State and District Use of Title II, Part A Funds in 2018-19

Title II, Part A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) provides over $2 billion per year in funding to states and districts to support effective instruction through the preparation, recruitment, and training of educators. The 2015 reauthorization of ESEA, as the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), provided greater flexibility for states and districts in how they use Title II A funds, by expanding the option to transfer funds to other ESEA programs, authorizing states to set aside additional funds for training principals and other school leaders, and authorizing new allowable uses of the funds. This report describes the use of those flexibilities and provides a national picture of state and district priorities for Title II A funds in the 2018-19 school year. The report finds that districts most often used Title II A funds to provide professional development. Other common uses included reducing class sizes and recruiting and retaining effective teachers and principals. Half of the states and a quarter of districts used the new flexibility provided under ESSA. Subsequent rounds of these annual surveys will show the evolving responses of states and districts to the new ESSA provisions.