Back in 2015, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) replaced the education policy of No Child Left Behind. As part of ESSA, states are required to submit an accountability plan, outlining how they plan to equity in education for all children of the state. In September 2018, the states submitted their plans, which were reviewed by the National Urban League. On Wednesday, the National Urban League released its Equity & Excellence ESSA Report Card of 36 states and the District of Columbia.

In their report, the National Urban League used a system of metrics to reach a rating of "excellent," "sufficient" or "poor." These evaluations act as a "preliminary indicator" of how states plan to implement the federal policy.

After assessing the efforts of the states, the National Urban League released a report card which stated nine states received an "excellent" review, while 20 were graded "sufficient" and eight were rated "poor."

Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Rhode Island got "excellent" ratings, meaning their ESSA plans "were off to a strong start making the most of opportunities to further advance equity, with some areas for improvement," the report states.

Marc Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League, spoke with BET about the report and what action parents in states that received a “poor” score can take. Morial, primarily, wants people around the country to have an investment in the country’s education system.

“People should care about this because federal law required every state in the union to put together a plan as to how they would integrate equity into the education of children,” Morial told BET. “Equity means Do children have access to early childhood learning? Is there a commitment to breaking the school to prison pipeline? Are they working to reduce funding inequities? These are the questions we’re asking.”

When it comes to the states that performed well, Morial said the schools had a clear strategy to provide for the students.

“In states like New York, Louisiana and New Jersey, we noticed they had a commitment to early childhood education, they prioritized federal funds after-school learning programs, and made it a priority to get rid of the overuse of suspension and expulsion as discipline techniques,” Morial said.

However, for the bulk of the states that received "sufficient" or “poor” grades, Morial wants the community and local politicians to take action.

“Parents need to raise their voices and tell their states to redo the plan because it is not sufficient,” Morial said, adding that parents can “call the governor, go to meetings, contact your local urban league, or contact school board members.”

As part of its recommendations, the NUL urged Congress to revisit state plans and hold hearings on the issues highlighted as a means of paving the way for improvement.

“We are calling for the House education committee to hold hearings on these plans, to shed more light on what these plans have done well and what they have not,” Morial said. “Everyone needs to ask candidates running for office, what’s your plan for education and do you support equity in education?”

For more information on the Equity and Excellence ESSA Report Cards, visit the National Urban League website and check out the No Ceilings on Success campaign.