The Magnet Schools Assistance program (MSAP), administered by the Department's
Office of Innovation and Improvement, provides financial assistance to school
districts that are seeking to improve educational programs and to reduce, prevent
or eliminate minority group isolation. The program provides three-year grants
for the enhancement or establishment of magnet schools. The Assistant Secretary
for Civil Rights reviews applicants' voluntary desegregation plans to determine
if they are "adequate under Title VI." Additionally, the Assistant Secretary
is required to certify the civil rights eligibility of applicants for MSAP funds
and to annually review school district grantees' progress in meeting their desegregation
goals. During FY 2003, OCR reviewed the annual reports of the 62 districts receiving
MSAP assistance. As necessary, OCR also provided technical assistance to several
MSAP recipients in complying with civil rights statutes as well as program goals.
Under OCR's Vocational Education Programs Guidelines, state vocational
education agencies are responsible for conducting civil rights reviews and other
compliance activities with their sub-recipient schools and programs and reporting
to OCR about these activities. State vocational education agency reports are submitted
biennially to OCR, which provides recommendations for improving student access
to vocational programs on the basis of race, national origin, sex or disability.
OCR responded to the state agency reports by providing suggestions for enhancing
the effectiveness of the agencies' compliance and enforcement activities.
| "The work of reform is well begun and we are determined to continue
that effort until every school in America is a place of learning and achievement."
President George W. Bush
Radio Address to the Nation
January 4, 2003 |
OCR, in conjunction with state agencies, presented training conferences for
state agency civil rights staff. These conferences provided in-depth training
on the procedures and techniques state agencies should use in conducting their
civil rights compliance reviews and reporting to OCR. Training also was provided
about program requirements and investigating techniques applicable to a variety
of complex civil rights issues. Participants later reported that the workshops
provided valuable tools and information, as well as contacts, to enhance the effectiveness
of their civil rights compliance and enforcement programs.
