Dive Brief:

• Congress avoided a government shutdown by passing the "CRomnibus" federal spending bill Wednesday, and the legislation has a number of implications for K-12.
• As early education initiatives gain national momentum, it's not surprising that the bill grants $2.4 billion to the Child Care and Development Block Grant and another $8.1 billion to Head Start.
• Not faring as well was President Obama's Race to the Top initiative, which was defunded, while the Teacher Incentive Fund program lost $59 million and the the Investing in Innovation budget lost about $22 million.

Dive Insight:

According to New America Foundation education policy analyst Clare McCann, some of the cuts could be "a way for lawmakers to make room for a new, $14-million appropriation that would provide educational services to the unaccompanied minors who were flooding into the country earlier this year." 

While this bill was passed just in the knick of time, next year is sure to be a monumental legislative year for education. According to Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), who is poised to become the chairman of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, overhauling No Child Left Behind is the top priority of the Republican education agenda. After the mid-term elections, Lamar spoke with NPR, where he said, "The Republican proposal to fix NCLB would give states the option — not mandate — to take federal dollars and let those dollars follow children to the schools they attend."