Policies that give parents the ability to exercise private-school choice continue to proliferate across the country. On Capitol Hill, however, recent Congresses have not implemented policies to expand private-school choice although many Members of Congress exercise school choice for their own families. A Heritage survey of the members of the 111th…

Students, teachers, administrators, community members, and policymakers are collectively responsible for ensuring that the literacy learning required to earn a living and lead a well-rounded life is available to all. To meet that responsibility, the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) urges legislators to practice civil discourse by…

The economic meltdown has hit U.S. college campuses, and higher education is on the chopping block in state budgets, with cuts totaling hundreds of millions of dollars already approved and hundreds of millions in more cuts on the way. As veteran legislators, the authors have seen this story play out before in previous recessions. The mindset on…

Discusses the process of moving state capitals (between 1776 and 1812) to achieve equal representation through geographic centrality. Presents contemporary arguments for the process including the belief that central location of the capital promoted better attendance by all state representatives. Describes how the system was replaced by numerical…

The contributions of Senator J. William Fulbright to public policy in the United States are examined, focusing on a lifetime of public service and the global view that he brought to American policy formation. Cultural tolerance and international cooperation are seen as the major themes dominating his public life. Excerpts of personal comments of a…

Larry Echo Hawk, Idaho attorney general and former state legislator, discusses success factors in college and law school; early experiences as an Indian lawyer; first election campaign; and his views on tribal sovereignty, state-tribal relationship, gambling, and his dual responsibility to the general public and Native American issues. (SV)

Educators and legislators tend to have differing impressions of the definition of educational quality. Components of quality can be classified into three categories: (1) input, e.g., student characteristics, such as grade point average and test scores, and faculty characteristics, such as advanced degrees and publications; (2) environment/process,…

Explanation of shifts in U.S. Congressional representation among states have often overlooked the effects of international migration on the size and distribution of the U.S. population. Seventy percent of recent U.S. immigrants have settled in California, New York, Texas, Florida, New Jersey, and Illinois. Estimates of the distribution of…

A clerk in the procedural service of Canada's House of Commons describes functions of the service, his duties in the procedure and reference section, and the applicability of his training in library science to these duties. Library school students are advised to look for wider applications of their skills. (CLB)

Significant progress has been made in recent years, largely on the part of professional organizations, toward formation of a coherent national language policy. However, much remains to be done, and educators must take an active part in forming and lobbying for such policy and related legislation. (MSE)

Designed to provide information for the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges' review of the state's Master Plan for Higher Education, this two-part report presents background on recent research on the community college mission and describes processes currently available to the Board to establish priorities within the mission.…

Interviews with state legislators from Wisconsin (D. Bezruki), Massachusetts (T. P. Kennedy), and Virginia (P. Leone) illustrate the roles that evaluation is playing in the current state budget crisis. The influence of evaluation data appears largely specific to individual programs rather than systematically applied to the budgeting process. (SLD)

This compilation of seven briefs is intended to help citizens lobby United States senators, representatives, and their staff members on issues of importance to the Hispanic American community. Each brief synopsizes an issue, reviews current proposals for addressing the issue, and suggests the appropriate action that the member of congress should…

This statement by Senator Albert Gore, Jr., on introduction of the Information Infrastructure and Technology Act of 1992 highlights examples of applications of high-performance computing, the components of the Information Infrastructure Development Program (i.e., education, libraries, manufacturing, and health care), and participating agencies. A…

Describes a music educator's experiences in lobbying for legislative support of school music programs. Suggests that those interested in lobbying should set clear goals, develop networks of supporters and acknowledge their assistance, maintain community visibility, and brainstorm for ideas. Emphasizes the importance of getting news coverage and of…