That’s the position taken by Rep. Duncan Hunter, chairman of the House Education and the Workforce subcommittee, which oversees K-12 federal programs. The Equity program would be one of 43 programs trimmed by Hunter to “reduce the fat” in the federal education budget.
The subcommittee’s rationale is interesting:
● Women's Educational Equity: The Women's Educational Equity program promotes education equity for women and girls. The program received $1.8 million in FY 2008 and $2.4 million in both FY 2009 and 2010. Funding for the program was eliminated in the final FY 2011 budget agreement and the president's FY 2012 budget request. Research has shown this program is no longer necessary; a March 17, 2010 article in Education Week noted the traditional achievement gap between boys and girls in math has closed, with the "percentages of both genders scoring 'proficient' or higher [being] roughly the same." On the other hand, that same article observes that "male students in every state where data were available lag behind females in reading."
My call on this one: This particular program will find a savior.
(Thanks to David Chadwell for spotting this one)