Results for America Statement on SETRA Passage

RFA MANAGING PARTNER MICHELE JOLIN PRAISES EFFORTS TO GIVE POLICYMAKERS STRONGER EVIDENCE WITH WHICH TO IMPROVE FUNDING DECISIONS

RFA Managing Partner Michele Jolin Praises Efforts to Give Policymakers Stronger Evidence With Which to Improve Funding Decisions

WASHINGTON- Today, following the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee’s passage of the Strengthening Education through Research Act (SETRA), Results for America managing partner Michele Jolin issued the following statement. Jolin praised lawmakers for bipartisan action to build and disseminate evidence on what works in education and for using data to improve federal programs, calling it a “Moneyball” approach to government that improves outcomes for young people, their families and communities.

“Results for America strongly supports the passage of the Strengthening Education through Research Act (SETRA) by the Senate HELP Committee. SETRA would improve the rigor and relevance of education research so that practitioners and policymakers have sound evidence on which to base their decisions. The bill takes a significant step forward in authorizing the Secretary of Education to set aside and pool funds under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act to regularly evaluate education programs.

“It is high time the federal government take a data-driven, evidence-based approach to the way it uses taxpayer dollars to administer programs. The Department of Education and IES have made great strides in this direction, and SETRA will bolster those efforts. The Senate bill follows a strong bipartisan bill passed by the House of Representatives earlier this year, and we hope the full Senate will take up this legislation soon.”

“Congress and the Administration are increasingly using data, evidence and evaluation to improve the lives of people, their families and communities, what we call a Moneyball approach to government. Today’s passage of SETRA shows that investing in what works is clearly a bipartisan way to address long-term challenges and is another positive step toward improving outcomes,” said Michele Jolin, Managing Partner, Results for America.

About Results for America 
Results for America is committed to improving outcomes for young people, their families, and communities by shifting public resources toward programs and practices that use evidence and data to improve quality and get better results. In a climate of constrained resources and mounting demands, we know that public funds must increasingly be invested in “what works.”