Detroit Free Press: Education reform bill includes Peters' measures

WASHINGTON — A dual-enrollment provision that can help make college more affordable promoted by U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., is part of an education reform bill advanced in the Senate on Tuesday.

The Senate voted overwhelmingly to move ahead with the Every Student Succeeds Act, setting the stage for a final vote later this week on legislation rewriting the much-maligned No Child Left Behind program. The U.S. House has already passed the bill.

Under the legislation, states will gain much greater authority over setting standards for the nation’s public schools, though annual testing will still be required as a way to measure student progress.

As part of the bill, Peters, along with U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., pushed a measure allowing Title I education funds to be used to support concurrent and dual enrollment programs, which allow high school students to simultaneously receive college-credit through eligible courses.