Historical Timeline: ESSA Policy

By jennireve

  • Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)

    was first signed into law in 1965 by President Lyndon B. Johnson.

  • Education for All Handicapped Children Act

    President Gerald Ford signed into law the Education for All Handicapped Children Act

  • No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB)

    President George W. Bush signed NCLB policy into law in 2002. This policy would reauthorize the original ESEA and seek to increase the federal role in holding schools accountable for student outcomes.

  • Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA)

    When ESSA was signed into law in 2015, the original policy for disabled children was revamped and renamed to IDEA.

  • Flexibility to NCLB

    Obama administration began giving flexibility to states with the NCLB policy in preparation for the ESSA rollout.

  • Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)

    President Obama along with U.S. Congress passed the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), a new law to replace NCLB in December of 2015. The Every Student Succeeds Act seeks to give state and local governments more control over their public education systems.

  • Amendments to IDEA

    ESSA made major amendments to IDEA in 2017. One key change was the elimination of the "Highly Qualified" requirements of teachers.