	Proliferation of Programs That Support Teacher Quality Complicates Federal Efforts to Invest Dollars Effectively

In fiscal year 2009, the federal government spent over $4 billion  specifically to improve the quality of our nation’s 3 million teachers  through numerous programs across the government. However, there is no governmentwide strategy to minimize fragmentation,  overlap, or potential duplication among these programs. Specifically, GAO  identified 82 distinct programs designed to help improve teacher quality,  either as a primary purpose or as an allowable activity, administered  across 10 federal agencies. Many of these programs share similar goals. For example, 9 of the 82 programs support improving the quality of  teaching in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM  subjects) and these programs alone are administered across the  Departments of Education, Defense, and Energy; the National Aeronautics  and Space Administration; and the National Science Foundation. The proliferation of programs has resulted in fragmentation that can  frustrate agency efforts to administer programs in a comprehensive  manner, limit the ability to determine which programs are most cost  effective, and ultimately increase program costs. GAO previously reported that 23 of the programs  administered by Education in fiscal year 2009 had improving teacher  quality as a specific focus, which suggested that there may be overlap  among these and other programs that have teacher quality improvements  as an allowable activity. In addition, our larger body of work on federal education programs has  also found a wide array of programs with similar objectives, target  populations, and services across multiple federal agencies. This includes a  number of efforts to catalogue and determine how much is spent on a  wide variety of federally funded education programs. In past work, GAO and Education’s Inspector General have concluded that  improved planning and coordination could help Education better leverage  expertise and limited resources, and to anticipate and develop options for  addressing potential problems among the multitude of programs it  administers. However, given the large number of teacher quality programs and the  extent of overlap, it is unlikely that improved coordination alone can fully  mitigate the effects of the fragmented and overlapping federal effort. Options for Congress to Consider as It Addresses Fragmentation, Overlap, and Potential Duplication

As this Subcommittee considers its annual spending priorities, it may be  an opportune time to consider options for addressing fragmentation and  overlap among federal teacher quality programs and what is known about  how well these programs are achieving their objectives. As  we have reported, many programs, especially smaller programs, have not  been evaluated, which can limit the ability of Congress to make informed  decisions about which programs to continue, expand, modify, consolidate,  or eliminate. Consolidating Existing Programs

Consolidating existing programs is another option for Congress to address  fragmentation, overlap, and duplication. Congress has another opportunity to address these issues through the  pending reauthorization of the ESEA. Education has already proposed combining  38 programs into 11 programs in its reauthorization proposal, which could  allow the agency to dedicate a higher portion of its administrative  resources to monitoring programs for results and providing technical  assistance. In conclusion, removing and preventing unnecessary duplication, overlap,  and fragmentation among federal teacher quality programs is clearly  challenging. Sustained attention and oversight by Congress will also be  critical. Appendix I: Related GAO Products

Opportunities to Reduce Fragmentation, Overlap, and Potential  Duplication in Federal Teacher Quality and Employment and Training  Programs. Department of Education: Improved Oversight and Controls Could Help  Education Better Respond to Evolving Priorities.
Why GAO Did This Study

This testimony discusses the findings from our recent work on fragmentation, overlap, and potential duplication in federally funded programs that support teacher quality. We recently issued a report addressing fragmentation, overlap, and potential duplication in federal programs that outlined opportunities to reduce potential duplication across a wide range of federal programs, including teacher quality programs. Our recent work on teacher quality programs builds on a long history of work where we identified a number of education programs with similar goals, beneficiaries, and allowable activities that are administered by multiple federal agencies. This work may help inform congressional deliberations over how to prioritize spending given the rapidly building fiscal pressures facing our nation's government. In recent years, the Department of Education (Education) has faced expanded responsibilities that have challenged the department to strategically allocate resources to balance new duties with ongoing ones. For example, we reported the number of grants Education awarded increased from about 14,000 in 2000 to about 21,000 just 2 years later and has since remained around 18,000, even as the number of full-time equivalent staff decreased by 13 percent from fiscal years 2000 to 2009. New programs often increase Education's workload, requiring staff to develop new guidance and provide technical assistance to program participants. Our work examining fragmentation, overlap, and potential duplication can help inform decisions on how to prioritize spending, which could also help Education address these challenges and better allocate scarce resources. In particular, our recent work identified 82 programs supporting teacher quality, which are characterized by fragmentation and overlap. Fragmentation of programs exists when programs serve the same broad area of national need but are administered across different federal agencies or offices. Program overlap exists when multiple agencies or programs have similar goals, engage in similar activities or strategies to achieve them, or target similar beneficiaries. Overlap and fragmentation among government programs or activities can be harbingers of unnecessary duplication. Given the challenges associated with fragmentation, overlap, and potential duplication, careful, thoughtful actions will be needed to address these issues. This testimony draws upon the results of our recently issued report and our past work and addresses (1) what is known about fragmentation, overlap, and potential duplication among teacher quality programs; and (2) what are additional ways that Congress could minimize fragmentation, overlap, and duplication among these programs?

What GAO Found

We identified 82 distinct programs designed to help improve teacher quality administered across 10 federal agencies, many of which share similar goals. However, there is no governmentwide strategy to minimize fragmentation, overlap, or potential duplication among these programs. The fragmentation and overlap of teacher quality programs can frustrate agency efforts to administer programs in a comprehensive manner, limit the ability to determine which programs are most cost effective, and ultimately increase program costs. In addition, our larger body of work on federal education programs has also found a wide array of programs with similar objectives, target populations, and services across multiple federal agencies. In past work, GAO and Education's Inspector General have concluded that improved planning and coordination could help Education better leverage expertise and limited resources; however, given the large number of teacher quality programs and the extent of overlap, it is unlikely that improved coordination alone can fully mitigate the effects of the fragmented and overlapping federal effort. Sustained congressional oversight can also play a key role in addressing these issues. Congress could address these issues through legislation, particularly through the pending reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), and Education has already proposed combining 38 programs into 11 programs in its reauthorization and fiscal year 2012 budget proposals. Further, actions taken by Congress in the past demonstrate ways this Subcommittee can address these issues. However, effective oversight may be challenging as many of the programs we identified, especially smaller programs, have not been evaluated.