Here’s a quick look at the news from last week (May 14 – 18) in Washington.

ADMINISTRATION

The Department has announced an event to release the proposed requirements for Race to the Top district-level grants on May 22.  The Department will accept comments for a short period after the announcement, and award grants before the end of the calendar year.

HOUSE

The House Committee on Education & the Workforce continues discussions on a possble markup of  H.R. 4297 (the Workforce Investment Improvement Act) in the near future.

The House Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education held a hearing on Thursday on “Exploring State Success in Expanding Parent and Student Options” which covered state efforts to increase scholarship programs, expansion of charter school laws, and implementing a parent trigger.

SENATE

Senator Coons (D-DE) and Senator Alexander (R-TN) introduced a bill on Thursday that would keep foreign-born U.S. grad students in the United States. The SMART Jobs Act of 2012 would create a new visa for foreign-born, American-educated holders of advanced degrees.

With the Senate failing to invoke cloture on Senator Reid’s bill (S.2343: Stop the Student Loan Interest Rate Hike Act of 2012) last week, discussions continue to extend the 3.4 percent student loan interest rate on subsidized student loans.

APPROPRIATIONS/BUDGET

The Senate Appropriations Committee may mark up a FY13 Labor, HHS, Education Appropriations Bill in early June.