July 6, 2015 The Honorable Mark R. WarnerUnited States Senate 475 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 Dear Senator Warner:For 30 years, CASA has worked to help immigrants create more stable and healthy lives in the Washington, DC Metropolitan region, most recently establishing two offices in the Northern Virginia area that serve more than 4,000 members from Fredericksburg to Arlington. Our mission is to create a more just society by building power and improving the quality of life of low-income immigrant communities. We advocate around issues that affect our members most closely such as the educational needs of their children. That is why we write to express our concerns regarding the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). We believe the Senate version of the bill, the Every Child Achieves Act (ECAA), does not go far enough to protect the low-income, underserved students for whom the law was originally enacted. We call on you to ensure your support for amendments to the ECAA to increase accountability for our lowest performing schools and ensure that the appropriate standards and strategies are in place to give all students access to a quality education.

Past iterations of the ESEA have taught us that we need strong expectations for states to focus on the achievement of underserved students and to take action if these students are struggling. We are concerned that without these expectations, our most vulnerable students---low-income students, English Language Learners, immigrant students---will be overlooked. We want states and school districts to be held accountable for ensuring the most vulnerable children are protected, educated, and given equitable supports and resources needed to achieve at high levels.

For the past decade, the Commonwealth of Virginias performance on the U.S. Department of Educations National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has consistently ranked among the best in the country. Virginias high school graduation rate, which provides another barometer of educational performance, indicates students are graduating high school at relatively high rates slightly higher than the national average.

Despite this data, worrisome gaps persist. Virginias African American and Latino students are far less likely to graduate than their White and/or Asian/Pacific Islander peers. In 2012, for instance, graduation rates for White and Asian/Pacific Islander students were 88% and 90% respectively, compared with African American and Latino students at 75% and 73%. Furthermore, as CASA has expanded into Virginia, our members have shared much insight regarding their experiences at the different schools they send their children to across several jurisdictions. Across the board, our members have consistently shared their concern regarding a lack of culturally competent instructors and school staff that successfully implement parent engagement strategies and classroom instruction that guarantee their children are achieving at high levels.

We consider school accountability systems can be a powerful tool to help close the long-standing gaps that separate low-income students and students of color from their peers. They can do this by:

Setting clear expectations that schools serve all of their students--- Collecting accurate data that demonstrates how all student groups are performing---and Prompting action when schools do not meet expectations for a group of students.

Closing achievement gaps is critical for our students and families, our state, and our nation. Low-income students and students of color now make up the majority of the nations public school students. Yet many are not receiving the quality education they need and deserve, leaving them unprepared for success in our economy and society. We urge you to vote for amendments that will maintain strong accountability provisions in the ECAA. Today, we cant afford to lose important provisions that will ensure states, districts, and schools take necessary actions if any school or any group of students is consistently struggling or underperforming.

ESEA is at its core a civil rights law, enacted to ensure all children, especially those who are underserved, receive a quality education. Please make sure low-income, English Language Learners and all children who have historically been shut out of achieving the American Dream will not be shut out of protections under this law that guarantee they receive an equitable educational experience.

Thank you for your consideration.

Respectfully,

Gustavo Torres Executive Director

C: The Honorable Terrence R. McAulliffe, Governor The Honorable Anne Holton, Secretary of Education Members, CASA Members, Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus Members, Congressional Black Caucus Members, Congressional Hispanic Caucus

901 S. Highland St. Arlington, VA 22204 | www.wearecasa.org | 571.421.2211[Type text][Type text][Type text]901 S. Highland St. Arlington, VA 22204 | www.wearecasa.org | 571.421.2211