Linking Leaders alumni coalitions are invited to participate in an exploration of the successful past and promising future of this NASA-sponsored program and to celebrate 10 years of progress in systemic improvement efforts. Registration forms to attend the Linking Leaders National Conference are due no later than Wednesday, January 19, 2005 in order to be guaranteed a room at the Marriott at Metro Center. Space is filling quickly! On-line registration and a draft agenda are now available. For conference and registration information see www.nassmc.org/llnc.html. Contact Deborah Jones at dtjones@nassmc.org, 703-516-5971.
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Click on the image to download the Flyer (PDF ~ 115k) |
Proposals are currently being solicited for the NASA Explorer Schools (NES) Partnerships for Sustainability Program, designed to support the formation and operation of partnerships between NASA Explorer Schools and state coalitions comprised of business, education and public policy leadership. The partnership is responsible for developing and executing an action plan to strengthen and sustain the NES beyond their initial three (3)-year NASA funding. These one-time grants are available for a maximum amount of $20,000 per award.
Special note: Coalitions interested in establishing a partnership with NASA Explorer Schools in your state are required to contact NES coordinators at the NASA Field Center serving your state prior to initiating any contact with the schools. See www.nassmc.org/pfsproject.html for complete program information. Contact: Jessica Venable, jvenable@nassmc.org, 703-516-5974.
Letters of Intent are requested by Thursday, January 27, 2005. Proposals are due March 17, 2005. |
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NASSMC is growing rapidly. With three new member coalitions and the prospect of more new members before the April 2005 Directors' Meeting/Annual Conference, the NASSMC staff is working to complete several obligations in advance of that meeting. As set forth in the bylaws of NASSMC, member organizations are required to submit an annual report to maintain their affiliation with the National Alliance of State Science and Mathematics Coalitions. This brief report serves to certify that the member coalition is still in operation and continues to represent a coalition of business education and public policy.
The Annual Report serves as a membership renewal process. Along with payment of the organization's NASSMC dues, the annual report establishes the coalition as the state's voting member of the NASSMC Representative Assembly. All new member organizations have filed the necessary reports and are in compliance with this requirement. If your state coalition has not filed an annual report since the last Directors' Meeting in Spring 2003, please take a few minutes to visit the NASSMC web site membership page at www.nassmc.org/join.html and use the fillable form provided. |
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Quality Counts 2005 report cover |
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NASSMC advertisement in Quality Counts 2005 |
Education Week’s ninth annual report card on the state of school reform is now available. The 2005 report focuses on changing school finance systems and the growing push for states to link funding to student performance. The study (of the 50 states and the District of Columbia) finds that 31 states are considering major changes in how they pay for education or allot money to school districts. Sixteen states are embroiled in litigation challenging the school finance systems they now have in place.
Quality Counts 2005:
- includes finance snapshots for each state and examines how states raise revenue for education, support their “at risk” students, and compensate their teachers. Education Week found that 26 states and the District of Columbia adjust their general funding formulas for “at risk” students, defined as students in poverty or those more likely than others to fail academically or drop out of school. But the report also found that only 22 states and the District collect at least some school-level financial data, and the quality and use of those data vary greatly.
- highlights the shift in focus from questions of “equity” to “adequacy,” as states are beginning to explore what it would cost to meet the education goals spelled out in their constitutions. The report found that 30 states have had adequacy studies conducted and 14 have conducted studies to determine the costs of meeting the requirements in the federal No Child Left Behind Act.
- grades the states and the District of Columbia on the health of their education systems, based on indicators related to student achievement; standards, assessments, and accountability; efforts to improve teacher quality; school climate; and resources.
To access the full report including state report cards, go to www.edweek.org/ew/index.html.
Related NBS Brief: "Quality Counts" Educ. Survey Ranks States A/A NBS#2890. |
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Make plans now to attend the NASSMC Coalition Directors' Annual Meeting in Linthicum Heights, Maryland at the Maritime Institute of Technology. This year's theme is "The Climate for Change." Sessions include the following:
- America's Urgent Need for Universal Science and Mathematics Literacy, William Wulf, President, National Academy of Engineering, National Research Council
- NASSMC 2005: Are We There yet? An Overview of Current Alliance Activity
- Panel Discussions: State Summits for Mathematics and Science Education,
NASA Explorer Schools Partnerships for Sustainability
- Coalition Forum: Identifying State Coalition Needs
- Kentucky Teacher Survey on Critical Technologies
The meeting will start with registration on the afternoon of Monday, April 4 (3:00 P.M.) and end at approximately 3:00 P.M. on Wednesday, April 6.
The online registration form will be available February 1. |
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Image Credit: NASA/Pat Rawlings |
Deep Impact is an ambitious mission aiming to accomplish the incredible: Blast a hole in comet Tempel 1 in an effort to see what it's made of. As depicted in the artist's concept above, an impactor weighing over 800 pounds crashes into the comet creating a crater, ejecting ice and dust and revealing what lies beneath. Cameras and other instruments on the Deep Impact spacecraft will record the approach, impact and aftermath. Comets like Tempel 1 are thought to have existed since the early days of our Solar System. Scientists suspect that frozen within these celestial nomads are the same chemical building blocks that lead to the formation of water -- and life -- here on Earth.
The launch date for Deep Impact is Janaury 12. For more information about this mission, visit www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/deepimpact/main/index.html.
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U.S. Education Secretary Rod Paige has appointed ten Regional Advisory Committees (RACs) to advise the U.S. Department of Education on the technical assistance needs of States, school districts, and schools as they implement the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). The ten committees - made up of state education agency representatives, parents, local education agency representatives, educators, business executives, and researchers - are charged with conducting regional education needs assessments and recommending technical assistance priorities in their region.
Each RAC will submit a report to the Secretary of Education in March 2005 that will help the U.S. Department of Education establish funding priorities for 20 new technical assistance centers that will replace the 15 existing Comprehensive Centers, the 10 existing Regional Technology in Education Consortia, and the 10 existing Eisenhower Regional Math/Science Consortia (the amount of funds appropriated for technical assistance will remain at roughly $57 million). The competition for the new centers will be held in 2005. The 10 RAC regions are Southeast, Southwest, West, Appalachian, Northeast, Mid Atlantic, Mid Continent, North Central, Northwest, Pacific.
Visit www.rac-ed.org/ for more information. |
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www.nassmc.org
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