While Education Secretary Arne Duncan has been issuing a ton of waivers from No Child Left Behind requirements, he’s stopping short of offering the big one.

And by that we mean a waiver of the requirement that all students reach proficiency in math and reading by 2014. This elusive 100 percent goal is proving to be a key selling point for Duncan as he tries to get Congress to move on reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. He’s been declaring that if Congress doesn’t act, up to 82 percent of schools this year could be labeled “failing” (that’s his word) this year under the law.

Today, the Kansas Department of Education announced that, in a phone call, the federal department has denied its AYP waiver.

The Kansas press release said: “In a phone call to Kansas Education Commissioner Dr. Diane DeBacker, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Education Michael Yudin said that while there was great appreciation for the hard work Kansas was undertaking in education reform efforts, it was the feeling of U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan that the best way to assist states in those efforts was through timely reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA).”