Department of Education

The Department of Education's FY09 total budget appropriation is $66.5 billion.

The FY09 education budget includes specialized funding toward a few K-12 math and science programs:

• $179 million for the Mathematics and Science Partnerships program, which provides grants to states and localities to improve academic achievement in mathematics and science by developing teaching skills for elementary and secondary school teachers and introducing integrated teaching methods based on scientifically based research and technology into the curriculum; and,
• $43.5 million for the Advanced Placement (AP) program, which provides grants to eligible entities to enable them to increase the participation of low-income students in both pre-AP and AP courses and tests.

Other key budget issues include:

• Pell Grants - $17.3 billion that increases the maximum Pell Grant to $4,860.
• 21st Century Community Learning Centers - $1.1 billion to provide resources for the states to award grants of at least $50,000 to school districts, community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, and other public or private entities for centers that primarily serve students attending high-poverty schools.
• Institute of Education Sciences (IES) - $617 million to fund programs of research, development and dissemination in areas where knowledge of learning and instruction is inadequate.

Several of the student aid programs proposed for elimination by the Bush Administration survived, including:

• Perkins Loans - Carl D. Perkins CTEA $370 million, Perkins Loan Cancellations $67.2 million. The purpose of the Perkins Loans program is to provide low-interest loans to help needy students finance the costs of postsecondary education.
• Supplemental Educational Opportunities Grants (FSEOG) - $757.5 million to provide need-based grants to low-income undergraduate students to promote access to postsecondary education. Students can receive these grants at any one of approximately 4,000 participating postsecondary institutions.
• Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnerships (LEAP) - $63.9 million to provide grants to states to assist them in providing need-based grants and community service work-study assistance to eligible postsecondary students. States must administer the program under a single state agency and meet maintenance-of-effort criteria.