Legislation, Education, and Advocacy Committee updates

December 18, 2023:

Gov. Kemp Announces State Employee Retention Pay Supplement, New School Safety Funding.

Gov. Kemp announced a state employee retention pay supplement of $1,000 for each of the roughly 112,000 state employees and 196,000 educators and school support staff across the state. Governor Kemp also announced school safety funding that will be added to the yearly base budget and will provide every public school in Georgia $45,000 to use on personnel or infrastructure improvements that strengthen campus security.

Link to the Press Release

May 11, 2023:

The State Board of Education approved State School Superintendent Richard Woods' recommendation to adopt the new K-12 English Language Arts (ELA) Standards.

Throughout the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 school years, teachers will receive training and professional learning, new resources will be developed, assessments will be aligned to the updated standards, and communication will be provided to parents to ensure a smooth transition.

Link to the GA DOE Article

December 16, 2023:

The Georgia Department of Education is announcing its 2023 priorities, which will guide its work during the 2023 legislative session and beyond.

“As we look toward 2023, we will remain laser-focused on investing in academic recovery and preparing Georgia's students for a stronger future," State School Superintendent Richard Woods said. “I look forward to working with the Georgia General Assembly and other partners to strengthen supports and opportunities for students, support for public education, school safety, and the teaching profession and educator pipeline. We have an enormous opportunity as we move beyond the pandemic to build a public education system that is truly centered on the needs of Georgia students."

See the full list of priorities here

February 23, 2021:

On February 18, Governor Kemp and State School Superintendent Woods resubmitted Georgia's request for a testing waiver for the 2020-21 school year. The state originally submitted a waiver request in August 2020, but that request was denied by then Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos. The full press release is available at https://www.gadoe.org/External-Affairs-and-Policy/communications/Pages/PressReleaseDetails.aspx?PressView=default&pid=837.