February 22, 2017

Monique M. Chism
U.S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Ave, SW
Washington, DC 20202

RE: Peer Review Teams for State Plans

Dear Ms. Chism,

On behalf of National PTA and our four million members, representing every state in the country,
we urge the U.S. Department of Education (ED) to ensure parents are represented as a distinct
member of the multidisciplinary peer review teams for state plans required under the Every Student
Succeeds Act (ESSA). For the first time, ESSA acknowledges the critical role parents and other
stakeholders play in student success and school improvement efforts by requiring that they are
involved in the development of new education plans and implementation of the law.

Parents are critical stakeholders who are reflective of their communities and provide invaluable
input and perspective as the key consumers of educational systems along with their children.
National PTA urges ED to include dedicated parent representatives on the ESSA state plan peer
review teams. This means every peer review team must include parents who solely represent the
parent voice. We realize that educators, educational agencies, and researchers who are identified to
serve on these peer review teams may also be parents. However, National PTA encourages the
inclusion of parents whose sole representation is that of a parent. This approach is the only way to
ensure peer review teams are reflective of all education stakeholders and especially those who will
be most impacted by state plansstudents and parents.

EDs call for reviewers issued on January 10, 2017 did not specifically identify parents as a distinct
representative identified to review state plans. Statue clearly states that parents should be a part of
the multidisciplinary peer review teams. National PTA is concerned that the unique parent voice will
be missing from the peer review process if careful attention is not paid to ensuring peer review
teams are representative of all education stakeholders, especially parents.

Parents and their children are consumers of our nations public education system, and parents are
essential partners in education. However, they havent always been included at the decision-making
table, which has caused confusion, mistrust and backlash when new initiativeswhether at the
federal, state and local levelhave been considered and implemented. As such, ESSA provides a
unique opportunity for parents and families to give their input and hold states and districts
accountable for their childs educational experience.

National PTA is committed to educating and empowering all parents and families to be engaged in
their childs education, and specifically be involved in the ESSA implementation process. Our
association values our strong and long-standing relationship with ED and we look forward to
continuing to collaborate to make every childs potential a reality. Please do not hesitate to contact
Jacki Ball, Director of Government Affairs, at jball@pta.org or (703) 518-1243 to answer any
questions or provide further input as needed.

Sincerely,

Laura M. Bay Nathan R. Monell, CAE

President Executive Director
National PTA National PTA