A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Community Update

No. 26, June 1995 U.S. Department of Education

National Summer Reading Program Launches on West Coast

On a recent visit to Los Angeles, U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley kicked off the READ*WRITE*NOW! national summer reading program on the West Coast. The program was developed by the Education Department with the national Family Involvement Partnership for Learning as an ideal way for families to participate in learning together, especially during the summer when families typically devote more time to leisure activities. The summer is also a time when students tend to lose some of their reading and writing skills.

The READ*WRITE*NOW! launch took place at the Los Angeles Public Library with parents, teachers, and community representatives in attendance, including approximately forty corporate supporters. Secretary Riley was also joined by students from Theresa Hughes Elementary School in Cudahy, California. The students presented Secretary Riley with essays on why they felt reading was important. The Secretary was so impressed by what students wrote that he shared samples of student work in his remarks.

"If you want to be a professional, then you need to know how to read and write," said one student.

Actor Bill Pullman, who is currently starring in the movies While You Were Sleeping and Casper, also participated in the event. Pullman read a book to sixty students and spoke about why reading is important in his job.

Participants in READ*WRITE*NOW! are challenged to read twenty minutes per day. The program is also designed to involve reading partners -- parents, grandparents, teachers, or older students -- who will read with children and participate in other learning activities several times a week.

A kit supplied by the Education Department contains materials to support children's summer learning goals and generate excitement about reading. Included are an activity book, a bookmark, a certificate of participation, and a coupon for a free personal pan pizza at Pizza Hut, a national sponsor.

Additional partners for READ*WRITE*NOW! include Reading Is Fundamental, the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress, the American Association of School Librarians, Hadassah, the International Reading Association, the National Association of Elementary School Principals, the National Association of Secondary School Principals, and Nickelodeon.

To request a READ*WRITE*NOW! kit, call 1-800-USA-LEARN.

We Need Your Input!

As we make plans for the 1995-96 schedule of Satellite Town Meetings, we would like your feedback and suggestions so we can provide another year of programming to meet your community's needs. Please take a few moments to answer the following questions and then submit by clicking the "Submit" button, or fax your reply to our office by July 15. Our fax number is (202) 205-0676.

1. Do you watch the Satellite Town Meetings?

monthly on occasion saw one program have not watched

2. Do you watch with a group?

school group Wal-Mart group chamber of commerce other

3. Has attendance for viewing the Town Meetings in your community...?

increased remained steady decreased

4. Does your community plan to continue viewing the Town Meetings next year?

Yes No

5. What topics would you like to see covered in future Town Meetings? Please mark only your top five choices.

parental involvement
technology in schools
ready to learn
state initiatives
math and science
school to work
arts
professional development
standards
school and community partnerships
school
students with special needs accountability
school governance
dropout prevention
flexibility
safe schools
teachers
discipline
drug and substance abuse
other

Please list any additional comments you have. Thank you for your assistance.

Make sure you're on our mailing list to receive the 1995-96 schedule of Satellite Town Meetings. Call 1-800-USA-LEARN.

FAMILY INVOLVEMENT PARTNERSHIP FOR LEARNING

The Family Involvement Partnership for Learning Remains Active for the Summer

Here are some highlights of ongoing activities of the national Family Involvement Partnership for Learning, which now comprises more than 130 national organizations:

Note: READ*WRITE*NOW! shares its name with the Michigan Catholic Health Systems Infant Mortality Project. The Michigan program provides educational counseling and literacy assistance..

Parents' Day To Be Observed July 23

Sunday, July 23, 1995, marks the nation's first official "Parents' Day" under bipartisan legislation passed by Congress and signed by President Clinton last year. The Education Department has available materials on family involvement in children's learning that can assist local activities held in observance of Parents' Day. Call our toll-free line, 1-800-USA- LEARN, to request these items:

We hope you will join in the observance of Parents' Day.

The Family Math Program Challenges Adults and Children Together

The Family Math Program has reached more than one million children and adults since its origin in 1981, with the mission of involving adults positively in their children's math education. Headquartered at the Lawrence Hall of Science at the University of California in Berkeley, Family Math is now at 52 other sites across the United States as well as in 11 foreign countries. The sites include universities, state departments of education, regional education centers, county offices of education, and science museums.

Parents and children participate in Family Math together. They are encouraged to attend a series of four or eight weekly Family Math classes, which last from one to two hours a session. The classes are held in the evenings or on weekends at schools, churches, or community organizations.

Family Math activities are often in a game or puzzle format. Family members have fun as well as gain confidence in math. In all cases, understanding is achieved through hands-on problem- solving that illustrates useful mathematical concepts.

Family Math works across socioeconomic and ethnic groups and includes a companion program in Spanish, Matematica Para La Familia. For more information, contact FAMILY MATH, Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California, Berkeley, CA. 94720- 5200.

Send Us Your Best Practices

Does your organization have a family involvement program that you are willing to share with us? We are working on an Idea Book of best practices that will be available this fall. We welcome your submissions in any of the following areas:

Send your Idea Book submission to: Family Involvement Partnership for Learning, 600 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20202-8173.

Welcome New Partners!

Comprising more than 130 national organizations, the national Family Involvement Partnership for Learning continues to grow. We are delighted to welcome the following groups as members and acknowledge with appreciation their efforts in support of family involvement in children's learning:

  • The Council for Religion in Independent Schools
  • National Association of Independent Schools
  • National Council of Jewish Women
  • National Retired Teachers Association (AARP)
  • United Church of Christ-Board for Homeland Ministries

Unite the Community Behind Reading, Town Meeting Learns

In a lively and far-ranging discussion, last month's Satellite Town Meeting illustrated that the entire community has a role in helping children learn to read -- families, schools, businesses, churches, synagogues, community colleges and other local organizations. "We're finding in our community that it's going to take a community-wide effort to improve our children's literacy skills," said panelist Terry Grier, superintendent of the Sacramento, California school district. The commitment to reading in Dr. Grier's district includes a major staff development effort, tutoring and mentoring provided by civic clubs, involvement of the mayor's office, and the adoption of an elementary school by the post office.

Panelist Reverend Justus Reeves, one of the pastors at the Shiloh Baptist Church in Washington, D.C., shared how a church can contribute to education in a community. The church has adopted a third grade class at Seaton Elementary School and provides tutors for reading.

"Shiloh made a commitment that it was going to focus on prevention," said Reverend Reeves. "We are in a very high-risk neighborhood. We made a commitment that we were going to raise up a new generation that were conscious of their identity and history and clear about their destiny."

Karen Helgerson, a caller from Appleton, Wisconsin, shared how businesses can get involved in community literacy efforts. The local chamber of commerce recruited firms to reproduce and distribute 1500 packets of materials for the READ*WRITE*NOW! national summer reading program, sponsored by the Education Department. Secretary Riley commended the businesses involved.

At the Town Meeting's close, Deputy Secretary Kunin provided tips to families on how to help children develop their reading skills: read aloud to children, encourage children to read -- and write - - independently, create a home environment rich in reading materials, allow children to choose the books they read, and encourage children to discuss their reading with others.

President Clinton and Congress Differ on Education Funding

Negotiations for the 1996-97 budget for the Education Department are underway in Congress. In these discussions, differences between the President and Congress on funding education are significant and affect support for meeting the National Education Goals. Below is a chart highlighting some of the differences.

                             _______________________________________________
                             |    HOUSE BUDGET     |   PRESIDENT'S BUDGET   |
-----------------------------|---------------------|------------------------|
Title I:  Improving          |                     |                        |
Reading, Math, Basic Skills  | Cuts $700 million   | Increases $300 million |
-----------------------------|---------------------|------------------------|
GOALS 2000:  Community       | Cuts $400 million   |                        |
Support for Raising Standards| Eliminates program  | Increases $347 million |
of Achievement and Teaching  |                     |                        |
-----------------------------|---------------------|------------------------|
Safe and Drug-Free Schools   | Cuts 30% of funding | Increases $18 million  |
-----------------------------|---------------------|------------------------|
                             |Students pay interest|  Subsidizes in-school  |
                             |  on loans while in  | interest for deserving |
College Student Aid          |        college      |       students         |
                             |                     |                        |  
                             |  Pell Grants frozen | Increases amounts for  |
                             |                     | Pell grants to cover   |
                             |   Eliminates state  |       inflation        |
                             |    student grants   |                        |
-----------------------------|---------------------|------------------------|                
School to Work               | Cuts 25% of funding |   Increases funding    |
Opportunities                |                     |        by 60%          |
-----------------------------|---------------------|------------------------|
Technology Public-           |                     |                        |
Private Partnerships to get  | Eliminates program  | Increases $43 million  |
computers in schools         |                     |                        |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Brown University Partnership Supports Children's Reading

The Associated Alumni of Brown University launched a major literacy campaign during commencement weekend, May 26-29. The program, known as "Bring a Book to Brown," appealed to each returning alumnus to donate one children's book to the literacy effort in which Brown is a partner with the Rhode Island Children's Crusade for Higher Education.

Brown was one of the founders of the Children's Crusade, a nonprofit intervention organization working to provide students with the skills to succeed in school and the commitment to graduate from high school and pursue a college education. More than 11,000 children are participating in the program, which begins when students enter the third grade and continues until they graduate. Children pledge to stay off drugs, complete high school, avoid early parenthood, obey the law, and become role models in their communities.

The books donated by Brown alumni are being distributed to schools, libraries, and community centers around the state affiliated with the Rhode Island Children's Crusade. More than 2,000 books have been collected to date.

The kickoff event to "Bring a Book to Brown" featured Alumnus Steve Jordan, an all-pro tight end for the Minnesota Vikings, who shared a story with children. The book Jordan chose to read, entitled Jonathan McBoo, told of a very tall boy who preferred using his mind to playing a sport like basketball.

"Sports are somewhat overvalued," Jordan told children when he finished reading. "Use your own minds. Read and enjoy your education."

The Alumni Association plans to make "Bring a Book to Brown" an annual campaign. Follow-up postcards are also being sent to all alumni who contributed books this year, encouraging them to get involved in literacy programs in their own communities. Brenda Dann-Messier, the Secretary's Regional Representative from the Education Department's Boston office, is coordinating the effort to provide the Alumni Association with contact information for literacy groups around the country to which Brown alumni can be referred.

Kathleen Connolly, Co-chair of "Bring a Book to Brown," hopes that the contributions of Brown alumni to literacy will continue beyond the book they donated. "We want to capitalize on this moment to challenge people to get involved in their local communities in a personal way."

[Table of Contents]