NCWGE NATIONAL COALITION FOR WOMEN AND GIRLS IN EDUCATION

July 26, 2001

Dear ESEA Conferee:

On behalf of the National Coalition of Women and Girls in Education (NCWGE), we urge you to include gender equity provisions when you meet to reconcile the differences between the House and Senate Elementary Secondary Education Act (ESEA) reauthorization bills. NCWGE believes that it is crucial to preserve and update gender equity provisions in current law to ensure that the federal commitment to gender equitable education is maintained in elementary and secondary education. NCWGE is a nonprofit organization of more than 50 organizations dedicated to improving educational opportunities for girls and women. Our mission is to provide leadership in and advocate for the development of national education policies that benefit all women and girls.

NCWGE is pleased that many current gender equity provisions are contained in one or both of the House and Senate bills and that gender equity is expanded in areas important for educational equity. NCWGE is particularly pleased that both bills contain the Women’s Educational Equity Act. We urge conferees to preserve and update these gender equity provisions to meet the educational needs of both girls and boys. NCWGE is concerned about the following provisions in conference:

math and science programs

disaggregation of report card information

dropout prevention

new provisions to improve girls’ access to technology

funding for WEEA

sexual harassment in the Safe and Drug Free Schools program

Title I

Professional Development and Schoolwide Programs

Sec. 1114 of current law includes language in two separate provisions instructing schoolwide programs to include reform strategies to meet the educational needs of historically underrepresented populations and allow gender-equitable practices to be used to address the needs of all students. The House bill contains only one of the provisions and limits the language.

NCWGE recommendation: The House should recede to the Senate language in sec. 1114(b)(1)(B)(iii)(II) and in sec. 1114(b)(1)(B)(iv)(I)(dd)

Sec. 1119 of current law addresses eliminating gender and racial bias in classrooms through professional development; training teachers to use technology in curriculum and instruction; and State Education Agency (SEA) review of Local Education Agencies’ (LEA) plans to address these issues through professional development. The House bill contains only the technology portion of this professional development section while the Senate bill contains all relevant portions.

NCWGE recommendation: The House should recede to the Senate for sec. 120 of the Senate bill (sec. 1119 of current law), and specifically sec. 120(b)(1)(G), sec. 120(b)(2)(G), and sec. 120(h)(1)(G).

Report Cards

The report card provision will provide important information for parents and communities regarding the effectiveness of their local schools. The data produced will provide a much-needed look into how well schools are educating students. NCWGE believes that it is crucial that schools provide data that not only looks at test scores, but other indicators such as dropout rates and which students are taking advanced placement test. All of this data must be disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, disability status, migrant status, English proficiency, and socioeconomic status so that parents and communities will truly know how well all students are learning in their schools.

Sec. 1111(h)(1)(D) in the House bill and sec. 1111(j)(1)(D) in the Senate bill both contain a date by which public reporting of report card data is required. For the most part, the two bills require similar data to be reported. The House bill requires data on the percentage of students who take and complete advanced placement courses versus the population of the students eligible to take such courses and the rate that they are passing advanced placement tests; the Senate bill does not require such data. The Senate bill requires a more detailed look at graduation and dropout rates, disaggregated. Both bills contain similar and adequate public dissemination requirements.

NCWGE recommendation: The conference committee should accept the House advanced placement language (sec. 1111(h)(1)(D)(v)), which should require disaggregation of data. The conference committee should also accept the Senate-passed language on dropout and graduation rates (sec. 1111(j)(D)(v)).

Dropout Prevention

Both the House and Senate bills contain similar language in their relevant sections on Prevention and Intervention Programs for Children and Youth Who Are Neglected, Delinquent, or at Risk of Dropping Out. This language responds to dropout prevention and, specifically, pregnant and parenting teens, a group at high-risk for dropping out. The Senate bill also contains a new program, the Dropout Prevention Act, which strengthens programs to keep pregnant and parenting teens in school. NCWGE believes that dropout prevention programs are crucial due to the fact that pregnancy and parenting are still the most commonly cited reasons why girls drop out of school. Further, two-thirds of girls who give birth before age 18 will not complete high school.

Sec. 132(a)(7) of the House bill contains more complete language on pregnant and parenting teens in the findings for this section. The Senate bill contains the Dropout Prevention Act in Part H of Title I.

NCWGE recommendation: The Senate should recede to the House for the findings in sec. 132(a)(7) of the House bill. The House should recede to the Senate and accept all of Title I, Part H of the Senate bill.

Title II

Teacher Training

Both the House and Senate bills contain extensive teacher training provisions. NCWGE believes that efforts to improve standards and accountability for public education will fail unless education reform focuses on the varying educational needs and learning styles of all students in the areas of math, science, engineering, and technology.

The Senate bill contains language to train teachers and develop programs to encourage girls to pursue college degrees and careers in math, science, engineering, and technology. The Senate bill also contains the Preparing Tomorrow’s Teachers to use Technology (PT3) program, which will assist a consortia of public and private entities in carrying out programs that prepare prospective teachers to use advanced technology. The use of advanced technology fosters learning environments conducive to preparing all students to meet challenging state and local content and student performance standards. The language in PT3 specifically mentions the need to take into consideration the different learning needs of girls when utilizing technology in the classroom. Both the House and Senate bills contain general language (Sec. 2031(a)(3)(A) in the House bill and sec. 2213(4) in the Senate) on training teachers to use technology effectively as part of the curriculum.

NCWGE recommendation: The House should recede to the Senate and accept sec. 2213(12) and Title II, Part B, subpart 3, Preparing Tomorrow’s Teachers to use Technology (PT3), of the Senate bill.

The Women’s Educational Equity Act (WEEA)

Since its inception in 1974, WEEA, has funded research, development, and dissemination of curricular materials; training programs; guidance and testing activities; and other projects to combat inequitable educational practices. WEEA provides a resource for teachers, administrators, and parents seeking proven methods to ensure equity in their school systems and communities, and provides the materials and tools to help schools comply with Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sex discrimination in federally funded education institutions. NCWGE is pleased that WEEA is included in both the House and Senate bills and believes that WEEA continues to play a critical role in ensuring gender equity in education.

WEEA is in Title IV, Part C, subpart 1, sec. 422 of the House bill and Title XI, Part F, subpart 6 of the Senate bill. The two versions of WEEA differ slightly in their funding mechanism. The House bill reduces the authorization from $5 million to $3 million for FY02 and “such sums as necessary” in the following four fiscal years in sec. 422(d). The Senate bill contains language (sec. 11901) that authorizes “such sums as may be necessary” to fund the eight programs authorized in Part F of Title XI. Sec. 11708, under subpart 6, requires that two-thirds of funds appropriated for WEEA be designated for programs authorized for sec. 11703(b)(1). Sec. 11703(b)(1) authorizes the Secretary to make grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative agreements with, public agencies, private nonprofit agencies, organizations, institutions, student groups, community groups, and individuals, for a period not to exceed 4 years, to (A) provide grants to develop model equity programs; and (B) provide funds for the implementation of equity programs in schools throughout the Nation.

NCWGE recommendation: The Senate should recede to the House and accept Title IV, Part C, subpart 1, sec. 422 of the House bill to ensure that WEEA receives its own authorization of appropriations and does not have to compete with seven other important programs for funds.

Title IV – Safe and Drug Free Schools

Sexual Harassment

The Safe and Drug Free School program plays an important role in educating school communities so that all students can learn in a safe environment. NCWGE believes that sexual harassment and abuse is a serious issue for women and girls and should be a focus in the broader context of safety in schools. Sexual harassment is widespread and affects both female and male students at all levels of education, including those in elementary and secondary school.

The Senate bill contains the current law definition of drug and violence prevention, which includes “sexual harassment” in sec. 4131(2)(C). The House bill includes “harassment” in the definition of drug and violence prevention (sec. 5151(4)(B)). The Senate bill contains two current law provisions that refer to sexual harassment in drug and violence prevention activities in sec 4116(b)(3) and (b)(4)(C).

NCWGE recommendation: The Senate should recede to the House and accept the definition of drug and violence prevention in sec. 5151(4)(B) of the House bill so that all forms of harassment are included in the definition of violence in schools. The House should recede to the Senate and accept sec. 4116(b)(3) and (b)(4)(C) so that sexual harassment prevention is included in drug and violence prevention activities.

Priority for Programs for Populations that Need Special Services

Under current law, the Safe and Drug Free School Program gives priority in grant funding to programs for populations that need special services, including pregnant and parenting teens. Pregnancy and parenting are still the most commonly cited reasons why girls drop out of school, and two-thirds of girls who give birth before age 18 will not complete high school. NCWGE believes that education is the means for all girls, including pregnant and parenting teens, to achieve economic success.

Sec. 4114(c)(1)(B) of the Senate bill contains the current law provision while the House bill contains no such provision.

NCWGE recommendation: The House should recede to the Senate and accept sec. 4114(c)(1)(B).

Once again, we urge you to maintain and update current gender equity provisions and address civil rights concerns in ESEA. If you have any questions, please contact Leslie Annexstein, National Women’s Law Center, at 202/588-5180, or Jamie Pueschel, American Association of University Women, at 202/785-7730.

Sincerely,

Leslie Annexstein, Chair

Nancy Zirkin, Vice-Chair