1. Budget and Appropriations
-Congress returned to the nation's Capitol on Tuesday, ready to tackle a packed agenda in a very short legislative calendar.
-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid was quick to announce Senator Tom Harkin as successor to Kennedy as Chairman of the Health, Educatiion, Labor and Pensions Committee.
-As a longtime champion of IDEA, Title I and Pell Grants, and because of his role as Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, health and Human Services and Education, Harkin is well known and liked by the education community.
-With only 5 out of 12 appropriations measures adopted by the Senate, that chamber has some catching up to do. There was no mention of the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Bill, the largest and most contentious appropriations measure on the list.
2. In Brief
-Obama addresses students on the importance of an education
-Secretary of Education to host televised town hall meeting
-National Academy of Engineering holds symposium and releases report on engineering in k-12 education
-IRA hosts International Literacy Day Event
-ED Sector hosts panel discussion on Higher Education Reform
-OECD holds briefing on Education and a Glance Report
Be sure to also check out sections #3 (New publications) and #4 (In the News).