Javits Funding for Fiscal Year 2017 Clears First Hurdle

Today the Senate Appropriations Committee approved $12 million for the Javits Gifted & Talented Students Education Act in the bipartisan 2017 funding bill for the departments of labor, health and human services (L/HHS), and education.  The Javits program funds research on strategies to identify and serve advanced students from groups that have been underrepresented in gifted education programs and services and also funds the National Center for Research on Gifted Education. The $12 million funding level is the same as the program received in FY 2016.

NAGC state gifted education leaders rounded up support for the program during their visits to Senate offices in March.  Ten Senators co-signed a letter to appropriators in support of continued funding.

The House has not yet released its appropriations bill for the L/HHS and education departments.  Final negotiations on education funding levels will not be completed until the fall as the Congress is planning to be out of session starting July 15 for the political conventions and the traditional August recess.

Over the years, Javits grantees have developed identification and other assessment tools, grouping strategies, and teacher learning experiences that are used across the nation to ensure that students receiving gifted education services reflect school district demographics.  Strategies such as providing advanced curriculum coupled with corresponding teacher training to high-potential students in struggling schools have been tested in Javits grants.  The results have shown the capacity of students not previously identified as gifted to achieve at high levels. 

There is more work to be done to finalize the 2017 funding level, but the Javits program is on track to continue to provide tools to assure access to advanced coursework and close achievement gaps at the advanced level.

For more information about the projects currently funded by the Javits program, see the 2014 and 2015 grant descriptions.  Read NAGC’s position statement on addressing excellence gaps.