The Federal Migrant Education Program as Amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001

Publication Date: March 2002

Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service

Author(s):

Research Area: Education

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Abstract:

The Migrant Education Program (MEP) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) provides financial assistance to state educational agencies to establish and improve programs for children of migratory farmworkers and fishers. The ESEA and MEP were recently reauthorized by H.R. 1, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, which was signed into law (P.L. 107-110) by the President on January 8, 2002. This report describes the legislative and funding history of the program -- highlighting important changes made since it was established. A section on evaluations of the program is included at the end of the report.

Since 1966, the MEP has sought to help migrant children overcome the many problems associated with multiple moves. These problems include educational disruption, social barriers, limited English proficiency, various health problems, and other factors that keep migrant children from performing well in school. MEP provides grants to state educational agencies to develop or improve education programs for migrant students. Most migrant programs are administered by local educational agencies and operate during the summer as well as in the regular school year.

The MEP has been subject to incremental amendments over the years. The main changes that have occurred concern student eligibility criteria and records transfer. The former change has resulted in expansion of the population served, while the latter has simply attempted to keep track of these elusive students. The funding formula for the MEP has remained largely unchanged over time; however, it received significant modification in the most recent amendments. Appropriations for the MEP have generally increased from year to year. However, after adjusting for inflation, funding has declined an estimated 17.4% between FY1980 and FY2002.