased privacy protections and transparency. 

Strategic Goal 4:

Management and Reform

Reform the effectiveness, efficiency and accountability of the Department. 

FY 2022–2026 Departmental Strategic Plan 

Framework 

The Department is responsible for helping states, school districts, and institutions of higher 

education provide high-quality education to all of the nation’s students, especially those who are 

the most vulnerable and face the greatest barriers. 

The Administration seeks to lay a strong foundation that will contribute to a better, stronger, and 

more inclusive nation so that everyone in America has the opportunity to fulfill their potential. 

This effort will also drive the implementation of policies, programs, and strategies that contribute 

to improved outcomes for students and ultimately improve national education outcomes. The 

Department’s planning, Strategic Goals and objectives, performance measures and metrics, and 

programmatic implementation will be aligned.
Strategic Goal 1: P–12 Education 7

Goal 1 Objectives

1.1 Increase high-quality educational options. 

1.2 Provide all P–12 students with equal access to high-quality educational opportunities. 

1.3 Prepare all students for successful transition to college and careers by supporting access 

to dual enrollment, job skills development and high-quality science, technology, 

engineering and mathematics (STEM).

1.4 Support agencies and institutions in the implementation of evidence-based strategies and 

practices that build the capacity of school staff and families to support students’ academic 

performance.

Support state and local efforts to 

improve learning outcomes for all 

P–12 students in every community.

Goal Leader: Assistant Secretary, Office of Elementary and 

Secondary Education

Strategic 

Goal 1
8 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Goal 1 Budgetary Resources

The following figure and table show total discretionary resources, which include programs that 

award grants using a competitive process as well as programs that award grants using formulas 

determined by Congress, and activities supporting Goal 1. 

Goal 1 Resources

Major Discretionary Programs and Activities Supporting Goal 1 in Thousands

POC ACCT Objective Program

FY 2020

Appropriation

FY 2021 

Appropriation

FY 2022 

President’s 

Budget

OCTAE CTAE 1.3, 2.2 Career and Technical Education 

(Carl D. Perkins CTAE)

$491,598 $543,848 $563,848

OESE ED 1.2, 1.3, 

1.4

Title I Grants to Local Educational 

Agencies

$16,309,802 $16,536,802 $36,536,802

OESE I&I 1.3, 1.4 Education Innovation and Research $190,000 $194,000 $194,000

OESE I&I 1.2, 1.4 Teacher and School Leader 

Incentive Grants 

$200,000 $200,000 $200,000 

OESE I&I 1.2, 1.4 School Leader Recruitment and 

Support

N/A N/A $30,000 

OESE SIP 1.2, 1.4 State Assessments $378,000 $378,000 $378,000

OESE SSCE 1.2 School Safety National Activities $105,000 $106,000 $116,000 

OESE SSCE 1.2, 1.4 Full-Service Community Schools $25,000 $30,000 $443,000

OESE/

OELA

ELA 1.2 English Language Acquisition $787,400 $797,400 $917,400

OSERS SE 1.1, 1.2, 

1.4

Special Education Grants to States $12,764,392 $12,937,457 $15,537,429

Other N/A N/A All Other Programs $9,432,726 $9,534,361 $27,987,507

Note:

Discretionary resources listed here include Department programs that may contribute to multiple goals.

Acronyms and Definitions:

POC = Principal Operating Component; ACCT = Account; OCTAE = Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education; 

CTAE = Career, Technical, and Adult Education; OESE = Office of Elementary and Secondary Education; ED = U.S. 

Department of Education; I&I = Innovation and Improvement; SIP = Strengthening Institutions Program; SSCE = Safe Schools 

and Citizenship Education; OELA = Office of English Language Acquisition; ELA = English Language Acquisition; OSERS = 

Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; SE = Special Education; and N/A = Not Applicable.
Strategic Goal 1: P–12 Education 9

The following table includes programs and activities supporting Goal 1. 

Other Discretionary Programs andActivities

POC ACCT Objective Program

IES IES 1.4, 2.2 Regional Educational Laboratories 

IES IES 1.2, 2.2 Special Education Studies and Evaluations

OCTAE CTAE 1.3, 2.1 Adult Basic and Literacy Education State Grants 

OCTAE CTAE 1.3, 2.1 Adult Education National Leadership Activities 

OESE ED 1.2, 1.4 Comprehensive Literacy Development Grants 

OESE ED 1.2 State Agency Programs: Migrant 

OESE ED 1.2 State Agency Programs: Neglected and Delinquent

OESE ED 1.2, 2.1 Special Programs for Migrant Students 

OESE IA 1.2 Impact Aid, Payments for Federally Connected Children: Basic Support 

Payments 

OESE IA 1.2 Impact Aid, Payments for Federally Connected Children: Payments for 

Children with Disabilities 

OESE IA 1.2 Impact Aid, Facilities Maintenance 

OESE IA 1.2 Impact Aid, Construction 

OESE IA 1.2 Impact Aid, Payments for Federal Property 

OESE IE 1.2 Indian Education: Grants to Local Educational Agencies 

OESE IE 1.2 Indian Education: Special Programs for Indian Children 

OESE IE 1.2 Indian Education: National Activities 

OESE I&I 1.2, 1.4 Innovative Approaches to Literacy

OESE I&I 1.1, 1.2 Charter Schools Grants 

OESE I&I 1.1, 1.2 Magnet Schools Assistance 

OESE I&I 1.2 American History and Civics Education 

OESE I&I 1.2, 1.4 Supporting Effective Educator Development

OESE I&I 1.2 Ready to Learn Programming

OESE I&I 1.2 Arts in Education

OESE I&I 1.2 Javits Gifted and Talented Education

OESE I&I 1.2, 1.4 Statewide Family Engagement Centers 

OESE I&I 1.2 Fostering Diverse Schools (Proposed Legislation)

OESE I&I 1.2, 2.3 Teacher Quality Partnership 

OESE SIP 1.2, 1.4 Supporting Effective Instruction State Grants 

OESE SIP 1.2, 1.4 21st Century Community Learning Centers 

OESE SIP 1.2 Education for Homeless Children and Youth Education 

OESE SIP 1.2 Native Hawaiian Education

OESE SIP 1.2 Alaska Native Education

OESE SIP 1.2 Training and Advisory Services 

OESE SIP 1.2 Rural Education 

OESE SIP 1.2 Supplemental Education Grants 

OESE SIP 1.2 Comprehensive Centers 

OESE SIP 1.2 Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants

OESE SIP 1.2 School-Based Health Professionals (Proposed Legislation)

OESE SIP 1.2 Climate Resilient Schools (Proposed Legislation)

OESE SSCE 1.2 Promise Neighborhoods 

OSERS SE 1.1, 1.2 Preschool Grants 

OSERS SE 1.1 Grants for Infants and Families 

OSERS SE 1.1, 1.2, 1.4 Technical Assistance and Dissemination 

OSERS SE 1 Parent Information Centers 

OSERS SE 1.2 Personnel Preparation 
10 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

POC ACCT Objective Program

OSERS SE 1.3 Education Technology, Media, and Materials 

OSERS SE 1.2 Special Olympics Education Programs 

OSERS SE 2 State Personnel Development 

OSERS SE 2 Personnel Preparation 

Acronyms and Definitions:

POC = Principal Operating Component; ACCT = Account; IES = Institute of Education Sciences; OCTAE = Office of Career, 

Technical, and Adult Education; CTAE = Career, Technical, and Adult Education; OESE = Office of Elementary and Secondary 

Education; ED = U.S. Department of Education; IA = Impact Aid; IE = Indian Education; I&I = Innovation and Improvement; 

SIP = Strengthening Institutions Program; SSCE = Safe Schools and Citizenship Education; OSERS = Office of Special 

Education and Rehabilitative Services; and SE = Special Education.

Mandatory Programs Supporting Goal 1

POC ACCT Objective Program

OCTAE CTAE 1.3, 2.1, 2.3 Expanded Career Pathways for Middle and High School Students

OESE — 1.2 K–12 School Infrastructure

OESE I&I 1.2, 1.4 Expanding Opportunities for Teacher Leadership and Development 

(Proposed Legislation)

OESE I&I 1.2, 1.4 Supporting In-Demand Credentials for Teachers (Proposed Legislation)

OPE HE 1.4 Teacher Quality Partnerships

OPE HE 1.4, 2.3 Hawkins Centers of Excellence

OSERS SE 1.4 Personnel Preparation

Acronyms and Definitions:

POC = Principal Operating Component; ACCT = Account; OCTAE = Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education; 

CTAE = Career, Technical, and Adult Education; OESE = Office of Elementary and Secondary Education; I&I = Innovation and 

Improvement; OPE = Office of Postsecondary Education; HE = Higher Education; and OSERS = Office of Special Education 

and Rehabilitative Services. 
Strategic Goal 1: P–12 Education 11

Goal 1 Overview

States and districts have a responsibility to provide all underserved students, including students 

with disabilities, English learners, and students from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds, 

with equitable access to educational resources, services, and opportunities. Additional resources 

that meet students’ social, emotional, and health needs—and that build resilience and are 

responsive to trauma—should be readily available to all students. 

The Department will work to provide schools with funding and evidence-based resources to 

ensure that educators, staff, and students have access to a safe, supportive, and inclusive learning 

environment, which is a vital step to safely reopening the nation’s school buildings. Efforts are 

underway to fully understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on students, educators, and 

school staff, including collecting data on the status of in-person learning to help students and 

teachers return to the classroom safely. The Department will address the academic emotional, 

health, and safety needs of students most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, such as

underserved students, through its various programs (including its grant programs) and policies

(including its regulations where it has authority on these topics) and by supporting digital equity

and tackling identified disparities for which it has authority to address. 

The Department awards approximately $40 billion annually, provided through the regular 

appropriations process, in formula and competitive grants to states, school districts, and 

nonprofit organizations. In addition, following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 

2020, Congress provided approximately $200 billion in additional emergency supplemental 

appropriations to support P–12 education through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic 

Security (CARES) Act; the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 

2021 (CRRSAA); and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP). States and school districts 

can use CARES, CRRSAA, and ARP funds to expand access to digital and remote learning; 

stabilize the educator workforce; purchase materials (e.g., personal protective equipment, 

laptops, and instructional materials) to enable a return to safe, in-person learning; and address the 

impact of lost instructional time on students, particularly disadvantaged students who have 

suffered a disproportionate impact from pandemic-related interruptions to their schooling. 

Funding available through ARP will dramatically expand state and local capacity to address 

these issues, and states will submit plans describing how they will use ARP funds to address the 

social, emotional, mental health, and academic needs of students; implement strategies to 

accelerate learning; and maintain the operation of and continuity of education-related services, 

including by stabilizing the workforce and avoiding layoffs. 

Several offices across the Department support Goal 1, including the Office of Elementary and 

Secondary Education; the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; the Office for 
12 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Civil Rights; the Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education; the Office of Planning, 

Evaluation, and Policy Development; the Institute of Education Sciences; the Office of 

Postsecondary Education; and the Office of English Language Acquisition.

Strategies and Activities to Achieve Goal 1

Strategic Objective 1.1: Increase high-quality educational options. 

The Department will:

• Work to address educational inequities that have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 

pandemic and target resources and support to students with the greatest needs. The 

pandemic is an impetus to revisit the definition of “non-traditional” education. 

• Support states in developing or strengthening crucial summer, afterschool, and other 

extended learning and enrichment programs and facilitating robust family and community 

engagement and input on how to improve access to in-school and out-of-school learning 

opportunities for historically underserved students. 

• Monitor Full-Service Community Schools (FSCS) grantees for the implementation of their 

approved applications, review annual performance reports, and conduct quarterly calls 

with grantees.

• Conduct a joint project directors meeting for the Magnet Schools Assistance Program and the 

FSCS Program in December 2021 that includes opportunities for technical assistance from 

field leaders, policy organizations, and philanthropic organizations to scale and enhance 

grantee initiatives. 

• Support the development, improvement, and expansion of FSCS as a strategy to provide 

wrap-around support for students and families, including through an ongoing evaluation of 

FSCS led by the Department’s Institute of Education Sciences (IES). 

• Build evidence about the implementation and/or efficacy of programs related to public school 

opportunities or parent engagement, including both new and ongoing work at IES related to 

Statewide Family Engagement Centers and magnet schools. 
Strategic Goal 1: P–12 Education 13

Strategic Objective 1.2: Provide all P–12 students with equal access to highquality educational opportunities.

The Department will: 

• Support projects and programs that improve students’ social, emotional, and academic 

development, such as identifying conditions of the learning environment that contribute to 

success and engaging with families and community leaders. 

• Monitor states for the implementation of their approved plans for complying with Education 

Stabilization Fund requirements. Specifically, the Office of Elementary and Secondary 

Education (OESE) will:

o Monitor states for compliance with the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic 

Security Act; the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 

2021; and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP) in fiscal year (FY) 2022. 

States will be chosen based on a risk assessment. To support grantees in preparing for 

the Department’s monitoring activities, OESE will provide Monitoring Office Hours 

sessions online to engage grantees and field questions. Additional timely information 

regarding monitoring will be provided to grantees through updates via the 

Department’s Grants Management System—G5—which supports the Department’s 

life cycle business process, and/or through regular “News Blast” emails to grantees 

and associated stakeholders.

o Review every grantees’ annual performance report in spring 2022 to evaluate uses of 

funds and provide technical assistance as needed. 

o Determine outcomes associated with OESE’s methods for monitoring compliance and 

assess whether additional tools, methods, or communications should be explored to 

support implementation of key ARP requirements in FY 2023. 

• Monitor states for the implementation of their approved plans for complying with the 

Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended by the Every Student 

Succeeds Act (ESSA), including report card requirements. Specifically, OESE will:

o Monitor states for compliance with Title I, Part A; Title II, Part A; and Title III, 

Part A of ESEA in FY 2022. States will be chosen based on a risk assessment. 

o Determine the outcomes associated with OESE’s methods for monitoring compliance 

and assess whether additional tools, methods, or communications should be explored 

to support state implementation of key ESEA requirements in FY 2022. 

• Review every state’s report card in January 2022 to evaluate whether they have been 

published and include required information for parents and stakeholders, including the list of 

schools identified for comprehensive or targeted support and improvement; data on 

demographic subgroups (e.g., students experiencing homelessness, students in foster care, 
14 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

and students with a parent in the Armed Forces); data on per-pupil expenditures; and 

information on districts and schools receiving school improvement funds, including the 

amount of funds and types of strategies implemented. 

• Support and monitor states and districts in the implementation of multi-tiered systems of 

support to improve school climate and access to mental health services for students exposed 

to violence and other traumatic events.

• Support projects that increase school capacity to better address the social, emotional, 

behavioral, physical, and academic needs of historically underserved students (e.g., students 

with disabilities, English learners, students experiencing homelessness or trauma, students 

without access to technology, and migrant students). 

• Support state educational agencies (SEAs) that implement model programs that enable access 

to trauma-specific mental health services for students from low-income households and other 

underserved students who have experienced trauma or other adverse childhood experiences 

that may negatively affect their educational engagement and ability. 

• Support SEAs to increase their capacity to assist school districts by providing training and 

technical assistance in the development and implementation of high-quality school 

emergency operations plans. 

• Publish guidance documents on key issues related to the equitable and effective use of 

technology and mental health services for vulnerable populations. 

• Publish guidance documents to support COVID-19 response and recovery, including 

frequently asked questions on the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief 

(ESSER) Fund and the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief uses of funds as well as the 

Maintenance of Equity and Maintenance of Effort provisions. 

• Conduct rulemaking on the Emergency Assistance for Non-Public Schools and ARP ESSER 

programs.

• Work collaboratively with 19 other federal agencies that are members of the U.S. 

Interagency Council on Homelessness to provide technical assistance and information to 

address the needs of homeless children and youths. The Department will award additional 

ARP funding in FY 2021 to support the education of children and youths experiencing 

homelessness. In addition, the Department plans to provide technical assistance and conduct 

evaluation activities, particularly on the uses of ARP funds under this program. 

• Work collaboratively with other agencies to increase racial and socioeconomic diversity 

through the Magnet Schools Assistance Program and other educational settings. 

• Publish guidance on voluntary desegregation efforts under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act 

of 1964. 
Strategic Goal 1: P–12 Education 15

• Work collaboratively with other agencies to improve the quality of educational programs in 

juvenile justice facilities.

• Publish guidance that instructs schools, per civil rights laws, to eliminate disparities in 

discipline practices. 

• Use the results of a national needs assessment conducted in FY 2021 to inform improvements 

to the Migrant Student Information Exchange (MSIX) and the Department’s related technical 

assistance. OESE’s Office of Migrant Education worked with contractors to conduct a needs 

assessment regarding intra- and inter-state transfer of educational records of migratory 

students. The improvements will ensure school staff and other Migrant Education Program 

stakeholders have access to, and the capacity to effectively use, MSIX data to meet the 

unique educational needs of migratory students, including students with disabilities and

underserved children. 

• Monitor the eight states in the cohort of the Differentiated Monitoring and Support plan for 

their implementation of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act requirements to improve 

outcomes for infants, toddlers, children, and youths with disabilities. These states will be 

monitored over a three-year period. The first year, 2021–2022, is pre-site work. The second 

year, 2022–2023, is the on-site visit and letter of findings. The third year, 2023–2024, is for

corrective action or needed technical assistance.

• Enforce civil rights laws effectively by investigating and resolving complaints of 

discrimination and by conducting compliance reviews and directed investigations 

consistent with applicable statutes and regulations, case law, and internal procedures. 

• Obtain appropriate and robust remedies in resolution agreements and monitor the 

implementation of resolution agreements to ensure that recipients comply with the law. 

Complementing these enforcement activities, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) will also 

issue guidance and technical assistance addressing equality of opportunity under civil rights 

laws. OCR will continue to collect and publish data related to civil rights and equity through 

its Civil Rights Data Collection. 

Strategic Objective 1.3: Prepare all students for successful transition to college 

and careers by supporting access to dual enrollment, job skills development 

and high-quality science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

The Department will: 

• Work to expand equitable access to evidence-based policies and programs that support a 

successful transition from high school to postsecondary education and careers, including dual 

or concurrent enrollment programs; access to accelerated coursework, such as Advanced 

Placement and International Baccalaureate courses to earn postsecondary credit while still in 
16 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

high school; high-quality science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) 

instruction, including computer science; and job skills development through high-quality 

career, technical, and adult education programs. These options are critical for students as they 

prepare for the transition to postsecondary institutions and careers and the quickly changing 

demands of the technology-driven global economy. 

• Increase the number of teachers with additional certifications or training in high-demand 

areas who can effectively prepare students for career pathways through high-quality career 

and technical education (CTE) programs by designing instruction in ways that are engaging 

and provide students with opportunities to think critically and solve complex problems, apply 

their learning in authentic and real-world settings, communicate and collaborate effectively, 

and develop academic mindsets, including through project-based, work-based, or other 

experiential learning opportunities and through effective integration of technology. 

• Support projects that strengthen community colleges, historically Black colleges and 

universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, Asian American and Native American Pacific 

Islander-serving institutions, tribally controlled colleges and universities, and other minorityserving institutions. 

• Increase the number of individuals, including students with disabilities and other underserved 

students, who enroll in postsecondary institutions or pursue skills needed for the workforce 

through multiple workforce pathways, including by reducing costs and loan repayment 

obligations for students. 

• Increase access to cybersecurity programs of study for students in underserved communities 

and expand high school pathways to postsecondary cybersecurity programs at community 

and technical colleges designated as Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity by the 

National Security Agency and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. 

• Support grant recipients of the Pathways to STEM Apprenticeship for High School CTE 

Students demonstration grant program, which expands pathways and improves the transition 

of high school CTE students to postsecondary education and employment through 

apprenticeships in STEM fields, including computer science, that begin during high school. 

• Support the grant recipients of the Perkins Innovation and Modernization Program to 

identify, support, and evaluate evidence-based and innovative strategies and activities to 

improve and modernize CTE and ensure workforce skills taught in CTE programs funded 

under the Perkins statute align with labor market needs. 

• Launch the CTE STEM Index Project to support the development of CTE programs by 

providing a tool to better estimate the demand for STEM jobs and the skills that can be 

gained in CTE to enter STEM career pathways.
Strategic Goal 1: P–12 Education 17

Strategic Objective 1.4: Support agencies and institutions in the 

implementation of evidence-based strategies and practices that build the 

capacity of school staff and families to support students’ academic 

performance.

The Department will:

• Continue to provide support to the education community as it recovers from the abrupt 

transition from traditional to virtual learning. With the quarantining of virtually all 

Americans beginning in mid-March 2020, the Department rapidly pivoted to provide support 

to tens of millions of children who were being educated virtually, families who were helping 

to fulfill the role of teachers, and educators who were developing and delivering virtual 

instruction. OESE, the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, and IES 

formed a Technical Assistance Coordination Team within one week of the stay-at-home 

orders to develop coordinated support for children, families, and educators. The Technical 

Assistance Coordination Team continues to act in a coordinating role to ensure the 

Department’s support is effectively and efficiently delivered and will continue in this role as 

most students return to in-person learning. Providing evidence-based support and resources 

will continue to be a priority for the Department as schools reopen to assess students’ 

learning needs. 

• Continue to leverage the Department’s statutory authority under ESSA Section 8601 to 

conduct high-quality evaluations through IES that are relevant to ESEA programs and can 

answer questions of strategic importance, offer evidence that can support program 

improvement, and identify effective strategies for improving student achievement, 

particularly for students of color, low-income students, and other underserved students. 

• Identify opportunities to further build and use evidence in the Department’s grant 

programs—both formula and competitive. This includes updating the Education 

Department’s General Administrative Regulations to build and use evidence effectively. 

In addition, this includes developing strategies and sharing resources on evidence building 

and use in collaboration with IES to identify meaningful opportunities for evidence 

building consistent with the Department’s forthcoming FY 2022–2026 Learning Agenda. 

• Collaborate with internal and external partners to disseminate resources on the use of 

evidence, including internal trainings and workshops to build staff capacity to support 

formula and competitive grantees and the broader education community. 

• Release products from IES’ What Works Clearinghouse that support the adoption of 

evidence-based practices in P–12 education, including topics such as promoting social and 

behavioral success for learning in elementary schools and assisting students struggling with 

reading in grades 4 through 9. 
18 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Goal 1 Performance Measures 

Indicators of Success 

FY 2020 

Actual

FY 2021 

Target

FY 2022 

Target Data Source

1.2.D. Percentage of students in the 

country who have internet bandwidth at 

school of at least 100 kbps per student.

99% 99% 99% EducationSuperHighway.

1.2.E. Percentage of rural schools 

connected to a broadband infrastructure 

capable of scaling to 10 gigabits per 

second.

99% 99% 99% EducationSuperHighway.

1.3.A. Number of discretionary grant 

notices with science, technology, 

engineering, and mathematics as a priority. 

13 12 10 Program offices holding discretionary 

grant competitions each year, including 

the Office of Elementary and Secondary

Education; the Office of Special

Education and Rehabilitative Services;

the Office of Postsecondary Education;

the Office of Career, Technical, and

Adult Education; the Institute of

Education Sciences; and the Office of

English LanguageAcquisition.

1.3.G. Number of adult education 

participants enrolled in an integrated 

education and training program.

51,915 56,000 70,000 National Reporting System for Adult 

Education.

1.3.J. Number of secondary career and 

technical education concentrators enrolling 

in science, technology, engineering, and 

mathematics.

1,293,673 1,240,508 1,550,635 State Consolidated Annual Reports for 

the Strengthening Career and 

Technical Education for the 21st 

Century Act (Perkins V).

1.4.A. Number of technical assistance 

engagements, events or related activities or 

products focused on the grantees’ use

of evidence in prekindergarten through 

grade 12 education.

1,355 1,422 Prior year 

+5%

Department of Education offices that 

deliver technical assistance.
Goal 2: Postsecondary Pathways 19

Goal 2 Objectives

2.1 Support educational institutions, students, parents and communities to increase access 

and completion of college, lifelong learning and career, technical and adult education. 

2.2 Support agencies and educational institutions in identifying and using evidence-based 

strategies or other promising practices to improve educational opportunities and 

successfully prepare individuals to compete in the global economy. 

2.3 Support agencies and educational institutions as they create or expand innovative 

and affordable paths to relevant careers by providing postsecondary credentials or 

job-ready skills. 

2.4 Improve quality of service for customers across the entire student aid life cycle. 

2.5 Enhance students’ and parents’ ability to repay their federal student loans by providing 

accurate and timely information, relevant tools and manageable repayment options. 

Expand postsecondary educational 

opportunities, improve outcomes to 

foster economic opportunity and 

promote an informed, thoughtful 

and productive citizenry.

Goal Leader: Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary 

Education

Strategic 

Goal 2
20 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Goal 2 Budgetary Resources

The following figure and table show total discretionary resources, which include programs that 

award grants using a competitive process as well as programs that award grants using formulas 

determined by Congress, and activities supporting Goal 2. 

Goal 2 Resources

Major Discretionary Programs and Activities Supporting Goal 2 in Thousands

POC ACCT Objective Program

FY 2020 

Appropriation

FY 2021 

Appropriation

FY 2022 

President’s 

Budget

FSA SFA 2.1, 2.3 Federal Pell Grants: 

Discretionary

$22,475,352 $22,475,352 $25,475,352

OCTAE CTAE 2.1, 2.3 Career and Technical

Education State Grants

$1,282,598 $1,334,848 $1,354,850

OPE HE 2.1 Strengthening HBCUs/

TCCUs/HSIs/MSIs

$324,792 $337,619 $943,217

OPE HE 2.1, 2.2, 

2.3

Federal TRIO Programs $1,090,000 $1,097,000 $1,297,761

Other N/A N/A All Other Programs $6,467,752 $6,665,794 $7,698,952

Note:

Discretionary resources listed here include Department programs that may contribute to multiple goals. 

Acronyms and Definitions:

POC = Principal Operating Component; ACCT = Account; FSA = office of Federal Student Aid; SFA = Student Financial 

Assistance; OCTAE = Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education; CTAE = Career, Technical, and Adult Education; 

OPE = Office of Postsecondary Education; HE = Higher Education; HBCU = Historically Black College and University; 

TCCU = Tribally Controlled College and University; HSI = Hispanic-Serving Institution; MSI = Minority-Serving Institution; 

and N/A = Not Applicable.
Goal 2: Postsecondary Pathways 21

The following table includes programs and activities supporting Goal 2. 

Other Discretionary Programs and Activities 

POC ACCT Objective Program

FSA DM/SAA N/A Student Aid Administration: Salaries and Expenses

FSA DM/SAA N/A Student Aid Administration: Servicing Activities

FSA SFA 2.1, 2.3 Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants

FSA SFA 2.1, 2.3 Federal Work-Study

IES IES 1.4, 2.2 Regional Educational Laboratories

IES IES 1.2, 2.2 Special Education Studies and Evaluations

OCTAE CTAE 2.1, 2.4 Career and Technical National Programs

OCTAE CTAE 1.3, 2.1 Adult Basic and Literacy Education State Grants

OCTAE CTAE 1.3, 2.1 Adult Education National Leadership Activities

OCATE HE 2.1 Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Career and Technical Institutions

OESE ED 1.2, 2.1 Special Programs for Migrant Students

OESE I&I 1.2, 2.3 Teacher Quality Partnership

OPE HE 2.1, 2.2 Aid for Institutional Development: Strengthening Institutions

OPE HE 2.1 Aid for Institutional Development: Strengthening Tribally Controlled 

Colleges and Universities 

OPE HE 2.1 Strengthening Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions 

OPE HE 2.1 Strengthening Historically Black Graduate Institutions 

OPE HE 2.1 Strengthening HBCU Master’s Program 

OPE HE 2.1 Strengthening Predominately Black Institutions 

OPE HE 2.1 Strengthening Asian American- and Native American Pacific IslanderServing Institutions

OPE HE 2.1 Strengthening Native American-Serving Nontribal Institutions 

OPE HE 2.2, 2.3 Minority Science and Engineering Improvement 

OPE HE 2.1 Aid for Hispanic-Serving Institutions: Developing Hispanic-Serving 

Institutions 

OPE HE 2,1 Aid for Hispanic-Serving Institutions: Promoting Postbaccalaureate 

Opportunities for Hispanic Americans

OPE HE 2.1, 2.2 Consolidated MSI Grant (Proposed Legislation): Consolidated MSI 

Grant

OPE HE 2.1 International Education and Foreign Language Studies: Domestic 

Programs 

OPE HE 2.1 International Education and Foreign Language Studies: Overseas 

Programs 

OPE HE 2.1 Model Transition Programs for Students With Intellectual Disabilities 

into Higher Education

OPE HE 2.1, 2.2, 2.4 Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs 

(GEAR UP)

OPE HE 2.3 Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need 

OPE HE 2.1 Child Care Access Means Parents in School 

OPE HE 2.1, 2.3 Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education

OPE HE 2.1 Howard University: General Support 

OPE HE 2.1 Howard University Hospital 

OPE HE N/A College Housing and Academic Facilities Loans Program Account: 

Federal Administration 

OPE HE N/A Historically Black College and University Capital Financing Program 

Account: Federal Administration 

OPE HE N/A Historically Black College and University Capital Financing Program 

Account: Loan Subsidies
22 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

POC ACCT Objective Program

OPE HE N/A Historically Black College and University Capital Financing Program 

Account: Modification of Existing Loan Subsidies

OSERS APH 2.1, 2.3 American Printing House for the Blind

OSERS GU 2,1, 2.3 Gallaudet University

OSERS NTID 2.1, 2.2 National Technical Institute for the Deaf

OSERS REHAB 2.1 Client Assistance State Grants

OSERS REHAB 2.1, 2.2 Vocational Rehabilitation Training

OSERS REHAB 2.1, 2.2 Demonstration and Training Programs

OSERS REHAB 2.1 Protection and Advocacy of Individual Rights

OSERS REHAB 2.1, 2.3 Supported Employment State Grants

OSERS REHAB 2.2 Independent Living Services for Older Blind Individuals

OSERS REHAB 2.2 Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults

Acronyms and Definitions:

POC = Principal Operating Component; ACCT = Account; FSA = office of Federal Student Aid; DM = 

Departmental Management; SAA = Student Aid Administration; SFA = Student Financial Assistance; IES = 

Institute of Education Sciences; OCTAE = Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education; CTAE = Career, 

Technical, and Adult Education; HE = Higher Education; OESE = Office of Elementary and Secondary Education; 

ED = U.S. Department of Education; I&I = Innovation and Improvement; OPE = Office of Postsecondary 

Education; HBCU = Historically Black College and University; MSI = Minority-Serving Institution; N/A = Not 

Applicable; — = Not Available; OSERS = Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; APH = 

American Printing House for the Blind; GU = Gallaudet University; NTID = National Technical Institute for the 

Deaf; and REHAB = Rehabilitation Services and Disability Research.

Mandatory Programs Supporting Goal 2

POC ACCT Objective Program

FSA FDSL 2.1, 2.3 Federal Direct Student Loans Program Account: New Loan Subsidies

FSA FDSL 2.1, 2.3 Federal Direct Student Loans Program Account: Upward Reestimate of

Existing Loans

FSA FDSL 2.1, 2.3 Federal Direct Student Loans Program Account: Upward Modification

of Existing Loans

FSA FFEL 2.1 Federal Family Education Loans Program Account: Upward Reestimate

of Existing Loans

FSA FFEL 2.1 Federal Family Education Loans Program Account: Upward

Modification of Existing Loans

FSA FFEL 2.1 Federal Family Education Loans Liquidating Account: Pre-1992

Student Loans

FSA HEAL 2.1 Health Education Assistance Loans Liquidating Account

FSA SFA 2.1, 2.3 Federal Pell Grants: Mandatory

FSA SFA 2.1, 2.3 Federal Pell Grants: Mandatory Funding for Discretionary Program

Costs

FSA SFA 2.1, 2.3 Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants

FSA TEACH 2.1, 2.3 TEACH Grants: New Loan Subsidy

FSA TEACH 2.1, 2.3 TEACH Grants: Upward Reestimate of Existing Loans

OCTAE — 2.1 Community College Infrastructure 

OCTAE CTAE 2.1 Adult Education State Grants

OESE SIP 2.3 School-Based Health Professionals of the Future

OPE HE 2.1 HEA Title III/V Programs for HBCUs, TCCUs, HSIs, and MSIs

OPE HE 2.1 Completion Grants

OPE HE 2.1 Aid for Institutional Development: Mandatory Strengthening Tribally

Controlled Colleges and Universities
Goal 2: Postsecondary Pathways 23

POC ACCT Objective Program

OPE HE 2.1 Mandatory Strengthening Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving

Institutions

OPE HE 2.1 Mandatory Strengthening HBCUs

OPE HE 2.1 Mandatory Strengthening Predominantly Black Institutions

OPE HE 2.1 Mandatory Strengthening Asian American- and Native American

Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions

OPE HE 2.1 Mandatory Strengthening Native American-Serving Nontribal

Institutions

OPE HE 2.1, 2.2 Aid for Hispanic-Serving Institutions: Mandatory Developing HSI 

STEM and Articulation Programs

OPE HE 2.1, 2.2 Consolidated MSI Grant (Proposed Legislation): Mandatory 

Consolidated MSI Grant

OPE HE N/A College Housing and Academic Facilities Loans Program Account:

Reestimate of Existing Loan Subsidies

OPE HE N/A College Housing and Academic Facilities Loans Liquidating Account

OPE HE N/A Historically Black College and University Capital Financing Program

Account: Reestimate of Existing Loan Subsidies

OPE HE N/A Higher Education Facilities Loans Liquidating Account

OPE HE N/A College Housing Loans Liquidating Account

OSERS REHAB 2.1, 2.2, 2.3 Vocational Rehabilitation, State Grants

OSERS REHAB 2.1 Vocational Rehabilitation, Grants to Indians

SFA — 2.1 Perkins Loan Repayments

SFA — N/A FDSL Downward Reestimate of Loan Subsidies

SFA — N/A FDSL Downward Modification/Negative Loan Subsidies

SFA — N/A FFEL Downward Reestimate of Loan Subsidies

SFA — N/A FFEL Downward Modification/Negative Loan Subsidies

SFA — N/A HBCU Capital Financing Downward Reestimate of Loan Subsidies 

SFA — N/A Student Financial Assistance Debt Collection

Acronyms and Definitions:

POC = Principal Operating Component; ACCT = Account; FSA = office of Federal Student Aid; FDSL = Federal Direct Student 

Loan; FFEL = Federal Family Education Loan; HEAL = Health Education Assistance Loan; SFA = Student Financial Assistance; 

TEACH = Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education; OCTAE = Office of Career, Technical, and Adult 

Education; — = Not Available; CTAE = Career, Technical, and Adult Education; OESE = Office of Elementary and Secondary 

Education; SIP = Strengthening Institutions Program; OPE = Office of Postsecondary Education; HE = Higher Education; HEA = 

Higher Education Act; HBCU = Historically Black College and University; TCCU = Tribally Controlled College and University; 

HSI = Hispanic-Serving Institution; MSI = Minority-Serving Institution; HSI STEM = Hispanic-Serving Institution Science, 

Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Articulation Program; N/A = Not Applicable; OSERS = Office of Special Education 

and Rehabilitative Services; and REHAB = Rehabilitation Services and Disability Research.
24 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Goal 2 Overview

The Department is prioritizing achieving equitable opportunities and outcomes for students, 

including economically underserved students, students with disabilities, English learners, and 

students from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. The Department will continue to support 

students in their access to and completion of postsecondary education, especially underserved 

students and students with the greatest needs. This support will include sharing education data to 

promote best practices, using evidence to develop and continue strategies that work, and being 

transparent with the education community about successes and challenges that students face. 

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act was passed by Congress on March 27, 

2020. This bill provided approximately $14 billion for the Higher Education Emergency Relief 

Fund (HEERF), administered by the Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE). On 

December 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 

2021 (i.e., HEERF II) was signed into law, and the Department announced an additional 

$22.7 billion available to institutions of higher education to ensure learning continues for 

students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021

(i.e., HEERF III) was signed into law on March 11, 2021, and made $36.9 billion in new 

investments to the HEERF Program.

For a complete list of COVID-19 flexibilities currently offered by the Department, review the 

COVID-19 Resources for Schools, Students, and Families. 

The Department is focusing attention on having the office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) deliver 

world-class customer and partner experiences through the modernization of its systems and 

operations. To be the most trusted and reliable source of student financial aid information and 

services in the nation, FSA must continuously improve the quality of service for students, 

families, and borrowers. 

Several offices across the Department support Goal 2, including FSA; OPE; the Office of Career, 

Technical, and Adult Education; the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; the 

Office for Civil Rights; the Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development; and the 

Institute of Education Sciences.
Goal 2: Postsecondary Pathways 25

Strategies and Activities to Achieve Goal 2

Strategic Objective 2.1: Support educational institutions, students, parents 

and communities to increase access and completion of college, lifelong 

learning and career, technical and adult education.

The Department will:

• Address challenges resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic through the Office of 

Postsecondary Education’s (OPE’s) administration of the Higher Education Emergency 

Relief programs and implementation of waivers and flexibilities offered to grantees. The 

COVID-19 pandemic and the transition to remote learning have created academic challenges 

and greatly exacerbated financial and mental health issues for an untold number of students, 

particularly underserved students. The challenges, including widespread job losses and the 

transition to virtual learning, have imperiled students’ access to and progress in higher 

education. 

• Issue invitational priorities to grantees to provide integrated student support services 

(i.e., wrap-around services) for students to address concerns such as mental health, basic 

needs, and academic support due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Grant applicants will be asked 

to describe ways they will collaborate with partners to provide resources to support students 

and communities hit hardest by the pandemic and implement evidence-based best practices to 

address the existing inequities exacerbated by the pandemic.

• Issue new guidance allowing colleges to use emergency funds in more flexible ways, 

including expanding flexibilities for student and institutional needs; empowering institutions 

to use their funds to discharge student debts, support student services, and re-engage those 

students who may have left college due to financial concerns associated with the COVID-19 

pandemic; and emphasizing ways to support vulnerable students. 

• Support the development and implementation of student success programs that include 

multiple interventions, such as academic advising, the provision of financial resources, 

structured pathways, and other student supports to increase credential attainment.

• Review and reconsider existing regulations, orders, guidance, policies, and other similar 

agency actions, including the 2020 amendments to the Department’s regulations 

implementing Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, entitled 

“Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving 

Federal Financial Assistance,” as required by Executive Order (EO) 14021, Guaranteeing an 

Educational Environment Free from Discrimination on the Basis of Sex, Including Sexual 

Orientation or Gender Identity, including convening a public hearing and issuing new 

guidance, as described in the Letter to Students, Educators, and other Stakeholders issued by 
26 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) on April 6, 2021. OCR also anticipates conducting 

rulemaking to amend Title IX’s implementing regulations.

• Facilitate institutions’ use of Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act 

flexibilities related to the administration of Title IV and Higher Education Act of 1965

programs as well as flexibilities outlined in the Federal Student Aid Programs Federal 

Register Notice using authority of the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students 

Act of 2003 to assist students affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in completing their 

programs of study. 

• Use high-quality data for transparency, accountability, and institutional improvement to 

conduct negotiated rulemaking that supports postsecondary students and loan borrowers.

• Scale cross-agency coordination to increase knowledge among potentially eligible students 

about public benefits available to them in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Improve access to quality educational programs available in correctional settings.

• Continue to increase access to federal student aid and improve the customer experience 

through the services available on the StudentAid.gov website and simplification of the Free 

Application for Federal Student Aid® (FAFSA®) form. In this way, the Department remains 

focused on enhancing its delivery of information, systems, and operations to expand 

postsecondary school access and improve affordability and completion. Specifically:

o Continue to work toward improving access to the FAFSA® form as well as the ease 

of completing the FAFSA® process. By focusing on increasing customer knowledge 

about the FAFSA® form and the associated application periods while working to 

decrease the burden on students and families of verifying FAFSA® data, the 

Department will better assist students and families with understanding and 

completing the FAFSA® process to receive aid in a timely manner.

o Support FAFSA® simplification, including using the flexibilities provided to the 

office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) through the Fostering Undergraduate Talent by 

Unlocking Resources for Education (FUTURE) Act and the FAFSA Simplification Act

of 2020.

• Continue to provide technical assistance, on-campus site visits, specialized staff training, 

and internal assessments for minority and under-resourced institutions participating in 

Title IV programs.

• Effectively enforce civil rights laws by investigating and resolving complaints of 

discrimination, compliance reviews, and directed investigations consistent with applicable 

statutes and regulations, case laws, and internal procedures. This includes obtaining 

appropriate and robust remedies in resolution agreements and monitoring their

implementation to ensure that recipients are in compliance with the law. Complementing 
Goal 2: Postsecondary Pathways 27

these enforcement activities, OCR will also issue guidance and technical assistance 

addressing equality of opportunity under civil rights laws. 

Strategic Objective 2.2: Support agencies and educational institutions in 

identifying and using evidence-based strategies or other promising practices 

to improve educational opportunities and successfully prepare individuals to 

compete in the global economy.

The Department will:

• Continue to connect Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) adult education 

program participants to jobs, as measured by the number of participants in unsubsidized 

employment during the second quarter after exiting the program. The general employment 

rate has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Office of Career, Technical, and 

Adult Education expects the employment rate of WIOA participants to also be affected in 

the future. 

• Identify opportunities to further build and use evidence in the Department’s grant programs, 

both formula and competitive. This includes updating the Education Department General 

Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) and Other Applicable Grant Regulations to build and 

use evidence effectively. In addition, this includes developing strategies and sharing 

resources on evidence building and use in collaboration with the Institute of Education 

Sciences to identify meaningful opportunities for evidence building consistent with the 

Department’s forthcoming fiscal years (FY) 2022–2026 Learning Agenda. 

• Use the Monitoring and Technical Assistance Guide for the Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) 

Program to conduct monitoring and provide technical assistance to state VR agencies, with a 

focus on the performance outcomes of individuals served by the VR Program and the 

Supported Employment Program.

• Continue to provide technical assistance to all state VR agencies related to the WIOA 

performance indicators, including those captured by measures 2.2.C and 2.2.D (see the 

Goal 2 Performance Measures section for further details), and support these agencies in 

collecting and reporting high-quality performance data.

• Provide technical assistance to promote the development and use of stackable credentials by 

community and technical colleges to improve the attainment of career and technical 

education (CTE) credentials by their students. By awarding credit for a range of education, 

training, workplace learning, and skill-building experiences that “stack” toward associate 

degrees, stackable credential programs are meant to help working students develop the skills 

they need to simultaneously advance on the job and earn credentials that enable further study. 

Such programs are designed to accelerate credit attainment and may increase the likelihood 

of degree completion. 
28 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

• Disseminate the Introduction to Stackable Credentials. This resource provides practical steps 

for enhancing employer engagement, designing programs with stackable credentials, 

supporting student completion, and sustaining program responsiveness to employer needs. 

• Disseminate a Young Adult Diversion Toolkit to help state and local governments learn 

how to provide justice-involved young adults with alternatives to prosecution, incarceration, 

or both. 

Strategic Objective 2.3: Support agencies and educational institutions as they 

create or expand innovative and affordable paths to relevant careers by 

providing postsecondary credentials or job-ready skills.

The Department will:

• Continue to provide grants, outreach, and technical assistance to institutions preparing youth 

and adult learners for the emerging workforce, with a focus on increasing the number and 

proportion of students of color, students from low-income backgrounds, students with 

disabilities, and other underserved students who enroll in and complete postsecondary 

education programs. The Department will continue to support multiple pathways to success, 

such as community colleges, technical schools, and four-year institutions.

• Identify opportunities to create clearer career pathways for students that may potentially 

reduce the time to complete a degree and the overall cost of college, including dual 

enrollment or concurrent enrollment, and to make transfers of course credits more 

seamless and transparent.

• Support programs that connect students and out-of-school youths with disabilities to 

resources that will assist them in transitioning to adult life, including connecting them 

to CTE and VR.

Strategic Objective 2.4: Improve quality of service for customers across the 

entire student aid life cycle.

The Department will:

• Increase access to college by working toward simplifying the FAFSA® form and various 

financial aid products offered by FSA to help solve acute problems. FSA is closely 

coordinating the implementation of the FUTURE Act, the FAFSA Simplification Act of 2020, 

and the modernization of the FAFSA® backend systems. As FSA implements these acts and 

system enhancements, students and parents will have a new experience from completion of 

the FAFSA® form through repayment.
Goal 2: Postsecondary Pathways 29

• Offer an outstanding customer experience and improved personal outcomes for every 

student, family, and borrower. FSA’s Digital Customer Care (DCC) platform is the digital 

front door for FSA’s customers (i.e., students, parents, and borrowers). DCC brings to life a 

personalized, customer-centric experience, with interaction channels, including mobile, web, 

social media, email, live agent, virtual agent, chat, and mail. FSA will:

o Modernize the technology, processes, and operations to improve student, parent, and 

borrower experiences and outcomes as well as those of student aid partners, including 

institutions of higher education. 

o Continue to release new features that assist customers and partners to ensure easier, 

more seamless customer and partner interactions with FSA across the student aid life 

cycle through an enterprise-wide, FSA-branded digital platform. This will enable 

FSA to maintain an ongoing relationship with its customers and empower customers 

and partners to receive additional support. 

o Work with customers to increase their understanding of the student aid life cycle, 

financing, and customer support, which will be refined through the ongoing analysis 

of customer and partner data and feedback and will be continuously improved 

through activities such as iterative user testing.

o Increase postsecondary school access, affordability, and completion by enhancing the 

Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Help Tool and the PSLF and Temporary 

Expanded PSLF certification and application forms as well as providing 

enhancements to Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education 

Grant agreements and counseling. 

Strategic Objective 2.5: Enhance students’ and parents’ ability to repay their 

federal student loans by providing accurate and timely information, relevant 

tools and manageable repayment options.

The Department will:

• Continue to build on its comprehensive framework for student aid management that allows 

students to understand and access information about college options and associated costs, 

loan counseling and guidance, support for retention, loan repayment options, and borrower 

benefits. FSA assists borrowers in identifying the appropriate information and financial 

pathways to meet their educational goals and lessen long-term debt associated with 

their choices.

• Support and continue to widely disseminate information on the CARES Act that provided 

temporary relief on Department-held federal student loans, which included suspension of 

loan payments, cessation of collections on defaulted loans, and a 0 percent interest rate. As of 
30 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

the second quarter of FY 2021, the Department will expand the 0 percent interest rate and 

pause collections activity to 1.14 million borrowers who defaulted on a privately held Federal 

Family Education Loan Program loan. This action will protect more than 800,000 additional 

borrowers who are at risk of having their federal tax refunds seized to repay a defaulted loan. 

This relief will be made retroactive to March 13, 2020, the start of the COVID-19 national 

emergency. All temporary student loan relief has been extended by law and EO until 

September 30, 2021. 

• Increase collaboration and collective action across the Department, led by FSA and OPE, to 

further advance information and materials that inform students and parents about federal 

student loan repayment options, both before and throughout the student aid life cycle. 

• Assess regularly and improve the quality of service for customers and partners across the 

entire student aid life cycle. This effort involves enhancing operational efficiency, flexibility, 

and oversight of entities that directly support the Department’s constituents to include 

contractors and financial institutions.

• Emphasize effective engagement of its customers and partners, as this is critical to the 

success of the student loan programs’ overall goals and objectives. A major priority for FSA

is to engage with stakeholders and to enhance the customer and partner experience, which 

will ultimately lead to improved taxpayer outcomes.

• Continue, with the end-user in mind, to test, evaluate, and launch/scale, by the end of 

FY 2022, new customer- and partner-facing products. Whenever possible, these will be 

developed with focus groups, user testing, and customer feedback integrated. 

• Continue to build out a state-of-the-art data and analytics capability to provide meaningful 

customer insights to support more informed decision-making regarding loan repayment. 
Goal 2: Postsecondary Pathways 31

Goal 2 Performance Measures

Indicators of Success

FY 2020 

Actual

FY 2021 

Target

FY 2022 

Target Data Source

2.1.B. Percentage of first-time Free 

Application for Federal Student Aid® 

filers among high school seniors.

63.8% 66.25% 66.5% The office of Federal Student Aid’s 

Central Processing System.

2.2.A. Number of technical assistance 

events or activities and products focused 

on the use of evidence in federal programs 

that promote educational opportunities, 

training, and support services for the 

workforce.

160 168 Prior year 

+5%

Departmental offices that deliver 

technical assistance.

2.2.B. Percentage of adult education 

program participants who were in 

unsubsidized employment during the 

second quarter after exiting the program. 

27.5% 19.1% 18.9% National Reporting System annual 

state reports.

2.2.C. Percentage of Vocational 

Rehabilitation Program participants who 

were in unsubsidized employment during 

the second quarter after exiting the 

program.

51.3% Baseline Baseline Rehabilitation Services 

Administration’s 911 Vocational 

Rehabilitation Case Service Report.

2.2.D. Percentage of Vocational 

Rehabilitation Program participants who, 

during a program year, are in an education 

or training program that leads to a 

recognized postsecondary credential or 

employment and who are achieving 

measurable skill gains, defined as 

documented academic, technical, 

occupational, or other forms of progress, 

toward such a credential or employment.

31.4% 25.1% 29.8% Rehabilitation Services 

Administration’s 911 Vocational 

Rehabilitation Case Service Report.

2.3.C. Number of postsecondary science, 

technology, engineering, and mathematics 

degrees and certificates conferred.

638,866 589,600 589,600 The National Center for Education 

Statistics’ Integrated Postsecondary 

Education Data System Completions 

component.

2.4.D. Number of downloads of the 

myStudentAid mobile app.

1,657,608 1,400,000 1,600,000 The office of Federal Student Aid’s 

online platform analytics.

2.4.F. Number of customers submitting a 

Free Application for Federal Student Aid® 

via a mobile platform—the myStudentAid 

mobile app or fafsa.gov.

2,505,293 2,600,000 3,000,000 The office of Federal Student Aid’s 

online platform analytics.

2.4.G. Number of visits (sessions) 

demonstrating adoption of the updated 

StudentAid.gov site.

217,299,306 210,000,000 220,000,000 The office of Federal Student Aid’s 

online platform analytics.

2.4.H. Number of users of “Aidan,” the 

StudentAid.gov virtual assistant. 

545,763 500,000 750,000 The office of Federal Student Aid’s 

online platform analytics.
32 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

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Goal 3: Data Accessibility and Use 33

Goal 3 Objectives

3.1 Improve the Department’s data governance, data life cycle management and the capacity 

to support education data. 

3.2 Improve privacy protections for, and transparency of, education data both at the 

Department and in the education community. 

3.3 Increase access to, and use of, education data to make informed decisions both at the 

Department and in the education community. 

Strengthen the quality, accessibility 

and use of education data through 

better management, increased 

privacy protections and 

transparency. 

Goal Leader: Chief Data Officer

Strategic 

Goal 3
34 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Goal 3 Budgetary Resources

The following figure and table show total discretionary resources, which include programs that 

award grants using a competitive process as well as programs that award grants using formulas 

determined by Congress, and activities supporting Goal 3. 

Goal 3 Resources

Major Discretionary Programs and Activities Supporting Goal 3 in Thousands

POC ACCT Objective Program

FY 2020 

Appropriation

FY 2021 

Appropriation

FY 2022 

President’s 

Budget

IES IES 3.3 Research, Development, and 

Dissemination

$195,877 $197,877 $267,880

IES IES 3.1, 3.2, 3.3 Statistics $110,500 $111,500 $111,500

IES IES 3.1, 3.2, 3.3 National Assessment $153,000 $165,000 $180,000

Other N/A N/A All Other Programs $97,245 $99,745 $99,745

Note:

Discretionary resources listed here include Department programs that may contribute to multiple goals. 

Acronyms and Definitions:

POC = Principal Operating Component; ACCT = Account; IES = Institute of Education Sciences; and N/A = Not Applicable.

The following table includes programs and activities supporting Goal 3. 

Discretionary Programs and Activities

POC ACCT Objective Program

IES IES 3.1, 3.2, 3.3 National Assessment Governing Board

IES IES 3.3 Research in Special Education 

IES IES 3.1, 3.2, 3.3 Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems

Acronyms and Definitions:

POC = Principal Operating Component; ACCT = Account; and IES = Institute of Education Sciences.

Mandatory Programs Supporting Goal 3

No additional programs.
Goal 3: Data Accessibility and Use 35

Goal 3 Overview

The Department continues its focus on developing solutions at the enterprise level in the areas of 

data management, security, access, and transparency. The Department makes significant efforts 

to ensure that data are accurate, timely, and accessible so they may be used to inform decisions, 

investments, and policy that contribute to improved outcomes and educational equity for students 

at both the P–12 and higher education levels.

The Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act and the Federal Data Strategy put federal 

agencies on notice that data and evidence need to play a more prominent role in how the federal 

government functions. The Department recognizes that holistically adopting an agency-wide 

Data Strategy is the path to effectively meet mission objectives and establish funding priorities. 

Such a strategy treats data as an asset from which valuable insights can be derived—insights that 

can be used to inform Administration policy, effectively steward taxpayer funds, and ultimately 

improve national educational equity and outcomes. 

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic drove home the need for an agency-wide approach to data 

management as the Department pivoted to meet rapidly changing data needs. The agency stood 

up new grant programs to meet the needs of students during these challenging times and shared 

information with the public on how the Department is supporting states and other grantees in 

P–12 and higher education. A cohesive, agency-wide data strategy will further enhance the 

Department’s response to current and future data needs in support of the agency’s mission. 

In fiscal year 2020, the Data Governance Board, comprising senior leaders in the Department, 

helped assess and advance the Department’s data maturity. Subsequently, a Department Data 

Strategy was published in December 2020 and includes a vision to realize the full potential of 

data to improve educational equity and outcomes and lead the nation in a new era of evidencebased policy insights and data-driven operations. The Data Strategy will help the Department 

respond to current and future needs in support of its mission, goals, and objectives. 

Several offices across the Department support Goal 3, including the National Center for 

Education Statistics within the Institute of Education Sciences; the Office of Planning, 

Evaluation, and Policy Development; the Office of the Chief Information Officer; the office of 

Federal Student Aid; the Office for Civil Rights; and the Office of the General Counsel. 
36 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Strategies and Activities to Achieve Goal 3

Strategic Objective 3.1: Improve the Department’s data governance, data life 

cycle management and the capacity to support education data.

The Department will:

• Continue to implement the requirements of the Evidence Act as outlined in Office of 

Management and Budget’s Memorandums M-19-23 and M-20-12 as well as additional 

implementation memorandums for phases 2 and 3 when released. 

• Actively examine its data governance structure and policies and, throughout fiscal year 

(FY) 2021, evaluate and improve that structure for agency data governance, developing 

policies, procedures, and constructs in support of transparent decision-making. The 

Department recognizes that existing processes and structures may have allowed discoverable 

inequities to go unnoticed in its agency’s programs. These efforts will be led by the 

Department’s Chief Data Officer in consultation with the Department’s Statistical Official 

and Evaluation Officer and its Data Governance Board (DGB).

• Continue to convene the DGB to discuss and evaluate high-priority data needs, which are 

detailed in the Department’s inaugural Data Strategy. Offices in the Department will 

implement goals and objectives under the Data Strategy, such as how best to address data 

needs in the Department’s FY 2022–2026 Learning Agenda and implement a data investment 

management process.

• Establish an agency-wide capital planning process by identifying best practices and assessing 

existing data-related workflows for gaps and overlaps. 

• Define an efficient process for review and approval of data-related projects and infrastructure 

that remediates the burden on principal offices while better aligning expectations for data 

investments with the goals of Department leadership, the DGB, and needs of the National 

Center for Education Statistics as the Federal principal statistical agency responsible for 

producing education statistics and data. 

• Continue using annual data maturity assessments to identify specific data management 

functions in need of additional support and implement action plans both within offices and 

across the agency.

• Oversee implementation of the data life cycle management policy adopted in FY 2021. 

• Develop and execute a human capital strategy for data management, identifying 

improvements in how the Department recruits, develops, retains, and leverages government 

personnel to ensure life cycle data management within principal offices and as an enterprise. 
Goal 3: Data Accessibility and Use 37

Additionally, the Department will implement a short-term plan to remedy key staffing gaps 

through creative solutions and prioritized hiring while longer-term planning is completed. 

• Highlight actions being taken by states that in 2020 received either an FY 2019 or FY 2020 

supplemental grant award through the Statewide Longitudinal Data System Program. These 

awards were made at the beginning (FY 2019 awards were made in March 2020) and at the 

height (FY 2020 supplemental awards were made in September 2020) of the COVID-19 

pandemic. Efforts during FY 2021 focus on highlighting the data system needs and plans 

within grant applications. 

• Establish data standards across the agency to reduce the burden and costs associated with 

collecting, validating, and integrating data. Externally, this involves the continued use of 

Common Education Data Standards in data collections from educational agencies and 

institutions. Internally, the Department will enhance the process for approving information 

collections to support FAIR (i.e., Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) 

principles and build on metadata management efforts from the Open Data Platform and 

Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 2014 reporting processes. 

• Complete the revision of the Information Quality Act (IQA) guidance and strongly promote 

the application of data quality standards in accordance with IQA. 

Strategic Objective 3.2: Improve privacy protections for, and transparency of, 

education data both at the Department and in the education community.

The Department will:

• Remain committed to protecting student privacy. While education data can be used to inform 

and drive transformative efforts, the vast amount and sensitivity of these data make it 

imperative that the Department and the educational institutions that maintain student data 

take steps to adequately protect them. Demand for data security technical assistance at 

institutions has been steadily increasing over the last several years, resulting in the 

Department prioritizing efforts in this area through a variety of approaches, from conferences 

and regional meetings, to targeted technical assistance calls and webinars. The Department 

continues improving student privacy protections and ensuring the inclusion of transparency 

best practices through administering the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act

(FERPA); developing and disseminating privacy and security training; and making technical 

assistance available to states, districts, and institutions of higher education (IHEs). The 

Department also focuses on providing outreach activities targeting data privacy and 

information technology security requirements at IHEs through collaboration across the 

Department.
38 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

• Support the January 2021 Presidential Memorandum, Restoring Trust in Government 

through Scientific Integrity and Evidence-Based Policymaking, directing agencies to 

make evidence-based decisions guided by the best available science and data. To meet this 

mandate, the Department must continue to develop and implement methods to analyze, 

interpret, and disseminate education data and support education stakeholders in doing the 

same. The Department will continue to focus on increasing access to education data at all 

levels and improving the tools necessary to support the appropriate use of education data 

for decision-making by the Department and its stakeholders. 

• Publish the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for FERPA and Protection of Pupil Rights 

Amendment (PPRA), with updates and clarifications of policy and technical issues. The 

proposed regulations are also needed to implement statutory amendments to FERPA 

contained in the Uninterrupted Scholars Act of 2013 and the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act 

of 2010 to reflect changes related to the enforcement responsibilities of the office concerning 

FERPA/PPRA and to make a change in the name of the office designated to administer both 

FERPA and PPRA. 

• Continue the collaboration between the Student Privacy Policy Office’s (SPPO’s) Privacy 

Technical Assistance Center and the office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) to provide a 

variety of training opportunities in FY 2022 to enhance data privacy and information security 

at IHEs.

• Achieve SPPO’s goal of reviewing 1,504 local educational agency (LEA) websites to assess 

their inclusion of transparency best practices by the end of FY 2022. The goal represents 

approximately 10 percent of operational LEA websites in the country. Throughout the 

reviews and during the development of year-end annual reports, SPPO is identifying trends 

to facilitate the delivery of targeted technical assistance. In completing the review of the 

statistically representative sample, SPPO will use the results to generate an overall summary 

report and consider the need for additional guidance or best practices in transparency. The 

FY 2022 year-end report and overall summary report is scheduled to be completed in late 

2022. The Department will announce the availability of the report, promote its contents, 

and post it with all other related reports on SPPO’s website.

• Continue to refine processes to actively monitor cybersecurity compliance and the risk 

factors associated with performing cybersecurity reviews. 

• Work to remediate Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act noncompliance in IHEs and work with IHEs to 

proactively put in place compliance programs to reduce the number of noncompliant audits 

over time. 

• Continue engagements with nongovernmental organizations to inform the development of 

best-practice programmatic improvements and communicate the strategic direction changes 

as recommended by the IHE Task Force. The IHE Task Force was convened in FY 2021 to 
Goal 3: Data Accessibility and Use 39

outline the operational overview of program management; identify the program oversight 

groups, roles and responsibilities; and identify the program workstreams that support the 

vision of the IHE Cybersecurity Program.

• Continue to address the requirements to: 

o Educate, support, and incentivize IHEs to mature their cybersecurity postures to 

protect the Department, FSA, and student data more effectively. 

o Address the federal mandate to protect controlled unclassified information that is 

transmitted, processed, stored, and destroyed by Title IV eligible IHEs in accordance 

with Executive Order 13556, Controlled Unclassified Information, implementing 

Regulation 32 CFR Part 2002 in the Code of Federal Regulations and the National 

Institute of Standards and Technology Special Publication 800-171, Protecting 

Controlled Unclassified Information in Nonfederal Systems and Organizations. 

o Mature FSA’s existing IHE Title IV data breach notification, threat intelligence, 

incident response, and remediation processes. 

Strategic Objective 3.3: Increase access to, and use of, education data to make 

informed decisions both at the Department and in the education community.

The Department will:

• Complete several near-term analytical initiatives that can support the identification and 

elimination of programmatic inconsistencies, such as the collection and retention of open 

data and the evaluation of completeness and accuracy of Department data, in addition to 

examining its data governance structures and processes for systemic weaknesses. To 

prioritize its open data and transparency initiatives, the Department will engage internal and 

external stakeholders (including the public) on its data needs and codify the results in the 

Department’s first Open Data Plan.

• Implement the required Standard Application Portal for requests to access restricted use data 

in accordance with the Evidence Act. 

• Develop for external researchers an additional tier of access to high-priority, micro-level data 

assets, such as those stewarded by FSA. The Department recognizes that varied experiences, 

expertise, and backgrounds, including those that stretch beyond its organization boundaries, 

are valuable in analytically identifying and solving programmatic inequities. 

• Expand on the FY 2021 launch of the Department’s Open Data Platform to operationalize a 

comprehensive data inventory for the agency, connecting data releases with data sources in 

the Department’s Data Inventory and elsewhere, increasing the catalogued data assets it 

profiles for both externally available open data and internal sources subject to open data 
40 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

priorities, and subsequently reviewing all data assets for release consistent with mandates and 

exclusions in the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018. 

• Include metadata for restricted use data sets in the Federal Standard Application Portal for all 

Department restricted use data files. 

• Meet requirements to allocate resources to fulfill the responsibilities of effective geospatial 

data collection, production, and stewardship with regard to related activities of the covered 

agency and, as necessary, to support the activities of the committee in geospatial data assets 

as required by the Geospatial Data Act of 2018.

• Complete and subsequently release a FY 2022 update of College Scorecard earnings data and 

other student and institutional metrics to ensure customers are accessing the most recent 

outcome data to inform their postsecondary education choices and help them find the best fit. 

• Refine and expand the existing transparency portal with data from the Education 

Stabilization Fund grant recipients to further improve program implementation, inform 

policy decisions, and provide public accountability. The fund was initially established 

through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, with subsequent 

investments through the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 

2021 and the American Rescue Plan of 2021.

• Explore opportunities to link elementary, secondary, and postsecondary data to yield new 

insights and identify current educational inequities to inform Department priorities and help 

close opportunity gaps. 

• Ensure the strategic use of data in public discourse and debate as well as in Department 

operations (e.g., resource allocation, acquisition and contract strategies, rulemaking efforts, 

and grant administration) consistent with the Department’s inaugural Data Strategy.

• Increase Departmental staff capacity to leverage data in everyday decisions through 

continued assessment of data competencies, implementation of a new data literacy program, 

and development of Department-wide statistical standards and procedures. 

• Launch a pilot enterprise-wide data analytics platform to provide access to analysis-ready 

Department data, analytics tools, and data visualizations and dashboards to support 

operations and program and policy decisions. 

• Incorporate data systems with student information into the enterprise-wide data analytics 

platform to analyze the impact of efforts to improve educational equity and outcomes. 

• Integrate data visualization and storytelling into priority communications and Department 

culture. Democratize business intelligence and develop data visualizations and dashboards 

for program staff and leaders that meet their needs for timely and actionable information so 

they can use data for everyday decisions and to address discoverable inequities. 
Goal 3: Data Accessibility and Use 41

Goal 3 Performance Measures

Indicators of Success

FY 2020 

Actual

FY 2021 

Target

FY 2022 

Target Data Source

3.1.A. Percentage of principal offices 

assessed as having higher data maturity 

year over year based on the Department’s 

data maturity assessment tool.

Baseline 25% 25% The Department’s Annual Data 

Maturity Assessment.

3.2.B. Number of outreach activities 

targeting data privacy and information 

technology security requirements of 

institutions of higher education.

56 20 20 Outreach activity records maintained 

by the Student Privacy Policy Office’s 

Privacy Technical Assistance Center.

3.3.A. Number of data assets listed in a 

comprehensive data inventory that are 

made available to the Federal Data 

Catalogue with official determinations 

regarding “open-by-default” requirements.

487 560 645 The Department’s comprehensive data 

inventory.
42 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

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Goal 4: Management and Reform 43

Goal 4 Objectives

4.1 Improve regulatory processes. 

4.2 Identify, assess, monitor and manage enterprise risks. 

4.3 Strengthen the Department’s cybersecurity by enhancing protections for its information 

technology infrastructure, systems and data. 

4.4 Improve the engagement and preparation of the Department’s workforce using 

professional development and accountability measures. 

Reform the effectiveness, efficiency 

and accountability of the 

Department. 

Goal Leader: Office of Finance and Operations

Strategic 

Goal 4
44 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Goal 4 Budgetary Resources

The following figure and table show examples of select major discretionary resources and 

activities supporting Goal 4. 

Goal 4 Resources

Major Discretionary Programs and Activities Supporting Goal 4 in Thousands

POC ACCT Objective Program

FY 2020

Appropriation

FY 2021 

Appropriation

FY 2022 

President’s 

Budget

All DM/PA N/A Program Administration: Salaries 

and Expenses

$430,000 $430,000 $467,000

OCR OCR N/A Office for Civil Rights $130,000 $131,000 $144,000

Other N/A N/A All Other Programs $63,000 $63,000 $83,115

Note:

Discretionary resources listed here include Department programs that may contribute to multiple goals. 

Acronyms and Definitions: 

POC = Principal Operating Component; ACCT = Account; DM/PA = Departmental Management/Program Administration; 

N/A = Not Applicable; and OCR = Office for Civil Rights. 

The following tables include additional programs and activities supporting Goal 4. 

Discretionary Programs and Activities

POC ACCT Objective Program

All DM/PA N/A Program Administration: Building Modernization

OIG OIG N/A Office of Inspector General 

Acronyms and Definitions:

POC = Principal Operating Component; ACCT = Account; DM/PA = Departmental Management/Program Administration; 

N/A = Not Applicable; and OIG = Office of Inspector General.

Mandatory Programs Supporting Goal 4

No additional programs.
Goal 4: Management and Reform 45

Goal 4 Overview

On January 20, 2021, President Biden issued Executive Order (EO) 13992, Revocation of 

Certain Executive Orders Concerning Federal Regulation, which calls for agencies to confront 

urgent challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic, economic recovery, racial justice, and 

climate change using robust regulatory action. In addition, the EO revokes several prior EOs, 

including EO 13771 and EO 13777, which served as the basis for strategic objective 4.1. 

Therefore, strategic objective 4.1, as written in the fiscal years 2018–2022 Strategic Plan, and its 

associated metrics are no longer being implemented.

The work of the Office of the General Counsel will support the policies in the Presidential 

Memorandum issued on January 26, 2021, Modernizing Regulatory Review, which states, in part, 

“Our Nation today faces serious challenges, including a massive global pandemic; a major 

economic downturn; systemic racial inequality; and the undeniable reality and accelerating threat 

of climate change. It is the policy of my Administration to mobilize the power of the Federal 

Government to rebuild our nation and address these and other challenges. As we do so, it is 

important that we evaluate the processes and principles that govern regulatory review to ensure 

swift and effective Federal action. Regulations that promote the public interest are vital for 

tackling national priorities.” 

Ensuring that the Department’s systems and data are protected through enhanced cybersecurity 

remains a high priority for the Department. The Department will continue to provide proactive 

cybersecurity services, monitor and enhance threat intelligence capabilities, explore shared 

services and cloud capabilities, and improve its cybersecurity workforce. 

The Department’s data-driven human capital strategy focuses on improving employee 

engagement, performance, and competency development. The Department will continue to build 

the skills and knowledge of its workforce and will transition from identifying competency gaps 

to prioritizing learning and development opportunities and identifying best practices for closing 

competency gaps. Furthermore, the Department will focus on improving Federal Employee 

Viewpoint Survey scores, particularly the Employee Engagement Index. 

Due to the cross-cutting nature of Goal 4, all offices in the Department support this goal.
46 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Strategies and Activities to Achieve Goal 4

Strategic Objective 4.1: Improve regulatory processes. 

The Department’s Office of the General Counsel (OGC) will:

• No longer include, beginning in fiscal year (FY) 2021, now-revoked Executive Order

(EO) 13771 information, such as the number of regulatory and deregulatory actions issued 

and the total incremental costs, including costs or costs savings carried over from previous 

fiscal years, in its regulatory impact analyses for proposed and final regulations. 

• Work, beginning in FY 2021, toward rescinding the interim final rule on Rulemaking and 

Guidance Procedures, which was enacted in part to implement now-revoked EO 13891. 

• Work, beginning in FY 2021, with the Department’s principal operating components to 

determine how best to effectuate the priorities in EO 13992 and how the Department can 

measure progress on those objectives. 

• Work, in FY 2021, in connection with the policies stated in the Presidential Memorandum, 

Modernizing Regulatory Review, with principal operating components to determine priorities 

in these areas. OGC and the principal operating components will then develop Strategic 

Goal(s), performance measures, and metric targets focused on effectuating the 

Administration’s priorities. As part of this process, OGC will advise the principal operating 

components on the instrument (e.g., guidance or regulations) that would best assist to legally 

effectuate the priorities and Strategic Goals. The performance measures developed through 

this consultation process will help to focus Department action from an early stage on these 

priorities, whether they will be carried out through regulations, guidance, or other means. 

Reporting on the new Strategic Goal(s), performance measures, and metric targets will begin 

in FY 2022. 

• Provide support to principal operating components on initiating regulatory efforts and 

exploring other avenues to work across the Department to incorporate national priorities 

consistent with applicable laws. 

Strategic Objective 4.2: Identify, assess, monitor and manage enterprise risks.

The Department will:

• Further integrate formal Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) partnerships and practices into 

major cross-Department initiatives to ensure data and risk consistently and objectively 

inform decision-making. 
Goal 4: Management and Reform 47

• Conduct enhanced risk assessments and proactive planning processes that systematically 

consider public health and safety crises, including natural disasters, to identify potential 

impacts to Department operations and its mission to result in more effective guidance and 

responses to stakeholders and more efficient administration of supplemental funding 

(e.g., inform grant programming and provide surge capacity staffing). 

• Implement an enhanced, user-friendly ERM application to more efficiently and effectively 

facilitate data collection, analysis, reporting, and dissemination of risk management 

information and activities throughout the Department.

• Develop and implement enhanced and innovative training and developmental opportunities 

for various levels of Department staff and management to further the natural integration of 

ERM principles into daily work and activities. 

Strategic Objective 4.3: Strengthen the Department’s cybersecurity by 

enhancing protections for its information technology infrastructure, systems 

and data.

The Department will:

• Expand and optimize capabilities that enable data-driven cybersecurity decisions. Key 

components of this initiative that will be implemented are ongoing enhancements to the 

Enterprise Cybersecurity Data Lake to incorporate additional data sets that support various 

cybersecurity functional areas and the implementation of advanced data analytics. 

• Continue to consolidate agency Security Operations Centers (SOCs) and optimize 

automation and orchestration across SOC tools to further improve incident detection and 

response capabilities in accordance with the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB’s) 

Memorandum M-19-02, Fiscal Year 2018-2019 Guidance on Federal Information Security 

and Privacy Management Requirements, and the Department’s Cybersecurity Operation 

Maturation Plan. 

• Continue to strengthen cybersecurity protections in accordance with the Information 

Resources Management Strategic Plan FY 2020 – FY 2024 and Information Technology (IT)

Modernization Roadmap and ensure alignment with guidance from the Department of 

Homeland Security (DHS) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). 

Specifically:

o Continue to implement the Enterprise Identity, Credential, and Access Management 

(ICAM) solution that will be the authoritative source of digital identity records and 

enable the Department to provide centralized ICAM services to all Department 

information systems. 
48 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

o Expand the Enterprise ICAM solution to provide centralized user role and account 

management services to all Department information systems. The Department will 

also add multi-factor authentication services to the suite of Enterprise ICAM services.

o Continue to leverage the DHS Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) 

Program to implement asset management and identity and access management 

capabilities for applicable Department information systems in accordance with the 

Department’s Information Security Continuous Monitoring roadmap. 

o Leverage DHS’s CDM Program to implement a boundary protection capability. 

• Continue implementation of OMB’s Memorandum M-19-26, Update to the Trusted Internet 

Connections (TIC) Initiative, and adopt DHS guidance for the implementation of TIC 3.0. 

This will be part of a multi-year modernization initiative to enhance and transform the 

Department’s network security architecture that leverages NIST frameworks and industry 

best practices for securing cloud-based assets.

• Integrate security principles in application development and deployment practices as part of 

the Department’s Information and Communications Technology Supply Chain Risk 

Management Program established in FY 2021 in accordance with the National Defense 

Authorization Act of Fiscal Year 2019, the Strengthening and Enhancing Cyber-capabilities 

by Utilizing Risk Exposure Technology Act, and EO 13873.

• Map and align knowledge, skills, and abilities with NIST Special Publication 800-181, 

National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education Cybersecurity Workforce Framework. The 

aim is to establish training and certification standards for the Department’s information 

systems security officer workforce and monitor progress through IT governance, life cycle 

management processes, and Department-wide quarterly performance reviews.

Strategic Objective 4.4: Improve the engagement and preparation of the 

Department’s workforce using professional development and accountability 

measures.

The Department will: 

• Continue implementation of its National Engagement Strategy (NES) to improve the 

Department’s employee engagement index score in the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey 

(FEVS) to a score of 67 percent in FY 2022. Specifically:

o Issue a Pulse Survey focusing on NES key focus areas in Quarter 1 of FY 2022.

o Assess FY 2021 FEVS results and issue individual principal operating component 

reports by Quarter 3 of FY 2022. 

o Assess the Department’s NES based on FY 2020 and FY 2021 FEVS and Pulse 

Survey results and update the strategy as appropriate.
Goal 4: Management and Reform 49

o Sustain use of engagement action plans and ensure all participants provide quarterly 

updates on progress made toward achieving improvement goals. 

o Publish scalable best practices after analyzing the results of employee engagement 

action plans established by principal operating components. 

• Complete and implement competency models to close employees’ job competency gaps 

across the Department. Specifically:

o Draft, validate, and implement competency models, including career maps and 

training plans, for six additional job categories by FY 2023. 

o Conduct a competency assessment to measure and assess gap closures. 

o Prioritize learning and developmental opportunities and share best practices for 

closing competency gaps. 

o Continue the linkage between employee performance plans and agency Strategic 

Goals and objectives. 

• Identify and address gaps between the workforce of today and the human capital needs of 

tomorrow. As part of the workforce planning process, the Department is assessing the most 

efficient and effective ways to recruit, train, and retain data professionals to ensure the 

Department is able to use data most effectively to meet its mission. 

• Ensure continued use of a performance plan template to automatically pre-populate employee 

engagement as a mandatory critical element in the performance plans of supervisors.
50 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Goal 4 Performance Measures

Indicators of Success

FY 2020 

Actual

FY 2021 

Target

FY 2022 

Target Data Source

4.3.A. Percentage of the Department’s 

information technology security functions 

that improved. 

84.50% 80% 80% Department of Homeland Security’s 

(DHS’s) CyberScope quarterly risk 

management assessment, the 

Department’s Cybersecurity 

Framework Risk Scorecard, the 

previous fiscal year’s Office of 

Inspector General Federal Information 

Security Modernization Act of 2014

maturity score, and DHS Cyber 

Hygiene reports.

4.4.A. Federal Employee Viewpoint 

Survey (FEVS) employee engagement 

index score.

70% 66% 67% Office of Personnel Management 

FEVS.
Appendix: Glossary of Acronyms and Abbreviations 51

Acronym Definition

— Not Available

ACCT Account

APG Agency Priority Goal

APH American Printing House for the Blind

APP Annual Performance Plan

ARP American Rescue Plan Act of 2021

CARES Act Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act

CDM Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation

CRRSAA Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2021

CTAE Career, Technical, and Adult Education

CTE Career and Technical Education

DCC Digital Customer Care

DGB Data Governance Board

DHS Department of Homeland Security

DM Departmental Management

ED U.S. Department of Education

EDGAR Education Department General Administrative Regulations

ELA English Language Acquisition

EO Executive Order

ERM Enterprise Risk Management

ESEA Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965

ESSA Every Student Succeeds Act

ESSER Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief

FAFSA® Free Application for Federal Student Aid®

FAIR Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable

FDSL Federal Direct Student Loan

FERPA Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act

FEVS Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey

FFEL Federal Family Education Loan

FSA office of Federal Student Aid

FSCS Full-Service Community Schools

FUTURE Act Fostering Undergraduate Talent by Unlocking Resources for Education

FY Fiscal Year

G5 Grants Management System

GEAR UP Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs

GPRAMA Government Performance and Results Act Modernization Act of 2010

GU Gallaudet University

HBCU Historically Black College and University

Appendix: 

Glossary of 

Acronyms and 

Abbreviations
52 FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan

Acronym Definition

HE Higher Education

HEA Higher Education Act

HEAL Health Education Assistance Loan

HEERF Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund

HSI STEM Hispanic-Serving Institution Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Articulation Program

HSI Hispanic-Serving Institution

I&I Innovation and Improvement

IA Impact Aid

ICAM Identity, Credential, and Access Management

IE Indian Education

IES Institute of Education Sciences

IHE Institution of Higher Education

IQA Information Quality Act

IT Information Technology

LEA Local Educational Agency

MSI Minority-Serving Institution

MSIX Migrant Student Information Exchange

N/A Not Applicable

NAEP National Assessment of Educational Progress

NES National Engagement Strategy

Next Gen FSA Next Generation Financial Services Environment

NIST National Institute of Standards and Technology

NTID National Technical Institute for the Deaf

OCR Office for Civil Rights

OCTAE Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education

OELA Office of English Language Acquisition

OESE Office of Elementary and Secondary Education

OGC Office of the General Counsel

OIG Office of Inspector General

OMB Office of Management and Budget

OPE Office of Postsecondary Education

OSERS Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services

PA Program Administration

POC Principal Operating Component

PPRA Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment

PSLF Public Service Loan Forgiveness

REHAB Rehabilitation Services and Disability Research

SAA Student Aid Administration

SE Special Education

SEA State Educational Agency

SFA Student Financial Assistance

SIP Strengthening Institutions Program

SOC Security Operations Center

SSCE Safe Schools and Citizenship Education

SSPO Student Privacy Policy Office

STEM Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics

TEACH Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education

TCCU Tribally Controlled College and University

TIC Trusted Internet Connections

VR Vocational Rehabilitation

WIOA Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act
U.S. Department of Education 

Miguel A. Cardona, Ed.D. 

Secretary

May 28, 2021 

This report is in the public domain. Authorization to reproduce it in whole or in part is granted. 

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U.S. Department of Education, Fiscal Year 2022 Annual Performance Plan: Washington, D.C., 

20202. 

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