Fwd: NCSET E-News: May 2007 Midmonth

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National Center on Secondary Education and Transition E-News

=============================================================Dear E-News Subscribers, This issue of NCSET E-News contains several items related to dropout. Happy reading! NCSET Staff

http://www.ncset.org/ Note: You can find this and previous issues of E-News online at

http://www.ncset.org/enews/current.asp ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

E-News: May 2007 Midmonth

~ Announcements: New projects, legislative alerts, calls to participate

~ The Resource Zone: New NCSET and other national publications and products

~ What's Happening: Upcoming NCSET and other national events

~ Get Wired!: Featured Web sites and e-mail lists

~ Funding Forecast: Grant opportunities and funding resources

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “I cannot give you a sure-fire formula for success, but I can give you the formula for failure, which is: Try to please everybody.” —Herbert B. Swope=============================================================

ANNOUNCEMENTS

The latest news and information from around the country.

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Calls to Participate

================================People with Disabilities: Take an Online Survey on Wireless Phones and Services The Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for Wireless Technology (“Wireless RERC”) is looking for people with disabilities to take its online survey about wireless products like cell phones and text messengers. The purpose of the survey is to learn about how people with disabilities use these products and why some people with disabilities don’t use these products. The survey only takes about 10 minutes to complete. It’s also available in hard copy or can be completed over the phone by calling or . Questions? E-mail wirelessrerc@....http://www.wirelessrerc.gatech.edu/survey/coverletter_p2.html_____________________________People with Vision Loss: Share Your Cell-Phone Related Difficulties Tara Annis, an intern with the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB), is compiling a list of persons with vision loss who have had difficulty obtaining and using cell phones. AFB is considering filing a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) about lack of upholding Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act, which requires that cell phone manufacturers and service providers do all that is readily achievable to make each product or service accessible. If you have an experience to share, contact Tara at 1- or tannis@.... _____________________________Youth: Participate in The Sense of Wonder: Carson Intergenerational Photo, Essay, and Poetry Contest To honor the late preservationist and ecologist Carson, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Generations United, and the Carson Council, Inc., announce a photo, essay, and poetry contest “that best expresses the sense of wonder that you feel for the sea, the night sky, forests, birds, wildlife, and all that is beautiful to your eyes.” Winners’ work will be published on the Web sites of the EPA, Aging Initiative, Generations United, and Carson Council, Inc. Entries must be joint projects involving a person under age 18 and a person age 50 or older. Entry deadline: June 15, 2007.http://www.epa.gov/aging/resources/thesenseofwonder/  ============================================================= THE RESOURCE ZONE A great place to learn about new and existing resources at low or no cost. ============================================================================================= NCSET Partner Resources ================================ Highly Qualified Teachers and Special Education: Several State Approaches (April 2007)(Policy Analysis) This In-Brief Policy Analysis from the National Association of State Directors of Special Education introduces the research on the importance of teacher quality to student achievement and the legislative background for highly qualified special educators. Six states were interviewed. Strategies states use to meet the requirements of highly qualified teachers, data collection methods states use, and barriers to meeting the requirements are reported. Policy recommendations that address implementation barriers similar to those identified by interviewees are shared. Available in PDF (10 pages, 155 KB).http://projectforum.org/docs/HighlyQualifiedTeachersandSpecialEducation-SeveralStateApproaches.pdf_____________________________Resolution Meetings: A Guide for Parents (Booklet) This 12-page booklet helps families better understand resolution meetings, one way in which special education disputes can be resolved. It was developed by the Technical Assistance ALLIANCE in collaboration with the Consortium for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education (CADRE). Available in PDF (12 pages, 1.6 MB). http://www.taalliance.org/publications/CADREResolution.pdf_____________________________Special Education Vouchers: Four State Approaches (April 2007)(Policy Analysis) This In-Brief Policy Analysis from the National Association of State Directors of Special Education defines a school voucher as an allocation of public funds to parents to pay for the education of their children at a private school of their choice. This document discusses voucher programs, focusing on programs specifically designed for students with disabilities. Data was collected through interviews with four states that offer voucher programs specifically for students with disabilities. Program history, administration, and specific components such as eligibility, participation, voucher amount, transportation, and accountability are detailed. Available in PDF (11 pages, 160 KB).http://projectforum.org/docs/SpecialEducationVouchers-FourStateApproaches.pdf  ================================ Other National Resources ================================ District Graduation Rate Map Online Tool (May 2007)(Online Tool) The Editorial Projects in Education Research Center and ESRI have launched the Beta version of an online mapping tool to help the public, policymakers, and educational leaders combat the graduation crisis. This Web-based application allows users to easily map graduation rates by zooming in on any of the nation’s individual school districts and downloading a report for the district, including detailed information on graduation rates and an analysis of where students are lost from the high school pipeline. The reports also compare district results with state and national figures.  http://63.241.153.180/edweek/main.html _____________________________Event Dropout Rates for Public School Students in Grades 9-12: 2002-03 and 2003-04 (May 2007)(Report) This report from the National Center for Education Statistics summarizes and compares event dropout rates for public high school students, by state, for 2002-03 and 2003-04. The event dropout rate measures the percentage of high school students who drop out in a given year. A dropout is a student who was enrolled at the beginning of the year, not enrolled at the beginning of the next year, and who did not graduate from high school or complete some other district- or state-approved educational program. http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2007026_____________________________Government Eyes Special Ed Requirements (May 2007)(Article) Many children in special education classes may not belong there, the government says. A new policy is aimed at intervening early with intensive teaching to give struggling students a chance to succeed in regular classrooms and escape the “special ed” label. There are nearly seven million special education students in the U.S., and roughly half have learning disabilities. The Bush administration, following passage of a broad special education law, issued rules in October that rewrote the way schools determine if a child has a learning disability. http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Identifying-Disabilities.html?_r=2 & oref=slogin & oref=slogin _____________________________Research Update: Highlights From the Out-of-School Time Database (April 2007)(Brief) This Research Update synthesizes findings from the profiles of 15 research and evaluation reports added to the Harvard Family Research Project’s Out-of-School Time Program Research and Evaluation Database in December 2006. It highlights strategies for assessing program processes as well as key outcomes and features of programs that promote positive outcomes. Available in PDF (7 pages, 161 KB).http://www.gse.harvard.edu/hfrp/content/projects/afterschool/resources/update1.pdf_____________________________Study Points to Gap Between U.S. High School Curriculum and College Expectations (April 2007)(Press Release) A study by ACT describes a gap between what high schools are teaching in their core college preparatory courses and what colleges want incoming students to know in order for them to succeed in first-year courses. The findings of the study—a national curriculum survey completed by thousands of high school and college instructors across the country—suggest that colleges generally want all incoming students to attain in-depth understanding of a selected number of fundamental skills and knowledge in their high school courses, while high schools tend to provide less in-depth instruction of a broader range of skills and topics.http://www.act.org/news/releases/2007/04-09-07.html_____________________________The Building Blocks of High School Redesign (Spring 2007)(Brief) This issue of InfoBrief from the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development focuses on three key elements of high school redesign proposed by ASCD: personalized learning programs, multiple assessments, and implementation of professional development initiatives for teachers. Although individual schools and school districts have made great strides in these areas, the time has come for these measures to be adopted more broadly in our high schools.http://www.ascd.org/portal/site/ascd/menuitem.bfaa683e7841320fb85516f762108a0c/_____________________________Youth Service-Learning: A Family-Strengthening Strategy (April 2007)(Brief) Service learning prepares young people for college, work, and adult responsibilities—and it also strengthens families as it improves communities. This brief from the Family Strengthening Policy Center looks at strong service learning programs, their impact, and how human services leaders can play a role. Available in PDF (27 pages, 278 KB).http://www.nassembly.org/fspc/documents/Brief21.pdf  ============================================================= WHAT’S HAPPENING? Connecting and learning through great new training opportunities! =============================================================May 23, 2007New Tools to Make Benchmark Analysis Free and Painless10:30 a.m.–12:00 p.m. (Pacific)(Web-based Event) This Web-based event from WestEd’s SchoolsMovingUp Initiative will: 1) review research on using benchmark assessments to improve student achievement, 2) demonstrate free online sites that provide sample benchmark exams aligned to standards in California and other states, 3) demonstrate a free Excel template downloadable that facilitates a standards-based analysis of data from the benchmark exams, and 4) discuss how teachers might use this data to personalize instruction to improve students’ mastery of state standards. Participation is free, but registration is required. http://www.schoolsmovingup.net/cs/wested/view/e/1784_____________________________July 11-14, 2007Together a Brighter Tomorrow (2007 ASA National Conference)sdale, AZ(Conference) This Autism Society of America conference will bring together experts from various disciplines with the creative ideas and energy to address the diverse challenges individuals with autism and their families face. Its goal is to provide attendees the opportunity to learn from innovators and access critical information to improve their lives and those of the people they love, treat, and inspire. http://www.autism-society.org/site/PageServer?pagename=conf_home_____________________________July 16-18, 20072007 National Conference on Volunteering and ServicePhiladelphia, PA(Conference) This conference will offer several sessions regarding people with disabilities and service: Collaborating for Success: The Key to Inclusion (presenter: a Sotnik), Project Impact: Engaging Youth with Disabilities in Volunteering and Service (presenter: Martell), and Broadening Your Volunteer Pool: Finding and Including People with Disabilities in Your Organization (presenters: Chet , Judi Pennella, and Desmond). http://www.volunteeringandservice.org/_____________________________July 17-19, 2007Building and Leading a Data-Driven School Improvement Process at Your School: A Summer Institute for School LeadersPhiladelphia, PA(Institute) Principals and teacher leaders who want to learn how to design and run a data-driven school improvement plan and process are encouraged to attend this Summer Institute. Participants will learn 1) how to use data to build better school improvement plans, and 2) how to convert their plans into daily, weekly, and monthly actions. Each day of the Institute, participants will engage in a hands-on workshop to apply their learning. http://www.gse.upenn.edu/leadership/institute/ _____________________________July 25-28, 2007Crosswalks National Institute: Infusing Cultural, Linguistic, and Ability Diversity in Preservice EducationAsheville, NC(Institute) The Crosswalks National Institute will provide the latest information on field experiences, coursework, and programs that prepare personnel to work with culturally, linguistically, and ability diverse children and their families. Among the topics to be discussed are how to prepare your students to support young English language learners; collaborate with culturally and linguistically diverse family and community partners as part of coursework and practica; use instructional dilemmas to explore issues of culture; and use state and national standards as a framework for increasing the emphasis on diversity.http://www.fpg.unc.edu/~scpp/crosswalks/pages/nationalinstitute.cfm_____________________________July 25-27, 2007NCES Summer Forum and Data Conference: STATS-DC 2007Washington, DC(Conference) The National Center for Education Statistics Data Conference is an opportunity for networking, updates on federal and national activities affecting data collection and reporting, and information about the best new approaches in collecting, reporting, and using education statistics. It will provide information about changes in how the U.S. Department of Education collects and uses data, and developments in electronic data standards for schools, school districts, and states. There will be training sessions for CCD Fiscal and Nonfiscal Data Coordinators, presentations on NCES’s survey and assessment programs, and overviews of developing statewide longitudinal data systems. Registration deadline: July 6, 2007.http://ies.ed.gov/whatsnew/conferences/?id=235 _____________________________July 30-August 1, 2007Eighth National Career Opportunities for Students with Disabilities Conference: Gateway to Employment: Partnerships for SuccessMinneapolis, MN(Conference) COSD’s Annual National Conference is the only conference that brings together professionals from higher education and major national employers for the purpose of learning and sharing best practices to help college students with disabilities attain the career of their choice.http://www.cosdonline.org/conferences/index.shtml  =============================================================

GET WIRED!

Get in the fast lane and get wired to innovative Web sites and specialized e-mailing lists. Something for everyone!

============================================================================================= Web Sites ================================ town University Center for Child and Human Development (UCEDD) The town University Center for Child and Human Development (University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities) has enhanced its Web site. It now includes: an “In My Own Words” page of stories written by people with developmental disabilities from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds and their families about their life experiences, available in both English and Spanish; a “Health Articles” page with downloadable fact sheets; a Legislative Updates page; and many new resources, publications, and links. http://gucchdgeorgetown.net/ucedd/_____________________________The Silent Epidemic This web site from MTV, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the National Governors Association, Civic Enterprises, America’s Promise Alliance, and Time Magazine provides resources for parents, educators, students, and communities to help reduce the high school dropout rate. http://www.silentepidemic.org/  =============================================================

FUNDING FORECAST

Federal grants, award opportunities, foundation funding, and more. Take a look at these great new opportunities for accessing support to make a difference!

============================================================================================= Federal Grant Opportunities ================================Forecast of Funding Opportunities under the Department of Education Discretionary Grant Programs for Fiscal Year 2007 This document lists virtually all programs and competitions under which the U.S. Department of Education has invited or expects to invite applications for new awards for fiscal year 2006 and provides actual or estimated deadlines for the transmittal of applications under these programs. The lists are in the form of charts organized according to the Department’s principal program offices and include programs and competitions previously announced as well as those to be announced at a later date.http://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/find/edlite-forecast.html_____________________________FY 2006-2007 Discretionary Grant Application Packages This site, from the Department of Education, provides information on grant competitions that are currently open.http://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/grantapps/_____________________________Special Education Research Request for Applications (FY 2008) - 84.324A and B The U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences invites applications for research projects that will contribute to its FY2008 Special Education Research Grants Programs on Early Intervention, Early Childhood Special Education and Assessment Research; Mathematics and Science Special Education Research; Reading, Writing, and Language Development Special Education Research; Serious Behavior Disorders Special Education Research; Individualized Education Programs and Individualized Family Service Plans Research; Secondary and Transition Services Research; Autism Spectrum Disorders Research; Response to Intervention Research; and Related Services Special Education Research. Application deadline: July 26, 2007 and November 1, 2007.http://ies.ed.gov/funding/ ================================ Additional Funding and Award Opportunities ================================Grants to Help Principals Share the Dream and Create a Culture of Engagement in Their Schools To support school principals, the National Association of Elementary School Principals and MetLife Foundation will provide $3,000 grants and a toolkit of resources to develop programs committed to heightening community leadership, communication, ownership, and involvement in the school with the goal of improving achievement for all students to up to 30 schools. Projects will take place during the 2007-08 school year. Application deadline: June 8, 2007. Application form available in PDF (7 pages, 461 KB).http://www.naesp.org/client_files/SharingtheDreamApp2007.pdf_____________________________The Nature of Learning Grant Program of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s The Nature of Learning grant program seeks to use National Wildlife Refuges as outdoor classrooms to promote a greater understanding of local conservation issues; encourage an interdisciplinary approach to learning to enhance student academic achievement; utilize field experiences and student-led stewardship projects to connect classroom lessons to real-world issues; and foster collaboration among local schools, community groups, natural resource professionals, and local businesses. Schools and non-profit organizations are eligible to apply for $10,000 grants through the program. Application deadline: June 15, 2007.http://www.nfwf.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Search & template=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm & ContentID=5237=============================================================

END OF EDITION

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