Education Reform Briefs

From the U.S. Department of Education, 3/12/98

Ed Department Addresses Student Loan Issue

Some representatives of the banking industry have threatened to abandon the decades-old, federally guaranteed student loan program -- known as the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program -- if the interest rate reduction Congress scheduled for July 1, 1998, takes effect.

As part of an effort to ensure uninterrupted access to college student loans, the U.S. Department of Education began discussions with the Student Loan Marketing Association (Sallie Mae) and contacted all 36 guaranty agencies about their capacity to fulfill their statutory obligation to issue loans if necessary. They are required by law to serve as "lenders of last resort."

From the National Education Association, 3/4/98

Quoting NEA President Bob Chase on Modern Schools and Class Size

If we want our students to learn the skills they need to thrive in the 21st century, they deserve classrooms that tell them their futures are a priority.

The kind of school modernization legislation filed by Reps. Rangel (D-NY) and Lowey (D-NY) and Sen. Moseley-Braun (D-IL) enjoys broad, bipartisan support among Americans in every state, from rural, suburban, and urban communities alike...

Alleviating overcrowded classes is a key goal of school modernization efforts. That's why the class size legislation proposed by Rep. Clay (D-MO) and Sen. Kennedy (D-MA) is so important...

From the National PTA, Feb. 1998

PTA's Take on Funding Education in the President's Proposed Budget

The president is relying on money from tobacco legislation to fund some of his new education programs. The PTA believes that money for vital children's programs should be funded from a more secure source, as a tobacco agreement has not yet been reached.

While the president's budget proposes an overall increase in Department of Education funding, the PTA is concerned that key education programs received little increase or were cut. As it is, these programs can't serve all who are eligible. These programs, which include Title 1, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Impact Aid, and vocational education, should receive federal budget increases.

From the American Federation of Teachers, 3/9/98

AFT Affiliate Quashes Union Gag Order

New Mexico Federation of Teachers (NMFT) helped kill a proposed "union gag" law in the legislature. It would have precluded unions from spending money on lobbying, political activities, voter registration and other tasks not directly related to collective bargaining. The federation stressed that the law discriminates specifically against unions and blocks them from involvement in activities that members want their unions to undertake.

From the American Association of School Administrators, 3/2/98

AASA Delegates Say "No" to National Tests

AASA's Delegate Assembly said "No" to national testing and "Yes" to accountability for student achievement at its annual meeting in conjunction with the National Conference on Education.

The six approved resolutions read:

• support additional work on national standards, but oppose a national test;
• advocate free health care for children, prenatally through adolescence, and free breakfast and lunch for all needy children;
• urge development of a new state/federal school construction program, as well as evaluation of facilities based on learning research, safety and health, and technology issues;
• endorse recognition of leaders who continue their professional growth; and
• encourage local efforts to challenge state education funding systems that are inequitable and inadequate.

From Infobeat/Reuters, 3/10/98

San Francisco Board Members Seek Quotas on Reading List Authorship

San Francisco Board of Education officials said the proposed change would force high school teachers to select up to seven books by non-white authors for every three traditional classics by white writers.

"Most of us feel this is long overdue," said board member Steve Phillips, co-author of the multicultural initiative due for a final vote on March 24.

Phillips said the proposal was aimed at making school work more "relevant" to young people in San Francisco's public schools, where whites make up only 11.8 percent of the student body.

The [San Francisco] Examiner said the measure appeared to have the necessary votes for approval, and is supported by the Board of Education president.

If passed, the school superintendent would issue a list of "appropriate" books developed by a curriculum committee of teachers, administrators and parents.

From the Education Intelligence Agency, 3/9/98

WEA Settles Washington State Lawsuit

All charges against the union (Washington Education Association) were dropped in exchange for $20,000 in attorney and legal fees, an $80,000 fine for reporting violations ($37,000 will be paid by NEA for its violations), and a $330,000 reimbursement to teachers. The $430,000 settlement amounts to the largest penalty in state history.

The Evergreen Freedom Foundation, whose yeoman work uncovered all these violations, is angry and disappointed. "The penalties, which sound steep at $430,000, do not make up for the fact that the decision guts the intent of campaign finance law in our state," said EFF President Bob Williams.

From the National Center/Hot Scoops, 3/9/98

Hostettler Bill Designed to Protect School Officials re Religious Expression

Rep. John Hostettler's (R-IN) bill, Public Expression of Religion Act (H.R. 3288), is designed to protect teachers, principals and school board members from personal liability when schools are sued because students engaged in voluntary religious expression. More specifically, the bill would:

1. free local public officials from extortion-like threats of lawsuits arising from their expression of religion,
2. foster the reading of the Constitution by local public officials,
3. alert the public to the extent to which public expression of religion has been unconstitutionally hindered by activist judges in conjunction with profit-seeking lawyers, and
4. defund lawyers who prey on officials who publicly express religion.

From the Education Intelligence Agency, 3/16/98

Internal Opposition to NEA/AFT Merger Begins to Emerge

With the exact wording [of "Draft AFT/NEA Principles of Unity"] defined, the first organized opposition to merger is beginning to appear. By a vote of 644 to 220, the representative assembly of the Illinois Education Association voted against merger. NEA-New Hampshire and the New Jersey Education Association have expressed concerns informally.

From the Las Vegas Sun/Associated Press, 3/10/98

Distance Learning Starting to Grow

The Internet, video conferencing, and simpler technology such as videotapes have broken time and distance barriers for people otherwise isolated from campuses by jobs, geography and missed opportunities in youth. By 1995, the Education Department reported, more than 700,000 students were taking off-campus courses electronically -- distance learning, it is called.

See related story in EPI's March Education Exchange newsletter.