Promoting Healthy School Communities
As part of the association's effort to promote the integration of health and learning through school-community partnerships, ASCD will award 10 grants of $10,000 each to help schools and communities work together to create a healthy school environment. The selected schools must demonstrate the capacity for best practice in leadership and instruction, support comprehensive health programs, and create strong collaborations with other community institutions.
Grantees will participate in a study to identify key indicators of success. They will assess the health-related aspects of the learning environment and use the results to improve their schools and increase community engagement. The school communities will become part of a Healthy School Communities network.
ASCD will select Healthy School Communities sites in November 2006. The pilot grant is open to K–12 public and independent school communities in the United States and its territories, including U.S. Department of Defense schools, as well as Canada, the Caribbean, and the Asia Pacific region.
Grant applications are available online atwww.ascd.org/healthyschool communities and are due November 15, 2006. For more information about the application process, contact Theresa Lewallen, Director, Healthy School Communities (703-575-5622; healthyschoolcommunities@ascd.org).
Recognizing Whole Child Advocates
ASCD recently awarded Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Representative Michael Castle (R-DE) 2006 Whole Child Leadership Awards.
The Iowa ASCD affiliate nominated Senator Harkin, whom president Kristine Condon described as “an untiring supporter of and advocate for the real issues in education—those of teaching and learning.” Representative Castle chairs the Subcommittee on Education Reform and has jurisdiction over PreK–12 education. Through his leadership, he increased education funding by several billion dollars.
The awards presentation took place in conjunction with ASCD's 2006 Leadership in Effective Advocacy and Practice (LEAP) Institute. A diverse group of experienced and emerging ASCD leaders traveled to Washington, DC, this fall for the four-day LEAP Institute, where they engaged lawmakers and advocated for sound, effective education policies.
Newly Connected
ASCD is proud to announce its fifth connected community: the Southern Nevada ASCD Connected Community. This group provides a framework for organizing local educators under the ASCD umbrella in the state. For additional information, contact Julie Abeyta, Southern Nevada ASCD Connected Community Steering Committee Chair, at jaa433@interact.ccsd.net.
For more information about how to start a connected community, contact Jenifer Eggleston (703-575-5616; jeggleston@ascd.org) or visit www.ascd.org/connectedcommunities.
Tune In to Our Authors
When you read a book, it sometimes seems as though the author is talking directly to you. Now you can hear the voices of some of ASCD's most popular book authors on ASCD's Web site. Listen in on 10-minute interviews with such authors as Alfie Kohn, Mike Schmoker, Gary Marx, Tom Hoerr, John Gabriel, Steve Gardiner, and Allison Zmuda. In these informative and thought-provoking talks, the authors expand on the most provocative aspects of their books and share insights about their work. To listen to author interviews, go towww.ascd.org and click on Publications, Books, and “ASCD Talks with an Author.”
The State of the Whole Child
ASCD's Commission on the Whole Child has focused on the importance of educating the whole child and on the need for schools to nurture not only the academic needs of students, but also their social, emotional, health, and creative needs. The commission of leading researchers and practitioners in child development, education, health, and the arts will recommend strategies, policies, and supports to encourage a whole-child approach to teaching and learning.
Co-chairs Hugh Price and Stephanie Pace Marshall will discuss the commission's work as well as recommendations for schools, communities, and policymakers at ASCD's Annual Conference, Valuing the Whole Child: Embracing the Global Vision, which will take place March 17–19, 2007, in Anaheim, California. The Whole Child Commission Panel Discussion will be held from 3:30–5:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 17.
Co-chair Hugh Price is former president and CEO of the National Urban League as well as former vice president of the Rockefeller Foundation. He is the author ofAchievement Matters: Getting Your Child the Best Education Possible (Kensington Publishing Corporation, 2002). Co-chair Stephanie Pace Marshall is the founding president of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, served as superintendent of schools in Illinois, and is past president of ASCD.
