29 August 2014 | Sign up to receive ED Youth Voices In this issue:  U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and senior Department officials will visit Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee for the Department's fifth annual back-to-school bus tour from Monday, Sept. 8, to Wednesday, Sept. 10. The theme of this year's tour is "Partners in Progress," which will highlight the states' commitment to encourage reform and innovation and help all students to achieve success. "As our children head back to school, I am optimistic about our ability to elevate and strengthen education in America," said Secretary Duncan. "This bus tour through Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama is an opportunity to see innovation in education at work and discuss progress, promise and results. I look forward to meeting with teachers, parents, students and education leaders who have been our partners in making progress for our nation's children." Along the stops throughout the tour, the Secretary will discuss the changes in education and the challenges that accompany them, all while highlighting the champions of reform—teachers, parents, community members, and others—who are leading the effort to improve education for all students. Secretary Duncan will also showcase the investments the Department has made in each state and discuss initiatives such as Investing in Innovation (i3), Race to the Top state grants, Preschool for All, College Access and My Brother's Keeper that are aimed at improving outcomes for students. On Monday, Sept. 8, the Secretary will travel to Georgia to host events in Atlanta and Carrollton. On Tuesday, Sept. 9, Secretary Duncan will travel to Alabama and Tennessee to hold events in Birmingham, Huntsville and Chattanooga. On Wednesday, Sept. 10, the Secretary will conclude the tour in Tennessee with events in Nashville and Memphis. Last year, the Secretary visited cities across the Southwest. In 2012, the tour traveled across the country. In 2011, the tour covered portions of the Midwest and in 2010, the back-to-school bus tour included the Delta region in the South and the Northeast. As part of the "Partners in Progress" tour, senior Department officials will also hold additional events highlighting the Obama Administration's work to increase access and opportunity for students. Additional information about Secretary Duncan's schedule and senior Department officials' events will be announced in the coming weeks.  The move from middle school to high school is exciting for some students, but can be incredibly difficult for others. Some students require intensive support to stay on the path to graduation, and that support can take many different forms. That was the sentiment expressed by Secretary Arne Duncan during a recent session of Student Voices, where young people from across the country gather and chat with senior ED staff about what it's like to be a student in America today. Darius was one of the 10 students who attended and, for him, this transition was almost insurmountable. His mother suffered a severe stroke and went into a deep coma during his freshman year of high school, forcing him and his siblings to move to the far south side of Chicago. On top of coping with the emotional and physical strain of his mother's condition, because he was forced to move, he had to wake up at 4 a.m. to get to school every day, and he often stayed late for basketball practice, which took a toll on his academics. He explained, "tiredness grew over me and teachers berated me for not paying attention in class. I didn't want to let my mother down, and as I felt alone in this situation, basketball was my stress reliever." His coach noticed that Darius needed more support, so he offered to give him rides to school and eventually invited him to live with him. After a few months with his coach he moved in with a friend and this experience altered the course of his life. Darius will be attending Southern Vermont College in the fall, where he has received a Mountaineer Scholarship. Darius has become empowered to take control of his future knowing that he can overcome any obstacles he may encounter in college. Darius still continues to struggle to keep his family together but feels his success is what's needed to keep them all together. Rachel, a student from Washington State, told Secretary Duncan that as one of five children growing up on a farm, she also faced seemingly insurmountable challenges. After losing her mother, she moved into the foster care system. Rachel told Duncan that "constant moving created gaps in my learning. I can do advanced math, but because of the lapses in primary education, some of the basic middle school stuff troubles me." Luckily, she explained, she was able to eventually stay with her aunt, who became her main source of support. Once she settled into life with her aunt, things changed. During her high school career, she took advanced placement math and sciences and worked twenty hours a week at her family's restaurant. This fall, she will attend the University of Washington to study Marine Biology and Ocean Sciences. After hearing from several other students, Secretary Duncan then asked all of the attendees to think about who or what helped them to beat the odds and graduate high school. The students agreed that strong mentors and role models, high expectations, and relevant college information made the strongest impacts. Do you have a unique story to tell? We would like to hear made a difference in your life and education or for the youth in your community. Please send your story to youth@ed.gov. This session was a part of the ongoing "Student Voices" series at the Department, in which students engage with senior staff members to help develop recommendations on current and future education programs and policies
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Across the country, there is a great need for early learning. But the need isn't just for preschool seats — it's for high-quality early learning programs that can put children on the path to thrive in kindergarten and beyond. Research has shown the powerful benefits of high-quality early education. Children who receive rich early learning experiences are less likely to need special education services. They're in better health, and they get better jobs. Yet, today, only 30 percent of 4-year-olds in the U.S. participate in state preschool, and 10 states don't offer it at all. Among other industrialized nations, the U.S. ranks 25th in enrollment of 4-year-olds in early learning. President Obama has issued a call to expand access to high-quality preschool to every child in America. Recently, an important down payment was made toward that goal when Secretary Arne Duncan and Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell announced the availability of funds through the Preschool Development Grants program. This new $250 million federal program will support states to build, develop, and expand voluntary, high-quality preschool programs for children from low- and moderate-income families. It will be jointly administered by the U.S. Departments of Education and Health and Human Services. All states — including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico — are eligible to apply by Oct. 14, 2014. Secretary Duncan noted, "Through the Preschool Development Grants, we continue our efforts to create educational opportunities that prepare our youngest Americans for success in kindergarten, through elementary school and beyond. This new grant competition will prepare states to participate in President Obama's proposed Preschool for All program — a federal-state partnership that would promote access to full-day kindergarten and encourage the expansion of high-quality preschool programs for 4-year-olds from low- and middle-income families." For more information about the new Preschool Development Grants program and how your state may apply, visit here. For more information on early learning at the U.S. Department of Education, visit here.
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The reality of college costs is that many families find themselves struggling to pay the entire college bill, despite having already filed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and receiving federal, state, and institutional financial aid resources. If you find yourself in this position, here are some ideas to consider to help fill the gap between what your financial aid covers and what you owe the institution. Learn more here.
|  When President Obama launched the My Brother's Keeper Initiative, he called on Americans to make sure that every American — including our boys and young men of color — can reach their full potential. On August 2, over 150 people showed up early on a Saturday morning for a "Data Jam" hosted by the U.S. Department of Education, in partnership with Georgetown University and the Beeck Center for Social Impact and Innovation. The Jam took place at Georgetown Downtown in Washington, D.C. The My Brother's Keeper Data Jam brought together a diverse group of high school students, teachers, data scientists, data visualization experts, developers and community and non-profit leaders. The aim was to find new and better ways to use data to highlight opportunities and create solutions that can improve life outcomes for all students, including boys and young men of color. It was a powerful day. A group of young men started us off with compelling spoken word performances that reminded all in attendance of the incredible challenges they face and enormous potential they hold. While acknowledging the role they had to play in changing the narrative of their own lives, they made plain the real danger and risks they face each day and expressed frustration in having to overcome the negative stereotypes that are applied to them and their peers. The attendees then broke into teams focused on the six universal goals outlined in the My Brother's Keeper 90 Day Task Force Report– entering school ready to learn; reading at grade level by third grade; graduating from high school ready for college and career; completing post-secondary education or training; successfully entering the workforce; and reducing violence and providing a second chance. The teams were designed to capitalize on the range of perspectives and expertise among the participants. The student and teacher team members almost uniformly commented that they had never before been engaged in developing or even asked about tools and resources that impact their daily lives. Nearly 20 teams worked through the day on crafting compelling ways to show data and creative solutions to chronic challenges – ranging from strategies to reduce preschool suspensions and expulsions to websites that enable students to find career paths and the required education or training to access them. At the end of the day, seven teams were voted by other participants as having the most promising ideas, and those teams committed to moving these and other ideas forward. Learn more about the event here. |
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As an education major, I expected my internship with the U.S. Department of Education to help me to better understand federal policies. I didn't necessarily expect it to inspire me, but my time at ED's Regional Office in Chicago has done just that. I've been able to connect what I've learned in college to the real-life motivations of educators throughout the U.S., which were highlighted here on Homeroom earlier this year. For example, I've learned through my studies at Vanderbilt University about the impact that talented, committed teachers who genuinely believe in their students' potential can have on the large achievement gaps in the U.S. between disadvantaged children and their more fortunate peers. The story of Marcus Jackson, principal of Kendrick Middle School in Jonesboro, Georgia, brought that lesson to life for me. Nearly 20 years ago he left his position at an afterschool recreation center to pursue a teaching degree. Jackson's decision to change careers crystallized when one of the brightest children at the recreation center failed all of his classes. Confused, Jackson met with the child's teacher. He recalls the teacher saying, "If you think these students are the future, we need a backup plan! These boys are going to be drug dealers, and these girls will become pregnant." Jackson couldn't disagree more. He decided to become a teacher to ensure that "all kids can succeed in school and in life." Almost 20 years later, Jackson's passion has helped his school progress into the top 10 percent of all Title I schools in Georgia. Similarly, Joan Maurer, a middle school teacher from Roots International Academy in Oakland, California, shared that she "became a teacher to be there for the students who don't come from wealthy neighborhoods. I want to close that equity gap." Many students enter college undecided about their majors, and Waunakee Middle School teacher Rachel Rydzewski was one of them. The Waunakee, Wisconsin teacher had a college opportunity to mentor immigrant students. Through the experience, she realized that all students don't have access to the same opportunities she'd enjoyed, growing up in suburban Milwaukee. Read the full story here.
|  Fifty years ago, President Lyndon Baines Johnson signed the Higher Education Act of 1965, which provided educational resources and financial assistance to students seeking a postsecondary education. Part of the HEA included the Federal TRIO Programs, designed to educate students from low-income backgrounds, first-generation college students, and students with disabilities who faced difficulties advancing from K-12 through higher education. The program reflects a community-wide effort to provide services to students facing unique educational challenges. TRIO's enduring service is a credit to the cooperation and collaboration of government, higher-ed institutions, high schools, counselors, teachers, mentors and students. Read what two TRIO alumni had to say about the program here. The Coalition for Juvenile Justice (CJJ) and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) co-hosted the 2014 Juvenile Justice Youth Summit. The event focused on cultivating and empowering a new generation of juvenile justice advocates. Over two days, youth participants engaged in skill-building, networking, and leadership development. Participants learned the basics of juvenile justice and had the opportunity to delve into more detail on trending topics in juvenile justice reform. The event also featured activities around the 40th Anniversary of the passage of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA). The event featured exciting speakers and activities that focused on grassroots organizing, legislative advocacy, and communication skills. During the event, several youth advocates shared powerful stories of their leadership in juvenile justice reform efforts. A speed networking session provided attendees the opportunity to speak with a multidisciplinary group of professionals and learn about their careers. The event ended with a keynote address by U.S. Department of Education Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Dr. Jonathan Brice. The Deputy Assistant Secretary encouraged attendees to seek reform opportunities throughout the juvenile justice system, and to remember, "If you are a juvenile justice advocate, then you are also an education advocate. Learn more about the event here.
 "Outstanding" and "irreplaceable" were just two adjectives used to describe the fourth Federal Bullying Prevention Summit – "Keeping Kids Safe: Opportunities and Challenges in Bullying Prevention." The Summit was the culmination of many months of hard work by the Summit Planning Committee, a sub-committee of the larger Federal Partners in Bullying Prevention. The jam-packed day saw 22 speakers present on a variety of topics ranging from the state of current bullying prevention research, multi-tiered behavioral frameworks, cyberbullying, and school discipline. Breakout session topics included a look at federal and state laws, policies, and guidance, a Stopbullying.gov demonstration, a media guidelines discussion, and an examination of related high-risk behaviors including hazing and teen dating violence. For example, the federal and state laws, policies, and guidance session generated a lot of debate and raised challenging questions, specifically regarding the public health consequences of bullying. Among these 22 speakers, were four youth participants from different parts of the US who came to the Summit to share their perspectives on bullying prevention, their experiences with bullying, and the work they do in their communities. Oakley, Cameron, Annae, and Madison provided an indispensable component to the day – they were able to connect the dots between research, practice, and what youth experience in school. In addition to the day's great content, two Federal resources were officially launched. The first was the Bullying, Harassment, & Civil Rights: An Overview of School Districts' Federal Obligation to Respond to Harassment video, developed collaboratively by the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) of the Department of Health and Human Services. The second was the KnowBullying App, a new mobile app from SAMHSA that can help get the conversation started between parents/caregivers and children about bullying. For more information please visit http://store.samhsa.gov/apps/bullying/. The KnowBullying App is available for download from both Google and Apple. Did you participate in the Summit either in-person or virtually? If so, we'd love to hear from you! What was the key lesson you took away from the day and have brought back to share with your colleagues? What would have made the day more helpful to you? Please share your thoughts with us via Facebook and Twitter using #BullyingSummit14. |
Obama Administration Approves NCLB Flexibility Extension Requests for Ohio and Michigan On August 22, the Obama administration announced that Ohio and Michigan have received a one-year extension for flexibility from certain provisions of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), also known as No Child Left Behind (NCLB). Click here for more information about the latest NCLB extension. Obama Administration Approves NCLB Flexibility Requests for Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi North Carolina and Wisconsin On August 14, the Obama administration announced that five states—Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi North Carolina and Wisconsin—have received a one-year extension for flexibility from certain provisions of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), also known as No Child Left Behind (NCLB). Learn more here. Education Department Awards 40 States, D.C., and the Virgin Islands $28.4 Million in Grants to Help Low-Income Students Take Advanced Placement Tests On August 12, the U.S. Department of Education announced that it has awarded $28.4 million in grants to 40 states, Washington, D.C., and the Virgin Islands as part of its efforts to boost college-and career readiness for historically underserved students. The grants will help defray the costs of taking advanced placement tests for low-income students. Click here to learn more. The U.S. Department of Education Strengthens Federal Direct PLUS Loan Program As part of an effort to ensure more families can afford a higher education and promote the responsible use of taxpayer dollars, the U.S. Department of Education proposed today new regulations that will update eligibility standards and improve access for student and parent borrowers under the federal Direct PLUS loan program. The current adverse credit history regulations have not been updated since the Direct lending program was established in 1994. Read more about the proposed new regulations here.
The FAFSA Completion Tool was created to help financial aid professionals, school administrators, and practitioners track and increase FAFSA completions. The Tool—updated biweekly throughout the spring—provides every high school in the United States whose students have completed five or more FAFSAs with information about how many applications were submitted and completed for the 2014–15 application year as well as comparison data from the 2013–14 FAFSA application year. School-by-school data is a great way to encourage healthy competition among your high schools. The Financial Aid Toolkit, is designed to assist educators, counselors, and others by consolidating financial aid resources in one place, making it easier to find and access information to help students and parents understand the financial aid process, apply for aid, repay loans, and generally prepare for college. For instance, there are tips on how to host a FAFSA completion workshop—something First Lady Michelle Obama and I did recently with families in Virginia. The toolkit also contains links to sample tweets,Facebook posts, videos, blog posts, infographics and other resources that can be used to encourage and help students and parents to fill out the FAFSA. Ashoka's Youth Venture is a youth-focused component of Ashoka, the global pioneer of social investment and social entrepreneurship, and the world's largest and most prominent network of leading social entrepreneurs. Youth Venture spans 23 countries and annually engages thousands of young people each year in launching and leading their own ventures that address today's pressing societal needs. Over the past 18 years, Youth Venture has launched nearly 10,000 youth-led social ventures, engaging over 200,000 young changemakers and impacting millions of people's lives. Ashoka's Youth Venture engages schools, after-school programs, and youth agencies interested in their students cultivating core changemaking skills: leadership, teamwork, empathy, and problem solving. Through Youth Venture's curriculum, students identify issues in their communities (their classrooms, schools, local communities, or global community) and create projects, or ventures, to address such problems. Students have created projects that are revolutionizing solar-powered technology, offering affordable transportation in low income neighborhoods, and creating learning opportunities through games. During the process of creating their projects, students work in teams and practice creativity, critical thinking, collaboration and communication. For more information on Youth Venture, visit our website at youthventure.org or contact Autumn Williams and Kelsei Wharton at awilliams@ashoka.org or kwharton@ashoka.org. Keep America Beautiful, America's leading community improvement organization, that's brings people together to build and sustain vibrant communities, would like to recognize youth, educators, and schools who have exhibited an outstanding commitment to improving their community environment through litter prevention, beautification and community greening and recycling and waste reduction. Awards will recognize youth groups (e.g. Girl/Boy Scouts, 4-H, Girl's/Boy's Clubs, YW/YMCAs, and students in a class, grade or school club) and youth leaders (individual or student) who demonstrate projects or programs that support the Keep America Beautiful mission. Awards will separately recognize those in the field of education who encourage or demonstrate efforts to promote the KAB mission through environmental education (e.g. schools, school districts, educational centers, learning centers, and/or educators.) Application may be submitted for a Project or Program: To apply click here by October 1. Or visit www.kab.org/awards. For questions contact Cecile Carson at 940.230.6035 or ccarson@kab.org. Find out whether you're eligible Income-Based Repayment (IBR): Income-Based Repayment (IBR) is designed to reduce monthly payments to help make loan debt manageable. If you need to make lower monthly payments, this plan may be for you. To qualify for IBR, you must have a partial financial hardship. You have a partial financial hardship if the monthly amount you would be required to pay on your IBR-eligible loans under a 10-year Standard Repayment Plan is higher than the monthly amount you would be required to repay under IBR. Your payment amount may increase or decrease each year based on your income and family size. Once you've initially qualified for IBR, you may continue to make payments under the plan even if you later no longer have a partial financial hardship. Find out whether you're eligible H2O for Life! Is an initiative to that engages, educates and inspires youth to learn, take action and become global citizens through unique and transformational service learning experiences focused on the global water crisis. Access to clean water is critical to sustaining life, and your students can make a tangible difference in the lives of others by helping to implement water, sanitation, and hygiene technology in a water-poor area. Focusing on one small piece of the enormous problem that is our global water crisis allows students to develop a greater understanding of the issues that other people face, learn about a culture different from their own, and discover their personal role in finding a solution to the global water crisis. Learn more here. Are you starting that college search?: If so, use the College Navigator, it is a free consumer information tool designed to help students, parents, high school counselors, and others get information on over 7,000 Colleges and Universities Fill out your FAFSA: It allows you to get Federal Student Aid, at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/ YouthRules! is an initiative to promote positive and safe work experiences for teens by distributing information about young workers to youth, parents, employers and educators. Before you start working, you should know what your employer can and cannot require of you. As a young worker you are limited in the types of jobs and number of hours you can work. The rules are different for agricultural work. States also have rules, and employers must follow both. Learn more here. Are you looking for Community service opportunities?: Check out Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency that engages more than five million Americans in service through Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America that leads President Obama's national call to service initiative, United We Serve at http://www.nationalservice.gov/ "Credentials for Youth": The U.S. Department of Labor, Division of Youth Services, recently launched the "Credentials for Youth" tool, which provides a step-by-step process for helping youth attain credentials in high demand occupations and connects users to resources that can help them find high demand occupations in their local area using labor market information Vote411.org: Enter your address to find your polling place, build your ballot with our online voters' guide and much more! With our voters' guide you can see the races on your ballot, compare candidates' positions side-by-side, and print out a "ballot" indicating your preferences as a reminder and take it with you to the polls on Election Day. Check out our resources for military and overseas voters! Crank Up Your Wake Up! Get Schooled lets students sign up to get wake up calls any day of the school week from celebrities such as One Direction, Nicki Minaj, Ciara, and Wiz Khalifa. Don't forget to "like" us on Facebook ED Youth Voices Robert Gomez, Samuel Ryan and De'Rell Bonner ED Youth Outreach Team ABOUT THIS MESSAGE: This and other messages about major U.S. Department of Education news are routinely sent by the U.S. Department of Education's Youth Outreach Team to contacts. We maintain the confidentiality of this information and never share it without contacts' expressed permission. Comprehensive information about U.S. Department of Education news, policies and programs is at www.ed.gov. If you'd like more information on an item, want to "un-subscribe" to this list or would like to add an additional subscriber, please contact or write to youth@ed.gov. If you're interested in getting more comprehensive U.S. Department of Education news regularly sent to your inbox, consider also subscribing to EDReview, our biweekly newsletter. This newsletter contains hypertext links to information created and maintained by other public and private organizations. These links are provided for the user's convenience. The U.S. Department of Education does not control or guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of this outside information. Furthermore, the inclusion of links is not intended to reflect their importance, nor is it intended to endorse any views expressed, or products or services offered, on these sites, or the organizations sponsoring the sites. |
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