Up Front

Home Stretch?

It’s taken two-and-a-half years, but a reauthorized Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is in sight. The Senate finally approved a bill reauthorizing the landmark 1975 act, which guarantees educational services to more than 6 million children with disabilities. That means it’s on to a House-Senate conference committee, which will reconcile the differences between the House and Senate proposals and draft legislation to present to the full Congress. (The House approved a bill reauthorizing IDEA last year.)

So how did we fare? On the upside, the bill protects services for transient students, implements a 15-state paperwork reduction project, provides for enhanced professional development, and calls for a study on how environmental factors impact children’s developmental disabilities.

But the Senate bill is not without flaws. Most notably, the Senate failed to pass an amendment to fully fund IDEA over the next six years. Currently, Congress covers roughly 20 percent of the costs to educate special needs students, just half of the 40 percent committed in the original law. That shortfall has cost local schools and taxpayers more than $300 million during the past 29 years. (To see the impact on your state, visit www.nea.org/lac/idea/fy05ideafunding.html.) Much work still remains on clarifying the definition of a “highly qualified” special education teacher as well.

Want more? Join NEA’s activist list by e-mailing pralabate@nea.org. You also can keep up with the

latest developments and contact your congressional reps by visiting www.nea.org/lac/idea.

Weighty Matters

The percentage of overweight children and teens in the United States has more than doubled during the past three decades, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. More than 15 percent of children ages 6–11 are overweight, compared with just 6.5 percent in the late 1970s. Meanwhile, 15.5 percent of 12- to 19-year-olds are overweight, compared with just 5 percent 30 years ago.

Get That Party Started!

How can you build grassroots power for the public schools and have a fabulous time doing it? Easy—You can host, or just attend, one of the thousands of house parties that NEA and several other pro-public education groups are organizing on September 22.

You’ll get to know fellow supporters of public education—educators, parents, and other good people from the neighborhood. Will there be good food, frolic, and fellowship? Definitely!

And by the end, your community will have a new group of activists ready and able to make themselves heard by local, state, and national leaders whenever they take up key issues around public education. Politicians do listen to people—when there are enough of them. 

The groups launching this effort with NEA include MoveOn.org, ACORN, and the Campaign for America’s Future. Go to www.greatpublicschools.org to find a house party in your community or how to host one (and the resources available to get your party jumpin’).

See you there!

Two Tickets, Please

Sherrell Ingram just wanted to go to the prom with her best friend, a female student from another school. But, when Ingram, a student at Lago Vista High School in Texas, tried to buy a couples ticket, she found out about a new rule: Your date must be the opposite sex. It wasn’t even a district rule, just the whim of the principal. That’s when her mom, Ginger White, decided to take a stand.

“You can’t teach your children to fight for what you believe in if you don’t do it yourself,” says White, who sought counsel with the People for the American Way Foundation. PFAWF contacted the principal and asked her to rescind the discriminatory policy to avoid legal action. The school ultimately complied, but White remains on alert. “I’m afraid they’ll go to the school board and make it a school rule. But I’m watching the news every day. Watching and reading.”

Free Speech On Campus!

The “Policies and Procedures on Demonstrations” for Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) warmly embrace the “free expression of ideas.” But apparently, that free expression applies only to university administrators and not to NEA members.

Members of the SIUE Professional Staff Association planned to express themselves last winter by picketing a university trustee board meeting, an accepted bargaining tactic since 1998. But SIUE Human Resources Director A.G. Monaco denied permission stating the local Association was not a “University-sponsored organization.” The Illinois Education Association-NEA (IEA-NEA) immediately sought legal relief from the ban. On the day before the planned union action, a federal district court judge upheld the right of the union members to picket outside the meeting.

The next frigid day, IEA-NEA members picketed without incident and even addressed trustees about their top concern: a 2 percent pay increase granted to non-union SIUE employees but denied to them. At press time, IEA-NEA still was pushing for that raise.

“Everything takes longer in university bargaining,” says UniServ Director Mike Cook, “but at least certain administrators now know they can’t take every opportunity to intimidate employees.”

You’ve Got College

For generations, expectant high school seniors have dashed to their mailboxes looking for “the envelope,” bulky with promise or despairingly thin, that traditionally signaled acceptance (or rejection) to college. But today’s teens may be better off sticking close to their computers for the big news.

Perhaps as many as one-third of colleges and universities currently notify prospective students of their status by e-mail or through secure Web sites, estimates Barmak Nassirian, an official with the Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admission Officers, who describes the trend as “becoming increasingly ubiquitous.”

Still, privacy concerns and the high cost of implementing a secure system have caused many schools to resist the trend. Others simply find the approach too impersonal for communicating information of such consequence.

But the students don’t seem to mind. “It’s been well received,” observes John Reider of the National Association of College Admission Counselors. “And believe me, if it wasn’t, colleges who are very customer sensitive wouldn’t do it.

More Than a Test Score

By now, you’ve probably seen whether your school made Adequate Yearly Progress last year under the revised Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) (or you’ll find out soon). And, if you work at one of the many schools that missed the mark, take heart. The mark isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

Judging schools solely on the percentage of students who pass a single test each year does not accurately reflect a school’s performance—something NEA has claimed all along. But now the Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA), a nonprofit assessment group, and the National Center for Fair and Open Testing (FairTest) are sounding the call in two reports released recently.

By expecting all schools to meet the same standard in the same time frame, ESEA does not recognize student progress along the way, which, NWEA claims, better indicates whether a school “is maximizing student potential, or merely maintaining the status quo.” Instead, accountability systems should evaluate student learning in multiple ways that give students feedback about their performance, according to FairTest.

Fortunately, Congress has taken note, introducing 20 NEA-supported bills to address concerns about funding, sanctions, student transfers, and teacher quality, among other topics, under ESEA. And 170 members of the House and Senate have co-sponsored these efforts. Is your member of Congress among them? Check out the list of bills at ww.nea.org/lac/esea/ 03nclb.html and find out.

Cha-Ching
There Goes Your Salary

Monday’s lesson on juicy words may have cost $20—but it was a hit: the kids devoured those gummy worms. Wednesday’s crystal gardens took another $10 out of your pocketbook, even if parents did donate the aluminum pie plates. Then ice cream on Friday for the darlings who sat in their seats, politely raised their hands, and kept their feet to themselves added up to (a very well-spent) $15.

If only that was it! But you couldn’t help but order a $30 denim beanbag chair for the reading corner. And how could you NOT buy the on-sale $22 winter jacket when you know there are at least three kids in your class who shiver on their walk to school?

But it adds up, doesn’t it? When you look at your bank account, you find yourself looking twice at the help-wanted sign at Barnes & Noble.

So what do you spend on classroom supplies and goodies? Participate in NEA Today’s online survey at www.nea.org/neatodayextra and let us know by September 15.

Driving Forces

When bus driver Julie Ely started working for East Allen, Indiana, County Schools more than 10 years ago, the words ESPs and professional development rarely made it into the same sentence.

Photo by Tom Strickland Photography

“I was basically taught how to drive the bus,” she says.

But Ely and fellow driver Mark Smith wanted something better for the drivers who followed in their footsteps. So, three years ago they started a mentoring program to connect new and substitute drivers with their more experienced colleagues.

In addition to weekly or biweekly conversations with their mentors, new drivers attend four sessions during the school year on child development and behavior. The workshops arm drivers with techniques, similar to those used in the classroom, to manage their students. Since the program’s inception, formal discipline referrals have decreased 15 percent and fewer drivers have left the district, Smith says. Most importantly, drivers now have a venue where they can ask questions and get advice.

“The mentor program is about building relationships,” says Ely. “The drivers feel like they have backing in what they do now. It’s a support system.”

Why Good Girls Go Bad

The image of women as catty and vicious is age old and continues to turn up—even in television characters. These images concerned Lyn Mikel Brown, a women’s studies professor at Colby College in Maine, so she decided to find out why girls act the way they do.

Brown analyzed interviews and focus groups with 421 girls in grades 1–12. The study led to her book, Girlfighting: Betrayal and Rejection Among Girls (New York University Press, 2003). Brown found that in today’s still-sexist climate, “it is simply easier and safer and ultimately more profitable for girls to take out their fears and anxieties on other girls rather than on boys or on a culture that denigrates, idealizes, or eroticizes qualities associated with being feminine.”

During her research, Brown discovered three key areas where adolescent girls project their anxieties and pain onto others: sexuality (too much or too little), attitude (too “full of themselves”), and appearance/body image (fitting the media’s ideals and gaining the attention of boys). 

What to do? Schools should encourage various ways for girls to demonstrate positive attributes, such as through sports, social activism, and in “safe places” for sharing ideas and feelings. “We’re going to have to help girls figure out how to negotiate their power,” says Brown

No More Test Stress

Aspiring teachers in Virginia can breathe a little easier now that they have an alternative to taking Praxis I, the basic skills test necessary for entering many teacher education programs. Students who score at least an 1100 on their SAT (and at least 530 on both the math and verbal sections) can bypass the test. That’s good news for new teachers, since Virginia requires the highest Praxis passing score in the nation. “We think this is a very good thing,” says Betty Lambdin, director of instruction and professional development for the Virginia Education Association. Connecticut, Delaware, and Georgia have similar policies, she added. Students still must pass Praxis II, though, to receive a state teaching license. Thirty-five states use the Praxis Series tests to license teachers

SH!
Little Voices

Teaching the alphabet to preschoolers is rewarding and sometimes surprising. During a field trip to a local outdoor mall, I reminded my four-year-old students to stay together and to talk in quiet voices. One of my preschoolers turned to the other children and said, in a pitch every teacher would appreciate, “Yes, talk in a lower-case voice!”

—Evie Safran
Preschool Teacher
Charlottesville, Virginia

Have a funny school story you’d like to share? Send it to neatoday@nea.org.

Technology

Bye Bye Blackboard

By Kristen Loschert

Tired of screeching chalk and dust-covered clothes?
Such hazards of the trade are becoming a thing of the past as schools send traditional classroom tools the way of fountain pens and dunce caps.

What could possibly turn even the most aloof teen into such an energetic learner? Rugari’s secret weapon: the interactive whiteboard, the hottest trend in education technology.

It’s often called a “SMART Board” after one of the more popular models—and with good reason. This chalkboard-size device resembles a flat screen television and functions like a touch-screen computer monitor. The board connects to any desktop or laptop computer and, with the help of a projector, puts the computer screen in front of an entire class. More than 100,000 classrooms in 65 countries use the technology.

But the bells and whistles don’t stop there. Using a light pen, or even their fingers, teachers can write notes, manipulate images on the screen, open new files and programs, run a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation, log on to the Internet, show a short film, and even record a lecture without ever stepping away from the board—or the front of the class. Then, with a single touch, teachers can save it all in the computer and recall it during their next class period or post it on the Web.

“It’s a wonderful tool,” says Diane DeFalco, a biology teacher at Edison. “This is much more interactive. It’s incredible what we can do now that we couldn’t do before.”

In addition to the board, the technology comes with software that includes templates, maps, graphs, clip art, and virtual tools like protractors, calculators, keyboards, and rulers. Teachers also can import their own still images, video, and audio into the system and customize it to suit their specific lessons.

“I think it forces better teaching,” says Mike Lenowitz, a math teacher and teacher technology trainer at the school. “I have to put more thought into how I organize my notes and think more carefully about what and how I present.” That sort of preparation requires more front-end time, Lenowitz says, but it saves class time. Lenowitz no longer spends time writing notes on the board each period. Instead, he simply opens a file with notes he prepared ahead of time. Students spend more time discussing topics and less time copying notes as well since they can access Lenowitz’s presentations on the class Web site.  

Social studies teachers like Edison’s Gene Wood enjoy the more in-depth class discussions as well. Like Lenowitz, Wood also posts his lectures online for students. But the SMART Board really brings the history alive. With a click of a button, Wood moves seamlessly from a snappy PowerPoint presentation about the Declaration of Independence to an upbeat video clip from the movie-musical 1776, without ever switching to a different piece of equipment.  

“One of the things I noticed right off the bat [when I started teaching] is students would not come up to the board,” says Stringham, a fifth-year teacher. “With the SMART Board, they want to come up to the board, write on it, just touch it and play with it. It’s really increased participation.”

The reason is simple, say Stringham’s students: chalk is boring. But the SMART Board, now that’s cool.

Joline King, a kindergarten teacher at Kathryn Sue Simonton Elementary School in Queen Creek, Arizona, agrees. King’s students enjoy the SMART Board just as much as the Edison students, eagerly writing letters on the giant screen, while an audio program provides the correct pronunciation.

“It definitely makes learning more hands-on so you hit all of the learning styles, and it helps the kids learn faster because it is so interactive,” she says.

When Simonton Elementary School opened last year, the school came equipped with 42 SMART Boards, one for each classroom. But, new technology doesn’t come cheap. A new SMART Board costs between $1,000 and $2,000, and the price includes the board, software, upgrades, and access to online training, support, and teaching resources. The technology also requires a digital projector, which costs about $1,000 if a school does not have one, and access to a computer. Since administrators at Simonton planned to have the technology from the beginning, they had to make some trade-offs—like  settling for a smaller parking lot and less storage space—given the budget constraints facing the rural school where half of the students receive a free or reduced-price lunch. But the technology has been worth it, says Susan Kruse, the school’s principal.

“In this day and age, high-tech is such a big deal. If we are going to keep the interest of the children, we have to have something they can relate to,” she says. “The children are no longer passive learners. They are actively involved in their education.” 

Fortunately, Edison High School in Virginia did not have to wait for the school system to foot the bill for the 97 SMART Boards it installed during the past four years. Instead, the school received funding from a local business foundation. (SMART Technologies Inc., which introduced the SMART Board in 1991, also supports a foundation that helps schools acquire the technology. Click here for more information)

“The SMART Board and accessories can do all that and even more,” Downey says. “It’s just the best bang for the buck.”

Ultimately, the technology pays for itself by enabling more effective teaching and providing for more student participation.

“We wanted to make it part of the culture of the school, part of what it means to teach here and learn here,” says Lenowitz. “The SMART Board improves my instruction, which improves student learning. It certainly isn’t the answer, but it can’t be ignored as a factor.”

State Report

Judge Hits ‘Pause’ Button

KANSAS After the state legislature adjourned without acting on his order to fix the school funding system, District Judge Terry Bullock ordered Kansas to stop financing all public schools as of June 30, “effectively putting our school system on ‘pause’ until the unconstitutional funding defects are remedied.”

This approach “reflects how seriously Judge Bullock takes this matter that public schools aren’t properly funded,” says Kansas NEA President Christy Levings. “Nothing creates more shock and awe.” A shocked state high court has blocked the ruling—for now.

Step Aside, Step Aside

OHIO The Ohio Supreme Court has ruled four times that the state school funding system is unconstitutional, while a survey revealed that 72 percent of Ohio voters believe that the legislature is paying “too little attention” to education finance. To reinforce the point, educators, parents, students, and community folks from nearly 100 school districts rallied at the State House on May 5.

Said speaker Gary Allen, president of the 131,000-member Ohio Education Association, “Our bottom line is this: Fix school funding or step aside and make room for legislators who want to make a difference in public education.”

A Brighter Funding Story

VIRGINIA The Virginia Education Association’s innovative “Brighter Futures” campaign—focusing research, coalition work, political action, and media/community outreach on school funding needs—is bearing fruit. In May, the state legislature approved a budget that, among other things, boosts school funding by some $1.5 billion over the next biennium, fully funds most state standards, and pays for elementary resource teachers and for middle and secondary school planning time.

For more on the Brighter Futures campaign, go to www.nea.org/neatoday/0201/news12.html.

OK—Feeling Better

OKLAHOMA Beginning this school year, the State of Oklahoma will pay 100 percent of teachers’ individual health insurance premiums. Governor Brad Henry signed this right into law in April, marking the end of a journey for Oklahoma Education Association members, who lobbied long and hard for the benefit.

C’mon, Stick Around!

HAWAII Salaries have been so low that 10 percent of Hawaii’s teachers leave the profession each year. Now Hawaii State Teachers Association members, who work for a single, state-run school district, have ratified a contract that will increase pay—depending on salary schedule placement—from 4 percent to 11 percent, with the majority of teachers receiving 7 percent over the next year.

The pact also provides gains in step increases, increases starting pay to $36,486, and boosts the top teacher salary to $66,203.

We’re 6,400 ESPs Stronger

UTAH By a 97 percent affirmative vote of its Council of Delegates, the 6,400-member Utah School Employees Association (USEA)—the state’s largest organization of education support professionals—has voted to become a “statewide local affiliate” of NEA. USEA leaders say the move was made to improve representation at the national level and to expand benefits and services to members.

Resolved: ‘End the Offset’

ALASKA Following unanimous votes of approval in the Alaska House and Senate, Governor Frank Murkowski has signed House Joint Resolution 30, which urges Congress to repeal the Social Security Act’s Government Pension Offset and Windfall Elimination Provision. The resolution, introduced by NEA-Alaska/Retired members, states that these federal rules, which slash the earned Social Security benefits of certain wage earners, “discourage individuals with private sector or military service from seeking teaching and other public employment positions in Alaska.”

Bad Sign for School Board

NEW YORK For more than 1,000 days, 54 special education aides at the Steuben-Allegany Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) have fought for a new contract. Now the Steuben-Allegany BOCES Employees Support Staff Association has rolled out its newest weapon: an illuminated sign mounted on a flatbed truck.

Recently the truck circled a building where the BOCES board was meeting.  Side A of the flatbed sign read: “We Deserve a Fair Shake.” Side B: “1,000 Days, No Contract.” And NEA-New York drove it all home by telling a fascinated media, “It’s time for the BOCES board to step up and get this contract settled!”

No More Leftovers

NEBRASKA ESPs at three Metropolitan Technical Community College campuses in Omaha have voted for bargaining representation by the Nebraska State Education Association. “The big thing I see in this organization,” says ESP activist Laura England, “is that we now have a right to say to the board, ‘that’s not good enough.’ We want more than the leftovers. We deserve more.”

Resources

Start the School Year Right with a Grant from The NEA Foundation

What creative ideas would you like to try in the classroom? How can you and your colleagues grow
professionally?

Whatever your needs might be, The NEA Foundation’s Innovation and Learning & Leadership Grants can help.

All members who are practicing K–12 public school teachers, education support professionals, or higher education faculty and staff at public colleges and universities are encouraged to apply for a grant from The NEA Foundation. We now offer bigger and better grants—up to $5,000 per project—to fund your BIG ideas. 

And, there’s still time to submit a grant application by the September 15 review date to The NEA Foundation. Applications are accepted on an ongoing, year-round basis for both Innovation Grants and Learning & Leadership Grants, so it’s never too late to apply. But if you apply by September 15, you will know if your grant is approved by February 15.  If the September date is too early for you, start working on a proposal now for our next review date of February 1. Grants fund activities for 12 months from the award date. 

NEA members just like you have applied for and received over 1,500 grants throughout the years. Read about their projects and then submit your own idea.  Innovation Grants and Learning & Leadership Grants are available for all subjects, including the arts, literacy, science, and technology.

Applying for a grant is easy, so why wait? Visit for more information including guidelines and an application. Or call 202-822-7840.

NEA Urban Grants

Since 1985, NEA’s Urban Grants Program has supported local affiliates in the development of education reform leadership programs for PreK– 12/Graduate School faculty and education support professionals. Each year NEA awards 25 Urban Grants in the amount of $5,000 each to NEA local affiliates to support them with these programs.

The NEA Urban Initiatives Unit administers the program and looks for proposals that contribute to restoring public confidence in public education by reflecting some aspect of NEA’s Strategic Priorities which include:

• Student Achievement
• Teacher Quality
• Education Support Professional Quality
• School System Capacity
• Public, Parental, and Business Support
• Association Capacity Building
• Administrative Services and Program Support.         

NEA local affiliates of 500 members or more who are listed with the NEA membership office or the largest local NEA affiliate of any state regardless of membership number are eligible to apply. Applicants must submit a proposal postmarked by September 30 to the NEA Urban Initiatives Office, 1201 16th Street N.W., Washington, DC 20036. Click here for information on applying and on the review process. Selections are made based on the following criteria. Proposals must:

• Have an application that is complete and adheres to all instructions
• Comply with NEA policy
• Benefit the local Association
• Involve local members in the project
• Have objectives that are attainable and measurable
• Promote partnership and collaboration with school districts and other stakeholders
• Demonstrate innovation, originality, and creativity
• Meet identified needs
• Show potential for successful completion and replication
• Have a timeline for activities that is adequate for successful completion of project
• Use funds appropriately; estimate costs realistically
• Confirm that project can continue after monies end.

Decisions by the Evaluation Committee are final. Questions should be directed to NEA Membership and Organizing/Urban Initiatives.

Science & Math Competition

The Siemens Westinghouse Competition, a leading research-based science and math competition, is open to all senior high school students who would like to submit an individual or team research project in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology, or in combinations of these disciplines.

The competition, sponsored by the Siemens Foundation, awards college scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $100,000. The scholarship may be used for any part of a student’s post high school education, including books, tuition, room and board, etc.

In addition, each high school with a regional finalist will receive a $2,000 award to be used to support science, mathematics, and technology programs within the school.

The deadline for entries is October 1, 2004, 5 p.m., ET. Instructions for entering the competition can be found at the Siemens Foundation site.

Searching for  Citizen-Scholar-Athletes

Wendy’s is looking for the nation’s top high school citizen-scholar-athletes. High school administrators are encouraged to nominate two high school seniors, one male and one female, who maintain good grades, play sports, and volunteer in their community.

Twelve National Finalists will be selected and invited to the Wendy’s High School Heisman National Awards Banquet in New York City, and their high schools will receive a $1,000 award in their name.

Among the finalists, two National Award Winners will also be honored during ESPN’s national telecast of the college Heisman Memorial Trophy presentation. Winners will receive a trophy and a $2,500 award for their high school.

All nominations must be submitted by October 1, 2004.

For Science Educators

The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) is accepting nominations for two awards recognizing science educators.

The Shell Science Teaching Award recognizes one outstanding K–12 classroom science teacher who has had a positive impact on his or her students, school, and community through exemplary science teaching. One finalist will receive $10,000 and an all-expense-paid trip to NSTA’s National Convention; two finalists will also receive all-expense-paid trips to the convention. The application deadline for the 2005 award is November 15, 2004. Click here for more information.

NSTA is also accepting applications for the 2005 Delta Education/CPO Science Inquiry-based Science Teaching Excellence Awards. Full-time, K–12 science teachers who successfully use inquiry-based science to enhance teaching and learning in the classroom are eligible to apply for an award in three grade categories: elementary (preK–5); middle level (6–8); and high school (9–12). A judging committee chosen by NSTA will select winners. The application deadline is October 15, 2004.

On The Web

Great Sites for Hispanic Scholars

It’s not too early to start working on those college applications. Students considering college should visit the Hispanic Scholarship Directory, a project of NEA and the National Hispanic Press Foundation. The site includes links to more than 1,000 sources of financial aid, application guidelines, an alumni section, and a database of scholarships searchable by categories, including state, college, and field of interest. Many scholarships listed are available not only to U.S. citizens but to any student of Hispanic descent, regardless of nationality. Another good site to visit is the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute Education Center, which includes a college preparatory kit to assist college-bound students in the admissions process. The site also features a list of scholarships and programs for Hispanic students, information on financial aid for parents, and tips on how to complete college applications.

Speak Up

Students can make their voices heard by visiting the redesigned and improved Voices of Youth (VOY) Web site, a youth community site created by UNICEF. Here, young people from around the world can explore, discuss, and partner on issues related to human rights and social change through e-discussion boards, guidelines, and news.

FirstGov in Español

Looking for government information in Spanish? FirstGov en Español, the U.S. government’s official Spanish-language portal, contains more than 110,000 pages of federal and state government resources in Spanish. The site makes it easy to register to vote, file a consumer complaint, or apply for student financial aid. The site also contains a directory of more than 80 federal agencies that can answer questions in Spanish and a list of more than 200 free government publications in Spanish on federal benefits, taking care of kids, and traveling safely, to name a few.

Materials for Spanish Teachers

Looking for fun ways to teach your elementary school students Spanish? The Cervantes Center has posted free interactive materials online for Spanish teachers to use with children ages 7 to 9, providing a type of game center for children with a variety of activities that reinforce the Spanish they learn in class. The “My world in words” section provides vocabulary lessons that focus on the playground and the park, along with reading and listening comprehension sections.

A Tribute to Pablo Neruda

DFW International presents an online educational guide for teachers that contains exercises and projects suitable for teaching Chilean poet Pablo Neruda’s poetry in elementary, secondary, and college level classes. The organization also links to a PowerPoint presentation about Neruda’s life, works, and vision, complete with pictures, text, and music.

Eye on Earth

Search, view, and download the superset of NASA’s images, animations, and data visualizations of Earth at its Visible Earth site. The images are organized into topics that include agriculture, human dimensions, land surfaces, and oceans. You can also search for images by individual country or by various satellites.

NPR’s Justice Learning

A new Web site from National Public Radio’s Justice Talking program and The New York Times Learning Network provides free materials that engage middle school and high school students in informed political discourse and gives them the skills they need to understand today’s complex issues by providing innovative curricular materials and creative lesson plans. The materials, which cover topics from gun control to voting rights, are coupled with audio from the Justice Talking radio show and articles from The New York Times.

Diversity Calendar

September

September 4—Birthday of Richard Wright

Prominent African-American author Richard Wright was born on this day in 1908. Native Son, his first major novel, was published in 1940.

September 8—International Literacy Day

Sponsored by both the International Reading Association and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, this day highlights the importance of reading, especially from a multicultural and international perspective. Click here for more information.

September 15– October 15—Hispanic Heritage Month

This month is dedicated to recognizing the history of Hispanic Americans and how their contributions and achievements have enriched American culture. Click here for more information.

September 15–16—Rosh Hashanah

These dates mark the Jewish New Year. Rosh Hashanah is the first in a series of high holy days where renewed responsibility is practiced through religious observance.

October

October 1–31—Polish American Heritage Month

The official month to celebrate the achievements of Polish Americans and their contributions to American history and society.

October 9—Anniversary of Benjamin Banneker’s Death

An American astronomer, mathematician, surveyor, and almanac author, Banneker (1731–1806) was known as the “first Black man of science.” He participated in the original survey for the nation’s capital in Washington, D.C.

October 16—World Food Day

Proclaimed in 1979 by the U.N., this day is celebrated worldwide annually to increase awareness, understanding, and year-round action to alleviate hunger. In the United States the endeavor is sponsored by 450 national organizations.

October 18—National Multicultural Diversity Day

Adopted as a national event by the 1993 NEA Representative Assembly, educators can use this day to help students creatively celebrate all forms of diversity in their classrooms and communities.

On TV

Forecast Earth

The Weather Channel, September 2, 4 a.m., ET.
This series focuses on the causes and effects of the powerful climatic and environmental forces changing our planet. The 30-minute episode, “Water’s Fury,” looks at the dangers of flooding and the technology that forecasters use to provide timely flash-flood warnings. Can be taped and used in the classroom forever.

Biography: Charles Dickens

A&E, September 6, 7 a.m., ET. Check local listings.
“Charles Dickens: A Tale of Ambition and Genius” profiles the life of one of the world’s first literary stars, from his troubled childhood to the spectacular successes of his novels Oliver Twist and A Tale of Two Cities. The program can be taped and used in the classroom for two years. Teaching materials are available.

Miss Spider’s Sunny Patch Friends

Nickelodeon, Mondays–Fridays at 10 a.m., ET, beginning September 7. Check local listings.
A loving mom to a mixed brood of insects, Miss Spider helps four spiders and four adoptees from other species solve the problems they encounter while growing up, including relationships with parents, siblings, and friends. The episodes can be taped and used in the classroom for one year.

Chernobyl Heart

HBO, September 9, 8:45 p.m., ET. Check local listings.
The “heart” in the title seems to refer to Adi Roche, the founder of Ireland’s Chernobyl Children’s Project, who leads the camera into places only high school students will want to see. Roche has made it her mission to help a generation of deformed children born after the 1986 nuclear accident. This year’s Oscar winner for documentary short subject, “Chernobyl Heart” takes the audience close to the disaster site, where radiation readings are still high. Director Maryann DeLeo shows us the plight of schoolchildren hundreds of miles away, who test positive for radiation just from eating homemade jam and shows us wards of disfigured children abandoned to Russian orphanages. The despair of these scenes is relieved during the last part of the film, which deals with a successful repair of a “Chernobyl heart” condition. This condition refers to defects found in children, which can be life threatening without surgery.

Biomes: Coastlines and Seas

Discovery Channel, September 13, 9 a.m., ET.
This hourlong documentary explores the natural evolution of the shorelines of Asia, scours the ocean depths to examine how squid and octopuses adapt, and looks at how jellyfish have thrived in the oceans for millions of years. Can be taped and used in the classroom for one year.

Save Our History: S.O.S.—Save Our Ships

The History Channel, September 24, 6 a.m., ET.
This hourlong program showcases five vintage ships in need of restoration and follows efforts to preserve America’s maritime heritage. The program can be taped and used in the classroom for two years with teaching materials.

NOVA: Origins

PBS, September 28–29, 8–10 p.m. ET/PT. Check local listings.
This four-part series, condensed into two evenings, will give high school students a chance to understand the latest research into how our world began. Using high-tech graphics, this series takes a tour through time, from the Big Bang to humans’ imprint on Earth. Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson invites us to imagine the Earth’s billion plus years of formation as a mere 24 hours on an analog clock, which helps viewers understand time as an astrophysicist sees it—in discrete packages with definitive events. The first hour deals with Earth’s first few hundred million years, when our planet was a hostile place that could not support life. The second hour discusses how the chemistry of the young Earth supported life, and suggests that this happened much earlier than previously thought. In the third hour, scientists explain how they search for life beyond the Earth and predict what an alien life form might look like. The final hour deals with research on the Big Bang, showing how scientists are trying to measure the “cosmic echo” recorded 40 years ago. “Origins,” a major effort for NOVA, presents complex research as accessible and intriguing. Here's a comprehensive list of resources.

Road to the White House

C-SPAN, Sundays at 6:30 p.m., ET, and Mondays at 12:30 a.m., ET.
A 90-minute look at news, events, issues, speeches, and appearances related to the 2004 presidential race. This can be taped and used in the classroom forever with teaching materials.

On TV listings are provided by KIDSNET, a national resource for children’s media in Washington, D.C. and by Cable in the Classroom’s Access Learning magazine.

In Print

Unconventional Books for Today’s Issues

Can—or should—less conventional, controversial books be taught in the classroom? Great Books for High School Kids: A Teacher’s Guide to Books that Can Change Teens’ Lives, compiled by high school English teachers Rick Ayers and Amy Crawford, considers this question with essays by teachers about the ways their students reacted to, learned from, and came to love the books they encountered in school. The book also includes lists of some classic and not-so-classic books that teach important lessons. 240 pp.

Getting in the Garden Business         

Growing Ventures: Starting a School Garden Business, walks teachers through the process of starting and running a “green” gardening business with their students. The book includes guidelines, activities, diagrams, and resources to engage young people ages 6 to 22 in planning a community-based enterprise. 64 pp. $19.95 from The National Gardening Association, call 800-538-7476, ext. 143.

Personality Perks      

The Excellent 11 by Ron Clark names and explains the importance of 11 different personality traits that Clark feels make a good teacher and a good parent. The traits are intertwined and illustrated with Clark’s personal stories and reflections about his experiences as both a student and a teacher. The book expands on Clark’s previous work, The Essential 55, but focuses on fewer topics more in-depth.

A Different Colored Dress

Daffodil and her sisters all look alike and have to don their designated colors each time they dress up, until one day the girls get upset and throw fits. With humor and charm, author Emily Jenkins tells the tale of triplets looking for their own identities based on something more than appearance in the colorfully illustrated Daffodil. 32 pp.

Keeping Science Safe

Written by teaching veterans, Investigating Safely: A Guide for High School Teachers quickly brings rookie and veteran science educators up to speed on what they need to make their labs and classrooms safe. Peppered with useful sidebars and examples, the easy-to-read book is organized with the complex needs of today’s high school labs in mind and addresses topics from storing and disposing of hazardous chemicals, to accommodating students with special needs, to the unique safety requirements of specific disciplines. 214 pp.

Extra Credit Emergencies

To earn extra credit, 12 students in Mr. Magro’s class have written stories about their emergency situations during the year. Now it’s time to gather and read them aloud. Each chapter of  The SOS File by Betsy Byars, Betsy Duffey, and Laurie Myers tells another of these tales in this book suitable for ages 8–12. Find out why someone doesn’t deserve extra credit. 80 pp.

Stories About Change       

To honor the 50th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision, Juan Williams tells the stories of more than 30 people who experienced the fight for equality first-hand. The tales in My Soul Looks Back In Wonder: Voices of the Civil Rights Experience, create a fresh, intimate view of history in the making and reveal just how much the battle for civil rights affected the lives of every American. 216 pp.

Math is for the Bears

If your elementary school students aren’t getting into fractions, tempt them with Polar Bear Math, by Ann Whitehead Nagda and Cindy Bickel. The right side of the book chronicles the true tale of polar bear cubs Klondike and Snow, who are raised by zoo staff after their mother abandons them. The left side includes lessons on fractions that reflect the math used to raise the cubs: How much should the cubs eat? What fraction of the day do the cubs stay at the zoo? 30 pp.

Wealth and Greed in America

Between 1983 and 1998, more than half of the increase in America’s wealth went into the pockets of the top 1 percent of Americans. That’s one way to measure the sweeping change that is transforming the nation, the subject of Greed and Good by Sam Pizzigati, former NEA publications director and a veteran writer on the economy. Pizzigati explores how the growing chasm between the richest and the rest of us is damaging American society and democracy. $34.95 from The Apex Press.

Communicating Without Sounds       

Moses, a deaf child who goes to a special school with other deaf children, makes a new friend when his class is joined by hearing students from another school for a production by the Theatre of the Deaf. In Moses Sees a Play, by Isaac Millman, different signs and deaf terms are used to teach children about diversity in others and how to connect with them. For elementary school ages. 32 pp.

Restructuring Language Arts

In Organizing and Managing the Language Arts Block: A Professional Development Guide, reading specialist and educator Lesley Mandel Morrow gives teachers new and creative ideas on how to revive their language arts lesson plans and teaching methods in the elementary school classroom. Morrow uses case studies of different grade levels to illustrate teaching methods, following them up with planning ideas and activities for language arts instruction. 348 pp.

Learning from the Community

From picking up dog poop to voter registration and awareness, there are many things kids can do in the community to enhance their education experience. In Kids Taking Action: Community Service Learning Projects, K–8, Pamela Roberts describes community service learning and offers 18 project ideas, some more detailed than others. A helpful resource list is included. 126 pp.

Celebrate National Multicultural Diversity Day

For more than a decade, educators around the country have been celebrating National Multicultural Diversity Day (NMDD) in their schools and communities on the third Monday in October. Originally created by Cleorah Scruggs, a fourth-grade teacher in Flint, Michigan, the day was adopted as a national event by the 1993 NEA Representative Assembly to “increase awareness of the tremendous need to celebrate our diversity collectively.”

This year, you can get involved, too. Just be creative. Start by sharing cultural information with your class about yourself, then introduce students to multicultural issues and possible solutions by inviting a local expert to talk on diversity. You can also have students sing songs that celebrate diversity and ask them to bring in items or food representative of their ethnic heritage to share with classmates.

In Flint, Scruggs and her colleagues celebrate the day with a host of activities, beginning with a breakfast for faith and community leaders who discuss diversity issues and ways of promoting harmony and equity. The day concludes by showcasing student presentations on diversity along with panel discussions, stories, songs, dance, food vendors, charitable gift giving, and other events celebrating the area’s many cultures.

Scruggs also started the Pen CyberPals Hookup Connection, a program in which students choose other students who differ from themselves in some way to be their pen pals for at least a year.

To help educators share ways to celebrate diversity both on National Multicultural Diversity Day (October 18) and throughout the year, NEA will sponsor an electronic bulletin board this fall. Stay tuned for details.

“We’ve all had a part in making America great,” says Scruggs, “and it’s important to acknowledge it and develop respect among cultures, which can lead to greater peace and less violence in our schools and communities.”

Take Note

Free Special Ed Resources

Two new resources are now available from NEA’s Student Achievement Department to help educators who work with children with disabilities:

• Advocating for Special Education Working Conditions—This 46-page guide offers practical advocacy, organizing, and bargaining strategies to improve special education working conditions, such as class size, caseload, formula for inclusion, compensation for IEP-related duties, and professional development. The first national document of its kind, it includes a 50-state survey of state regulations and bargaining provisions, a synthesis of current special education personnel recruitment and retention research, and sample contract language for specific special education issues.
• Accessible Classroom Primer CD-ROM—A compendium of presentations, articles, and links to help educators find resources on assistive, instructional, and accessible technologies and universal design for learning strategies. The CD-ROM was created as a joint project in partnership with Johns Hopkins University Center for Technology in Education and the Mid-Atlantic Regional Technology in Education Consortium (MAR*TEC) with a generous donation from Plato Learning.

Both resources are available while supplies last. To order, e-mail Patti Ralabate with complete contact information.

Celebrating the Role Of Teachers

Promote education unity and celebrate your colleagues by participating in World Teachers’ Day on October 5, 2004, created by Education International (EI), the largest confederation of teacher trade unions of which NEA is a member. World Teachers’ Day provides the opportunity to draw public attention to the role of teachers worldwide as well as to the vital role they play in society. The theme chosen for 2004 and following years is “Quality Teachers for Quality Education,” with a specific 2004 subtheme of “Wanted: Quality Teachers to be Recruited and Retained.” For more information, including downloads in multiple languages of pamphlets, posters, cards, and ideas for World Teachers’ Day activities, go to www.ei-ie.org/wtd/.

Proud To Be ESP

New versions of the NEA brochure series, We’re NEA ESPs and Proud of It!, which describes ESP jobs and the people who perform them, are now available on the ESP section of our site. Eleven brochures—one general one, plus one for each of the nine K–12 ESP job groups and one for Higher Ed ESP—cover support professional job groups and subgroups to help people understand the individual ESP roles. You can view a regular Web page (html) version of each brochure, or download a Microsoft Word or PDF version. Laid out as standard-sized 8 1/2 by 11-in. trifold pamphlets, the brochures are easy to print from your desktop.

Adopt a Pilot

Educators living in cities served by Southwest Airlines can help students learn about new places—without leaving the classroom. Southwest Airlines’ free education program, Adopt-A-Pilot, provides more than 450 pilots who volunteer for “adoption” by classrooms. Developed for fifth-grade classes, the program unites students with pilots to explore math, science, and more. For four weeks, students track their adopted pilot’s journey and complete a curriculum developed in cooperation with the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, the National Association of Teachers of Math and Science, and other education specialists. Students apply these subjects to aviation activities, made meaningful by their interaction with a real pilot. Southwest Airlines offers the program in Spanish as well, providing translated curriculum and bilingual pilots. To learn more or to register, visit www.southwest.com/adoptapilot.

Banned Books Week

Thousands of libraries and bookstores will speak out against attempts to censor books and celebrate the freedom to read during Banned Books Week, September 25 to October 2, 2004. For 23 years, Banned Books Week has been drawing attention to the danger that exists when restraints are imposed on the availability of information in a free society and reminding Americans not to take this precious democratic freedom for granted.

Visit the American Library Association’s Web site for more information on Banned Books Week, including a list of suggested activities to do in and out of the classroom to help support the effort.

Books by NEA Members

Teaching Self-Control: A Curriculum for Responsible Behavior

By Martin Henley

Written by a professor of education who has taught sixth grade and special education, this guide helps educators minimize classroom disruptions through its ready-to-use lesson plans to teach children self-control and responsibility. The activities can be integrated into existing content areas and used to involve students in learning self-control skills that include coping with mistakes and failures and getting along with others. 200 pp. $27.95 from the National Education Service. Click here to order, or call 800-733-6786.

A,E,I,O…You Win!

By Mary Schaer

This handy notebook by a 24-year teaching veteran gives students a lesson in phonics, spelling, and vocabulary all at once through a hands-on game format that allows them to play and learn together in a fun and enjoyable way. Providing 60 easy-to-photocopy game boards at three increasingly difficult levels, this book makes for a versatile educational tool that is suitable for grades 1–3 and adjustable to each student’s level. 70 pp. $24.95 from 1st Place Publishing, 503-313-5395.

Passage: A Dog’s Journey West with Lewis and Clark

By Robert Young

Focusing on the classic expedition of Lewis and Clark, this book recounts their journey in a way sure to catch the attention of young students—through the eyes of Seaman, a 150-pound dog that traveled every step of the way with the explorers. Written by a reading specialist, this activity book encourages children to engage in the text as they answer questions about the story and complete unfinished illustrations. 38 pp. $6.95 from Mad Dog Press. To order, send a check to Mad Dog Press, 2901 Norkenzie Road, Eugene, OR 97408.

What Happened to Marion’s Book?

By Brook Berg

This illustrated children’s book creatively teaches youngsters the lesson of taking care of their library books. As they read of Marion the Hedgehog’s attempts to fix her jelly-stained library book, children learn the importance of responsibility, honesty, and forgiveness. Written in a simple narrative by a district media specialist, this book works well for reading aloud to students as a group or one-on-one. 48 pp. $16.95 from Upstart Books. Click here to order, or for more, visit “Books by NEA Members online”.

NEA’s Read Across America Is Where it’s ‘Hat!’

NEA knows reading is “where it’s hat” when it comes to helping America’s children celebrate the diversity of their world. That’s why NEA’s Read Across America is combining the familiar red and white stovepipe hat of the Cat in the Hat with a variety of reading hats and resources in an exciting Read Across America resource packet offering RAA posters with reproducible back panels for your school and classroom. NEA RAA partners such as WGBH, Major League Soccer, and Youth Leaders for Literacy have contributed to this treasure trove of resources, including an NEA Members-only CD-ROM. There’s even a Spanish-language poster introducing NEA’s Lea con NEA theme. For more information and to request a resource kit, go to www.nea.org/readacross.

Heads Up From NEA Member Benefits

Get the best credit card around—the NEA WorldPointsSM Platinum Plus® Credit Card—with no annual fee, low Annual Percentage Rates, and a choice between travel, cash, and merchandise rewards! For more information about the costs and benefits associated with the use of the card or to apply, click here or call 1-888-758-7946 (mention priority code HV75.) TTY users call 1-800-833-6262.

NEA-Sponsored CDs and Money Market Accounts offer yields that have consistently been among the highest nationwide and FDIC insurance up to $100,000 per depositor. Minimum opening balances are $1,000 for certificates of deposit and $500 for money market accounts. To open an account, click here or call 1-800-457-2258 (mention priority code JA0GK.) These accounts are offered and administered by MBNA America Bank, N.A. Member FDIC.

Get Your Just Due—NEA DUES-TAB Insurance, that is! Eligible NEA members qualify for no-cost life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance through the NEA DUES-TAB®‚ Insurance Program, sponsored by the NEA Members Insurance Trust. Take a moment to register your beneficiary for this free benefit online.

Also review your options for term life insurance. Many of the plans have been improved to allow maximum flexibility for coverage amounts, age ranges, and health conditions. Spouses can now apply for coverage up to 100 percent of the member’s benefit amount, and some plans—like the NEA Term Life Plan and the NEA Guaranteed Issue Life Plan—don’t even require a medical exam!

For more information, visit the Web address above or call toll-free, 1-800-637-4636, Monday–Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. (or Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.) ET.

What’s Up at HIN

NEA RA Delegates Show an interest in Healthy Living!

HIN’s Hall of Health and booth were bustling with lots of free giveaways that encouraged healthy living at this year’s Representative Assembly! Highlights included the distribution of 10,000 McDonald’s Stepometers and 6,000 bottled waters, accompanied by Washington, D.C., walking maps created especially for RA delegates. Atkins Nutritionals also exhibited by giving away nutritional supplements and breakfast bars. Click here to learn more about HIN’s physical activity/nutrition initiative and other programs.

Collaborating for Better Crisis Outcomes

Effective collaboration between schools and first-responders (e.g., police, firefighters, emergency medical services personnel) greatly contributes to crisis preparedness. HIN interviewed personnel from 52 fire and emergency medical services agencies and 40 police departments serving rural, suburban, and urban communities across the country. HIN compiled their responses to create “Top Ten Recommendations to Schools from First Responders.” Download a copy.

Arthur Audio Books Available Now!

HIN is one of three charities that will benefit from the sales of a recently released Arthur CD. Celebrity readers, including Clay Aiken, Kevin Bacon, and Daisy Fuentes, deliver lively and amusing performances as they read Arthur stories. The CD also includes games, activities and educational materials. In addition, a Web site was created to include lesson plans related to the stories.

Can We Talk in Spanish?

Research shows that when parents have open conversations with their children about sexuality, young people are more likely to make healthy decisions.  In response, HIN is working with NEA affiliates to implement ¿Conversamos?, a parent-child communication program. Workshops are offered to Spanish-speaking parents of later elementary and middle school students and include a curriculum that helps participants initiate family conversations on tough topics. HIN also provides technical assistance to communities that are interested in implementing the program. Learn more.

President's Viewpoint

‘Of Educators, By Educators, For Educators and Public Education’

Under the banner of “Uniting the Nation for Great Public Schools,” more than 9,000 members of Team NEA gathered in our nation’s capital on our nation’s birthday. The 2004 Representative Assembly was energizing, invigorating, and helped focus priorities. Most important, it underscored the strength of our resolve and revealed what sets NEA apart.

Photo by Sandy Schaeffer

NEA is an organization of educators, run by educators, advocating for educators and public education. Yet self-interest is not our guiding principle. Our life’s work is developing the minds and characters of those to whom we entrust our nation’s future: the children of America.  

Our positions on the issues are grounded in real-life experience.

We’re led not by outsiders, but by professional educators who have devoted their own careers to furthering NEA’s fundamental goal: ensuring that every child has access to a quality public education.       

Ivory-tower ideologues sometimes act as though that were not the case, praising teachers while scornfully deriding NEA. Their commentary often demonstrates an ignorance of who we are, and how NEA sets policy. Our Representative Assembly, the largest democratic deliberative body in the world, determines our positions in purely democratic fashion: one delegate, one vote.

This year, we are focused on four priorities:

• First, to elect friends of public education at the state and local level, as well as to Congress and the White House. The primary criterion is that they share our commitment to making public schools great for every child.
• Second, we need to fix and fund the so-called No Child Left Behind act. The law attempts to set the right goals: a qualified teacher in every classroom, standards and accountability, and high expectations for every child. But we can’t realize those goals without amending the implementation plan, and providing adequate resources. Under this Administration, the gap between what the law promises and what it delivers grows ever wider.
• Third, we must act to close the gap in achievement between racial and ethnic minorities and the white majority. There’s no silver bullet, no single solution to this complex problem. But as educators, we know the solution must include a commitment to ensuring early childhood education, smaller classes, attracting highly qualified teachers to low-performing schools, and parental involvement.
• Fourth, we need to not only energize but build our membership. In numbers there is influence. NEA has 2.7 million members. That’s roughly 1 in every 100 Americans. Yet, it has proved not to be enough to effectively raise our recommendations on relieving the plight of children and public education to the pinnacle of public and political consciousness. If each of us signed up just one new member, that influence would double. Think what that would mean!

We continually say that our children are our living legacy. Public education is the best investment we can make in their future.

Thank you for being a member of Team NEA. Have a great year and know that I appreciate the efforts and involvement of each and every one of you as you work to make great public schools for every child!

NEA President Reg Weaver

President's Viewpoint

‘Of Educators, By Educators, For Educators and Public Education’

Under the banner of “Uniting the Nation for Great Public Schools,” more than 9,000 members of Team NEA gathered in our nation’s capital on our nation’s birthday. The 2004 Representative Assembly was energizing, invigorating, and helped focus priorities. Most important, it underscored the strength of our resolve and revealed what sets NEA apart.

Photo by Sandy Schaeffer

NEA is an organization of educators, run by educators, advocating for educators and public education. Yet self-interest is not our guiding principle. Our life’s work is developing the minds and characters of those to whom we entrust our nation’s future: the children of America.  

Our positions on the issues are grounded in real-life experience.

We’re led not by outsiders, but by professional educators who have devoted their own careers to furthering NEA’s fundamental goal: ensuring that every child has access to a quality public education.       

Ivory-tower ideologues sometimes act as though that were not the case, praising teachers while scornfully deriding NEA. Their commentary often demonstrates an ignorance of who we are, and how NEA sets policy. Our Representative Assembly, the largest democratic deliberative body in the world, determines our positions in purely democratic fashion: one delegate, one vote.

This year, we are focused on four priorities:

• First, to elect friends of public education at the state and local level, as well as to Congress and the White House. The primary criterion is that they share our commitment to making public schools great for every child.
• Second, we need to fix and fund the so-called No Child Left Behind act. The law attempts to set the right goals: a qualified teacher in every classroom, standards and accountability, and high expectations for every child. But we can’t realize those goals without amending the implementation plan, and providing adequate resources. Under this Administration, the gap between what the law promises and what it delivers grows ever wider.
• Third, we must act to close the gap in achievement between racial and ethnic minorities and the white majority. There’s no silver bullet, no single solution to this complex problem. But as educators, we know the solution must include a commitment to ensuring early childhood education, smaller classes, attracting highly qualified teachers to low-performing schools, and parental involvement.
• Fourth, we need to not only energize but build our membership. In numbers there is influence. NEA has 2.7 million members. That’s roughly 1 in every 100 Americans. Yet, it has proved not to be enough to effectively raise our recommendations on relieving the plight of children and public education to the pinnacle of public and political consciousness. If each of us signed up just one new member, that influence would double. Think what that would mean!

We continually say that our children are our living legacy. Public education is the best investment we can make in their future.

Thank you for being a member of Team NEA. Have a great year and know that I appreciate the efforts and involvement of each and every one of you as you work to make great public schools for every child!

NEA President Reg Weaver

NEAFT Report

Union Power On Campus

Organizing to defend public higher education

Photo by Kim Hughes

Think public education is under assault only in grades K–12? Not so: Higher education is facing major attacks as well. And in Washington and other states, faculty are forming unions to defend themselves.

United Faculty of Washington State, affiliated with—and strongly supported by—NEA, AFT, and their state organizations, is campaigning to represent nearly 8,000 faculty at six public, four-year higher education institutions. Already it’s paying off: In June, full- and part-time faculty at Central Washington University voted nearly 2-1 for United Faculty of Central, which is part of the larger statewide union. The bargaining unit includes 563 faculty, librarians, and coaches.

“This marks a new era,” says Susan Donohoe, president of the United Faculty of Central. “Now we can work with the administration to help improve our wages and working conditions.”

United Faculty of Central (UFC) organized in 1997, but the university refused to recognize it. Then in 2002, years of lobbying by AFT Washington and Washington Education Association (WEA) members culminated in passage of a law requiring four-year higher education institutions to recognize the union if a majority of the faculty votes for representation.

At stake? United support on the kinds of issues that resonate for educators everywhere. In Washington, many now say faculty can show strength in numbers when fighting at the state level for limits on class size and workload. And teachers will gain a stronger voice in academic governance, says Daniel CannCasciato, the UFC treasurer and a former faculty senate chair. “Up until now, we were empowered to recommend. People long ago got tired of that.”

Now, faculty union advocates are spreading the message of “campus clout, statewide strength” at the other five campuses affected by the new law. Elections at Eastern Washington University and Western Washington University will be next. At Eastern, the administration voluntarily recognized United Faculty of Eastern in 1994. Now the union has filed for a certification election under the new bargaining law. Anthony Flinn, president of the union at Eastern, says politicians increasingly think of public colleges and universities as “state assisted” instead of “state supported,” so support for higher education “gets elbowed aside” and schools are left to solicit corporate donors. “Is education a public or a private good?” he asks.

Charles Hasse, WEA president, says it’s a critical question, given the trends in privatization of public education generally. “We need to stop those who would weaken these institutions and raid public funds for private purposes,” he says.    

“While we have strong influence in two-year higher education,” notes

Sandra Schroeder, president of AFT Washington, “we have lacked strength in the four-year arena where the threat of privatization is very real. This challenge will demand a larger and more committed membership.”

Big Sky, Little Budgets

Teacher unity boosts ‘adequate funding’ in Montana.

The legislature is more interested in tax cuts for corporations and high-income residents than in funding public schools. Then they can stand up and say in all honesty, ‘We don’t have the money.’”

So says Eric Feaver, President of MEA-MFT, a merged NEA and AFT affiliate, and the same could be said in many other states.

MEA-MFT has organized a powerful coalition of pro-education groups and school boards to file a lawsuit to make the state government live up to its obligation under the state constitution to provide a quality education for its children. Last spring a state district court judge ruled for the plaintiffs, but the state is appealing.

Similar suits have been filed in 28 other states. Each says the state is violating its constitution by not adequately funding education. Nineteen have met with success in court, although no state has achieved adequate funding yet.

Feaver says the four-year-old NEA-AFT merger in Montana made it possible to build the broad coalition that filed the lawsuit. “Before, the legislature sometimes was able to put a wedge between us,” he says. “Now, we have one staff, one pot of money, one voice.”

In East Helena, music and band teacher Vicki Ries says the state’s negligence is all too clear. Two years ago, she says, the schools lost programs ranging from an advanced math course to part of her band program. A massive community fund-raising effort with bake sales, magazine sales, and a luau helped win back some of the programs, but class size is still up, some programs are still gone, and morale is terrible. “Politicians always claim children are their priority, but they don’t back up their words,” she says.

The lawsuit offers new hope. Feaver expects a state Supreme Court decision by the end of 2004. “We will not lose,” he says.