Long-Term Help Needed for Hurricane Katrina Evacuees
NABE extends its deepest sympathies to all those affected by Hurricane Katrina. We encourage our members and affilliates to contribute what they can to aid the victims. Many are already giving generously for immediate relief efforts, especially to the American Red Cross. But other charities dealing with long-term needs for housing, employment, and education are especially in need of support. These include UNICEF, Habitat for Humanity, Oxfam, Foundations for Recovery.Org, the LULAC Katrina Relief Fund, and the National Alliance of Vietnamese American Service Agencies. Volunteer opportunities are numerous, especially in states like Texas, where large numbers of evacuees are being assisted. School districts such as Houston ISD, which are enrolling thousands of children displaced from the Gulf Coast, need donations of money and school supplies, as well as volunteers to assist students.

Katrina Relief Legislation Targets Chldren and Schools
Members of the Texas Congressional delegation are working to secure federal assistance for children and schools impacted by the disaster on the Gulf Coast. Today Representatives Eddie Bernice Johnson and Ruben Hinojosa are planning to introduce a bill today, the "Displaced Student Relief Act," which will provide up to $3,000 per child displaced by Hurricane Katrina to fund educational services. These include outreach to families, hiring additional teachers, classroom equipment and supplies, transportation, and counseling and mental health services. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison is expected to introduce similar legislation. NABE is actively supporting these bills and will keep its members informed.

Good News about Bilingual Education: Too Hot for Feds to Handle?
The U.S. Department of Education has reportedly decided against releasing a research study it commissioned concluding that bilingual education programs are superior to all-English immersion programs in teaching immigrant children to read in English. “It’s a shame that the Department refuses to stand behind its own report,” said James Crawford, NABE's executive director. “Is the Bush Administration worried about offending its conservative political base by endorsing scientific findings that vindicate the effectiveness of bilingual education?”

The two-year study, which cost U.S. taxpayers $1.8 million, was conducted by the National Literacy Panel on Language Minority Children and Youth, convened by SRI International and the Center for Applied Linguistics. Researchers were hand-picked by the Administration to ensure that only those who met with its approval were included. The panel is scheduled to present its final report to the Education Department by September 30. Nevertheless, according to USA Today, Grover J. Whitehurst, director of the federal Institute of Education Sciences, has already stated that the report is technically defective and will not receive the Department’s stamp of approval. Click here for more details.

NABE Seeks Better Deal for ELLs through Congressional Appropriations
Federal spending for programs to educate English language learners, the fastest-growing sector of the K-12 population, seems likely to be frozen for the third year in a row. Earlier this summer, the U.S. House of Representatives has accepted the Bush Administration's proposal to provide no additional funding for ELLs, and the Senate Appropriations committee recently followed suit. Title III of the No Child Left Behind Act would be capped at $675.9 million for FY 2006, or about $132 per eligible student. NABE believes this is far less than what school districts need to provide an adequate education for these children. In addition, funding for numerous education programs are slated to be frozen, reduced, or eliminated. Click here for a comprehensive status report.

Nevertheless, NABE is pursuing opportunities to fund small but significant new programs to benefit ELL students. When the Senate holds final votes later this fall on an omnibus bill to fund the government, or for supplemental funding for special purposes (such as Hurricane Katrina disaster relief), it is expected to consider numerous amendments. Working with its allies on Capitol Hill, NABE is proposing additional funds for professional development, graduate fellowships, and research grants in the area of ELL assessment and school finance. Click here for further details.

California Lawmakers Mandate Improved Assessments for ELLs
California would have to modify its high-stakes tests to better gauge the academic achievement of English language learners, under legislation passed by the state legislature and sent to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenneger last week. If signed into law, SB 385 would authorize a Spanish-language version of the California Standards Test (CST), which is used to calculate "adequate yearly progress" under the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). The bill would also require the English-language versions of the CST and High School Exit Exam to eliminate needless linguistic complexity that often prevents students who are still learning English from demonstrating their mastery of academic material. The legislature acted in response to a lawsuit by plaintiffs including the California Association for Bilingual Education, which challenged the state for refusing to provide "valid and reliable" assessments for ELLs, as required by NCLB. Click here for more information.

NABE Elects Regional Representatives and Executive Officers
Congratulations to Heriberto Galarza, Elena Izquierdo, and Stephen Krashen, who have been elected as new members of the NABE Board, representing the East, Central, and West Regions respectively. Participation in the 2005 regional elections reached near-record levels, with 838 NABE members voting (up from just 226 in 2004). In 2006 and 2007, according to the NABE Bylaws, elections will be held for At-Large board members. Click here for full election results.

At its August 13-14 meeting in Washington, D.C., the Executive Board also chose Mary Carol Combs as Parent Representative and elected a new slate of officers for 2005-2006:

Pedro Ruiz, President
Zaida Cintron, Vice President
Heriberto Galarza, Secretary
Mary Jew, Treasurer

Manage Your Online Subscriptions
NABE News Online and NABE News Digest are available to NABE members (and others, on special request). If we do not have your correct email address, please click here to subscribe. Or, if you would prefer not to receive these publications, you may click here to unsubscribe.

Copyright © 2005 National Association for Bilingual Education. All Rights Reserved.