Notification Letter

January 24, 2020

Study of State Policies to Prohibit Aiding and Abetting Sexual Misconduct in Schools

Task 3.5 Third Draft OMB Package:

Appendix A, Notification Letter

Contract GS-10F-0554N/BPA Order ED-PEP-16-A-0005

SRI Project P25500

Submitted to:

Andrew Abrams

Erica Lee

U.S. Department of Education

550 12^th St., SW

Washington, DC 20202

Prepared by:

Policy Studies Associates

Leslie Anderson

SRI International

Kate Laguarda

[Date]

[Name]

[Position]

[Street Address]

[City, State, ZIP]

Dear [Chief State School Officer]:

I am writing to inform you about the U.S. Department of Education’s (the Department’s) study of State Policies to Prohibit Aiding and Abetting Sexual Misconduct in Schools, which will explore how states are responding to the requirements of Section 8546 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) of 2015.

The study will examine how states develop and implement laws and policies that prohibit assisting or aiding and abetting employment following educator sexual misconduct; the challenges state education agencies (SEAs) have encountered implementing the requirements of Section 8546; and any support or assistance SEAs may need from the U.S. Department of Education. The study will not determine whether a state has complied with Section 8546. Rather, the Department seeks to understand how states are addressing the requirements of Section 8546 and what challenges states may be facing. For your information, I have attached a one-page description of the study.

The study will include interviews with the state Title IV, Part A coordinator or the individual—or group of individuals—from each SEA who is most knowledgeable about the state’s response to the requirements of ESSA Section 8546. Participation in this data collection is required under ESSA Section 8304(a)(4).

We recognize that SEA staff have many demands on their time, and we have designed the interview protocol to minimize the burden of participation. We will schedule a telephone interview between [date 1] and [date 2] focused on state responses to ESSA Section 8546. We estimate that the telephone interview will last no longer than 60 minutes.

At the completion of this study, we will produce a publicly available final report that will aggregate findings across states. The report will guide the Department’s technical assistance and inform states on the most prevalent practices in the field for developing and implementing statutes, regulations, and policies to prohibit aiding and abetting.

Responses to this data collection will be used only for statistical purposes. The reports prepared for this study will summarize findings across the sample and will not associate responses with a specific individual. We will not provide information that identifies individuals to anyone outside the study team, except as required by law.

The study is being conducted for the Department by SRI International (SRI), in partnership with Policy Studies Associates (PSA) and Magnolia Consulting, who will contact staff in your state shortly to provide more information about the study and to schedule the telephone interview. If you have any questions, you may contact Leslie Anderson, the project director, at [email protected] or (202) 939-5327, or Andrew Abrams at the Department at [email protected] or (202)245-7500.

Thank you for providing the expertise and time needed for the success of the study.

Sincerely yours,

(electronic signature)

Ruth Ryder

Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education

Attachment: Aiding and Abetting Study Overview

CC: (State Title IV-A Coordinator)