Read about OVAE and other Department of Education announcements, including administrative changes and grant information. From the field, see Speeches and Testimony, Other News and Initiatives and Articles and Media Information.

Please note that the some of these archived articles may no longer be available at the URL listed. Registration may be required to access older articles.

Speeches and Testimony

• American Association of Community Colleges, Boston, MA, April 2005 - Susan Sclafani: The Role of Community College in the New Economy
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  The Department of Education presented the importance of community colleges in workforce development and career pathways through the results of two initiatives that OVAE sponsored, the Labor Market Responsiveness Guidebook and the College and Career Transitions.

• Dual Credit, Career Pathways and the Perkins Act
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  Deputy Assistant Secretary Hans Meeder's presentation from April 2005, at the State Directors of Career and Technical Education's Spring Meeting.
  
  
• The Role of Community Colleges in the American Postsecondary System
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  Deputy Assistant Secretary Hans Meeder's presentation before the American Association of Community Colleges in April 2005 on the role of community colleges in the American postsecondary system.
  
  
• The Future of American Vocational Education
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  Assistant Secretary Susan Sclafani's presentation from March 2005 to the National Association for Workforce Boards entitled Preparing America's Future.
  
  
• Rising Expectations in Vocational Education
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  Assistant Secretary Susan Sclafani's presentation on April 2005 to the Conference on Global Challenges entitled New Expectations.
  
  

• Testimony on FY 2005 Budget Request for Vocational and Adult Education Programs. Assistant Secretary, Susan Sclafani testified before the House Subcommittee on Labor/HHS/Education Appropriations on the FY 2005 OVAE budget request. View the testimony.

• Testimony on FY 2004 Request for Vocational and Adult Education. OVAE testified before the House Subcommittee on Labor/HHS/Education Appropriations on the FY 2004 OVAE budget. View the testimony.

• Adult Literacy. Deputy Assistant Secretary Hans Meeder presented an overview of various aspects of adult literacy in the United States, President George W. Bush's educational policy, the Preparing America's Future Initiative, and some of the OVAE's activities on adult education.
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Other News and Initiatives

OVAE Virtual Summit on the Community College
On April 4, 2005, OVAE held a National Community College Virtual Summit entitled, Eye on the Community College: Embracing Success in Workforce Development and Postsecondary Transitions. Building on the interest in community colleges demonstrated by the President and by several new and emerging initiatives, the summit addressed two areas in which community colleges can play an important role in education and career opportunity.

Notice of Smaller Learning Communities Bidders' Conferences
The notice of final priority for the general Smaller Learning Communities (SLC) discretionary grant competition was published in the Federal Register on Thursday, April 28, 2005. The final notices and application package were posted on the Office of Vocational and Adult Education's (OVAE) SLC web site.

To assist applicants in preparing an effective implementation grant application, OVAE and the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory are conducting three bidders' conferences. The dates and locations for the bidders' conferences are:

• May 2, 2005, at the University of the District of Columbia Auditorium (Van Ness Campus), 4200 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
• May 4, 2005, at the University of San Diego, UC Forum A-B, 5998 Alcala Park, San Diego, CA 92110-2492
• May 9, 2005, at the Northeastern Illinois University Alumni Hall, 5500 North St. Louis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60623.

Virginia Community College and University Team Up To Fill Science Teacher Gap. The Daily Press
(7/6, Hanthorn) reports, Thomas Nelson Community College partnered with Old Dominion University have created a program "designed to create a seamless transition from the two-year program to the four-year program -- for high school graduates interested in teaching science." In Virginia's "2004-05 school year, teachers in science ... topped the list of shortage areas." Ronald Davis, vice president for academic affairs at TNCC said, ''We're targeting one area where there is a demand for well-prepared individuals.'"

EdTrust Releases State Achievement Gap Data (Education Trust, 2004)
The Education Trust has gathered data on the achievement gap between whites and asians, and african-americans and latinos, in all 50 states. The organization provides all 50 state summaries, plus an analysis of the data, on its website.

Ripples of Innovation: Charter Schooling in Minnesota, the Nation's First Charter School State (Progressive Policy Institute, 2004)
"This report traces the origins, evolution and impact of Minnesota's pioneering charter school law -- on its own schools, students, and communities and on the development of charter laws in many other states."

Educational Freedom in Urban America (CATO Institute, 2004)
Secretary Rod Paige spoke at a forum to launch a new book of essays on educational equality for minority children 50 years after Brown v. Board of Education.

Strengthening Vocational and Technical Education (May 4, 2004) The House Subcommittee on Education Reform held a hearing on "Strengthening Vocational and Technical Education." Five witnesses testified on the subject.

Articles

Louisiana Higher Ed Commissioner Reports 82,000 College Students Displaced.
The Chronicle of Higher Education (10/13, Mangan) reports, "With a third of their students forced from their campuses by hurricanes, faculty members being enticed away by other states and private contractors, and waterlogged buildings mired in muck and mold, Louisiana's colleges and universities are struggling to get back on their feet, officials told a joint meeting of two state legislative committees on Wednesday. Louisiana's higher-education commissioner, E. Joseph Savoie, said Hurricane Katrina had displaced 100,000 students at public and private colleges along the Gulf Coast, 73,000 of them in his state. Hurricane Rita scattered an additional 9,000 Louisiana students. Taken together, that represents about 34 percent of the state's college enrollment and nearly half of its community-college students. The hurricanes also displaced at least 10,000 public-college employees." Savoie "estimated that public colleges and universities had lost about $63-million in tuition and fees.

St. Louis CC To Break Ground On 4th Campus.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (10/15, Kumar) reports, "For years, St. Louis Community College has dreamed of following the urban migration to west St. Louis County, to be prominently in the midst of new homes and businesses. In 1998, the college district bought 66 acres in Wildwood for just that purpose. But other building priorities and budget cuts stalled the project -- until now. Today, the college will break ground on a $23 million, high-tech and eco-friendly building that will anchor its fourth campus. 'You want to make sure you're in the proximity of the community you serve,' said Chancellor Henry Shannon."

Proposed Tuition-Free Vocational School Seen As Threat To Nearby Rhode Island Public School.
The Newport Daily News (RI) (10/14, Flynn) reports, "A nonprofit education company plans to establish a new, tuition-free high school on Aquidneck Island that focuses on career training, a plan Newport school officials say could threaten the future of the Newport Area Career and Technical Center. The state-funded Big Picture Co. is planning to establish a Metropolitan Regional and Technical Center in the city next September, with a 30-student freshman class that will meet at the Florence Gray Center off Girard Avenue. ... 'The real issue is they are tuition-free, and we're not,' School Superintendent John H. Ambrogi said, referring to the Newport Area Career and Technical Center, which is operated by the Newport School Department. 'No matter how good we are, we will lose students from the sending districts.'"

Louisiana Business Leaders Collaborate With Educators On Dropout Prevention.
The Shreveport Times (10/14, Leone) reports that businesses in Louisiana are having trouble finding skilled laborers. "Statewide, more than 600,000 people ages 18 to 64 -- more than one-fifth of those in that age group -- have not finished high school, according to a January report from the governor's office. The same report from the Adult Learning Task Force shows about 137,000 Louisianans ages 18 to 64 have less than a ninth-grade education. Thursday...about 75 business and education leaders...participated in a luncheon at Bossier Parish Community College focusing on finding solutions to the area's dropout problem."

Florida Community College Unveils $20 Million Emerging Technologies Center.
The Palm Beach Post (FL) (10/13, Hong) reports on the opening of Indian River Community College's $20 million Kight Center for Emerging Technologies. College officials "hope that with the center's recent opening, more students...will help make IRCC and the Treasure Coast a go-to place for high-tech and biomedical companies. Tuesday, local officials and state legislators crowded the atrium of the four-story Kight Center for a formal dedication. Built with state money and about $7 million in private donations, the center is 'the largest investment in the history of Indian River Community College,' President Edwin Massey said." USED's Beto Gonzalez "also attended, calling the center 'a leading partner' in business and research ventures in the region."