History of Education

  • Bill 79: "A Bill for the More General Diffusion of Knowledge"

    It was a comprehensive plan for public education presented in the Virginia House of Delegates several times before a revised bill titled, "An Act to Establish Public Education," was finally passed in 1796.
  • Mount Holyoke Female Seminary opens its doors

    Mount Holyoke Female Seminary opens its doors

    The first college for women in the U.S. opens its door and it was endowed, thus ensuring its permanence and securing the principle of higher learning for future generations of women.
  • Mandatory Attendance Laws

    Massachusetts enacted the first mandatory attendance law. By 1885, 16 states had compulsory-attendance laws; all states had them by 1918. This was necessary to ensure students actually attended school.
  • The NEA is founded

    The National Teachers Association (now the National Education Association) is founded by forty-three educators in Philadelphia.
    NEA
  • Creation of The Department of Education

    The Department of Education is created in order to help states establish effective school systems.
  • The National Defense Education Act is passed

    Partially because of Sputnik, Science education became important concerns in the U.S., which resulted in the passing of NDEA, which authorized increased funding for scientific research as well as science, mathematics, and foreign language education.
  • The Elementary and Secondary Education Act is passed

    The ESEA is passed on April 9. Part of Lyndon Johnson's "War on Poverty," it provides federal funds to help low-income students, which results in the initiation of educational programs such as Title I and bilingual education.
  • A Nation at Risk

    A Nation at Risk

    The report of the National Commission on Excellence in Education, A Nation at Risk, calls for reforms in public education and teacher training. Among their recommendations is a call for expanding high school requirements to include the study of computer science.
  • Education Summit

    President George H. W. Bush calls together the nation's governors for an education summit in Charlottesville, Virginia. The meeting encouraged national standards for K-12 education. It set educational goals on issues ranging from early-childhood education to adult literacy, and to hold itself accountable for meeting them.
  • The Improving America's Schools Act

    The IASA is signed into law by President Bill Clinton on January 25th. It. reauthorizes the ESEA of 1965 and includes reforms for Title I; increased funding for bilingual and immigrant education; and provisions for public charter schools, drop-out prevention, and educational technology.
  • The Higher Education Opportunity Act is passed into law.

    It reauthorizes an amended version of the Higher Education Act and includes major changes in student loan eligibility for people with cognitive disabilities as well as other changes to federal financial aid programs. Additionally, it requires more financial transparency, timely notification regarding campus emergencies, and training to combat copyright abuses.