Testimony & Comments

• Nov 09, 2009  |  Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt (CLASP) & Kisha Bird (CFY) Comments to United States Department of Education: Notice of Policy Priorities for Investing in Innovation Fund The Investing in Innovation (I3) Fund offers local education agencies (LEAs) and nonprofit organizations an opportunity to rethink how they educate children and youth and to use school reform efforts as a foundational vehicle to work across sectors and explore new and innovative ways to support student learning from birth through postsecondary education. Our comments and recommendations relate specifically to ensuring the needs of struggling students and disconnected youth are adequately addressed. Download PDF
• Oct 08, 2009  |  CLASP CLASP Testimony to the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support This written testimony to the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support discusses how American Recovery and Reinvestment Act spending has helped safety net programs such as TANF, child care subsidies, unemployment insurance, workforce development programs, and Medicaid, respond to the recession. Download PDF
• Oct 05, 2009  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Testimony to the DC City Council on the TANF Emergency Fund In this testimony delivered to the Human Services Committee of the DC City Council, Ms. Lower-Basch highlights some of the ways to draw down TANF Emergency Funds based on already budgeted expenditures and third-party contributions. Download PDF
• Sep 30, 2009 CLASP Statement for the Record: September 15, 2009 Hearing on the Implementation of the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act Statement for the record of the September 15, 2009 Hearing on the Implementation of the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act submitted to the Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support, Committee on Ways and Means. Download PDF
• Sep 25, 2009  |  Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt (CLASP) & Kisha Bird (CFY) Comments to United States Department of Education: Notice of Proposed Requirements for School Improvement Grants. Docket ID ED-2009-OESE-0010 Resources through School Improvement Grants offer our nation's most challenged school districts an opportunity to utilize best practices to rethink time and learning and provide our children and youth with a first-rate education experience. The rigorous interventions included in the School Improvement Grants Notice will not only raise the bar for the nation's lowest performing schools but it will provide state education agencies (SEAs) and local education agencies (LEAs) with the tools, strategies, and resources to effectively turn schools around and support our most disadvantaged students. Our comments and recommendations relate specifically to giving increased attention to struggling students and disconnected youth. Download PDF
• Sep 22, 2009  |  Campaign for Youth Comments to the Corporation for National and Community Service on Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act Download PDF
• Sep 16, 2009  |  Campaign for Youth Workforce Investment Act Reauthorization: A Catalyst for Reframing Investments in Youth Download PDF
• Sep 09, 2009  |  Child Care and Early Learning Coalition Letter to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on FY 2011 Budget Request for Child Care and Head Start CLASP signed this coalition letter urging HHS to prepare a FY 2011 budget that allows for substantial increases in funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant, Head Start, and Early Head Start. Download PDF
• Aug 25, 2009  |  Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt (CLASP) & Kisha Bird (CFY) Comments/Recommendations in response to Department of Education Proposed Race to the Top Fund Rules in Federal Register Document ED-2009-OESE-0006 The Race to The Top Fund will pave the way for sustainable reforms that transform the educational experience for American students. Our comments are centered around increasing the focus on students who have dropped out through targeting investments for dropout recovery and providing state education agencies (SEAs) and local education agencies (LEAs) with strategic direction to implement innovative models to reengage youth who have dropped out. Download PDF
• Aug 25, 2009  |  Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Comments/Recommendations to United States Department of Education on Proposed State Fiscal Stabilization Fund Rules. Docket ID ED-2009-OESE-0007 State Fiscal Stabilization Funds, made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), will pave the way for sustainable reforms that can drastically improve the educational experience and outcomes for all of America's students. Our comments on the proposed rules derive from our concern for the nation's high school dropouts. We seek necessary reforms to prevent youth disengagement from school or to re-engage them in educational options that meet their needs. A national emphasis on this population will drive state and local education agencies to think more critically about and reach out more intentionally to serve the educational needs of these young people. Download PDF
• Jul 24, 2009  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Testimony on TANF Sanctions for the Washington, DC Council As part of the budget gap closing process, the District of Columbia is considering imposing increased sanctions on TANF recipients. In this testimony for the DC Council, Elizabeth Lower-Basch reports on the research on TANF sanctions. Download PDF
• Jul 20, 2009  |  Danielle Ewen Letter To House Committee On Education And Labor On Early Learning Challenge Fund CLASP wrote a letter of support for the proposed Early Learning Challenge Fund to Chairman Miller. The proposal creates the opportunity for states to make significant investments in the quality of early childhood programs serving disadvantaged children and their families. Download PDF
• Jun 01, 2009  |  Tiffany Conway Comments to Centers for Medicare & Medicaid on the Proposed Rule on Case Management Services CLASP supports the proposed partial rescission of the case management services interim final rule (CMS-2237-IFC) and believes that the rescission will help ensure that abused and neglected children receive critical case management services. Download PDF
• Apr 28, 2009  |  Linda Harris WIA Reauthorization: Opportunity to Rethink the Nation's Youth Delivery System Presentation to the Working for Change Forum sponsored by Community Services Society of New York and Coalition for Human Needs. Download PDF
• Apr 15, 2009  |  Linda Harris Considerations for WIA Reauthorization: Title I Youth Provisions WIA reauthorization provides the opportunity to re-think and strengthen the youth delivery system across the country. CLASP recommendations focus on increase targeting to high risk youth and more strategic alliances among youth serving systems. Download PDF
• Mar 18, 2009  |  Danielle Ewen Testimony On Growing Federal Investments In Head Start And Early Head Start This testimony, presented on March 18, 2009 to the Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies, discusses the importance of Head Start/Early Head Start programs that support our most vulnerable infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and their families. Download PDF
• Feb 25, 2009  |  Linda Harris Recommendations to USDOL on Guidance to States on Implementing Youth Activities in the Recovery Act The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act provides $1.2 billion dollars for youth activities under the Workforce Investment Act. Much attention has been focused on summer jobs. The Center for Law and Social Policy and The National Youth Employment Coalition, based on input from administrators and providers in local workforce systems and from organizations at the national level, advanced a set of recommendations to the Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration in an effort to assure that ARRA funds are also used in an effective and innovative way to engage out of school youth in jobs, training, and education support activities related to the economic recovery. Download PDF
• Nov 24, 2008 Written Comments on Workforce Investment Act Reauthorization Submitted for the Senate WIA Listening Session These comments contain CLASP's recommendations for changes for Titles I and II of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) address selected problems specific to each program and to promote closer connections between these two programs and greater alignment with other workforce development programs to better advance the prospects of low-income, low-skilled youth and adults. Download PDF
• Oct 02, 2008  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch CLASP Comments on HHS Regulation Disallowing Credit for Excess MOE In these comments, CLASP urges the Department of Health and Human Services to maintain a provision that gives states an incentive to spend more of their money than the minimum required to avoid penalty. CLASP strongly disagrees with HHS' claim that reduced cash assistance caseloads mean that there is less of a need for additional spending. Download PDF
• Sep 11, 2008  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Families and Workplaces in the Twenty-First Century: Multiple Roles Place Heavy Demands on American Workers This testimony on work-life challenges was given before the Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support of the Committee on Ways and Means on September 11, 2008, as part of a hearing on the pressures facing American workers. Download PDF