<!DOCTYPE html><html lang="en"> <!-- displayTemplateSubPage edwebwwwp01c02 --><head> <!-- BEGIN Content Zone "_MD" --><title>Key Policy Letters Signed by the Education Secretary or Deputy Secretary</title>
<!-- Start EDWeb Metadata - Do Not Modify Tags in Block Below -->
<meta name="DC.description" content="List of key policy letters signed by the Education Secretary or Deputy Secretary.">
<meta name="description" content="List of key policy letters signed by the Education Secretary or Deputy Secretary.">
<meta name="ED.office" scheme="EDWeb" content="Office of the Secretary (OS)">
<meta name="DC.language" scheme="ISO 639-2" content="en">
<meta name="DC.format" scheme="IMT"  content="text/HTML">
<meta name="DC.title" content="Key Policy Letters Signed by the Education Secretary or Deputy Secretary">
<meta name="DC.date.valid" scheme="ISO 8601" content="2022-01-12">
<meta name="DC.publisher" content="US Department of Education (ED)">
<meta name="DC.identifier" scheme="URL" content="http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/secletter/index.html">
<meta name="DC.subject" scheme="EDWeb" type="descriptor" content="Policy">
<meta name="keywords" content="Policy; ">
<meta name="DC-ED.audience" scheme="EDWeb" content="Administrators">
<meta name="DC.type" scheme="EDWeb" content="Letters (Correspondence)">
<!-- End EDWeb Metadata - Do Not Modify Tags in Block Above -->

































































































































<!-- END Content Zone "_MD" --><!-- The metadata tag below contains the file system last modified date. It will be used by search engines for HTML documents that contain no EDWeb Metadata  ---><meta name="DC.date" scheme="ISO 8601" content="2024-03-26"> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta http-equiv="x-ua-compatible" content="IE=edge" ><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0"><!-- CSS -->    <link href="/style/ed-bootstrap.css" rel="stylesheet">    <link href="/style/common.css" rel="stylesheet"><!-- HTML5 shim and Respond.js IE8 support of HTML5 elements and media queries --><!--[if lt IE 9]>  <script src="/style/html5shiv.js"></script>  <script src="/style/respond.min.js"></script><![endif]--><script type="text/javascript" src="/style/jquery.js"></script><script src="/style/bootstrap.min.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="/style/common.js"></script><!-- <script type="text/javascript" src="/style/foresee/foresee-trigger.js"></script> --><script async type="text/javascript" id="_fed_an_ua_tag" src="https://dap.digitalgov.gov/Universal_GA4_Test_v6.js?agency=ED&sitetopic=X"></script></head><body><!--stopindex--><div id="container" class="container"><div id="header"><!--Content Zone "I"--><div class="row globalutils">
<div class="pull-right" role="navigation">
<small><ul class="list-inline"><li>Skip to main content</li><li>About Us</li><li>Contact Us</li><li>FAQs</li><li class="dropdown"><a href="#" class="dropdown-toggle" data-toggle="dropdown" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" aria-expanded="false"><img src="/images/languageicon.gif" alt="" /> Language Assistance <b class="caret"></b></a><ul class="dropdown-menu"><li>English</li><li>español</li><li>中文: 繁體版</li><li>Việt-ngữ</li><li>한국어</li><li>Tagalog</li><li>Русский</li></ul></li></ul></small>
</div>
</div>
<!-- END Content Zone "I"-->            <div class="row branding"><div id="logo"><!--Content Zone "A"--><div class="col-sm-7 hidden-xs">
<hgroup>
<a href="http://www.ed.gov/" title="US Department of Education" rel="home"><img alt="US Department of Education" src="/images/ed-gov-hat.png" width="75" height="75"></a>
<p>U.S. Department of Education</p>
</hgroup>
											</div>

<!--END Content Zone "A" --></div><div id="searchbox"><!--Content Zone "E"--><div class="col-sm-5">
<form accept-charset="UTF-8" action="https://search.usa.gov/search" method="get" id="search_form" role="search">
		<label class="sr-only" for="query">Search for:</label>
		<div class="input-group">
 		<div style="margin:0;padding:0;display:inline"><input name="utf8" type="hidden" value="✓" /></div> 
 		<input id="affiliate" name="affiliate" type="hidden" value="ed.gov" /> 
 		<input type="search" id="query" value="" name="query" autocomplete="off" class="form-control usagov-search-autocomplete" style="width:100%">
		    <span class="input-group-btn"><button value="Search" id="searchsubmit" type="submit" class="btn btn-primary" style="height:34px;" aria-label="Search"><span class="glyphicon glyphicon-search"></span></button></span>
		</div>
	</form>
</div><!--END Content Zone "E"--></div></div><!-- /.row--><div id="audiences"><!--Content Zone "B"--><nav class="navbar navbar-inverse main-navigation" role="navigation">
  <!-- Brand and toggle get grouped for better mobile display -->
  <div class="navbar-header">
    <button type="button" class="navbar-toggle" data-toggle="collapse" data-target=".navbar-main-collapse">
      <span class="sr-only">Toggle navigation</span>
      <span class="icon-bar"></span>
      <span class="icon-bar"></span>
      <span class="icon-bar"></span>
    </button>
    <p class="navbar-text visible-xs"><a href="http://www.ed.gov/" class="navbar-link">U.S. Department of Education</a></p>
  </div>

  <!-- Collect the nav links, forms, and other content for toggling -->
  <div class="collapse navbar-collapse navbar-main-collapse">
    <ul class="nav navbar-nav" style="width:100%;">
	  <li class="col-sm-3">Student Loans</li>
	  <li class="col-sm-3">Grants</li>
	  <li class="col-sm-3">Laws</li>
	  <li class="col-sm-3">Data</li>
    </ul>
  </div><!-- /.navbar-collapse -->
</nav><!--END Content Zone "B" --></div></div><div id="columns" class="row"><!--startindex--><div id="maincontent" class="col-sm-9"><a name="skipnav1"></a><a name="skipnav2"></a><div id="article"><div id="section-nav"><!--Content Zone "Q"-->                            			<!-- removed for simplicity. If re-added, teh sbfile needed will need to be based on top-level path, per Jennifer Reeves -->	<!-- #include virtual="/zone/q/programsImagery.html" --><!-- END Content Zone "Q"--><!--Content Zone "R"-->																		<!-- END Content Zone "R"-->            </div><!--Content Zone "P"-->									<tr><td>
<!-- BEGIN TeamSite Templating Generated Page 29Jul2019 -->


<!-- DISPLAY TITLE -->
<span class="headersLevel1">Key Policy Letters Signed by the Education Secretary or Deputy Secretary</span><br />





<!-- Level 1 -->
<br /><div class="contentText"><p>These letters are key policy letters and other letters that may be of interest, signed by the Education Secretary or Deputy Secretary and are provided by the Executive Secretariat, Office of the Secretary.</p>

<h3>Letters from 2024</h3>

<ul>
<li><p>March 26, 2024—Letter from Secretary Cardona to State Governors regarding the transition to the Better FAFSA</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>March 22, 2024—Letter from Secretary Cardona regarding student attendance and engagement</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>March 15, 2024—Letter from Secretary Cardona to Presidents, Chancellors, and CEOs on 2024-25 FAFSA processing updates</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>February 26, 2024—Letter from Secretary Cardona regarding support for prioritizing early school success</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>January 25, 2024—Letter from Secretary Cardona on New Resource for School Administrators on Importance of Safe Firearm Storage</p></li>
</ul>

<h3>Letters from 2023</h3>

<ul>
<li><p>November 20, 2023—Letter from Secretary Cardona regarding academic success and mastery of grade-level standards</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>November 6, 2023—Joint Letter with Secretary of Agriculture Thomas J. Vilsack on affordable health insurance through Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), or the Affordable Care Act</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>October 30, 2023—Joint Letter with Director Rahul Gupta of the Office of National Drug Control Policy Director on the fentanyl overdose epidemic</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>September 19, 2023—Dear Colleague Letter regarding support for Medicaid reenrollment of students</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>September 6, 2023—Letter from Secretary Cardona regarding school districts' responsibilities to serve immigrant students</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>June 16, 2023—Joint Letter with Secretary Xavier Becerra of HHS regarding support for young people impacted by gun violence</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>May 15, 2023—Letter from Secretary Cardona on updated guidance regarding constitutionally protected prayer and religious expression in public elementary and secondary schools</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>May 10, 2023—Letter from Secretary Cardona encouraging use of Federal Word Study (FWS) and other federal programs to increase student support roles in schools</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>March 24, 2023—Letter from Secretary Cardona calling for an end to corporal punishment in schools</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>March 13, 2023—Joint Letter from Secretary Blinken and Secretary Cardona Regarding U.S. Department of State's Exchange Visitor Secondary School Student Programs</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>February 6, 2023—Secretary’s letter to education leaders about Raise the Bar, the Department of Education’s priorities for pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade</p></li>
</ul>

<h3>Letters from 2022</h3>
<ul>
<li><p>December 6, 2022—Letter from Deputy Secretary regarding how Federal funds can support science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>November 14, 2022—Letter from Secretary on addressing the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on college and career preparation opportunities and the ability of students to successfully transition into postsecondary education</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>August 31, 2022—Joint Letter with Secretary Martin Walsh of DOL regarding a Sustainable Teacher Workforce</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>July 29, 2022—Joint Letter with Secretary Xavier Becerra of HHS regarding Federal Resources for Student Mental Health</p></li>
</ul>


<ul>
<li><p>July 19, 2022—Letter from Secretary on School Discipline</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>June 27, 2022—Joint Letter with Secretary Xavier Becerra of HHS regarding COVID-19 Vaccines for Young Children</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>March 24, 2022—Joint Letter with Secretary Xavier Becerra of HHS to Governors regarding School Based Health Services</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>February 9, 2022—Secretary's letter regarding military-connected students and families (MIC3)</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>January 12, 2022—Secretary's letter regarding resources to assist schools with COVID-19 testing</p></li>
</ul>


<h3>Letters from 2021</h3>

<ul>
<li><p>July 6, 2021—Secretary's letter regarding Vaccinations, Screening Testing, and Summer Learning and Enrichment Opportunities</p></li>
</ul>

<ul>
<li><p>February 27, 2021—Acting Secretary’s Letter to Matthew Miller, Acting Commissioner for the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, Department of the Treasury, requesting and recommending an exemption for small business owners, currently delinquent on a Federal student loan, to obtain loans through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)</p></li>
</ul>

<p>Archives of Key Policy Letters Signed by the Education Secretary or Deputy Secretary From Previous Administrations</p></div>
<!-- End Level 1 -->
<!-- BEGIN FOOTER -->
<br clear="all" />
<hr>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-xs-4"> 
<span class="headersLevel3"> </span>
<span class="contentText"></span>
<span class="contentText">
</span>
<span class="contentText"></span>

</div><!--/.col-xs-4-->
 <div class="col-xs-4">
 <div class="utilText text-center"><a href="/print/policy/gen/guid/secletter/index.html" target="_blank" title="Print this page"><span class="glyphicon glyphicon-print"></span> Printable view</a></div>
 </div><!--/.col-xs-4-->
<div class="col-xs-4">
<div class="lastModified pull-right">
  Last Modified: 03/26/2024
</div>
</div><!-- col-xs-4 -->
</div><!--/.row -->
<!-- END FOOTER -->
<!-- END TeamSite Templating Generated Page -->
</td></tr></td></tr><!-- END Content Zone "P"-->            </div></div><!-- end main content area --><!--stopindex--><div id="rightnav" class="col-sm-3"><!--Content Zone "C"-->				<div class="sidebar-box">
<h2>How Do I Find...</h2>
<ul>
<li>Student loans, forgiveness</li>
<li>Higher Education Rulemaking</li>
<li>College accreditation</li>
<li>Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)</li>
<li>FERPA</li>
<li>FAFSA</li>
<li>1098, tax forms</li>
</ul>
<p class="viewMoreLink">More ></p>
</div>		

<div class="sidebar-box">
<h2>Information About...</h2>
<ul>
<li>Elevating Teaching</li>
<li>Early Learning</li>
<li>Engage Every Student</li>
<li>Unlocking Career Success</li>
<li>Cybersecurity</li>
</ul>
<p class="viewMoreLink"> </p>
<!-- <p class="viewMoreLink">More ></p> -->
</div>		

<!--END Content Zone "C" -->				<div id="topics"><!--Content Zone "D" --><!-- Include "Related Topics" zone file if path matches -->             <!--END Content Zone "D" -->				</table></div></div><!-- end right hand nav area --></div><div id="footer"><div id="bottomnav"><!--Content Zone "L" -->

	<hr>
<div id="footer-columns" class="row">
<div class="col-md-3 mission-statement hidden-xs hidden-sm"><em>Our mission</em> is to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.</div>
<div class="col-sm-4 col-md-3">
<div class="list-group">
  <a href="/fund/grants-college.html?src=ft" class="list-group-item"><p class="list-group-item-heading h4">Student Loans</p></a>
  <a href="https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/repayment?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Repaying Loans</a>
  <a href="https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/default?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Defaulted Loans</a>
  <a href="https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/forgiveness-cancellation?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Loan Forgiveness</a>
  <a href="https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/repayment/servicers?src=ft#who-is-my-loan-servicer" class="list-group-item">Loan Servicers</a>
</div>
<div class="list-group">
  <a href="/fund/grants-apply.html?src=ft" class="list-group-item"><p class="list-group-item-heading h4">Grants & Programs</p></a>
  <a href="https://fafsa.gov/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Apply for Pell Grants</a>
  <a href="/fund/grant/find/edlite-forecast.html?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Grants Forecast</a>
  <a href="/fund/grant/apply/grantapps/index.html?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Apply for a Grant</a>
</div>
</div>
<div class="col-sm-4 col-md-3">
<div class="list-group">
  <a href="/policy/?src=ft" class="list-group-item"><p class="list-group-item-heading h4">Laws & Guidance</p></a>
  <a href="https://www.ed.gov/essa?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)</a>
  <a href="https://studentprivacy.ed.gov/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">FERPA</a>
  <a href="/about/offices/list/ocr/know.html?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Civil Rights</a>
  <a href="https://sites.ed.gov/idea/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">New IDEA Website</a>
</div>
<div class="list-group">
  <a href="/rschstat/?src=ft" class="list-group-item"><p class="list-group-item-heading h4">Data & Research</p></a>
  <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Education Statistics</a>
  <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Postsecondary Education Data</a>
  <a href="https://eddataexpress.ed.gov/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">ED Data Express</a>
  <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Nation's Report Card</a>
  <a href="https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">What Works Clearinghouse</a>
  <a href="https://data.ed.gov/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Open Data Platform</a>
  <a href="https://covid-relief-data.ed.gov/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">COVID Relief Data</a>
</div>
</div>
<div class="col-sm-4 col-md-3">
<div class="list-group">
  <a href="/about/?src=ft" class="list-group-item"><p class="list-group-item-heading h4">About Us</p></a>
  <a href="/about/contacts/gen/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Contact Us</a>
  <a href="/about/offices/list/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">ED Offices</a>
  <a href="https://www.ed.gov/jobs/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Jobs</a>
  <a href="https://www.ed.gov/news/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Press Releases</a>
  <a href="https://www.ed.gov/answers/?src=ft" class="list-group-item">FAQs</a>
  <a href="/espanol/bienvenidos/es/index.html?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Recursos en español</a>
  <a href="/about/overview/focus/performance.html?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Budget, Performance</a>
  <a href="https://www.ed.gov/privacy?src=ft" class="list-group-item">Privacy Program</a>
</div>
<div class="row text-center">
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/ed.gov"><img src="/images/facebook.gif" alt="Visit Education on Facebook" border="0"/></a> 
<a href="https://twitter.com/usedgov"><img src="/images/twitter.gif" alt="Visit Education on Twitter" border="0"></a> 
<!-- <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/usedgov"><img src="/images/youtube.gif" alt="Visit Education on YouTube" border="0"></a> -->
<a href="https://www.ed.gov/feed"><img src="/images/rss.gif" alt="Follow our RSS feed" border="0" /></a> 
<!-- <a href="https://plus.google.com/+usdepartmentofeducation"><img src="/images/google.gif" alt="Visit Education on Google+" border="0" /></a> <br>
<p class="utilText">More  --></p>
</div> 
</div>
</div>

<hr>

<div id="page-bottom" class="row"> <ul class="list-inline"><li>Notices</li> <li>FOIA</li><li>Privacy Policy</li><li>Accessibility</li><li>Security</li><li>Information quality</li><li>Inspector General</li><li>Whitehouse.gov</li><li>USA.gov</li><li>Benefits.gov</li><li>Regulations.gov</li><li>vote.gov</li>


			</ul>
</div>

<!-- START crazyegg -->
<!-- <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/new.cetrk.com/pages/scripts/0009/9201.js"> </script> -->
<!-- END crazyegg -->
<!--GOOGLE ANALYTICS CODE-->
<script type="text/javascript">
  var _gaq = _gaq || [];
  _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-10911895-1']);
  _gaq.push(['_setDomainName', 'ed.gov']);
  _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']);
  (function() {
    var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true;
    ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js';
    var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s);
  })();
</script>
<!-- END GOOGLE ANALYTICS CODE-->
<!-- USA Search code-->
<script type="text/javascript">
//<![CDATA[
var usasearch_config = { siteHandle:"ed.gov" };
var script = document.createElement("script");
script.type = "text/javascript";
script.src = "//search.usa.gov/javascripts/remote.loader.js";
document.getElementsByTagName("head")[0].appendChild(script);
//]]>
</script>
<!-- end USA Search code-->
			<!--END Content Zone "L"  --></div></div></div></body></html>