Get Ready for Next Year With a Grant from The NEA Foundation

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

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. We now offer bigger and better grants—up to $5,000 per project—to fund your BIG ideas. 

Applying for a grant is easy. Visit www.neafoundation.org today for more information, including guidelines and an application. Or call 202-822-7840.

Grants for Tolerance

The Teaching Tolerance project of the Southern Poverty Law Center offers grants of up to $2,000 to K–12 classroom teachers for implementing tolerance and youth activism projects in their schools and communities. Projects funded by Teaching Tolerance tend to be:

• small-scale, resourceful, and student-focused, promoting acceptance of diversity, peacemaking, community service, or any other aspect of tolerance education;
• clearly defined, well-integrated, and tailored to the specified needs of particular learners and their communities;
• economically responsible, involving staff participation, community volunteers, and in-kind contributions wherever possible;
• sustainable in some way, rather than one-time-only events or activities.

There is no deadline for proposals, and grants are restricted to one per applicant or school per school year.

For more information, go to www.tolerance.org/teach/expand/gra/index.jsp. To apply, download and complete the application, then mail it with the required attachments to Grants Administrator, Teaching Tolerance Grants, 400 Washington Avenue, Montgomery, AL 36104.

NASA aerospace Enrichment Program

Superintendents, with suggestions from principals, are asked to select core teachers for the training. The core educators work for six weeks with the aerospace program in their schools where they lead interdisciplinary teams of teachers in interactions with the principal and faculty.

For more, go to http:// aesp.nasa.okstate.edu/urcep/index.html or write to: NASA Headquarters; Education Division; Attn: URCEP Program Manager; Code N; Washington, DC 20549.

Saving Endangered Species

One aspiring conservationist from each state and the District of Columbia will receive a trip to attend the Wild Kingdom Kids' Summit next May in Los Angeles. Visit www.wildkingdom.com for more information, including a special site for teachers with suggested classroom activities and curriculum.

Take Note

A Week To Celebrate You!

This year's theme is Celebrating the American Dream…the Dream that Begins in Our Nation's Classrooms. For more information on American Education Week, ideas on how to celebrate it, or to download a poster and artwork bearing this year's theme, go to www.nea.org/aew.

Ensuring Safe Schools

This requires courage and more "homework" to learn about bias and how to address it with students. Your state and local affiliate can provide resources and schedule diversity trainings. We realize these topics continue to generate discomfort, cautiousness, and disagreement, namely, homophobia concerning gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered students. NEA and its affiliates provide trainings, resource handbooks, and other forms of support for creating safe environments for all students. For more, contact your state affiliate Human and Civil Rights coordinator or Kevin Kumashiro 202-822-7439, Linda Bacon 202-822-7724, or Al-Tony Gilmore 202-822-7395.

Human and Civil Rights Awards

You're invited to participate in NEA's 39th Annual Human and Civil Rights Awards Dinner, July 3, 2005, in Los Angeles, California. Please join us in:

• keeping alive the spirit of the American Teachers Association,
• honoring individuals and affiliates for their human and civil rights contributions,
• celebrating NEA's multicultural roots,
• recharging ourselves for the struggle ahead.

But don't just attend the dinner. Get involved by nominating an individual, organization, colleague, or affiliate for an award. New this year: Complete forms online at www.nea.org/annualmeeting/hcrawards/. Note these dates:

• December 15, 2004—Deadline for submission of award nomination forms to NEA Human and Civil Rights.
• January/February 2005—Selection of awardees by the NEA Executive Committee, based on recommendations by the Human and Civil Rights Committee.

For more, contact: Sabrina Williams, Human and Civil Rights, National Education Association, 1201 16th Street, N.W., Washington, DC  20036-3290.

Books for Schools

Sponsored by the Heart of America Foundation, the Books From The Heart program finds books that are not being used and gets them to where they're needed most—into the hands of children and onto the empty shelves at school libraries. Download a registration form to become a Books From the Heart recipient at www.heartofamerica.org/pdf/recipientform.pdf. Recipients must take final responsibility for the quality and appropriateness of the books provided and agree that books will be placed on library and classroom shelves and given directly to students for home use.

Heads Up from NEA Member Benefits

Consider this statistic: One in seven people become disabled for at least five years before reaching age 65.*

Unless you've planned ahead, losing your income could have devastating effects. The NEA Income Protection Plan® is a Short-Term Disability plan specially designed to help provide an income when you are disabled and unable to work due to a covered accident or sickness. In most states, you can also add a Long-Term Disability Rider to extend your benefits to age 67 or older.

For more information about this important benefit, call your NEA Income Protection Plan Representative at 1-888-461-1612 (Monday thru Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST) or visit online at www.neamb.com.

* Source: Sue Stevens, Morningstar, November 2000

Travel smart! Collette Vacations, provider of the NEA vacation travel program, offers these tips for members planning future excursions:

1. Make sure you have comprehensive travel protection. Because of the tragic events of September 11, most travel insurance policies do not allow passengers to cancel for any reason, even because of acts of terrorism. However, Collette provides members the option of purchasing a cancellation waiver that does allow passengers to cancel for any reason—up to the day of departure. The waiver ensures that you will recoup all of your money except for the cost of the cancellation waiver itself. 
2. Avoid tour operator default—choose a financially stable travel provider.  Look for an operator with a strong financial rating based on an independent audit and one that belongs to an organization like USTOA, which is composed of the country's top travel companies.
3. Only work with travel providers that accept credit cards as a form of payment. Paying for your trip by credit card within 60 days of departure guarantees you 100 percent trip protection. Credit card companies, by law, must refund 100 percent of funds as long as the service was not provided and the customer notified the credit card company within 60 days of the charge appearing on the customer's monthly statement.  

For more information about the great travel opportunities available to members through Collette Vacations, call 1-800-528-1923 or go online to www.neamb.com/discount/collette.jsp.

On The Web

Sound Science

Learning About Disability

Taking the Web Outside

Virtual Teachers Lounge

National Summit on Asian and Pacific Islander Issues in education

The Summit will include presentations on initiatives at the local and national levels regarding API education. Participants will also collaborate in sessions on API students, policy issues, and implications for classroom practice. Seven of the leading researchers on API education will describe the latest research, and participants will divide into working groups to generate additional information for the publication.

Opportunity to Submit Questions: NEA Human and Civil Rights wants to hear from NEA members about the questions they would like to see addressed in the Summit and in the final API Report. These questions will be answered by the experts at a special panel session and their answers will be posted online and featured in a future issue of NEA Today. NEA members can send their questions to Kevin Kumashiro, Senior Program Specialist 202-822-7439, no later than Friday, December 3.

Books by NEA Members

Safe from Strangers

By Gerri Willever

Growing Your Musician

By Tony Bancroft

KidTips

By Kathy Young

In Print

Thanksgiving with the Pilgrams

The Skinny on Santa

Staying Sane

Desegregation in Pictures

Reading Different Subjects

A Bird's Tale

Fostering Cultural Understanding

One World was developed through the support and vision of the NFL and NFLPA (Players Association)—partners of NEA's Read Across America—and created and written in collaboration with Scholastic Inc. and Facing History and Ourselves, a national civil rights education organization. Find free copies of all materials, as well as online interactive challenges for students, at http://scholastic.com/oneworld. All materials are reproducible and designed to be downloaded and printed from the Internet, and all lessons are based on national standards.

Read Across America

Honoring the Diversity Of Children and Books

This year's Read Across America resource kit celebrates the diversity of children and children's literature with its Read Across America: Where It's Hat theme and reproducible materials. The kit features a new Read Across America logo poster, as well as posters for our Get a Kick Out of Reading bilingual program with Major League Soccer, ZOOM into reading and community service with Youth Service America and ZOOM, and Where It's Hat multicultural theme. To request a kit, go to www.nea.org/readacross.

NEA HIN Loves Education Support Professionals!

The NEA Health Information Network would like to recognize the hard work and dedication of NEA ESP members on November 17, National Education Support Professionals Day! In doing so, we encourage you to take advantage of the variety of resources we have available for custodians, school nurses, paraprofessionals, school bus drivers, and more! Resources such as the Red Book: Exposure to Blood on the Job, Take a Deep Breath and Thank Your Custodian (guide to indoor air quality), Tomorrow's Buses for Today's Children (Clean School Bus USA brochure), and Asthma Inhalers (poster) are all available at no charge. To order single or multiple copies, visit www.neahin.org/resources/pubs.htm.

EPA Alerts Schools to Asbestos Hazards

Did you know that even though schools have the option of removing asbestos-containing materials, it is more likely that they chose to manage the materials instead? When asbestos materials are disturbed, the fibers can be released into the air and inhaled by students and school staff, and can eventually lead to lung cancer, asbestosis, or mesothelioma. EPA's current issue of Enforcement Alert focuses on asbestos in schools and provides a list of asbestos containing building materials and information about the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA).

To access the Alert, go to www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/newsletters/civil/enfalert/aheraalert0721.pdf. For more information on asbestos in schools, go to www.epa.gov/asbestos/asbestos_ in_schools.html.

Celebrate World AIDS Day 2004

World AIDS Day, celebrated around the globe on December 1, will highlight the progress made in the battle against the epidemic—and will bring into focus the remaining challenges. This year's theme is "Women, Girls, HIV, and AIDS." As we see the ever-increasing impact of the HIV epidemic on women and girls, it is imperative that we put a spotlight on the unique issues they face. For more information on World AIDS Day, visit the NEA HIN Web site at www.neahin.org/programs/reproductive/index.htm#hivaids.

Diversity Calendar

November

November 1–30—American Indian Heritage Month

The month set aside by presidential proclamation to honor and remember the unique heritage of American Indians and Alaska Natives.

November 14—Id al-Fitr

This Muslim day of feasting celebrates the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

November 15–21—Youth Appreciation Week

A week to recognize our youth for their talents and their contributions to the community.  Sponsored by Optimist International: www.optimist.org.

November 20—Anniversary of the Mexican Revolution

A national holiday in Mexico to celebrate the start of the social revolution begun in 1910.

December

December 1—Montgomery Bus Boycott beginning

On this day in 1955 in Alabama, Rosa Mae Parks refused to give her seat to a white passenger on a bus and was arrested, sparking the December 5 bus boycott.

December 8–15—Hanukkah

This Jewish holiday lasts for eight days and nights and commemorates the rededication of the Temple by the Maccabees.

December 25—Christmas

The birth of Christ is celebrated on this Christian holiday by attending church, exchanging gifts, and singing carols.

December 26–January 1—Kwanzaa

Related to the spirit and rituals of African harvest festivals, this African-American celebration promotes family building, teaches history, and develops unity.

On TV

Postcards from Buster

This new Arthur spin-off for ages 4–8 follows Buster's travels with his pilot father as they fly a Latin rock group around the United States, Canada, and Mexico for a concert tour. Busters "mails" his friends live-action postcards that explore the cultural diversity of the areas he visits. Blending live-action footage with animation, the 30-minute episodes expose children to different cultures in North America and helps develop the literacy, language, and communication skills of non-native English speakers. A companion Web site at http://pbskidsgo.org/ buster features interactive games and resources for kids, and a comprehensive teacher's guide for elementary classrooms, including a section on using the series with English-language learners.

Nick News: Special Edition

Nickelodeon; November 3, 12, and 22; 6 a.m.; ET.

Visit with Native American children living on three different reservations and take a look at the similarities and differences they share with white American kids in "This Land Was My Land: Kids on the Reservations." This 30-minute episode of the news magazine specials created by Linda Ellerbee for kids in grades 4–6 can be taped and used in the classroom for one year. Teaching materials are available at www.teachers.nick.com.

American Experience : They Made America

PBS, November 8, 9–11 p.m., ET, and November 15 and 22, 9–10 p.m., ET. Check local listings.

This three-part series from American Experience looks at the people who invented new systems, new solutions, and improved technology, such as Samuel Colt, who invented  handguns, and Juan Trippe, who started Pan American Airways. The series rightly focuses on the individual achievement, but looks past each inventor to examine the impact these advances had on our American society, politics, and economics. 

Strong Chemistry

This hourlong documentary explains the discovery of the elements and the origin of the periodic table, explores compounds and composites, discusses the creation and trade of diamonds, and looks at the inside of the Sun. The program can be taped and used in the classroom for one year with teaching materials at www.discoveryschool.com.

Civil War Journal

The History Channel, November 22, 6 a.m., ET.

The Civil War Journal series uses archival materials to explore the Civil War era and can be taped and used in the classroom for two years with teaching materials at www.historychannel .com/classroom. This hourlong episode, "Alexander Gardner: War Photographer," profiles the life of Gardner, a Scottish immigrant who visually chronicled the Civil War.

In the Mix

PBS, November 20–27, check local listings for times.

This week's episode of the PBS series, entitled "The Way We See it: What Makes a School Worth Going To?" follows four youth media teams as they set out to answer this question by creating short personal documentaries about their schools. One documentary follows Thomas, who does poorly in academic subjects until he discovers unrecognized skills in a school arts program and gains the confidence to tackle more academic subjects. The videos depict a road map of hope and success for public school systems. Visit www.inthemix.org for transcripts, discussion guides, and more.

On TV listings are provided by KIDSNET, a national resource for children's media in Washington, D.C., www.kidsnet.org, and by Cable in the Classroom's Access Learning magazine at www.ciconline.org.

Frontline: The Persuaders

PBS, November 9, 9-10:30 p.m. Check local listings.

Teachers would do well to encourage students to spend two nights with PBS this week as FRONTLINE looks at the companion issue to innovation, namely the selling of goods and services to Americans. This 90-minute documentary is called "The Persuaders," but it might as well be called "Media Literacy 101," as it examines marketing, advertising, and public relations, and provides a solid foundation for discussing popular culture.

NEA's Commitment to Diversity in Leadership

In practice and in policy, the National Education Association has a history of supporting diversity in leadership. In 1964 the NEA began eradicating racial segregation throughout its affiliates and staff, and in 1966 the Association merged with the all-Black American Teachers Association. For many years, as part of the effort to integrate the Association, NEA's policies guaranteed governance representation for ethnic minorities.

However, throughout the '80s the Association had to amend several policies in order to comply with the Landrum Griffin Act, which made it illegal to guarantee minority representation. One such policy was amended in 1988. In 1988 the NEA Representative Assembly adopted the following affirmative action policy regarding the Association presidency:

NEA Constitution, Article IV, Section 4. Affirmative Action Procedure.

By December 1 of each membership year immediately preceding the next membership year in which a presidential election is to be held (i.e., approximately 18 months prior to the date of the election), appropriate information about the office of president and the electoral process, including all relevant timelines, shall be sent to each of the ethnic-minority special interest groups identified in Bylaw 12; and

During the membership year in which the aforesaid presidential election is to be held, a copy of this section of the Constitution, with an appropriate explanation as to its background and intent, shall be included in (a) an Association publication sent to all members by December 1 and (b) the material that is sent to the delegates to that year's Representative Assembly.

If after any period of eleven (11) consecutive membership years a member of an ethnic-minority group has not served as President, the Association shall take such steps as may be legally permissible to elect a member of an ethnic-minority group.

During the debate at the 1988 Representative Assembly, John Wilson, a North Carolina delegate speaking in favor of the amendment, aptly summarized the intent of this policy:

" ...Fellow delegates, last year we had to remove a part of our Constitution that guaranteed that at the end of 11 years if an ethnic minority were not elected president, that nominations would be limited to an ethnic minority…even though we had to eliminate that guarantee, we shouldn't eliminate our affirmative action commitment to assuring that our organization will reflect the diversity of our membership.…It is an affirmative action amendment. It guarantees information, it guarantees accessibility, but it does not guarantee that anyone will be elected unless the delegates so choose to do that."

In accordance with the above provision, this message serves as a reminder of the Association's continued commitment to diversity in leadership.