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The Review is a monthly update from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult Education, under the leadership of Dr. Susan Sclafani. Formerly entitled OVAE Review, the new title reflects the broadened mission of this office. The Office of Vocational and Adult Education is now serving as the Department's lead on issues concerning high school education reform. More particularly, this office is also charged with the responsibility of advancing policies and initiatives that assist America's youth and adults as they prepare for education and employment in the twenty-first century. The title change reflects our broadened mission, and consequently, the content of The Review has changed as well.

Items in The Review are grouped under three categories that reflect OVAE's expanded mission and audience: Secondary, Career and Technical Education; Adult Education and Literacy; and Community Colleges. Each of these areas is integral to our general goals of improving student achievement and enhancing the quality of and access to postsecondary and adult education. Assistant Secretary Sclafani is committed to using The Review as a vehicle for communicating vital information about significant developments and promising practices in each of these areas, particularly as they contribute to this office's key objectives of ensuring that American youth complete high school and be prepared for postsecondary education and employment; supporting community and technical colleges in their mission of education, career preparation, workforce development and economic development; and expanding adult learning to bring higher levels of literacy and English fluency to underserved Americans.

We have also added a few other features-- "The Movers and Shakers" column, in which we spotlight high schools that are improving academic achievement; "Happenings around the Department," in which we provide other news from around the Department of Education; and finally "No Child Left Behind: The Facts vs. the Myths," where we set the record straight on the law.

We hope you find the new content and format to be a good source of information, so you can join us in improving education for all students in this great nation.

Baton Rouge makes the most of its special status as a magnet school with a strong commitment to college preparation as well as to the performing arts. Pledged to advance the quality of its educational offerings, and to ensure all students achieve, the school's success stems from the administrators, teachers and parents willingness to work together. This shared vision of academic achievement for all earned the Baton Rouge Magnet High School (BRMHS) designation as a No Child Left Behind-Blue Ribbon School.

Students know going in that their parents want the rigor of BRMHS to carry over from school to home and from there to college. The result, amply demonstrated by test results, (BRMHS employs Louisiana and Iowa norm-referenced test programs and student scores far exceed the national norms) shows a participating, involved student body and prepared, in-for-the-long haul teachers. How do they do it?

First, the curriculum is no-nonsense, concentrating on core subjects and course sequences that properly equip students for academic and technical achievement. Here is how the school puts it:

"In selecting courses for the coming year, all students are strongly advised to seek the counsel of their parents and their BRMHS counselors and teachers. Upper classmen should be particularly careful that all graduation requirements are being met. Students in all grades are required to schedule seven classes (5 of these must be academic subjects for grades 9-11 and grade 12 must have at least 4 academic subjects)."

Surveys of graduated students show that 98 percent enroll in a four-year college. This commendable outcome reflects the demanding regimen. Graduation requirements include four units of English, math, science, and social studies, and at least two units of a foreign language.

Monthly professional development sessions cover research-based strategies. As the school says, "These strategies are used for increasing student achievement." They are aligned with one of the components of the No Child Left Behind Act, which requires using "what works" vs. using the latest "fad."

The school's new principal, Nanette Greer, is also addressing a nagging concern that is affecting many high schools across the country, keeping students in school. She candidly states her concern as well as how she is working to deal with it.

"Over the years, the ninth grade students have had difficulty in their transition into high school. Historically, we lose one-third of the freshman class each year due to academics or attendance. Due to this problem in the past, I have decided to focus especially on the ninth grade class to ensure their success."

Dr. Greer has instituted a process to expose at-risk students entering grade nine to a diagnostic battery. With these results in hand, a specially selected group of remedial experts work intensively to bring students up to the level of their peers. As far as possible, BRMHS will identify strengths of students and develop aids to foster their sense of belonging.

We know as educators and as folks who have a stake in education that success in any school comes from good leadership, quality teachers, engaged parents, and an over all attitude that every child can learn. Baton Rouge Magnet High School subscribes to this principle as revealed in its goal to provide academic excellence to all and to ensure that no child is left behind.

On October 8th, the Office of Adult and Vocational Education hosted Secretary Rod Paige's High School Leadership Summit in which we brought together education, business, and policy leaders to discuss innovative and effective methods for transforming high schools into top-quality learning institutions. The materials developed for the summit which are now available on our website are as follows:

• Summit Issue Papers - a series of papers highlighting key issues in high school reform;

• Resource Guide - resources to help reform leaders get started;

• Summit Web cast - proceedings of the October 8th summit;

• Federal Student Aid website - information to assist students planning for education beyondhigh school; and

• Career Voyages website - information that helps students and adults relate education and skills to careers.

Available at http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ovae/pi/hsinit/index.html.

During the U.S. Department of Education's High School Leadership Summit held on October 8, 2003, Secretary Paige announced Preparing America's Future: The High School Initiative. As a part of this initiative, we are in the process of planning next steps for a series of regional summits to help state and local leaders make further progress toward improving educational opportunities for America's young men and women. These summits will take place around the country this spring and summer. More information regarding these summits will be made available at http://www.ed.gov/highschool.

Nearly one third of the freshmen who entered higher education in fall 2000 enrolled in a remedial reading, writing, or math course, according to Remedial Education at Degree-Granting Postsecondary Institutions in Fall 2000, a new department report by the National Center for Education Statistics in the Institute of Education Sciences.

Overall, twenty-eight percent of college freshmen, or 671,000 students, enrolled in at least one remedial course in the year 2000. Remediation rates were highest at public institutions of higher education. Forty-two percent of entering freshmen at public two-year colleges and about one out of five (20 percent) entering freshmen at four-year public institutions enrolled in at least one remedial course. At all types of institutions, a higher proportion of freshmen were enrolled in remedial math courses than in remedial reading or writing.

Although the issue of college remediation has received a great deal of attention from the public and policy-makers in recent years, NCES found that the proportion of freshmen enrolled in remedial courses was no different in 2000 than it was in 1995, when NCES last surveyed institutions of higher education on this issue. What has changed since 1995 is that the average freshman appears to be spending more time in remedial courses: the percentage of institutions indicating that the average student spent a year or more in remedial courses rose from 33 to 39 percent between 1995 and 2000.

"I wish I could tell you that remediation isn't necessary in today's world, but sadly, it is," U.S. Education Secretary Rod Paige said upon the release of the report. "My hope is that through No Child Left Behind, we can strengthen our nation's primary and secondary education so that all students enter the postsecondary world as prepared as possible. While I understand the need for remedial education, I would hope that someday we wouldn't need to rely on remediation to do the job that the K-12 system should be doing to academically prepare students."

The rise of students taking college remedial courses is one of the many issues that is being considered by The Secretary's High School Initiative: Preparing America's Future. This initiative is assessing innovative and effective methods for transforming high schools into top quality learning institutions.

The NCES study can be downloaded at:
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2004010

The Office of Vocational and Adult Education in partnership with the Community College Research Center recently released a report that examines the variety and effectiveness of programs that are designed to ease the transition from high school into college.

As participation in postsecondary education increases, educators and policymakers have developed a number of programs that allow high schools students to experience the demands of college. Although there are many initiatives designed to facilitate the transition to college, the credit based transitions programs that are examined in this report, allow high school students to take college courses that will earn them college credit.

Credit based transition programs have many proponents who will cite a variety of benefits to the students who are in them. These benefits range from preparing students for the academic rigors of college by exposing them to intense curriculum in the field they wish to pursue, to lowering the cost of postsecondary education for students (where state policy allows for it) by allowing them to earn free college credits. However, there was still very little research-based information out there to guide educators and policy makers through the process of implementing, expanding or improving these programs. Promoting College Access and Success: A Review of Credit-based Transition Programs PDF (569K) MS WORD (118K) examines how these programs are structured as well as looking at their effectiveness. It is one of several publications under the Accelerating Student Success project.

Copies of this report may also be obtained through 1-800-USA-Learn.

In keeping with President Bush's New Freedom Initiative (NFI), The Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE), in partnership with the Department of Labor (DOL), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), recently held five regional forums on learning disabilities and adult education that received high marks from participants. The NFI is a part of a nationwide effort to remove barriers to community life for the over 54 million Americans with physical and learning disabilities, by increasing access to assistive technologies, expanding opportunities for Americans with disabilities to integrate into the workforce and to avail themselves of educational opportunities. The purpose of the meeting was to build state capacity to assist adults with learning disabilities, by facilitating coordinated policy development. State teams totaling nearly 200 individuals, met in regional forums in Denver, CO, Chicago, IL, Cambridge, MA, Atlanta, GA and Baltimore, MD. The forums supported the New Freedom Initiative by doing the following:

1. Providing an understanding of the Department's goals and objectives concerning adults with learning disabilities;
2. Promoting an understanding of President Bush's New Freedom Initiative as well as how other federal laws related to adults with learning disabilities impact state policy;
3. Improving literacy and employment skills of adults with learning disabilities through statewide policy coordination;
4. Facilitating creation of new and innovative partnerships among state partners to make adult literacy services available more widely and promote smooth transitions to employment;
5. Facilitating development of adult learning disability policy based on high-quality, research-based models that equip adults to succeed in the next steps of their education and employment.

As a result of the forum, participating states are increasing interagency efforts to improve services to adults with learning disabilities. OVAE is providing on-going technical assistance as well as documenting state progress.

For more information on the New Freedom Initiative, go to http://hhs.gov/newfreedom/

The Partnership for 21st Century Skills is a new public-private organization formed to promote the teaching of skill sets demanded by growth industries. It brings together a wide spectrum of stakeholders to define and assess 21st century skills, to make recommendations, and to provide tools for implementation. The Partnership comprises Apple, Cable in the Classroom, Cisco, Dell, the National Education Association, Microsoft, SAP and the Time-Warner Foundation. The Partnership is also supported, in part, by the U.S. Department of Education. It has a free report Learning for the 21st Century and companion document Milestones for Improving Learning and Education (MILE), as well as an online self-assessment questionnaire to help communities develop a framework for moving forward. For more information, visit their web site at http://www.21stcenturyskills.org.

(Center for Workforce Success-What's Working Newsletter, November/December 2003-Issue Number 22)

U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige announced this fall the award of Community Technology grants totaling over $32 million. The purpose of these grants is to create or expand existing community technology centers (CTCs) to provide access to information technology and training for thousands of low-income residents in economically distressed urban and rural communities throughout the country. There were a total of 78 awardees, 57 in the non-novice category and 21 in the novice category. Twenty-five percent of the funding was appropriated to novice grantees. In keeping with the No Child Left Behind Act, this program will emphasize increased academic achievement for low-achieving secondary school students in the core academic subjects of reading, language arts, and mathematics. All grantees have partnerships with local schools and community-based organizations, which jointly provide academic and social services to students and residents of disadvantaged communities. For more information, visit the web site at: http://www.ed.gov/programs/comtechcenters/index.html

(Center for Workforce Success-What's Working Newsletter, November/December 2003-Issue Number 22)

"The key is to train people for the work which actually exists. There is no better place to do that than in a community college. That's why we're spending $250 million to encourage that." These remarks by President George W. Bush at Owens Community College on January 21 reinforced his State of the Union address announcement about the Jobs for the 21st Century initiative funding partnerships between community colleges and employers in high-demand job sectors. Administered through the Department of Labor, these new competitive Community-based Job Training grants will be used for training in community and technical colleges that are linked with local employers. The President's State of the Union remarks about community colleges were received with a standing ovation by the Congress--reflecting broad support for the role these institutions play in workforce development. In his speech the next day, the President highlighted the ability of community colleges to be flexible, responsive to employer needs, and adept at training people to keep abreast with the fast pace of technological advances.

The U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions has asked the General Accounting Office (GAO) to study the multiplicity of roles that community colleges and technical schools play as pathways to higher academic learning and employment for both youth and adults (http://ira.rose-hulman.edu/E-AIR/air/545.txt). The study will include a web-based survey of all public community colleges and technical schools in the U.S. on topics such as: academic transfer programs; occupational, professional and technical education programs (both credit and non-credit); remedial courses; basic skills programs and courses; contract training and other programs such as personal enrichment; sources of revenue and funding; and Federal Workforce Investment Act participation. The survey is scheduled for release in January 2004, and colleges are encouraged to respond. A GAO report to the Congress will be issued in the fall, and will be available the GAO website after publication. Further information is available from Susan J. Lawless at the GAO, LawlessS@gao.gov.

As part of the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2, parents or guardians of students with disabilities were surveyed about their expectations for their child's academic achievement and postsecondary attendance. Chapter 3 of the recent Youth with Disabilities: A Changing Population shows that in 2001, 85 percent expected their child to earn a regular high school diploma, 62 percent expected him/her to attend postsecondary, 47 percent expected him/her to graduate from a community college, and 36 percent expected him/her to graduate from a baccalaureate institution. While parent expectations about high school and baccalaureate degrees had not changed since 1987, expectations about community colleges increased by nearly 13 percent. In addition, the expectation for him/her definitely getting full-time employment increased nearly nine percent. The study also found a rise in the household education and income of parents or guardians.

The U.S. Department of Education is actively recruiting for the position of Director for the Policy, Research and Evaluation Staff, within the Office of Vocational and Adult Education.

The Director of the Policy, Research and Evaluation Staff is responsible for overseeing a team of policy and research staff that have primary responsibility for policy development, budget analysis, and analysis of research and evaluation. The Director guides formulation of overall policies and procedures necessary to prepare new or revised legislation and prepares all testimony for reauthorization, budget, and oversight hearings conducted by the Congress.

Day to day responsibilities include, but are not limited to: advising the Assistant Secretary on policy matters which include legislation and authorization levels, regulations, program administration, testimony and relationships with the States and constituent groups; managing the preparation of rules and regulations; coordinating and monitoring the clearance of rules and regulations, working with program staff in the development of program announcements, guidelines, and publication notices in the Federal Register; making recommendations to the Assistant Secretary on legislative matters; and managing a staff of 10 policy and research staff.

The vacancy announcement for this position will be posted through EDHires, the Department's Internet-based automated hiring system. Information about EDHires and current vacancy announcements can be accessed by clicking on the following link: http://www.ed.gov/about/jobs/open/edhires/index.html.

For the second year in a row and only the third time in its 23-year history, the Education Department has received an unqualified or "clean" opinion on its fiscal year 2003 financial statements, U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige announced today.

The clean opinion, coveted because it reflects an auditor's unqualified acceptance of an organization's financial statements, culminated an audit by the national accounting firm of Ernst & Young. In addition, the opinion demonstrates that the department has eliminated several potential areas of concern that were referenced in last year's audit.

Paige also announced that the department has met the new, accelerated deadline for submitting the audit results to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The results are part of the department's Fiscal-Year 2003 Performance and Accountability Report and demonstrate the department's commitment to producing increasingly timely, accurate financial data to assist with making informed management decisions. The report outlines the department's performance and progress towards meeting its mission, goals and objectives.

"These are major milestones in our efforts to foster a culture of accountability not just in our nation's schools through the No Child Left Behind Act, but also in our own house," Secretary Paige said. "We have made great strides in improving financial operations here at the Department of Education, and this audit proves that we can lead by example. It also demonstrates that we are at the beginning of a sustained, trustworthy stewardship of taxpayer dollars here at the department."

Chief Financial Officer Jack Martin noted that the clean audit opinion represents a vital achievement under the President's Management Agenda and credited a sophisticated, outcome-based strategy with specific objectives for helping attain the latest clean opinion. Among its goals:

• Continuing significant improvements to accounting reconciliation and reporting capabilities;

• Applying additional new internal control and financial management policies; and

• Instituting preparation of quarterly senior management financial reports, another historic first for the department.

"This success was produced by the vision of President Bush under the President's Management Agenda and the unparalleled teamwork put into place and subsequently supported by Secretary Paige," Martin said. "Every member of the Department of Education contributed this year to making sure the effort at sustaining the progress we've made continues."

For more details on management improvement, visit the department's priorities Web page at http://www.ed.gov/about/inits/ed/index.html.

(U.S. Department of Education, Office of Public Affairs, News Branch)

• Some critics charge that No Child Left Behind takes away local power and imposes unfunded mandates. But No Child Left Behind mandates only one thing: results for every child.

• The law ends the old days of ever-higher federal spending with no expectation or demand for better student achievement or wise use of taxpayer funds.

  • No Child Left Behind respects the rights of states to establish their own standards, align their curriculum to their standards, and assess whether or not students are meeting those standards.
  • Schools and school districts must be accountable for how they spend taxpayer funds.
  • States must improve schools, produce results and ensure that every child learns.

• This law is amply funded. Democrats and Republicans passed a bill that combines record spending with a commitment to reform and results.

  • Fiscal Year 2003 funding for No Child Left Behind programs increased by more than 36 percent over 2001, and 60 percent over 2000 levels.
  • This year America will spend more than $8,200 per student of which the federal contribution is now 8.4 percent.
  • Thanks to the record spending in No Child Left Behind, federal discretionary spending on education has more than doubled since 1996.
  • Spending without a plan, without accountability, without studying what works, without setting standards or expectations is a mandate of sorts--a mandate to fail every time.

• No Child Left Behind provides record spending--the highest spending per child ever. That federal money is meant to supplement and boost state and local spending, ensuring that all children receive a world-class education.

  • Educators can spend the money more freely than ever before, but they cannot waste taxpayer money on programs that don't work. That's why the bill measures every child's progress with tests and gives every parent report cards on how their school is doing.
  • According to a new study from the National Bureau of Economic Research, the average cost for testing is just $5.81 per student--just a tiny fraction of the $8,200 spent per student.
  • Total spending on all testing is a mere seven-hundredths of one percent (.07 percent) of the cost of K-12 education.

• In addition, No Child Left Behind funds the development and implementation of new assessments required by the law. Unlike the previous law, which provided no money for required assessments, NCLB provides more than $1.1 billion in state formula grant funding over three years before states are even required to put the new assessments into place in the 2005-2006 school year.

Call 1-888- 814-6252 or visit www.nclb.gov for more information on No Child Left Behind.