September 7, 2005

Dear Chief State School Officers:



We are working to assess and respond flexibly to the needs of the most directly 
  affected States, especially Louisiana and Mississippi, as well as Texas and 
  other States that have received large numbers of displaced students. These States, 
  districts, and schools have our full support, and we are working with them to 
  determine student and school-related needs and to coordinate and deploy resources.

Given the differences in the nature and extent of the damage and circumstances 
  among States, we believe an individualized, case-by-case approach is the most 
  effective means for meeting the needs at this time. However, I wanted to describe 
  for you some of the available resources and examples of the areas in which flexibility 
  will be available.

- ***Waivers and Modifications.*** The Department will 
    consider promptly requests for waivers under the waiver authority in the Elementary 
    and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended by the No Child Left 
    Behind Act of 2001, including, among other things, waivers of maintenance-of-effort 
    requirements. For discretionary grant programs, the Department will work with 
    individual grantees if they wish to modify their grants to refocus their grant 
    activities on relief efforts. The Department will also consider requests for 
    waivers of fiscal and administrative requirements of the Education Department 
    General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR). A streamlined process for waiver 
    submissions by affected States and other grantees will be developed immediately. 
    Further, States already have authority to allow school districts to increase 
    the percentage of funds that may be carried over to the next fiscal year under 
    Title I, Part A of the ESEA and the Safe and Drug-Free Schools program.
- ***Highly qualified teacher requirements.*** The Department 
    will work with affected States and school districts to determine what flexibility 
    will be needed in affected areas with regard to highly qualified teacher requirements, 
    while ensuring that students are receiving appropriate instruction. We will 
    work with you on situations such as displaced teachers working in your State. 
    In all of these matters, we will always keep the best interests of the students 
    and teachers in mind.
- ***Reallocation of funds.*** We will work with States 
    and school districts that want to transfer or reallocate Federal funds between 
    districts, when a particular district or districts are unable to use funds 
    they previously received. This could include the transfer of funds to districts 
    in other States that are serving displaced students. In addition, we will 
    identify Federal funds that have not yet been obligated by the Department 
    and determine whether they can be made available to the affected areas. Districts 
    receiving additional funds under certain programs will need to ensure that 
    program services are provided on an equitable basis to eligible students who, 
    due to the hurricane, have transferred into private schools in their district.
- ***Supplemental appropriations.*** Funds for the specific 
    purpose of providing disaster relief are already available. Congress has just 
    enacted the President's request for $10.5 billion in disaster relief for the 
    Gulf Coast, of which $10 billion is to be administered by the Federal Emergency 
    Management Agency (FEMA) and $500 million is to be administered by the Department 
    of Defense. President Bush has called this “a down payment” on 
    future resources and assets to be provided. We recognize the particular need 
    for temporary educational facilities, and we want to make sure that affected 
    jurisdictions are aware that FEMA funds can be used for portable classrooms, 
    as well as for student transportation costs. School district officials should 
    work with State and FEMA representatives to request assistance for these costs. 
    In addition, the Department is working closely with the Office of Management 
    and Budget as the President prepares further supplemental requests for relief 
    to ensure that schools have the resources they need to provide high-quality 
    education for these students.

These are examples of the major areas in which flexibility and resources are 
  available. The Department welcomes your input on other areas in which accommodation 
  may be necessary.

We are also coordinating with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 
  (CDC) to determine the immediate immunization needs of displaced students. We 
  want to be certain that the most appropriate procedures are in place for ensuring 
  that students have up-to-date immunizations without creating barriers that will 
  prevent students who do not have their records from enrolling in and attending 
  school.

I also want to share with you a few of the Department’s efforts to coordinate 
  the outpouring of support for the affected schools and students from around 
  the country. The Department has launched a “Hurricane Help for Schools” 
  website (http://www.ed.gov/news/hurricane/index.html) 
  that will serve as a nationwide clearinghouse to address the needs of affected 
  schools in coordination with the National Response Plan already activated by 
  the Department of Homeland Security. The website is interactive, allowing affected 
  schools to post their specific needs and allowing students from schools across 
  the nation, as well as others, to be active participants in meeting those needs. 
  I am also convening a meeting this week of the major national education organizations 
  so that we all may coordinate efforts to deploy resources most efficiently. 
  Finally, I am sending senior-level Department officials to affected areas to 
  provide direct and personal contact to make sure local and State needs are being 
  adequately addressed.

I am deeply moved by the efforts already under way to ensure that those who 
  have lost so much are swiftly provided with as much educational support as possible. 
  I look forward to working with all of you in the coming days, weeks, and months 
  on this critical effort.

| | Sincerely,        
| | ------------------
| | /s/               
| | Margaret Spellings



|Last Modified: 09/07/2005
|-------------------------