Private School Days at the Puyallup Fair
and 40th
The Liber
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The WFIS eMemo is a publication of
Washington Federation of Independent Schools
P. O. Box 449
DuPont, WA 98327
253.912.WFIS(9347)
Judy Jennings
Executive Director
Jan L. Morrison
Assistant to the Director
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The Washington Federation of Independent Schools (WFIS) is the umbrella organization for private education in Washington State. With seventy percent of the independent student population enrolled in member schools, WFIS is the only statewide vehicle for regular communication and strategic development between the many different constituencies. WFIS schools are affiliates of the Catholic dioceses in the state; the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI); the Christian Schools International (CSI); Lutheran Schools; Montessori schools; the Pacific Northwest Association of Independent Schools (PNAIS); the Seventh-day Adventist Schools (SDA); and numerous other religious and independent institutions, including the Waldorf Schools, Hutterian Brethren, and those institutions with sponsorship within the Jewish and Islamic communities. The WFIS Board of Directors consists of eighteen school heads representing the major constituencies chosen regionally by their respective bodies. WFIS is networked with similar organizations in other states through the Council for American Private Education (CAPE).
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 State CAPE Representatives Meet In Washington, D.C.
On March 15 - 17, twenty-five State Executives from across the country met at the Key Bridge Mariott Hotel in Arlington, Virginia to discuss the many issues facing private education in individual states as well as those challenges that are federal in origin. Judy Jennings, Executive Director, of the Washington Federation of Independent Schools, represented our state CAPE organization. This year's meeting was combined with the National Council of Catholic Bishops' meeting and their Congressional Advocacy Day.
Since the new Obama administration has taken office, CAPE has been communicating with the education transition team and the newly appointed Department of Education Secretary, Arne Duncan to apprise them of nature, needs and engagement of the private school community as a vital part of the American educational landscape.
Among the many issues that were discussed by the state executives were:
1. The increasing number of publicly-funded early learning programs within each state and how private educators are working to garner funding for their programs
2. The impact of religious charter schools in some states
3. The equitable federal set-asides for private schools in the American Re-investment and Recovery Act (ARRA)
4. The continuing concern that there will be no more strings attached to receiving federal dollars that would jeopardize a private school's mission or hiring practices
5. The national economy and the potential impact on private school enrollment this fall
6. The extremely large state budget deficits that will impact public schools
7. The positive results in both public and private schools from business tax credit programs
8. The inconsistency of special education delivery services to parentally placed children in private schools
9. The impact and differing applications of the Blaine Amendment in different states
The state CAPE representatives also met with the National CAPE Executive Board. These board members are the executive directors for their national/international organizations. This portion focused upon the update of the CAPE Strategic Plan and a focused discussion on the future of private education in the United States. Mark Siegel, Oregon Federation of Independent Schools Director and CAPE board member at large, led the lively interchange. While affirming the diversity that private education offers to its recipients, the future delivery systems of education are important for our schools to understand and lead the rest of the education community in their implementation.
The topics of free internet technology use for school administration, the increasing number of virtual schools, the changing disciplinary issues surrounding technology use both in writing, testing and computer usage, and the balance between accessing information and personal security were of top concern. Other challenges to the future of private schools were also discussed. Among them were the small schools initiatives funded by the Gates Foundation for large public high schools, dual credit, charter schools, Rosetta Stone potentially replacing foreign language departments, project-based learning, and proficiency based learning, as well as societal trends. While potential concerns were voiced, members were excited about the nimbleness and ability that private schools have in making changes to better their programs without bureaucratic baggage.
On Monday afternoon, the USCCB hosted the Office of Innovation and Improvement Director, Jack Klenk, and Education Program Specialists Maureen Dowling and Pamela Allen, who provided an overview of the ARRA provisions regarding Title I, Title II and the IDEA as they apply to private school students.
Tuesday was filled with briefings at the Capital from House and Senate Education policy directors for both parties. Representatives Howard McKeon (R-CA), ranking member of the House Education and Labor Committee and Dale Kildee (D-MI), Chair, House subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education, addressed the group regarding their own experience as private school students and emphasized the importance of private schools to education.
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Jennings Presents Allen with Best of Washington Award
In Washington, D. C., Judy Jennings (left) presents Pamela Allen with the Outstanding Public Official Award,
officially announced at the WFIS Winter Dinner on February 12, 2009. More
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Updated Guide to ARRA
The U.S. Department of Education has released guidance on the use of education funds under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). CAPE has updated its ARRA guide for private schools to reflect the new guidance. Download the revised guide here:
http://www.capenet.org/pdf/CAPE-ARRA.pdf
Also, a compilation of the Q's and A's from the department's new guidance that relate to private schools is available on the News page of CAPE's Web site at:
http://www.capenet.org/new.html
Joe McTighe, Executive Director
Council for American Private Education
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Puyallup Fair Reservations!
Reservations are now being accepted for private school booths and entertainment on September 18-19, 2009.
Please contact Jan Morrison at jmorrison@wfis.org to reserve your booth and/or performance time. |
U.S. Department of Education Releases Evaluation of DC Opportunity Scholarship Program
The U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences (IES), National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE), recently released the report, The Evaluation of the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program: Impacts After Three Years.
The District of Columbia School Choice Incentive Act of 2003, passed by Congress in January 2004, established the first federally funded, private school voucher program in the United States. As part of this legislation, Congress mandated a rigorous evaluation of the impacts of the Program, now called the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP). This report presents findings from the evaluation of the impacts three years after families who applied and were given the option to move from a public school to a participating private school of their choice. The evaluation is based on a randomized controlled trial design that compares the outcomes of eligible applicants randomly assigned to receive (treatment group) or not receive (control group) a scholarship through a series of lotteries.
Notable Findings
The main findings of the evaluation to date include:
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After three years, there was a statistically significant positive impact on reading test scores, but not on math scores.
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The OSP had a positive impact overall on parents' reports of school satisfaction and safety, but not on student's reports.
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This same pattern of findings holds when the analysis is conducted to determine the impact of using a scholarship rather than being offered a scholarship.
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The OSP improved reading achievement for 5 of the 10 subgroups examined.
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No achievement impacts were observed from five other subgroups of students, including those who entered the Program with relative academic disadvantage.
Additional Information
For additional information and to download the PDF version of the report, visit the NCEE Web site at: http://ies.ed.gov/ncee.
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As America Commemorates Autism Awareness Month, Special Needs Scholarship Programs Gain Traction in State Legislatures
(Washington, D.C., April 2, 2009)-In recognition of Autism Awareness Month, the Alliance for School Choice today commended special needs activists who are working to expand educational options for children with autism and other special learning needs.
"Parents of children with autism have been leaders in the fight for school choice and educational freedom since day one," said John Schilling, interim president of the Alliance. "Today, we salute their tireless efforts to ensure that children with special needs are provided with the best education possible."
As a result of a coordinated effort by disability-rights advocates, educational opportunities for children with disabilities have grown dramatically in the last five years.
Currently, five states offer private school voucher programs specifically designed to allow children with special needs to transfer to the private schools of their parents' choice. These programs--in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Ohio, and Utah--are serving 24,190 students in the 2008-2009 school year. Enrollment in these programs is up 76 percent over five years.
More than 1,000 of these students are participating in a voucher program specifically designed for children with autism. The Ohio Autism Scholarship Program was created in 2003 and has grown from 300 participants in its first year to more than 1,000 today.
"I think this is a great model," said Lori Peacock, the parent of a child who participates in the Ohio Autism Scholarship Program. "I've been in touch with parents in other states who are desperate for something like this."
Doug Krinsky, whose child also participates in the Ohio program, agrees.
"Any parent I've talked to who uses the scholarship is satisfied," he said. "If the parents are happy and the kids are improving, that's what it's all about."
To help parents like Lori and Doug, more legislators are introducing special needs school choice bills than ever before. In 2007-2008, 32 special needs scholarship bills were introduced in 22 states. Already in 2009, more than 15 special needs school choice bills have been filed in states across the country, with several focusing specifically on autism.
For more information about school choice and how it can benefit students with special needs, visit www.AllianceForSchoolChoice.org and download the Promise of Special Needs Scholarships publication.
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COLLEGE BOUND SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
April 2009
Last month the Higher Education Coordinating Board (HECB) emailed all superintendents and principals the number of eligible students in their schools who have signed up for the scholarship. As the deadline (June 30, 2009) approaches, be sure to contact HECB for your most current numbers and names of students (for those who have provided release): 360.596.4808 or betha@hecb.wa.gov.
School personnel continue to reach out to students and families. In early March, the Tacoma Public Schools and committed community partners hosted the second annual Sign-Up Tacoma event at Tacoma Community College. Nearly 1,000 families heard former Mayor Norm Rice and Superintendent Art Jarvis stress the importance of higher education. Students then enthusiastically stood and took the College Bound pledge.
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The Bulletin Board
To accommodate summer schedules, NETWORK SERVICES of Puget Sound ESD has scheduled an additional "I.T. Disaster Recovery" workshop on July 21, 2009 from 8:30am to 3:30pm. The workshop will teach the fundamentals of developing a personalized action plan for your school to recover critical information technology assets. This workshop is a MUST for all information technology managers and staff, district administrators, and media archive managers.
- Learn how to recover critical information technology assets such as systems, applications, databases, storage and network assets.
- Resume critical functions and processes.
- Receive a special USB flash drive for storing critical information! It requires a personal thumbprint to unlock and allows you to carry information with you at all times - safely and securely.
DETAILS: Course #TM8954 - Class Location: Puget Sound ESD, 800 Oakesdale Ave SW, Renton - Course Fee: $150 (fee includes materials and a special USB flash drive for storing critical information)
For additional information and registration, please go to:
https://register.psesd.org/class_info.php?CID=31075
Seating is limited, so please register early.
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The April 2009 issue of CAPE Outlook, a monthly newsletter from the Council for American Private Education, is available for download as a free PDF document by clicking here: http://www.capenet.org/pdf/Outlook344.pdf In Outlook this month:
Private Schools and the Senator Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act
Senator Lieberman Vows to Push for DC Vouchers
CAPE Issues New NCLB Position Paper ---oo0oo---
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