As part of his efforts to work in partnership with state and local leaders on the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige today announced that the department will host five regional meetings to educate the public about the critical need for challenging content standards and high-quality assessments in K-12 education, and to give the public an opportunity to comment on new rules for standards, assessments and academic progress under the new law.

"For No Child Left Behind to work, we need the input, energy, enthusiasm and expectations of entire communities. We're working to engage the public like never before to help us implement this historic law," Paige said. "This new law is all about improving student achievement and accountability for results—and we won't know how we're doing unless we have challenging standards and tests that measure student progress. As we travel to these communities, we look forward to hearing from parents, educators, policy makers and those who will be most affected by the new law."

The one-day public meetings will take place May 6 in Cincinnati; May 7 in Atlanta; May 13 in San Diego; and May 16 in Little Rock, Ark. A fifth meeting will be held near New York City, with a date and exact location to be announced shortly.

Under the new law, which President Bush signed in January, states and school districts will develop strong systems of accountability based upon student performance. The new law also gives states and school districts increased local control and flexibility, removing federal red tape and bureaucracy and putting decision making in the hands of those at the local and state levels.

Parents of children from disadvantaged backgrounds will have options under the new law to participate in public school choice programs or obtain supplemental services such as tutoring. Also, teachers around the country will be encouraged to use teaching methods based upon scientific research that show they have been proven to work.

The U.S. Department of Education asked for recommendations from the public on Title I standards and assessments in a Jan. 18 Federal Register notice, and also through sessions held to negotiate new rules that will help clarify the law.

In the course of negotiated rulemaking, a committee of 24 educators, school administrators and parents met near Washington, D.C. for five days in mid-March to review and revise draft regulations developed by the department. Their work will be available for public comment soon after publication in the Federal Register and will also serve as the basis of discussions at the regional meetings.

The meetings will include public comment as well as presentations by policymakers and experts in standards and assessments. At each meeting, those who served as negotiators will talk about that process and the use of standards and assessments in various communities. A list of negotiators is available at http://www.ed.gov//news/pressreleases/2002/02/02272002.html. The meetings will include discussions about standards, their quality and connecting them to instruction, and assessments, covering various types, alignment with standards, and inclusion of all children. Locations for the meetings (all run 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.) are as follows:

The public will be able to register to attend and may now view the current draft of the rules at: www.ed.gov/news/events/rulemaking.html.

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