Reading: Where It's 'HAT'

Football Superstars Tiki and Ronde Barber to Kick Off
Largest National Reading Celebration - NEA's Read Across America

Washington, D.C. - From coast to coast, readers all over the country are revving up for the national kick-off of America's largest reading event. Attracting some of the biggest celebrities in entertainment and sports, the NEA's Read Across America Project, a joint sponsorship of the 2.7-million-member National Education Association (NEA) and Dr. Seuss Enterprises, knows reading is 'Where it's Hat' and expects millions of Americans, young and old, to open a book and celebrate reading.

NEA's Read Across America, a year-long program designed to get kids excited about reading, culminates every year on Dr. Theodore 'Ted' Seuss' birthday on Mar. 2. Last year, reading events in all 50 states attracted more than 45 million readers of all ages. In celebration of the growing diversity of America's public schools, Mar. 2 will also launch 'Lea con NEA,' a new program designed to reach out to Spanish speaking participants.

In its eighth year, politicians from both sides of the aisle will join the NEAs Read Across America team with celebrities, sports athletes, recording artists, actors and actresses, firefighters, police officers, teachers, school professionals and librarians to help celebrate America's dedication to reading and learning.

The NEA's Read Across America Team will be led by two co-captains, National Football League (NFL) superstars Tiki Barber, a running back of the New York Giants, and his twin brother, Ronde Barber, starting cornerback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, last year's National Football Conference champions. The Barbers will help deliver the reading message: Kids who read -- and are read to -- do better in school and help build great public schools.

"Nothing is more important to the future of America than our children," said NEA President Reg Weaver. "We are pleased to have two American All-Star football players take the time to lead and guide our children so that we can all come together and embrace our common goal of educating for the future."

Reading with kids is not something new for the Barber twins. Long before they became record-breaking NFL stars, Tiki and Ronde partnered up with Scholastic Book Clubs to pilot the 'It Should Be Me' Writing Contest, designed to motivate students to read and write. In August 2004, Tiki and Ronde published By My Brother's Side (Simon & Schuster), a children's book illustrating their values of hard work and the importance of never giving up.

As Honorary Chairpersons of NEA's Read Across America, Tiki and Ronde will kick off the events by being featured in radio, public service announcements, act as spokesmen and provide outreach to encourage participation. On NEA's Read Across America Day on Mar. 2, Tiki and Ronde will be having fun while reading with kids in Washington, D.C.

To check out events taking place, go to http://www.nea.org/readacross/contacts.

NEA Updates State
Rankings on School Spending

Despite modest gains,
it still costs more to do the job right

Washington, D.C.-- Schools have received modest funding increases, but at levels far below what is needed to make the dramatic improvements called for in the "No Child Left Behind Act," said the National Education Association (NEA) today.

The NEA's latest update of "Rankings and Estimates" -- a state-by-state comparison of key education indicators -- reveals that current per-pupil spending for education would increase by 3.6 percent, from the 2002-03 school year through 2003-04. The update is available online ( PDF, 187 KB, 8 pages).

Average current per-pupil spending was $7,920 for the 2002-03 operation of local public systems. That figure does not include the backlog of construction, repair and technology upgrades that schools desperately need.

Meanwhile, teacher salaries grew more slowly than the economy, with an expected increase of 2.0 percent from 2002-03 to 2003-04. The rate of inflation from 2002-03 through 2003-04 was 2.3 percent.                        

"We are still asking America 's public schools to do much more with less," said NEA President Reg Weaver. "We all can make a difference by insisting that every school has the resources needed to help its students and the flexibility to use those resources in the most effective way.

"Many cash-strapped states have made sacrifices to maintain school funding levels, but they are constantly hit with the reality that it still costs more to do the job right," Weaver said.

Joined by a growing chorus of voices from the halls of Congress to the kitchen table, NEA member-educators are making the case for investing school funds in what really works to improve education-smaller classes, teacher training, greater parental involvement, early childhood education, safe classrooms, and up-to-date textbooks and technology.

"To date, it would appear that more of education's scarce resources are being spent on what children need least-growing bureaucracy, paperwork and standardized testing," Weaver said.

Among the facts in the update of "Rankings and Estimates" (through August 2004):

• The average salary of a U.S. public school teacher for 2002-03 was $45,810, compared with a projected average of $46,726 for 2003-04.
• In 2002-03, the highest-ranking states in teacher pay were California, Connecticut, and New Jersey; for 2003-04, California, Connecticut and the District of Columbia were estimated to be the highest-ranking states in teacher pay.
• In 2002-03, the lowest-ranking states in teacher pay were South Dakota, North Dakota and Mississippi; for 2003-04, South Dakota, Oklahoma and Alabama were estimated to be the lowest-ranking states in teacher pay.
• Public school enrollment for 2002-03 was 47.7 million students, compared with a projected 48.1 million for 2003-04.
• The biggest leaps in student enrollment were estimated for Nevada, South Carolina and Arizona.The largest decreases in student enrollment were estimated for the District of Columbia, North Dakota, Wyoming and Vermont.

Using information provided by state education agencies and analyzed by NEA researchers, "Rankings and Estimates" has presented selected education statistics since the 1960s. The previous full report is available on the NEA Web site ( PDF, 1 MB, 129 pages).

Nov. 30, 2004

Contact:

Anjetta McQueen     202-822-7251
Michael Pons           202-822-7595

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

WASHINGTON - Below is a statement from President of the National Education Association (NEA) Reg Weaver on the news reports that Domestic Policy Adviser Margaret Spellings will be nominated Secretary of Education for the Bush Administration's second term:

"The NEA is hopeful that President Bush's nominee for Education Secretary understands the vital role teachers play in improving student achievement, and will work with the National Education Association to make public schools great for every child.

"This is a great opportunity for the Administration to change the tone of its discourse with the education community, particularly the 2.7 million members of the National Education Association who are in schools all over this nation.

"We look forward to finding common ground with Ms. Spellings in her new role."

November 16, 2004

Contact:

Denise Cardinal   202-822-7239
Michael Pons      202-822-7595

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

NEA Statement on U.S. Education Secretary Rod Paige Resignation 

WASHINGTON – The following is a statement by National Education Association (NEA) President Reg Weaver about the resignation of U.S. Education Secretary Rod Paige:

“There is no doubt that Secretary of Education Rod Paige has served well as an advocate and spokesman for the education policies of the Bush Administration.

“We are hopeful the Administration’s choice for a new Secretary of Education will be one who has similar experience in working directly with schools, and one who also understands the vital role teachers and school employees play in making public schools great for every child.

“We are also hopeful that the new appointee will understand the importance of building bridges, and will be committed to mending the relationship the Administration has had with the NEA. Our organization represents 2.7 million educators who are committed to public education, and educating all of America’s children. We will continue to seek a productive relationship with the Administration as we move forward.

“On behalf of the members of the National Education Association, I would like to wish Secretary Paige well in his future endeavors.”

November 15, 2004

Contact:

NEA Public Relations, 202-822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

Groups Examine Factors Impacting
Minority Teacher Recruitment

More Minority Teachers Linked
to Improved Student Achievement

Washington, D.C. – The necessity for teacher diversity is often overlooked rather than accepted as central to school reform.  High-stakes tests impede efforts to expand the pool of prospective teachers of color.  And the logistics of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) continue to create significant barriers to recruiting teachers of color.   

These are some of the conclusions from a new analysis on teacher diversity prepared by the National Collaborative on Diversity in the Teaching Force.  In its report, Assessment of Diversity in America’s Teaching Force, ( PDF, 16 pages, 512KB ), the Collaborative examined the relationship between educational achievement and teacher diversity, and found that increasing the percentage of teachers of color in classrooms is connected directly to closing the achievement gap of students.

The Collaborative is composed of six leading education groups:  American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE), American Council on Education (ACE), Association of Teacher Educators (ATE), Community Teachers Institute (CTI), Recruiting New Teachers (RNT), and the National Education Association.

"Urban public education is the best hope for many families and children of color, whose communities and dreams are already substantially marginalized, but who are also remarkably resilient," said CTI Executive Director Rushern L. Baker III.  "They deserve the best we can give them, and we are currently not giving them our best.  Today there are too few teachers of color, too few qualified teachers and too many teachers who leave too soon." 

Some key trends include:

• Nationally, about 17 percent of public school students are African American and 6 percent of teachers are African American.  Likewise, about 17 percent of public school students are Hispanic and 5 percent of teachers are Hispanic.   
• In more than one-third (38 percent) of America’s public schools, there is not a single teacher of color on staff.
• Students of color tend to perform better – academically, personally and socially – when taught by teachers from their own ethnic groups.
• In most instances, fewer than 50 percent of African Americans pass teacher entrance exams.  This pattern prevails across time, location and types of tests.

The Collaborative is proposing solutions that include revising NCLB measures to clearly spell out diversity as a critical element of a "highly-qualified" teacher workforce, identifying and eliminating the obstacles faced by minority teachers in passing entry tests, and developing programs that support teachers of color both in the pipeline and in the classroom.

The analysis, Assessment of Diversity in America’s Teaching Force: A Call to Action, is available online ( PDF, 16 pages, 512KB) and printed copies are also available by calling 202-822-7745.

November 9, 2004

Contact:

NEA Public Relations, 202-822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

NEA Congratulates
President Bush on Reelection

Statement by
National Education Association President Reg Weaver
on Results of the 2004 Election

"On behalf of the National Education Association's 2.7 million members, I congratulate President Bush on his reelection. NEA will continue to seek common ground with the Bush Administration in efforts to expand educational opportunity and make public schools great for every child.

"This is truly a critical time for children and public education. NEA and its members strongly support the goals of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Our members have always worked hard to advance those goals. Imagine the successes our children and students, teachers and education support professionals would realize if our country were to commit to investing in smaller class sizes, well-trained teachers, early childhood and after school programs, and up-to-date textbooks and materials.

"It is essential that the Administration and Congress listen to, and act positively on, the concerns of teachers, parents, administrators, and state and local policymakers. An investment in education is an investment in America and its future security."

November 3, 2004

Contact:

Daniel Kaufman , (202) 822-7268
Denise Cardinal , (202) 822-7239

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

Circuit Court Rules Against
Religious School Vouchers in Maine

Washington, D.C. – A federal appeals court ruled today that the state of Maine does not have to provide publicly funded vouchers to parents who want to send their children to religious schools.

The U.S Court of Appeals for the First Circuit upheld a state law that limits participation in the state's “tuitioning out” program to public and nonsectarian private schools.

The National Education Association (NEA) filed a friend-of-the-court brief urging the court to reject the plaintiffs' claim that the state has to pay for religious education.

“This is another important legal victory for children and public education,” said NEA President Reg Weaver . “The federal courts, the Florida Supreme Court and the Colorado Supreme Court have all established that there are solid legal barriers to vouchers.”

In August, the Florida First District Court of Appeal ruled that the state constitution prohibits direct or indirect public funding for religious schools.  That case is pending before the Florida Supreme Court.  In June, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that the Colorado voucher plan interfered with local control.  The decision in the U.S. Court of Appeals in the Maine case hinges, in part, on a U.S. Supreme Court decision in Washington State that state-based prohibitions against public expenditures for religious education do not violate the right to free exercise of religion.

“While Americans have the right to attend religious schools, if they wish, the courts have repeatedly ruled that the public should not be compelled to subsidize that decision,” Weaver said. 

Weaver said that parents, teachers, and others who work in public schools are concerned that private school tuition vouchers are a divisive and expensive diversion from the real issues in education.

“Consistently, Americans want investments in what they know will make a difference for their children – quality teachers, small classes and up-to-date books and materials,” Weaver said.  “And consistently, they want those investments made where their children attend school – their neighborhood public schools.”

October 25, 2004

Contact: NEA Public Relations (202) 822-7200

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Organizations Urge Major
Changes for 'No Child Left Behind'

Educators, advocates discuss how
Congress can refocus federal law on positive
measures and solutions for nation’s schoolchildren

Washington, D.C. – The "No Child Left Behind" Act’s goals of strong academic progress for all children and closing the achievement gap are laudable. But Congress must make substantial changes in the law to meet those goals, more than 20 national education, civil rights, disability, children’s and citizens' groups said in a joint statement today. The groups [for the current list, please see the joint statement] are aligned to refocus the federal law on positive measurements and solutions.

Today's joint statement to Congress was followed by a media conference call. Representatives from the NAACP, Children’s Defense Fund as well as educators and children's advocates detailed specific principles for reforms that lawmakers should adopt next year and that cannot wait until the current law expires in 2007.

"We have a firm commitment here both to preserving a strong accountability system and to ensuring a strong federal role in improving student achievement," said Jill Morningstar, Co-Director of Education and Youth Development for the Children’s Defense Fund.

"We must shift the focus from imposing sanctions toward building the capacity of schools to meet the needs of all children," said Monty Neil, executive director of FairTest: The National Center for Fair & Open Testing. "This will include increased training for educators, making schools more engaging for students, and strengthening ties among families and communities and their schools."

The statement  includes recommendations that Congress change the law to:

• Ensure a more comprehensive picture of school and student performance by shifting from an overwhelming reliance on standardized tests to the use of other student achievement measures in addition to testing.
• Give states and local governments the funding and support they need to meet the objectives of the law without reducing expenditures for other education programs.
• Provide resources that will strengthen the knowledge and skills of school and district staff, and supporting programs that help parents and communities actively participate in their children’s education.
• Replace sanctions that neither have a consistent record of success nor allow schools to continue successful reform efforts.

"In order for all children to meet the standards in the No Child Left Behind Act, the federal government must take the lead, by example, on efforts to address funding disparities at the state and local level," said John Jackson, national director of education for the NAACP.

October 21, 2004

Contact:

NEA Media Relations , National Education Association, 202-822-7200
Gary Ratner, Citizens for Effective Schools, 301-469-8000
Sabrina Williams, Advancement Project, 202-728-9557
Avram Goldstein, Children’s Defense Fund, 202-662-3615

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The undersigned of the joint statement will work for the adoption of these recommendations as central structural changes needed to NCLB:

Advancement Project
American Association of School Administrators
American Association of School Librarians (AASL), div. of American Library Association (ALA)
American Association of University Women
American Baptist Women's Ministries
American Counseling Association
American Dance Therapy Association
American Federation of School Administrators (AFSA)
American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)
American Federation of Teachers (AFT)
American Humanist Association
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
Americans for the Arts
Annenberg Institute for School Reform
Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund
Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA)
ASPIRA
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD)
Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN)
Association of Education Publishers
Association of School Business Officials International (ASBO)
Big Picture Company
Center for Community Change
Center for Expansion of Language and Thinking
Center for Parent Leadership
Children's Defense Fund
Church Women United
Citizens for Effective Schools
Coalition for Community Schools
Coalition of Essential Schools
Commission on Social Action of Reform Judaism
Communities for Quality Education
Council for Children with Behavioral Disorders
Council for Exceptional Children
Council for Hispanic Ministries of the United Church of Christ
Council for Learning Disabilities
Council of Administrators of Special Education, Inc.
Cross City Campaign for Urban School Reform
Disciples Home Missions of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Disciples Justice Action Network (Disciples of Christ)
Division for Learning Disabilities of the Council for Exceptional Children (DLD/CEC)
Education Action!
Every Child Matters
FairTest: The National Center for Fair & Open Testing
Forum for Education and Democracy
Gender Public Advocacy Coalition (GPAC)
Hmong National Development
Indigenous Women's Network
Institute for Language and Education Policy
International Reading Association
International Technology Education Association
Japanese American Citizens League
Learning Disabilities Association of America
League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC)
Ministers for Racial, Social and Economic Justice of the United Church of Christ
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund (LDF)
National Alliance of Black School Educators
National Association for Asian and Pacific American Education (NAAPAE)
National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE)
National Association for the Education and Advancement of Cambodian, Laotian
and Vietnamese Americans (NAFEA)
National Association for the Education of African American Children with Learning Disabilities
National Association of Federally Impacted Schools (NAFIS)
National Association of Pupil Services Administrators
National Association of School Psychologists
National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP)
National Association of Social Workers
National Baptist Convention, USA (NBCUSA)
National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development
National Coalition of ESEA Title I Parents
National Coalition for Parent Involvement in Education (NCPIE)
National Conference of Black Mayors
National Council for Community and Education Partnerships (NCCEP)
National Council for the Social Studies
National Council of Churches
National Council of Jewish Women
National Council of Teachers of English
National Education Association
National Federation of Filipino American Associations
National Indian Education Association
National Indian School Board Association
National Korean American Service & Education Consortium (NAKASEC)
National Mental Health Association
National Ministries, American Baptist Churches USA
National Pacific Islander Educator Network
National Parent Teacher Association (PTA)
National Reading Conference
National Rural Education Association
National School Boards Association
National School Supply and Equipment Association
National Superintendents Roundtable
National Urban League
Native Hawaiian Education Association
Network of Spiritual Progressives
Organization of Chinese Americans
People for the American Way
Presbyterian Church (USA)
Progressive National Baptist Convention
Protestants for the Common Good
Public Education Network (PEN)
Rural School and Community Trust
Service Employees International Union
School Social Work Association of America
Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund
Social Action Committee of the Congress of Secular Jewish Organizations
Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC)
Stand for Children
Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)
The Children's Aid Society
The Episcopal Church
United Black Christians of the United Church of Christ
United Church of Christ Justice and Witness Ministries
United Methodist Church, General Board of Church and Society
USAction
Women's Division of the General Board of Global Ministries, The United Methodist Church
Women of Reform Judaism

(List of signers updated March 27, 2007)

The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

NEA Urges Senate to Listen to Teachers on Ed Funding Bill

Senate Committee Making Progress Toward NEA Proposals

Washington, D.C. – The nation’s largest educators union, the National Education Association (NEA), is urging the Senate to listen to America’s educators on the federal education funding bill.

Today, the Senate Appropriations Committee voted in favor of one version of the bill that lays out the spending in the next year. The full Senate is required to vote on this bill, which contains funding for the so-called No Child Left Behind law, before the end of the budget year on October 1.

NEA’s proposals, below, are based on recommendations NEA gleaned from the more than 2.7 million members who have direct experience in classrooms and schools with what students need.

“If agreed to, these funding levels could make marked improvements in our nation’s classrooms,” said NEA President Reg Weaver. “Getting every student up to speed means getting every student what he or she needs – qualified teachers, small classes, and up-to-date materials. The Senate has a unique opportunity to make our students’ dreams a reality.”

Weaver added that in an election year, when many politicians are running on the promise to improve education, NEA’s members will be watching the actions of the Senate closely.

“The teachers and school employees who are asking for these investments know from experience what it will take to improve schools. Policymakers in Washington should listen and act according to the recommendations of those who work with children every day,” Weaver said. “After this vote, we will be encouraging our members to look at whether their elected officials have provided America’s children with what they need and to remember that on election day.”

What the NEA Wants the Senate to Fund in Labor-HHS Appropriations Bill for Fiscal Year 2005

• Provide funding for the No Child Left Behind law of $34.3 billion, the authorized level. Under No Child Left Behind, schools must show improvement quickly. Most activities that schools will put in place to improve student achievement -- after-school or summer school programs, enhanced and expanded professional development for teachers and smaller class sizes -- require additional resources that are scarce due to state budget shortfalls. The Senate Appropriations Committee increased the funding levels in the Administration and House budget requests by $118 million on Title I programs alone, though still far below the authorized level.

• Provide $12.4 billion for special education. This change for the Individuals with Disabilities in Education act (IDEA) would also be consistent with the bipartisan proposal from Chuck Hagel (R-NE) and Tom Harkin (D-IA) to reach the mandatory level of full funding for IDEA over eight years. The Senate Appropriations Committee increased funding for IDEA by $1.2 billion, with an increase of $161 million over the Administration and House budget requests. This is still $1.1 billion less than is needed to stay on track to fund the law fully in eight years.

• Support an increase of at least $500 in the Pell Grant maximum. The cost of higher education is rising and even once “affordable” options such as public universities and community colleges are raising tuition to make up for severe state budget cuts. With this increase, the maximum allowed by a Pell Grant would be increased to $4,550. However, none of the versions proposed by the House, the Senate or the Administration include this increase.

• Protect key programs from elimination.  The Administration’s and House-passed version of the education funding bill eliminated funding for dozens of critical education programs, including dropout prevention and school counseling programs critical to increasing graduation rates and college attendance among at-risk populations. The Senate Appropriations Committee restored these vital programs in its version of the bill.

• Oppose vouchers. Reject any diversion of taxpayer funds to risky voucher schemes.

September 15, 2004

Contact:

Denise Cardinal, (202) 822-7239
Michael Pons, (202) 822-7595

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

NEA Welcomes Kennedy Proposal to Alter 'No Child Left Behind'

Statement by National Education Association
President Reg Weaver
on Sen. Edward Kennedy's 'No Child Left Behind Improvement Act.'

"On behalf of NEA’s 2.7 million members, I would like to thank Senator Kennedy, one of the original authors of the 'No Child Left Behind' Act, for introducing his proposal today to remedy some of the increasingly evident flaws in the law and its implementation. He was joined by other members of the Senate Health Education Labor and Pensions committee in introducing the bill.

"This bill is a positive step in the right direction.  Echoing a growing chorus of voices around the country, Senator Kennedy recognizes that while this law has admirable goals, it is creating serious problems in classrooms and schools.

"Kennedy’s bill addresses key concerns with NCLB by providing consistent standards for teacher and paraprofessional quality, more reasonable assessments for students with disabilities and limited English proficiency, and more resources to increase school building capacity and train teachers to use test results effectively to improve instruction.

"Senator Kennedy has also been a leader in the fight to close the $17 billion gap between funding provided so far by the Administration and Congress and the resources necessary to get the job done.

"We strongly believe that in order to make the No Child Left Behind law work, more fundamental changes will have to be made.  The law continues to evaluate student and school progress on just a 'snapshot'—two tests taken once a year—and it fails to measure growth in individual student achievement over time.

"NEA plans to continue working with members of both parties to fix and fund the No Child Left Behind law so that every child can learn to the best of his or her abilities."

September 13, 2004

Contact:

Daniel Kaufman, (202) 822-7268
Michael Pons, (202) 822-7595

[The full text of the No Child Left Behind Improvement Act of 2004 (S.2794) are available online.]

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

Educators Give Bush "Incomplete"

So-Called No Child Left Behind Law
Needs Fixing Before Expanding

Washington, D.C. - Policymakers should be focused on fixing and funding the so-called No Child Left Behind law. Instead, they are being called upon to compound the inefficiencies of the current law with additional bureaucratic testing requirements, said the National Education Association (NEA) President, Reg Weaver.

The President put forth a plan for expanding the so-called No Child Left Behind law to testing for three more grades, from third to eleventh instead of the already mandated third to eighth. He also announced a plan for testing high school students before they earn a diploma at a public high school.

The President's announced plan to expand the so-called No Child Left Behind law comes at an interesting time. Lately, teachers and parents find the current law's use of one-size-fits-all tests to determine whether a school is labeled as failing to be a major flaw that needs fixing.

"There are critical flaws in this law that both Republicans and Democrats have said need to be fixed," NEA President Reg Weaver said. More than 30 state legislatures - some with Republican majorities - have either passed or proposed state policies that call for changes in the law. "We should be talking about ways to create smaller class sizes, hire and retain high-quality teachers in the classroom and invest in up-to-date resources for all students. Not pile on yet another high-stakes test."

"The new plan would be redundant since about half of all states have exit exams already in place, and would invest precious education funds into yet another unnecessary test," Weaver said.

He pointed out that a similar situation was present with the proposal of the so-called No Child Left Behind two years ago. At that time about half of all states already had accountability systems in place. As a result, once the law was passed, it added an unnecessary layer of bureaucracy and created confusion for parents, teachers and school officials trying to navigate the difference between state and federal labeling of their schools.

"We need to be circumspect as we consider the new proposals presented by the President. When a prescription drug has negative side effects, the government forbids the sale of the drug until the company can make it safe for patients," Weaver said. "In that same vein, when there is an education law that doesn't work, we should hold off on expanding it until we can diagnose the negative effects on children and students, parents, teachers and education support professionals and develop a prescription that will bring a quality public education and great public schools to every child."

September 3, 2004

CONTACT:

Denise Cardinal, (202) 822-7239
Andy Linebaugh, (202) 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

Reality of the Classroom Not Reflected in Education Secretary's Remarks

New York –  The glowing praise U.S. Education Secretary Rod Paige gave the so-called No Child Left Behind law in his speech to the Republican National Convention on Tuesday is not reflected in America's classrooms, according to the National Education Association, the nation's largest teachers union.

"While America's public school teachers are pleased that education is coming to the forefront, we are concerned there was not an acknowledgement of the critical flaws in the law, flaws that both Republicans and Democrats have said need to be fixed," NEA President Reg Weaver said after the speech.

Weaver said the law's biggest flaw, according to teachers, parents, and policymakers, is the use of one-size-fits-all tests to determine whether a school is labeled as failing. He pointed to 32 state legislatures - some with Republican majorities - that have either passed or proposed state policy that reflects the need for the law to be changed.

Moreover, the Secretary talked about the need to close the funding gap between wealthy schools and those in lower-income areas. But the No Child Left Behind law does nothing to close the funding gap. Instead, it forces already cash-strapped schools to spend their precious funding on the things children need least - more bureaucracy, paperwork, and standardized testing. This is especially true in low-income schools because they are more reliant on federal funding than schools in wealthy districts.

Weaver also took issue with the Secretary's characterization of an increase in federal education funding, when the No Child Left Behind law has had a funding shortfall of $9.5 billion this year. More than half of all school districts are receiving less Title I money this year than they did in the previous year, forcing them to be accountable for more while providing them with less.

"While all educators agree with the Secretary that education is a right for all American citizens, the fact is that testing students more while providing them with less is not the way to ensure increased student achievement or access to a high-quality public school." Weaver said.

A student from a St. Louis elementary school, who was featured in a video clip during the speech, talked about how her teachers always take time to help her individually when she is struggling with a particular subject.

"This student didn't talk about how testing helped her do better at math or reading," Weaver said. "This student talked about how her teachers helped her achieve. Studies consistently prove that the quality of a teacher is the single most important factor in determining the quality of a child's education. Unfortunately, the No Child Left Behind law actually decreases the amount of federal money schools can use for hiring and keeping high-quality educators.

Additionally, the overall success of the school, as demonstrated by the video, was not a result of the No Child Left Behind law. Rather, it was an effort that had been ongoing for years before the law was instituted.

"We all know what works in the classroom to help students achieve - high-quality teachers, up-to-date classroom resources, and smaller class sizes. We need to be investing in those things that will make the future bright for America's children."

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September 1, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

News Release

What America's Teachers Would Like to Hear During the Election

New York –  America’s public school teachers are pleased that education is coming to the forefront of election issues on Tuesday night when U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige is scheduled to address the Republican National Convention.

“As the election cycle continues, teachers and those who work in schools would like to see more attention paid to the issues that matter to them, their students, parents and America’s public schools,” said National Education Association President, Reg Weaver. “One issue that affects every teacher is using high-stakes tests to measure school success. America’s teachers and education support professionals know that children learn differently, they learn at different rates, and that multiple measures must be used if you are to accurately evaluate student progress and school success.”

Weaver pointed out that the so-called No Child Left Behind law takes federal funding away from schools that can’t make uniform progress, ignoring different learning styles and the progress students make. He said the NEA hopes the candidates in the election will discuss how to accurately measure real student success, without hurting the schools that need the most help.

“Instead of punishing schools that need help the most, educators, parents and the public want to see investments in the classroom,” Weaver said. “We all know what works in the classroom to help students achieve – high quality teachers, up-to-date resources, and smaller class sizes.”
 
“The single most important factor in a child’s education is the quality of his or her teacher,” Weaver said. “Unfortunately, we now have relaxed teacher quality standards in this law and teachers are treated like nothing more than test-givers.”

However, funding for the so-called No Child Left Behind law has a $9.5 billion funding shortfall while money for risky voucher schemes has increased. The NEA hopes the candidates will discuss ways to increase investment in the things that work, and not entertain the notion of implementing an expanded version of this critically flawed, unfunded mandate into the secondary grades, he added.

“Children also need to start school ready to learn and be given financial support for their post-high-school education. That’s why investments in early childhood education and higher education are necessary for a strong America,” Weaver said. “With too many crumbling school buildings and federal education laws – like the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act -- continuing to strain state and local governments, it seems that politicians should be talking about ways to make sure every child has access to a high-quality public school.”

The NEA hopes the candidates will address the needs of the people who work every day, face to face, in the classrooms with America’s children.”

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August 31, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

New Poll Reveals Public Consensus
on How to Close the
Achievement Gap

Statement by National Education Association
President Reg Weaver
on Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll

"The most resounding finding of today's independent PDK/Gallup poll is the overwhelming public support for the things that really help to close the achievement gap among students.

"Ninety percent or more of the public believes the gap can be narrowed by encouraging more parental involvement and providing low-performing students with more class time and remedial programs. More than three-quarters of the public also believes in providing state-funded preschool, in-school health clinics, and free breakfast and lunch where needed.

"Not surprisingly, the public recognizes the lack of adequate funding as the biggest problem facing public schools in their community, according to the poll. At a time of painful state and local budget cuts, cash-strapped school districts are paying for more bureaucracy, standardized testing, transportation, private tutoring, and other costly demands under the so-called No Child Left Behind law. Because of last year's inadequate funding, half of the nation's 15,000 school districts are receiving less federal aid for poor children this fall.

"Parents and educators know that the overly rigid and underfunded No Child Left Behind law and other so-called solutions such as school vouchers are siphoning resources from classrooms that would help close the achievement gap. Instead, we need more federal aid for smaller class sizes, increased teacher training, new textbooks and materials, and other methods and practices that truly work."

August 24, 2004

Contact:

Daniel Kaufman, (202) 822-7268
Michael Pons, (202) 822-7595

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

'No Child Left Behind' Funding Plan Shortchanges Schools

Statement by National Education Association (NEA) President Reg Weaver on House Appropriations Committee Labor-HHS-Education bill

“The fiscal 2005 education spending bill approved by the House Appropriations Committee today falls far short of what schools need to fully meet the mandates of the so-called ‘No Child Left Behind’ law.

“The bill for all ‘No Child Left Behind’ programs is $9.5 billion less than what was promised when the law passed, and is even below what President Bush has requested.  This bill also eliminates programs proven to help students succeed, such as comprehensive school reform, drop-out prevention, parental assistance centers, and history, arts, and foreign language education.

“This lack of sufficient resources comes as cash-strapped school districts are paying for more bureaucracy, standardized testing, transportation, private tutoring, and other costly demands under the ‘No Child Left Behind’ law.  Because of last year’s inadequate funding, half of the nation’s 15,000 school districts will have less federal aid for poor children this fall.

“As a recent government memo also made clear, the Administration proposes to cut all federal education funding by $1.5 billion next year and to freeze it at that level for the next three years.

“Thus, America’s public school children face a triple whammy.  Half of all school districts will have to do more with less money for disadvantaged students in 2004.  Important programs to advance the goals of the ‘No Child Left Behind’ law are underfunded or scheduled for elimination next year.  Further, deeper cuts are proposed for fiscal 2006.  This is clearly moving us in the wrong direction.

“NEA and its 2.7 million members believe that to make the promise of the ‘No Child Left Behind’ law a reality, schools must receive more federal help to boost student achievement.  This means adequate resources for smaller class sizes, increased teacher training and parental involvement, expanded early childhood and after-school services, and new textbooks and materials.” 

July 14, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

'Team NEA' Leaves Annual Meeting Reenergized to Push for
Great Public Schools for Every Child

Members mobilize to fix 'No Child
Left Behind' flaws, close achievement gap

Washington, D.C. – More than 9,000 delegates of the National Education Association (NEA) united this week to recommit themselves to ensuring that every child in the country has an opportunity to attend a great public school.

In his Independence Day keynote address to NEA's Representative Assembly (RA), President Reg Weaver affirmed that "our goal is for every child to achieve and succeed." Weaver urged NEA's 2.7 million members to enhance their efforts in the classroom by speaking out about the needs of children in their school and community, lobbying their elected representatives, and voting and volunteering to get pro-public education candidates elected at every level. He charged delegates to get new members and other allies to help in these ambitious goals.

"Team NEA, we are the foot soldiers for democracy's foundation -- public education -- and we are on the move!" said Weaver, a middle school science teacher from Harvey, Ill. "Defend democracy, defend public education, and defend the opportunity for all children to have access to a quality public education."

Modifying the so-called No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law to make it workable is one of NEA's top priorities, with members in full agreement that the law must be fixed and fully funded for its promise to become reality.

One key element of NEA's strategy to ensure that every child has access to a great public school is to elect a pro-public education president of the United States in November. On Monday, NEA delegates overwhelmingly recommended the association's candidate. (For more information on the recommendation, please see this news article).

Yesterday, U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) made a surprise appearance at the hall, reminding the delegates why this election is so critical. "Education remains a core issue," Clinton said. "This is the most important election in a lifetime. It will set the course of the nation."  She urged NEA members to maximize their involvement in the election by registering new voters and getting involved in support of friends of education.

NEA also kicked off an unprecedented, nationwide effort to host "house parties" and other get-togethers to raise the profile of education issues in the upcoming election and beyond. More than 2,000 NEA delegates have already signed up to host parties on Wednesday, Sept. 22, and organizers expect that many members and others who care about the future of public education will sign up over the next several months at the Great Public Schools Web site. NEA is well on its way to coordinating the largest one-day discussion of education in the nation's history.                         

Over the course of the six-day meeting, delegates sent more than 9,000 e-mails to Congress and state legislators, urging support for revisions to the NCLB law and Social Security offset legislation. At last count, they had raised almost $1.3 million in voluntary contributions to the Fund for Children and Public Education, which is used to support efforts to elect candidates who support children and public education.

In addition, 25 state affiliates and more than 150 delegates participated in dialogues focused on their experiences with the NCLB law and innovations that would help close the achievement gap. One teacher from Arkansas noted that because her district, Pulaski County, had to spend 20 percent of its federal resources to pay for transportation and private tutors, it was forced to cut literacy and math specialists.

Educators from every state, the District of Columbia, and overseas came here as delegates to the NEA's RA to set policies for the coming year. NEA represents 2.7 million teachers, education support professionals, higher education faculty, school administrators, retired educators and students preparing to be teachers.

Delegates elected three members of the NEA Executive Committee. Michael Marks, a high school dramatic arts and debate teacher from Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and Rebecca "Becky" Pringle, a physical science teacher from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, were each re-elected to three-year terms. Mark Cebulski, a social studies teacher from Cedarburg, Wisconsin, was elected to fill a two-year term after being appointed to a one-year term in August 2003.

The NEA Executive Committee is comprised of nine members -- three executive officers and six members elected at large by the RA. In other election news, more than 350 delegates at the NEA Student Leadership Conference elected Mandy Plucker, a master's degree candidate in counseling at South Dakota State University in Brookings, national chairperson for the NEA Student Program.

Policy Actions

Delegates adopted a report that calls for additional study on issues affecting the achievement gap. The report by NEA's Professional Standards and Practices Committee's reiterated that in order to close the achievement gap among their students, educators and schools need more support for methods and practice that work to boost student achievement. These include smaller class sizes, teacher training, increased parental involvement, enhanced early childhood and after school services, updated textbooks and materials, and adequate support for children and families outside of school.

The RA passed a number of New Business Items, calling on NEA to take action on issues in the near future. Among the most significant was a statement in opposition to federal funding for the American Board for Certification of Teaching Excellence, a competitor to the National Board for Professional Standards. In addition, the delegates stated their opposition to tests that, by themselves, are barriers to grade promotion or high school graduation.

The RA adopted its Resolutions, statements of the NEA's philosophy that covers a broad range of issues including children's health and well-being, quality and access to public education, the rights of education employees, and standards for those working in education professions. Among significant changes in the Resolution language were amendments placing NEA in support of strengthening standards for charter schools so that they are held accountable for meeting their goals, strengthening teacher standards such that "testing only" routes were not allowed by states, and calling for schools to adopt stronger policies and programs to eliminate bullying. NEA delegates also voted to support access to higher education, financial aid, and in-state tuition for undocumented students.

Among some of the Resolutions that were set aside for future discussion, delegates voted to maintain current language supporting a full range of family planning options, as well as maintaining the organization's commitment to separation of church and state, after full, respectful, and open debates.

Delegates amended a policy statement on early childhood education to reinforce the organization's belief that pre-kindergarten teachers should be fully licensed and certified.

In addition, delegates overwhelmingly adopted a strategic budget that directs resources to enhance teaching and learning, advocate for children and members, and build partnerships with organizations and individuals who support public education.

Delegates made a commitment to NEA's fight for public education by extending a $5 special dues increase to help state affiliates with ballot measures legislative crises and to support national and state affiliate media campaigns to advance the cause of public education. In addition, delegates voted to increase the dues support for these efforts by $1 per year for five years.

NEA Awards and Honors

The 2004 Teacher of the Year, Kathleen M. Mellor, a middle-school teacher from North Kingstown, R.I., addressed the assembly, speaking passionately about the rewards of teaching. "We know the tremendous impact of each day and each lesson," she said. "Knowing that I can make a difference in someone's life validates what I do every day."

Allyson "Sunny" Story, NEA's 2004 Education Support Professional of the Year, has spent 25 years helping classroom teachers work with special needs students in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She told delegates how education employees in her area negotiated a new mentoring program to support members. "There are a great many who either do not understand or who want to destroy public education," Story said. "But a coalition of educators working together for the common good is more powerful than individual educators."

NEA's highest honor, the Friend of Education Award, went to Marian Wright Edelman, founder and president of the Children's Defense Fund (CDF). Under her leadership, CDF has become the nation's strongest voice advocating for children and families. In her remarks, Edelman noted that even though the U.S. Supreme Court decision Brown vs. Board of Education ended legal segregation in public schools, "the great unfinished business of our nation is to open wide the doors of equal education and economic opportunity to every child in the United States."

A celebration of the Brown decision and the role played by members of the NEA and the all-Black American Teachers Association was held Tuesday, led by NEA Executive Director John Wilson and students from five states who were involved in lawsuits over the case. The assembly also honored delegates who arrived wearing or carrying items that honored their family members' participation in the armed services.

Pre-Conference Activities

The theme of the July 2-7 Annual Meeting was "TEAM NEA: Uniting the Nation for Great Public Schools."  Prior to the start of the RA on July 4, forums were held addressing health care coverage and closing the achievement gap. NEA's two-day Joint Conference on the Concerns of Women and Minorities gave participants opportunities to learn more about how to address student needs and foster respect and safety in America 's public schools.

In the Association's ninth annual Outreach to Teach, more than 325 student, retired and active NEA members converged on Longfields Elementary School in Forestville, Md., for a day of public service. Just four months ago, Longfields lost three classrooms to a fire, so NEA's volunteers were happy to contribute to the school's recovery by spending the day cleaning, painting, decorating and landscaping.

The six-day meeting was estimated to generate about $25 million for the economy in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.      

The 2005 NEA Annual Meeting and RA will be held in Los Angeles.

July 7, 2004

Contact:
Anjetta McQueen, (202) 258-4220
Melinda Anderson, (703) 927-8044
Andrew Linebaugh, (202) 441-9866

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The National Education Association is the nation's largest professional employee organization, representing more than 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

NEA Honors Marian Wright Edelman with Friend of Education Award

Given for Her Commitment to Truly Leave No Child Behind

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  The National Education Association (NEA) gave its highest honor, the Friend of Education Award, today to Marian Wright Edelman, founder and president of the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF). This annual award recognizes individuals whose leadership, acts and support have raised the level of excellence in education in the United States. 

NEA President Reg Weaver presented Edelman with the award on the closing day of the Association’s Annual Meeting at the Washington Convention Center. More than 9,000 NEA members convened in the nation's capital for the weeklong convention, July 2-7.

“I could not think of a more deserving recipient for this award than Marian Wright Edelman,” said Weaver.  “She has been a true pioneer in paving the way for many disadvantaged children to receive an equal opportunity in education.  Over the years, she has advocated to truly ensure that no child is left behind.”

Edelman founded CDF in 1973.  Under her leadership, CDF has become the nation’s strongest voice advocating for children and families. Its mission is to ensure every child a healthy start, a head start, a fair start and a moral start in life.  Because of her leadership, issues relating to child development, childcare, health care and children in poverty have gained national attention.

Among her many accomplishments, Edelman was the first woman admitted to the Mississippi Bar.  In 1968, she moved to Washington, D.C., as counsel for the Poor People’s Campaign that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. began organizing before his death.  She has received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award, and the Robert F. Kennedy Lifetime Achievement Award for her writings, which include seven books. She has dedicated her professional life to fighting for the disadvantaged in the United States. 

“Fifty years after Brown vs. the Board of Education ended legally sanctioned racial segregation in public schools, the great unfinished business of our nation is to open wide the doors of equal education and economic opportunity to every child in the United States,” said Marian Wright Edelman.  “The Children’s Defense Fund and the NEA recognize the potential in all children, and we will continue to work together to truly leave no child behind. ”

NEA state affiliates nominate their person of choice for the Friend of Education Award.  Both the North Carolina and Nebraska state affiliates nominated Edelman to receive this honor.  Former Friend of Education Award recipients include President Bill Clinton, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, U.S. Senator James Jeffords and, most recently, the late U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone.  

July 7, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

Education Support Professional of the Year Addresses NEA Convention

Iowa Teacher's Aide Wins $10,000 Award

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  Allyson "Sunny" Story, who has spent 25 years helping classroom teachers in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, told more than 9,000 educators that "there are a great many who either do not understand or who want to destroy public education; and that a coalition of educators working together for the common good is more powerful than individual educators."  

Story provides one-on-one tutoring and other assistance to special-needs students at Grant Elementary School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She is especially known for the creative ways she engages children in learning, such as a game of alphabet tag at recess to reinforce the morning lesson.

Story, named the NEA’s 2004 Education Support Professional of the Year this spring, addressed the organization’s Representative Assembly at its annual meeting here today.

Story will be an ambassador for the 350,000 education support professionals among the 2.7 million members of NEA. Throughout 2004, she will travel to education conferences, as well as speak to thousands of fellow educators this July at NEA's Representative Assembly in Washington.

"I'm looking forward to building bridges that will form positive relationships between parents, educators, support professionals, and legislators," said Story, president of the local Cedar Rapids Organization of Teacher Associates. The award was presented March 12 at the NEA ESP conference in Charlotte, N.C.

NEA's ESP of the Year receives a $10,000 award, half of which is presented to the charity of his or her choice. Story's contribution will go to the Kirkwood Foundation to help fund adult literacy programs and training for education support professionals. NEA’s Representative Assembly closes tomorrow.  

July 6, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

Teacher of the Year Highlights Responsibility, Rewards of Teaching at NEA Meeting

'We know the tremendous impact of each day and each lesson'

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  Teaching is an awesome responsibility with many intrinsic rewards, National Teacher of the Year Kathleen M. Mellor told more than 9,000 fellow educators meeting at the National Education Association (NEA) Representative Assembly (RA).

“We know the tremendous impact of each day and each lesson,” said Mellor, a middle-school teacher from North Kingstown, R.I. “Knowing that I can make a difference in someone’s life validates what I do every day.”

Mellor teaches English as a Second Language at Davisville Middle School where she has taught for 19 years. In her remarks, she spoke glowingly of her students, many of whom are recent immigrants, and talked of how her classroom blends high expectations with “tender loving care” to achieve student success.

“The program, the students and their families are accepted and respected,” said the 2004 Teacher of the Year.

Mellor is the first Rhode Islander to win the national teaching honor in the program’s 54-year history.  She is traveling the nation with the message that school success depends on educators’ work with students, families and communities.
 
“It is you as a person, not the program,” she said. “It’s the power of your rigorous expectations, coupled with compassion. It is the respect that you have earned through the respect that you have paid.”  

July 6, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

Wisconsin Teacher Elected to Fill Two-Year Term on NEA Executive Committee

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Mark Cebulski, a social studies teacher at Cedarburg, Wis., High School, was elected today to a seat on the National Education Association (NEA) Executive Committee by more than 9,000 delegates attending the Representative Assembly in Washington, D.C.  He was elected to fill a two-year term after being appointed to a one-year term in August 2003.

With public education facing many challenges, such as economic pressures and the so-called No Child Left Behind Act, Cebulski called on NEA members to take action on behalf of children and public education. 

“We must garner our own rich resources—our creativity, our activism, our passion and our energy—to step up to these challenges,” Cebulski said.  “NEA’s commitment to democracy and education progress will be measured by how well these resources will be utilized.”

A member of the NEA Board of Directors since 1999, Cebulski has also served in a number of leadership roles within the Cedarburg Education Association, including president and vice president.  On the state level, Cebulski has been a member of the Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC) Board of Directors and of the WEAC Political Action Committee.  He has been honored with the Cedarburg High School Award for Service to Students and the Wisconsin Association of Educators of the Gifted and Talented Award for Service to Students.

The NEA Executive Committee is comprised of nine members—three executive officers and six members elected at large by the Representative Assembly.  Cebulski’s term will begin in September.  

July 5, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

National Education Association Elects Executive Committee Members

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  Delegates to the National Education Association (NEA) Representative Assembly (RA) have elected three members to the NEA Executive Committee. Michael Marks, a high school dramatic arts and debate teacher from Hattiesburg, Mississippi; Rebecca “Becky” Pringle, a physical science teacher from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; and the newest member Mark Cebulski, a social studies teacher from Cedarburg, Wisconsin.  They were elected to the Association’s nine-member governing body during the RA, which is attended by more than 9,000 NEA members.

Marks is a 24-year teaching veteran who previously served as president of the Mississippi Association of Educators (MAE), chair of the Mississippi affiliate’s student program and on the MAE board of directors.  He is a former Mississippi Teacher of the Year who has received national honors including the Outstanding Teacher of the Performing Arts Award and the Milken National Educator Award.

Pringle, a teacher with nearly 30 years classroom experience, has held Association positions at the national, state and local levels, including serving on the board of directors of the NEA and the Pennsylvania State Education Association.  She serves on the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards and chairs the NEA ESEA Advisory Committee and the NEA Reading Task Force.

Marks and Pringle were each re-elected to three-year terms.

Cebulski, a social studies teacher at Cedarburg High School for 30 years, has served as president and vice president of the Cedarburg Education Association.  On the state level, Cebulski has been a member of the Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC) Board of Directors and of the WEAC Political Action Committee. He has been a member of the NEA Board of Directors since 1999.

Cebulski was elected to fill a two-year term on the Executive Committee after being appointed to a one-year term in August 2003.

The three executive committee members will assume their leadership positions in September.  

July 5, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

Pennsylvania Teacher Reelected to NEA Executive Committee

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Becky Pringle, an eighth-grade physical science teacher from Harrisburg, Pa., was reelected today to the National Education Association (NEA) Executive Committee, the nine-member governing body that oversees the Association.  She was elected by more than 9,000 delegates attending the Association’s Representative Assembly, meeting July 4-7 in Washington, D.C.  She ran unopposed.

“My vision continues to be that NEA, with the might and determination of 2.7 million members, will realize its fullest potential—will direct the course of public education, will be the respected voice it can and should be, will demonstrate that it can fight to protect and enhance the rights of out members while it fight to ensure that every child has the quality education they deserve,” Pringle said.

Pringle serves on the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards and chairs the NEA Elementary and Secondary Education Act Advisory Committee and the NEA Reading Task Force.  A teacher with nearly 30 years classroom experience, Pringle has held Association positions at the national, state and local levels, including serving on the board of directors of the NEA and the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA). 

Her long history of leadership has included attention to diversity issues, as well as to developing leaders within the Association.  She chaired the PSEA Human and Civil Rights Award Committee and the PSEA Task Force on Minority Representation.  In addition, she served as regional chair of the PSEA Leadership Development Committee and on the Institute for Educational Leadership Task Force.

The Executive Committee comprises the three NEA officers plus six members elected at large.  Pringle will begin a new three-year term in September.  

July 5, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

Mississippi Teacher Reelected to NEA Executive Committee

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  Michael Marks, a high school dramatic arts and debate teacher from Hattiesburg, Miss., was reelected today to the National Education Association (NEA) Executive Committee, the nine-member governing body that oversees the 2.7 million-member Association.  He was elected by more than 9,000 delegates attending the Association’s Representative Assembly, meeting July 4-7 in Washington, D.C.  He ran unopposed.

“Now more than ever, American’s public schools need the help of caring individuals to ensure that no child is left behind,” Marks said.  “It is with great public schools for every child in mind that we must continue to forge toward new horizons.”

The son of two public school teachers, Marks boasts a long and rich history of contribution to education and the arts.  He chairs the NEA Early Childhood Education Committee and serves on NEA’s Read Across America Advisory Committee. 

A 24-year teaching veteran, he previously served as president of the Mississippi Association of Educators (MAE), chair of the Mississippi affiliate’s student program and on the MAE board of directors.  He is a former Mississippi Teacher of the Year who has received national honors including the Outstanding Teacher of the Performing Arts Award and the Milken National Educator Award.

The Executive Committee comprises the three NEA officers plus six members elected at large.  Marks will begin a new three-year term in September.  

July 5, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

NEA President Calls on Members to Unite and Fight for Future of Children and Public Schools

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  In his keynote speech on America’s Independence Day, National Education Association (NEA) President Reg Weaver told more than 9,000 members that the organization is moving to a “laser focus” on raising student achievement for all children in the nation’s public schools.

Weaver told NEA’s Representative Assembly that the association’s 2.7 million members must concentrate their efforts in four areas—recruiting new members, working to close the achievement gap, pressuring federal officials to fix and fund the so-called No Child Left Behind law, and electing pro-public education candidates in November and beyond.

“As educators, we value each student, and we respect their individuality,” Weaver said.  “Our goal is for every child to achieve and succeed…And, as we all know, every child can’t learn at the same speed, or in the same way.”

Weaver criticized the No Child Left Behind law and the U.S. Department of Education for taking a “one-size-fits-all” approach that ignores these important differences, and he noted a growing chorus of voices around the country that has joined NEA in raising serious, legitimate concerns.  “No Child Left Behind forces us to spend money that we don’t have, on programs that we don’t need, to get test results that don’t matter,” he said.  “A tweak here, and a tweak there, is not sufficient to remedy the ills of this law.”

A much better approach, Weaver said, would be for the Administration and Congress to listen to educators’ concerns about how the law, as currently crafted, is interfering with progress in the classrooms.  In addition, closing the achievement gap requires adequate resources to reduce class sizes, train teachers, expand early childhood and after school services, update textbooks and materials, and provide the supports children and families need outside of school.

“If there’s enough money for war, then there’s enough money for us to provide our children and students with that which will ensure they achieve and succeed,” Weaver added.

Weaver called for bipartisan support for education programs that work.  To Democrats, he said, “Don’t take us for granted,” and to Republicans, “Don’t write us off.  We will do all we can to support you if you demonstrate support for public education.”

Weaver urged every NEA member to “give me five!”—recruit five new members, register five new voters, work five full days to elect pro-public education candidates, and spend five minutes explaining to a parent or member of their community what needs to be done to ensure the promise of the Brown v. Board of Education desegregation decision is fulfilled.

“You do it every day, and stand ready, willing and able to do what it takes to make a great public school for every child.  To do what it takes to make the promise of Brown more than a promise, but a reality for all children,” he said.  

July 4, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

South Dakota Student Elected National Education Association (NEA) Student Chairperson at Annual Convention in Washington, D.C.

Mandy Plucker Vows to Use Technology to Enhance Communication and Increase Recruitment

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  More than 350 delegates at the NEA Student Leadership Conference elected Mandy Plucker national chairperson for the NEA Student Program.  Plucker, a master’s degree candidate in counseling at South Dakota State University in Brookings, outlined an ambitious agenda including working to recruit students preparing to become teachers and enhancing communication among members.  The election results were announced June 30th.

“By 2007, nearly 2 million teachers across the country will retire,” said Plucker. “Students have the technological know-how and tools NEA needs to increase membership enrollment.  We are the future.”

Plucker brings a variety of experiences, including serving on the NEA Board of Directors, participating on the national advisory committee for membership and acting as South Dakota’s Student-NEA chair.  Her familiarity with NEA’s organization and resources will enable her to hit the ground running.

Plucker credits her political awareness to membership in NEA and admits she didn’t register to vote until after she joined.  “I realized if I wasn’t involved politically among my peers, who would be?”

More than 80 percent of the 60,000 student members become active members, and one in three student members become leaders within NEA.

Despite state budget cutbacks for school counseling programs that are either eliminating or combining elementary and secondary counseling positions, Plucker wants to provide career counseling at the high school or college level. She believes there is a huge need for counseling because too many students are not prepared for college.

In Plucker’s speech to delegates, she declared that “the best is yet to come.  It will be so exciting when you actually walk into your own classroom.” 

The NEA Student Program includes more than 900 chapters in the nation’s colleges and universities.  It works to promote community partnerships, foster leadership through pre-professional opportunities and peer mentoring, supplement formal teacher education training and promote the national accreditation of teacher education training.  

July 2, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

Washington, D.C. -– The National Education Association is pleased that the Colorado Supreme Court decided in favor of children, public schools and public accountability in its ruling to strike down the state’s voucher program.

We agree with the Court’s finding that the program violates local control provisions of the Colorado Constitution in that it requires taxpayers to subsidize programs over which they have little or no oversight regarding financial and educational matters.

The people of Colorado have spoken out resoundingly against public subsidies of private schools in the defeats of the 1992 ballot measure on vouchers and the 1998 tuition tax credit measure.  If policymakers listen to teachers and parents they will discover that Americans, by overwhelming numbers, support investing in efforts to improve existing public schools rather than funding alternative systems, such as private-school tuition vouchers.

June 28, 2004

For more information, contact:
Anjetta McQueen     (202) 822-7251
Michael Pons           (202) 822-7595

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

Six Innovative Partnerships Honored by NEA, UAW, Saturn

Districts and Local Associations Recognized for New Teacher Programs

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  The 2004 NEA-Saturn/UAW Partnership Awards, sponsored by the National Education Association (NEA), United Auto Workers (UAW) and the Saturn Corporation, will be presented on July 1 as part of the pre-convention activities for the NEA Annual Meeting.  The awards will recognize six local education associations and school districts that have used a collaborative approach to mentor new teachers and reduce new teacher turnover.

Almost 50 percent of new teachers exit the profession in the first five years.  One of the key reasons is a lack of on-the-job support.  To stop this revolving door, these partnerships have developed award-winning programs to assist new teachers in their careers.  The 2004 winning partnerships are in the following communities:

East Granby, Connecticut, where the East Granby Education Association and the East Granby Public Schools developed a strong partnership that has led to the establishment, operation and funding of the East Granby BEST Mentoring Program.  This two-year program goes a year beyond the state’s mandate and assists new teachers through the critical phase of developing a portfolio for state licensure.  Mentors are trained and certified by the state and receive a small negotiated stipend.  Substitute coverage, release time and opportunities for professional development conferences and in-service training are also available to mentors and mentees.

Carpentersville, Illinois, where the Local Education Association District and the Community Unit School District #300 teamed up to create the Induction/Mentoring Program, now in its fifth year.  The program includes both an Induction Academy, required for both first- and second-year certified staff members, and a two-year mentoring program designed to improve professional practice and, ultimately, student achievement.  Mentors are provided to help new staff improve their teaching practice, and both mentees and mentors receive professional development units.  The program is designed by teachers, for teachers, with the administration’s cooperation and support.
 
Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where the Cedar Rapids Education Association and the Cedar Rapids Community School District operate a two-year-old mentoring program with added support from the University of Iowa.  The Association bargained and pays for a mentor facilitator who is part of the team that selects mentors.  Mentees and mentors work together for the three days prior to the start of school and throughout the year. The district pays mentors a $1,000 stipend, and both mentees and mentors are granted release time to observe each other.  All Cedar Rapids teachers who completed their second year of teaching passed the rigorous state portfolio evaluation and received their Iowa Teaching License.

Portland, Maine, where the Portland Education Association and the Portland Public Schools partnered with the University of Southern Maine to manage the Strengthening and Sustaining Teachers (SST) project.  The program is designed to improve connections between pre-service, induction and professional development for teachers.  To strengthen the partnership, a compact was developed and is implemented by a steering committee comprised of four members from each of the three partners. Mentors are chosen through a rigorous selection process, receive training and are paired with a new teacher for two years.  Despite no state mandate or funding, the mentors receive stipends both for their work as certification mentors and as SST mentors.

Brainerd, Minnesota, where Education Minnesota/Brainerd and Independent School District 181/Brainerd direct the Brainerd Teacher Support System (BTSS), a three-year program that supports both novice and new teachers with prior experience. The induction process features formal mentorship, in-class assessment and seminars.  New teachers design individualized professional development plans and professional portfolios to document growth toward standards.  Identified by the Minnesota Board of Teaching as a model program, BTSS shares its training components with other districts.  BTSS boasts a 94 percent retention rate for new teachers, far exceeding the national average.

Centerville, Ohio, where the Centerville Classroom Teachers Association and the Centerville City Schools support entry level teachers through “The Right Start” mentor program.  Veteran teachers are specifically trained to support, provide guidance and assist new teachers in their professional lives.  A mentor committee representing elementary, middle and high school levels has been supplemented with a peer assistance and review program that supports veteran teachers new to the district.  The program has met its immediate objectives—the retention rate for entry-year teachers exceeds 96 percent.  But they also have a long-term goal—encouraging veteran teachers and entry-level teachers to develop trusting relationships that will continue throughout the new teacher’s career.  

June 22, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.

News Release

NEA Announces Human & Civil Rights Awards Winners for 2004

Ceremony Gives National Recognition to Local Heroes

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  More than one dozen educators, public servants and activists who have fought tirelessly to promote social justice and dignity for all citizens will be honored by the National Education Association (NEA) at the 38th Annual Human and Civil Rights Awards Dinner.

NEA President Reg Weaver will present the honors on July 3 in the Grand Ballroom of the Washington Convention Center.  The event, held each year during the Association’s Annual Meeting, is expected to attract 2,000 educators and invited guests.

This year’s honorees include a former mayor, a well-known children’s author and other notable individuals.  Each will be recognized for their leadership in reaching out to people from diverse social, racial, ethnic and economic backgrounds.  Their work spans the globe from a rural community in the Deep South to an Asian community in the West, and from snowy Vermont to the snowcaps of Alaska.  

The awards, which are named after human and civil rights pioneers, commemorate NEA’s 1966 merger with the predominantly Black organization, the American Teachers Association.  The following are this year’s esteemed award recipients: 

Emily Eileen Lester, Plainfield, Vermont: SuAnne Big Crow Memorial Award
Finding money for college is a daunting task for parents and students alike.  But Emily Eileen Lester’s quest for student aid took her to the doorstep of the Vermont State Legislature.  Lester is the young architect of H.171, a recently enacted bill that will establish a trust fund to provide financial aid to students in state foster care.  It began as a class project in Lester’s 8th grade humanities class at Twinfield Union School in Plainfield, Vermont.  Now a senior in high school, Lester continues to pursue this bill, which passed in the Vermont House on May 23, 2003, and has garnered support from 75 percent of the Vermont Senate

Ben Gray, Omaha, Nebraska: Carter G. Woodson Memorial Award
Ben Gray is a photojournalist and television producer who hosts his own public affairs television show, covering issues of importance to his Omaha community and Omaha’s Black community in particular.  He also uses his talents and the medium in which he works to improve the lives of Omaha’s students. As a speaker, he is always in demand and regularly visits schools and encourages students to learn and achieve. He also chairs the Omaha Public School’s African American Achievement Council, which implements various programs to improve the achievement levels of Black students.
 
VirginiaAnn Greer Shadwick, Pacifica, California: Mary Hatwood Futrell Award
When VirginiaAnn Greer Shadwick realized that librarians at San Francisco State University had all the responsibilities of teaching faculty, but none of the privileges, she stepped from behind the reference desk and out in front.  Since that day, and for more than three decades, Shadwick has worked to ensure that librarians in the California State University system, who are predominately female, have parity with their male counterparts in salary, benefits and professional development opportunities.

Phillip Martin, Choctaw, Mississippi: Leo Reano Memorial Award
Chief Phillip Martin is the democratically elected tribal Chief of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, a federally recognized American Indian tribe.  The tribe includes some 9,100 enrolled members living on or near 35,000 acres of reservation land in east central Mississippi.  With an eye toward the future, Chief Martin has worked diligently to promote and ensure educational opportunities for his tribe.  Back in the early 1960s, no Choctaw could attend public school, so Chief Martin opened the first Choctaw high school in 1964, recognizing that education held the key to the future success of his people.  Today, all of the old schools on the Mississippi Choctaw Reservation have been replaced with new buildings, the Head Start Program has been expanded, and the new Choctaw Hospitality Institute has been added, providing vocational training and education, as well as career development, for members of the Mississippi Choctaw.

New Albany/Floyd County Education Association and School Corp., New Albany, Indiana: Rosena J. Willis Memorial Award
Realizing that the challenges of diversity in their Indiana community covered the spectrum, the district adopted a multicultural plan in 1994 that provided a proactive direction for facing the issues of racial, cultural and socioeconomic differences.  The plan, which was revised in 2000, identifies five goals—training, hiring, infusing curriculum, improving communication, and providing outstanding opportunities for student achievement.  Recognizing that schools cannot do the work alone, the district established a Diversity Advisory Council comprised of members of the community, teachers, administrators and support staff.  The plan has expanded the celebration of cultural diversity to include areas of ethnicity, religion and gender. 

Michael Yoshii, Alameda, California: Ellison S. Onizuka Memorial Award
Rev. Michael Yoshii is a clergyman in the mold of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. who combines religion with social activism.  Indeed, he is not adverse to rolling up his sleeves and fighting for justice, particularly as it affects Alameda’s growing Asian community.  Like other clergy who are also social activists, he does not confine his church to the building in which he delivers sermons.  Rather, he extends his reach into the community at-large and is quick to go wherever injustice beckons.  A third-generation Japanese American (a Sansei), Rev. Yoshii has organized and spoken out on a number of issues, such as housing for the poor and racial diversity.  Stressing the importance of people from different ethnic and racial backgrounds getting to know each other, he initiated discussion forums among Alameda’s politicians, businesspersons and citizens. 
 
Camille Taylor, Bloomington, Illinois: H. Councill Trenholm Memorial Award
Norman Dale Conard, Fort Scott, Kansas: H. Councill Trenholm Memorial Award

Camille Taylor has been an inspiration to her students, colleagues and Association for the past 25 years.  A guidance counselor at Normal Community High School, she has been an elementary at-risk specialist, a learning disabilities resource teacher, and a professional development academy instructor.  But most of all, she has been an advocate for kids. She has gone far beyond the call of duty to assist her students, particularly minority students, and to help her colleagues better understand some of the challenges minority students face. Working in a school with few minority teachers, she has launched campaigns on her school’s behalf to recruit more minorities to the staff.

A third generation educator, Norman Conard teaches social studies in Uniontown High School in Kansas. In the fall of 1999, Conard encouraged his students to work on a yearlong National History Day project that would extend the boundaries of the classroom to families in the community while helping them to learn history.  Conard found an old magazine and showed several students a clipping that described how Irena Sendler, a Catholic social worker, had saved 2,500 Jewish children from the Nazis during World War II.  The students were so impressed by Sendler that they created a play based on her life, which has been performed in more than 110 venues across Kansas, the U.S. and in Europe. Uniontown has little diversity and no Jewish students in the school district. Yet, the community was so inspired by the project that it sponsored an Irena Sendler Day.

Lupe Ramos-Montigny, Grand Rapids, Michigan: George I. Sánchez Memorial Award
Ramos-Montigny is no stranger to hard work. Born in Weslaco, Texas, Ramos-Montigny traveled to Michigan as a young girl to harvest beets in Caseville, cherries in Old Mission peninsula and tomatoes in Indiana.  This experience taught her the value of sustained effort, the importance of education and the need to advocate for minorities.  First and foremost an educator, Ramos-Montigny has taught in the Grand Rapids Public Schools for the past twenty-five years.  Her first assignment was as a migrant education teacher working with students and families who harvest crops.  Now a middle school social studies and language arts teacher at Westwood Middle School in Grand Rapids, Michigan, she cultivates a harvest of another kind.  In the classroom and in the community, Ramos-Montigny serves as a role model of civic action, cultural awareness, gender equity and dedicated leadership.

Kevin Jennings, New York, New York: Virginia Uribe Award for Creative Leadership in Human Rights
In a nation where four out of five Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender (GLBT) high school students still routinely experience verbal, physical, and/or sexual harassment while at school, educators know we have a long way to go. But Kevin Jennings sees a day when "every child learns to value and respect all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity." Jennings is co-founder and executive director of GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network, which currently provides support for more than 2,500 high school-based clubs throughout the 50 states. Called Gay-Straight Alliances, the clubs’ goals are to empower educators and students to put an end to bullying and harassment through education. Mr. Jennings is the author of several books written to help schools, parents and communities gain greater knowledge of GLBT issues.

Maynard H. Jackson (deceased): Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Award
Jackson’s legacy embodies the next phase of the civil rights movement by moving the battle from the streets to the realm of elected office and corporate boardrooms.  Jackson was only 35 when in 1973 he was elected Atlanta, Georgia’s first Black mayor. During his first eight years, he created Neighborhood Planning Units, which gave grassroots neighborhoods a voice in city politics.  He tackled police brutality; created a nationally praised public arts program; and expanded Hartsfield International Airport into one of the largest, busiest and most important airports in the world while making sure that aggressive affirmative action programs guaranteed minority participation.  Yet, if his heart was in political action, his soul was in educating young people to achieve on every level.  He founded the Maynard Jackson Youth Foundation to teach business skills to disadvantaged youth.  He established the American Voters League to increase national voter turnout and to encourage more young people, especially African-American youth, to go to the polls.  And the world will never forget when all eyes turned to Atlanta as the host of the 1996 Summer Olympic Games.

Tom Thiery, Adrian, Michigan: Applegate-Dorros Peace and International Understanding Award
Thomas Thiery knows he could have stopped teaching years ago and made a living as a full-time painter.  After all, he is a successful, award-winning painter whose works have received rave reviews all over the world.  But that was not a priority, because his students are his true works of art.  An art teacher at Adrian High School in Michigan, Thiery draws inspiration from the young people he teaches and those he meets traveling all over the world.  What Thiery does with his students is unique. He not only helps them to better see their own lives, but also the lives of people all over the world.  In the process, he gives them a multicultural education and makes them citizens of the world.

Velma Wallis, Fairbanks, Alaska: Author-Illustrator Human and Civil Rights Award
Less than 650 people live in the remote Athabaskan village a few miles north of the Arctic Circle, where author Velma Wallis was born.  Yet her poignant stories of courage, healing and coming of age have reached millions of readers in 17 languages around the globe with messages of resilience and hope.  One of 13 children, Wallis had to leave school at age 13 to help raise her younger siblings when her father died.  Convinced of the power of education and an avid reader, Wallis passed her high school equivalency exam and began to write.  Her first literary project was to write down a legend her mother had told her about two abandoned old women and their struggle to survive.  The book received immediate acclaim from readers and critics worldwide. Two Old Women, published in 1993 by Epicenter Press, won a Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Award and a Western States Book Award. It has sold more than a million copies and been optioned by Fox Searchlight Pictures for a major feature film. Most rewarding, perhaps, is the realization that this book—written by one who was forced to delay her own formal education—is now part of the school curriculum and is on the high school reading list in nearly every school in Alaska.  

June 21, 2004

For more information:
NEA Public Relations, 202 822-7200

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The National Education Association is the nation&#