Welcome to our new publication year and to our new column about what is happening in your ASCD community. Throughout the year, we will share some of ASCD's latest initiatives and achievements and introduce some people who have furthered ASCD's goals. Please let us know about ASCD activities that you find particularly helpful. Send your comments, with ASCD Community in the subject line, to el@ascd.org.
ASCD Speaks Out
In June, ASCD responded to the U.S. Department of Education's report on teacher quality, expressing its concern that the report failed to recognize the importance of pedagogy in producing student learning. ASCD also responded to the Supreme Court's decision on the Cleveland voucher case, pointing out that vouchers take badly needed money away from public schools, increase inequity by encouraging the most active parents to leave the public schools, and lack provisions for accountability in the use of public funds. For these and other ASCD statements on education policy, visitwww.ascd.org.
Trying to Keep Up with Education Policy?
ASCD recently launched EdPolicy Update, a Web-based education policy news update that will help readers keep tabs on No Child Left Behind, the recently reauthorized version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), and other current policy issues. The first Update includes background information on the ESEA and links to the U.S. Department of Education's sites for parents, educators, and education leaders on the ESEA, a Learning First Alliance report on changes required by the new law, and recent reports on school climate, the teacher shortage, and the state of science and math education in elementary and secondary schools. Look for EdPolicy Update atwww.ascd.org.
ASCD's Winning Publications
ASCD's publications recently received honors from three different organizations.
- The Association of Educational Publishers (EdPress) honored ASCD with two Distinguished Achievement Awards. “Voices in Exile,” Barbara Hurd's February 2001 Educational Leadership article on teaching exiled Tibetan children in India, won the award for best feature article in periodicals for adults, and author Pat Wolfe's ASCD book, Brain Matters: Translating Research into Classroom Practice, won for best nonfiction book for adults. ASCD's books and Educational Leadership were also finalists in six other categories, including Educational Leadership's nomination as best periodical of the year for adults.
- ASCD's publications received awards in the 2002 Excel Awards program of the Society of National Association Publishers (SNAP), earning the Excel Gold Award for general excellence of publications and for a special publication, Visual Literacy: Learn to See, See to Learn, by Lynell Burmark.
- The Awards for Publication Excellence (APEX) honored Educational Leadership's November 2001 issue with an Award for Publication Excellence.
Exercising First Amendment Rights
How many rights does the First Amendment guarantee? The answer is five—freedom of assembly, religion, petition, press, and speech. Teaching such facts is a crucial part of every curriculum in the United States, but educators are often wary of going one step further—allowing students to exercise these rights in school settings.
Now, with grants from a multiyear effort sponsored by ASCD and the First Amendment Center in Washington, D.C., 11 schools throughout the United States will be laboratories of democratic freedom, demonstrating how schools can provide all members of the school community with opportunities to practice democracy.
Some schools have already begun. Last spring, for example, the students at Cesar Chavez Charter High School for Public Policy in Washington, D.C., ratified a school constitution.
The First Amendment Schools met this summer for a four-day workshop on how to put principles into practice in the everyday life of their schools; participants included the schools' students, teachers, and administrators. For more information, visit the First Amendment Schools Web site,www.firstamendmentschools.org.
In Memoriam
ASCD is sad to announce the death of Robert R. Leeper, who served as editor of Educational Leadership during 1950–1978. During his tenure at Educational Leadership, Leeper helped ASCD grow from a fledgling organization to an influential force in education. In a 1993 issue of Educational Leadership, he said that ASCD's “early leaders shared a dream of what might be in education, a dream they wove into the fabric of their lives and into the programs and practices of ASCD.” Leeper died in DeFuniak Springs, Florida, on April 9, 2002, at the age of 88.
ASCD's Winning Mentors
The Office of Business and Industry Relations in Fairfax County, Virginia, has just declared ASCD the winner of the Mentoring Partnership of the Year award. This honor recognizes the dedicated group of ASCD employees who have made weekly visits to individual students at nearby Parklawn Elementary School to converse with and encourage them. The students have appreciated these one-on-one relationships, and ASCD employees have valued this opportunity to spend time with elementary students.
A Letter from the ASCD Nominations Committee
The new governance structure adopted by the membership of ASCD in the fall of 2000 will go into effect in the year 2003. The goal of the Nominations Committee is to provide competitive races for a Review Council Member and President-Elect from among candidates who reflect ASCD's commitment to diversity and a high caliber of leadership. To meet this goal, we need the support of all ASCD members around the world.
The Nominations Committee believes that every member of ASCD has an obligation and a responsibility to encourage, recommend, nominate, or self-nominate those who are capable and willing to serve our Association through the critical roles of President-Elect and Review Council Member. The timeline for application completion has been modified over the last two years to provide an opportunity for complete committee follow-up and review prior to the annual conference. The Nominations Committee is seeking applications from candidates immediately. The application deadline is Dec. 31, 2002.
With your assistance and cooperation, we will meet our goal of presenting for the two available positions a viable slate of candidates who are representative of the rich diversity of our prestigious international organization.
—Debra Hill, Illinois Chair, Nominations Committee
How to Nominate a Candidate
The 2002–2003 Nominations Committee would like to receive your nominations for candidates to run in the President-Elect and Review Council Member elections in 2003. For a set of candidacy forms, please contact either Debra Hill, West Northfield School District 31, Administrative Center, 3131 Techny Rd., Northbrook, IL 60062,dhill@dist31.k12.il.us, (847) 272-6880; or Becky DeRigge at ASCD,bderigge@ascd.org, (800) 933-2723. You can also find the forms on ASCD's Web site under “Who We Are.” The deadline is Dec. 31, 2002.
