Community Update

No. 63
January 1999
U.S. Department of Education

Table of Contents

• New Programs Can Help Students Prepare for College Early
• Diversity Is the Focus of January's Satellite Town Meeting
• Alternative Ways to View the Satellite Town Meeting
• Join STM-LIST!
• CED Partners with the Satellite Town Meeting
• Spotlight on Our Newest Partner: Welcome North Carolina
• Faith Communities Come Together for Fourth Religion and Education Summit
• Announcements
• Calendar
• Hispanic Education Action Plan Will Help Students Stay and Succeed in School
• Learn About Potential Funding for After-School Programs at Regional Workshops
• 1999 Education Budget Provides Critical Resources for Education Improvements
• The E-Rate Has Arrived and America's Schools and Libraries Are Starting to Benefit
• Donations of School Supplies Urgently Needed
• Credits

New Programs Can Help Students Prepare for College Early
January 1, 1999

In addition, the U.S. Department of Education's FY 1999 budget provides $120 million the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs initiative or "GEAR UP,"a significant competitive grant program that supports building local or state school-college partnerships to give middle school students the hope and pathways to prepare for college. GEAR UP will provide more than 180,000 at-risk, middle and high school students with academic and support services over several years to eliminate the barriers students face in preparing for and pursuing a college education. GEAR UP programs will also underscore a commitment to inform families, students and educators about financial aid programs--including expanded Pell grants, work-study programs, student loans, and new federal Hope and Lifelong Learning tax credits.

Encouraging students to "think college early" in the middle grades is a compelling approach to motivate students to take core academic courses, such as algebra in the eighth grade and geometry in the ninth grade, building up to the powerful college preparatory courses such as physics, trigonometry or calculus, three or four years of a foreign language, and one or two years of art or music by the senior year of high school. A variation of this approach was implemented in South Carolina during the 1980s under then-Governor Riley's education reforms. Enrollment in chemistry and foreign language courses almost doubled in South Carolina from 1981 to 1989, and advanced placement participation increased. As a result, SAT scores improved, college enrollment increased, and the number of first-time college freshmen needing remedial work decreased.

GEAR UP state grants will be awarded to states to provide early college awareness activities, improved academic support, information on paying for college, and scholarships. GEAR UP will also award multi-year grants to locally designed partnerships between colleges and high-poverty middle schools, along with at least two other partners--such as community organizations, businesses, religious groups, state education agencies, parent groups, or non-profits--to increase college-going rates among low-income youth. Partnership awards will be based on the following proven strategies:

• promoting rigorous academic course work based on college entrance requirements;
• working with a whole grade-level of students in order to raise expectations for all students;
• providing comprehensive services (mentoring, tutoring, counseling, after-school and summer programs) to students starting in grade 6 and continuing through grade 12;
• informing students and parents about college and financial aid options; and
• promoting parent and family involvement.

GEAR UP grant applications will be available early in 1999, and workshops for applicants are scheduled for March. For more information, visit http://www.ed.gov/gearup, e-mail gearup@ed.gov or call 1-800-USA-LEARN.

Diversity Is the Focus of January's Satellite Town Meeting

Topics scheduled for discussion include: encouraging family involvement in a diverse school community; recruiting a more diverse teacher corps; model efforts for reaching students and parents who are limited-English proficient; and other issues. The discussion will also feature the findings of the president's Initiative on Race.

The U.S. Department of Education produces the Satellite Town Meeting series in partnership with the National Alliance of Business, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and the Committee for Economic Development, with support from The Bayer Foundation and The Procter & Gamble Fund. Broadcast and cable partners include Discovery Communications, the Public Broadcasting Service and Channel One. The program will be closed captioned and simulcast in Spanish.

For satellite coordinates, additional information, or to register your participation, call 1-800-USA-LEARN or visit the U.S. Department of Education's Web site at http://www.ed.gov/inits/stm/.

Spring Satellite Town Meeting Schedule

Tuesday, January 19, 1999 8:00-9:00 p.m. Eastern #57 "Learning Together: Diverse Schools Building One America"

Tuesday, February 16, 1999 8:00-9:00 p.m. Eastern #58 "Teaching Reading: Success Stories from School & Home"

Tuesday, March 16, 1999 8:00-9:00 p.m. Eastern #59 "High Standards at Work: Comprehensive Approaches to School Improvement" (NOTE: topic changed from May)

Tuesday, April 20, 1999 8:00-9:00 p.m. Eastern #60 "Improving Teacher Quality: Shaping the Profession That Shapes America's Future"

Tuesday, May 18, 1999 8:00-9:00 p.m. Eastern #61 "Counting the Stars: Math, Arts and Space Science" (NOTE: Topic changed from March)

Tuesday, June 15, 1999 8:00-9:00 p.m. Eastern #62 "School Leadership: Principals at the Center"

Alternative Ways to View the Satellite Town Meeting

• The Learning Channel, now available in more than 70 million cable homes, rebroadcasts the Satellite Town Meeting after the program is aired live. For an up-to-date schedule of times that the program will appear on The Learning Channel, call 1-800-USA-LEARN.

• The Satellite Town Meeting also can now be viewed on a live cybercast, thanks to the generosity of NASA's Quest project. To view the program, point your Web browser to http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/.

Viewers of the live cybercast can also post questions to Secretary Riley and his guests during the show. Archived portions of the most recent program are also available on this site.

Join STM-LIST!

To subscribe, address an e-mail message to: listproc@inet.ed.gov. Leave the subject line blank. In the message space, write: subscribe STM-LIST yourfirstname yourlastname. If you have any questions, e-mail Satellite_Town_Meeting@ed.gov, call 1-800-USA-LEARN or visit http://www.ed.gov/inits/stm/.

CED Partners with the Satellite Town Meeting

Spotlight on Our Newest Partner: Welcome North Carolina

As a further step, schools throughout North Carolina are being invited to join this effort and to sign on to the Partnership for Family Involvement in Education as well. The U.S. Department of Education extends a heartfelt welcome to North Carolina and applauds their efforts for taking this leadership role in support of family involvement in education. For more information about North Carolina's schools and family involvement efforts, visit http://www.dpi.state.nc.us.

Visit us online at http://www.ed.gov/offices/OIIA/pfie/v. The Partnership for Family Involvement in Education's new Web site features a database search engine of all the members of the Partnership, examples of successful educational programs, an outline of the U.S. Department of Education's initiatives and publications, and numerous links to other relevant sites. Thirty years of research shows that greater family involvement in children's learning is critical to achieving a high-quality education for every student. Join us in our effort to link employers, educators, families, religious groups, and community organizations together to improve schools and raise student achievement.

Faith Communities Come Together for Fourth Religion and Education Summit

More than 500 participants gathered in Louisville from Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana and Tennessee to hear U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley participate in a town hall discussion on three important topics: family involvement in education, school safety, and preparing young people for college and careers. Programs that support these initiatives were presented in small group gatherings where participants could speak to practitioners from Tampa, Florida; Birmingham, Alabama; and Louisville, Kentucky. A materials fair featuring model programs, community services, information about the public schools in the area, and materials produced by the Partnership for Family Involvement in Education was open throughout the summit.

The goal of the Religion and Education Summit was to bring together leadership representing faith communities and elementary, secondary, and higher education to discuss issues of concern to the community and to build partnerships to bring about changes needed for the benefit of all children. Previous summits were held in Lawrence, Massachusetts; Wilmington, Delaware; and St. Petersburg, Florida. Partnerships formed at these summits have continued to work together to improve education and strengthen family and community involvement in local schools. To obtain information on how to plan and hold a Religion and Education Summit, e-mail partner@ed.gov.

Announcements

• The Girl Scouts USA, representing 3.5 million members and over 223,000 troops, recently signed a formal collaborative agreement with Kappa Delta Sorority, representing over 155,000 collegiate and alumnae members, to prepare young students for college. Kappa Deltas are planning to help girls earn a merit badge, offer college campus tours, and serve as reading tutors and mentors to Girl Scouts across the nation through the twin themes of "Lending Hearts and Hands" and "Together Preparing Girls for College, for Life, for All They Hope to Become." Kappa Deltas will help Girl Scouts to "think college early" and will encourage girls to become caring and concerned citizens and community leaders. For more information, write to: Sheila Lewis, Program Consultant, Girl Scouts USA, 15th Floor, 420 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10018-2702.

• During American Education Week, November 16-21, the Family Education Company, an active member of the Partnership for Family Involvement in Education, linked educators in Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey, and North Carolina in initiatives to connect families and schools via the Family Education Network Web site. The four-state initiative encourages schools to develop their own local Web sites as a means of strengthening information dissemination and connections with parents. For more information about the Family Education Company and the Family Education Network Web site, visit http://www.familyeducation.com/home.

Hispanic Education Action Plan Will Help Students Stay and Succeed in School

The action plan is a response to the final report of the Hispanic Dropout Project, No More Excuses, published by the U.S. Department of Education and to the earlier recommendations of the President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans' report Our Nation on the Fault Line. The action plan is intended to help Latino youngsters master the basics of reading and math, learn English, stay in school, and most importantly, prepare them for -- and help them succeed -- in college.

The U.S. Department of Education's FY 1999 budget includes $520 million for the action plan to fund select education programs that address the educational needs of Hispanic students. The following programs are included in the administration's Hispanic Education Action Plan: Title I, Bilingual Education, Adult Education, Comprehensive School Reform, TRIO programs, Strengthening Hispanic-Serving Institutions Program, Migrant Education, High School Equivalency Program (HEP), and College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP). For more information, contact Deborah Santiago at the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans at (202) 401-1411.

Learn About Potential Funding for After-School Programs at Regional Workshops

1999 Education Budget Provides Critical Resources for Education Improvements

• $1.2 billion for class size reduction by helping to pay for and train teachers to give more personalized attention to students in grades 1 through 3.
• $260 million for the Reading Excellence Act to help more children learn to read well and independently by the end of the third grade.
• $200 million for 21st Century Community Learning Centers to expand after-school and summer programs to over a quarter of a million students.
• $75 million for Technology Teacher Training to help train new teachers to use technology in the classroom.
• $566 million for Safe and Drug Free Schools to help schools become safe, drug-free learning environments, and provide funds to place drug and violence prevention program coordinators in middle schools.
• $120 million for GEAR UP to give disadvantaged students and their families pathways to college by partnering middle and high schools with colleges and universities or through state-administered programs.
• $75 million for Improving Teacher Quality to help recruit and prepare talented, dedicated and well-prepared teachers for America's classrooms.
• $10 million for Learning Anytime Anywhere Partnerships to support access to quality postsecondary education and lifelong learning through the use of distance education technology and related innovations.

The FY 1999 budget will also continue the effort to raise standards through help from Goals 2000, and provide the largest maximum award ever for Pell Grants--$3,125 a year per eligible student--for lower-income students to attend college. For more information about the U.S. Department of Education's fiscal year 1999 budget, call 1-800-USA-LEARN or visit http://www.ed.gov/inits/FY99/.

The E-Rate Has Arrived and America's Schools and Libraries Are Starting to Benefit

"The E-Rate and the Technology Literacy Challenge Fund will allow our nation to take a giant step forward, improving the education we provide our children," Vice President Gore said. "Together we are using our newest tools to support our oldest goals -- helping our students learn by giving them the best education we can."

Research has demonstrated that as a result of appropriate and wise use of new technology, test scores in math are higher, attendance rates have improved, students' writing has improved, teachers have better training, and parents have become more involved in their children's education. The E-Rate, which is administered by the Schools and Libraries Corporation (SLC), will provide $1.925 billion in discounts in during an 18-month period. The discounts, which range from 20 percent to 90 percent, cover internal wiring costs for the neediest applicants and subsidize Internet access and telecommunications services for all eligible applicants. Due to a large number of awardees, the discounts are being sent out in waves between November 1998 and January 1999. The first two weeks of the E-Rate announcements included more than 6,000 funding commitment letters totaling almost $150 million in discounts.

The "digital divide" -- the increasing disparity between those who have access to this technology, and those who do not -- is centered along socioeconomic and geographic lines. In an effort to bridge this gap, the E-Rate makes the nation's poor and rural schools and libraries eligible for the deepest discounts. For example, Marcus Garvey Elementary School in Chicago is already reaping the benefits of the E-Rate. This inner city school, which previously could not afford any sort of advanced telecommunications, is receiving nearly $90,000 in first-wave discounts, enabling it to become completely networked. Four schools in rural Alabama's Marengo County School District will receive $100,000 in E-Rate discounts, making it possible for them to also hook up to the Internet for the first time.

Vice President Gore and Secretary Riley also announced the Department of Education's Technology Literacy Challenge Fund, which provides $425 million in grants to states and local communities. This fund complements the E-Rate by allowing local communities to purchase modern computers, train teachers to effectively integrate technology, and utilize high-quality educational software. Together, these programs will support effective integration of technology throughout the curriculum.

The application window for E-Rate funding in 1999 began December 1 and will last until March 19, 1999. For more information, visit the SLC's Web site at http://www.sl.universalservice.org/ or contact them at 1-888-203-8100.

Donations of School Supplies Urgently Needed

Hurricane Mitch, one of the strongest and most damaging storms of the 20th century and the worst ever to hit Central America, left more than 18,000 people dead or missing and caused $5.3 billion in damages. Nearly 5,000 schools were destroyed or damaged by Hurricanes Mitch and Georges at an estimated cost of $186 million. The Honduran education system was the most severely effected with a third of its school facilities badly damaged. Serious losses to school infrastructure also occurred in Nicaragua, El Salvador and the Dominican Republic.

In addition to the loss of school buildings, all the education systems affected by the hurricanes suffered damage to supporting infrastructure (electrical lines, water and sanitation); school furnishings (desks and other equipment); and school supplies (textbooks and teaching materials, notebooks, pencils, rulers, bookbags and chalk). In many areas, schools are now the primary shelter for thousands of families making school start-up difficult. In Honduras, the school and transportation systems were so badly damaged that the country has decided to utilize radio to deliver education to students housed in tents and temporary shelters.

International donors, working with the respective governments in Central America, will rebuild schools as quickly as possible. Nevertheless, many children, especially those whose parents have lost everything, need schools supplies so that they can resume some normalcy in their lives. Items needed include desks, blackboards and chalk, pens and pencils, crayons, erasers, notebooks, bookbags, Spanish dictionaries, rulers, protractors, radios with cassette recorders, blank cassettes and batteries.

Transportation and distribution of the supplies is a problem, and donors are encouraged to make their own arrangements to ship commodities. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through its coordination unit, International Resources Group (IRG), will make every effort to help with the transportation and distribution of donations. For more information, write to: IRG, 1211 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036, call (202) 289-0100 or e-mail mitch@irgltd.com.

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