Introduction The August recess for Congress is here, making it a critical time for you to engage with your elected officials. Representatives began their break on July 28, and the Senate a few days later on August 3. Congress will be back in session after the Labor Day weekend on September 5.This document will arm you with the information you need to ask challenging, hard-hitting questions of your representatives at town halls, meetings or other events. The RISE Stronger Policy Working Group Program has prepared for you overviews of key topics on the national agenda across a range of areas, including the economy and jobs; education; energy and the environment; ethics and open government; foreign policy and national security; healthcare; infrastructure and urban policy; justice and civil liberties; science and technology; and trade and development. These key issues are summarized with background information and relevant questions for you to ask, as well as additional resources for yo...

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This week, the Supreme Court declined to hear the case of Gavin Grimm, a transgender teen who sued his school district in Virginia for the right to use the bathroom associated with the gender with which he identifies. In sending the case back to the lower court for review, the Supreme Court also vacated the appeals court's order in Mr. Grimm's favor. The Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit will now be faced with the task of determining whether Title IX rules allowing for the provision of "separate toilet, locker rooms and shower facilities on the basis of sex" can be extended to provide protections for transgender students.With only one Republican in opposition, Senate Republicans voted Thursday to repeal regulations associated with the Every Student Succeeds Act. Similar legislation was passed by the House of Representatives last month. President Trump has signaled that he will sign the resolution, which will preserve ESSA, but nullify certain regulations and give more power ov...

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President Trump rescinded critical federal guidelines issued by the Obama administration that instructed schools to allow students to use bathrooms and locker rooms according to their gender identities, insisting that the issue was best left to states to decide. A Texas court ruling last year had already placed a partial stay on this rule.Senate Joint Resolution 25 was introduced in the Senate on Tuesday. The bill, which has already been approved by the House of Representatives, would end regulations finalized late last year that govern state plans concerning testing opt-outs, school turnarounds, and other accountability measures to ensure they meet appropriate standards. On Tuesday, Trump signed an executive order that moved a federally funded initiative focused on Historically Black Colleges and Universities from the Department of Education to the White House. Trump has promised to increase funding to the HBCUs. In his address the same evening to a joint session of Congress, Trump...

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