Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 24 October 2003 — Page 6

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THE INDIANAPOLIS RECORDER

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2003

Check us out at www.indianapolisrecorder.com

On Novkmbi r 4" 1 Re-Elfxt Councilman Ron Gibson For City-County Council, At Large

Indiana Multicultural Joh Fair Friday, October 31, 2003 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Indiana Convention Center. Downtow n Indianapolis

Open to Seniors, (iradnatc Students, Alumni oi' Al I I thins Uaekprouiuls and all Unixersities and Colleges. Reeistet at the door lor SIO Urine Plenty of Resumes Dress Prolession.illx > on Can't Redo a l irst Impression

Special Thunks To Our Corporate Sponsor: Enterprise Rent a Car

(lilk't ( ninp.inu'' Nlliiiiliiij; Inclmls' Anllicm BlueCrusv Bine Shield. Biiehl lluusc Nenuiiks Cl.iii.in lle.dth. I S Department el Stale. I HI. lillh third Bank. IRS. Ilnmana ln>. Indiana Slate Uinemmenl. I he Indhmapi'lis Star. Sallie Mae. Roe he Diaentisiii - Snn.m I’uipemes. SB(' ('oinrtiiiniealions. Bell I eeh.loi’iv. target ( nipoiiitiiin \l I \t . V\,d Mail. XNaleieens. I edl \ (itouud. I inish I me. (it- Suppl). Ihiii'ehold t iiiiMmier I ending. It I’t I. I’nrdne I imer ilx .and man\ more"! 1

]V\u It (cultural

JOB FAIR

Lor an I mcomvc l.isliug ol ('oiiipaoics ami Moa* loloruution http://v\ vx xx johrairs.iupui.edu Sponsored hx Indiana luiversity eS Purdue I'niversity

EDUCATOR OF THE WEEK

Jasmine Williams is an elementary school teacher, who works with special needs children. (Photo/J. Cohen)

Name: Jasmine A. Williams Hometown: Gary, Ind. College(s) attended: Indiana University Northwest Year(s) of grad nation: 2()()() Began teaehing in: 2003 Sehool currently working at: Anna Brochhansen Sehool 88 How long: r‘ year Subject: I work in all areas with special needs children Grade level: Elementary level

Why do you have the desire

to teach? 1 like encouraging children to develop confidence and help then, out emotionally. What has been the most rewarding thing I have done as a teacher? When I help a child learn something they didn’t know before, that is very’ rewarding. I like seeing a child pick up something that they were having trouble with. What has been the most challenging aspect of teach-

When you work with special needs children, you have to earn their trust as well as learn their disability in order to find the best approach for them to learn. The challenge is finding that approach for each individual child and being able to get through to them. In the future, what changes would you like to see in

schools?

I would like to see more teachers understand how to work with children with disabilities and for them to have more inclusive environments in which to learn.

ing?

EDUCATION BRIEFS

Earlham's Master of Arts in Teaching '***•'••* to middle and high school teacher certification in 11 months. Check out our website! www.eartham.edu/mat

gj’itF'r'

Application deadline: February 1. 2004

EARFHAM

Master of Arts in Teaching 801 National Road West Richmond. IN 47374-4095

745/983-1847 Toll free 877-983-1847 matOearlham.edu

Berklee M.I.T. Notre Dame Duke Northwestern Wabash Howard Yale Vassar Building on the Foundation of Educational Excellence Established at

Brebeuf Jesuit

PREPARATORY SCHOOL

Annual Open House lor IVospct live Students N I .irnilies Sunday November 2 12:30 - 3:00 p.m.

KUkitift ,i ifillcrcin e in (hr world In Ir.in^lonnin^ li\v\.. one ^ludmi ,ii ,i hmr 2801 West 86th Street - 317.876.4726 - www.brebeuf.org

Orchard School open house The Orchard School invites you to attend its open house Nov. 2 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. at 614 W. 64 th St. Orchard School is an 82-year-old independent school offering rigorous, relevant learning for a diverse world. Openings are anticipated in all levels, preschool through grade eight. For more information call (317) 251-9253 or visit the Web site at www.orchard.org. Leadership scholarship winner announced The law firm of Bose McKinney and Evans LLP announced the winner of the 2003 Lewis C. Bose Scholarship for Educational Leadership. The winner is Nikki Woodson, principal of Forest Glen School in Lawrence Township. The $2,000 scholarship is

awarded to an Indiana educator who has been accepted into and will attend an advanced degree program for education administration in 2004. It is awarded based on the applicant’s past academic and professional achievements, future goals, potential for leadership and financial need. Music to the ears of IPS The VH1 Save the Music Foundation and Bright House Networks provided $50,000 worth of new musical instruments to restore music education in Indianapolis Public Schools. Students from George Washington Carver School and Parkview Elementary were on hand to show the impact of their new music programs during an instrument demonstration event at the George Washington Carver auditorium.

here Open House November 2 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

nf(nritn$, rclrrjnt i*"'""* Orchard for ,i ihri’rsc world til!> WEST MTH STREET presdiunl Indianapolis, in 48260 through 317 261 9263 Kr.idi' elf'll!

EDUCATION DOES MATTER Bush education program not properly funded By LEROY ROBINSON Budget defi-;: 1 c ' ts an( l Ihf No IB: d||y Child Left BeISai hind (NCLB); education pro-. gram may he two; hSbBHB| thorns in the b a( X 1 'fl’iesident Bush as he begins! to gear up for his.’j 2004 re-election campaign. ■; With the current record fed-!; eral budget deficit at $374.2 bil-' lion dollars and the lack of posi- J tive feedback from the new education legislation, Bush may face;' a serious challenge in his bid towards gaining four more years in;! the White House. The 2003 budget deficit eas-'-' ily dwarfs the old record of $290.4 billion that was set in 1992 when the current president’s father held the same office. The head of the president’s Office of Management and Bud-, get, Joshua Bolten, stated that the deficit for the current budget year would rise even higher, topping $500 billion, before the economy begins to see some improvement. The NCLB education plan pledged to improve the performance of students, teachers and schools by giving yearly tests and landing serious penalties on those schools that failed to meet the national standards. However, the Bush administration is being criticized for not providing the adequate funding to help the •teachers and administrators meet the new, and as some say unreasonable, standards. President Bush will receive his stiffest opposition from those states he barely won during the 2000 election. Lawmakers from swing states such as West Virginia are being the most critical on the funding issues. The West Virginian Legislature reports as many as 300 of its schools are failing to meet the new requirements and each of these schools lack the financial resources to turn things around in a timely manner. The political fighting on the local and national level is usually over funding issues. The Democrats are blaming President Bush and the Republican Party for not providing the necessary financial support to implement the educational changes that are needed to adhere to the NCLB • standards and guidelines. The; Republicans may lose the support <<f some of the most impor-, tant swing voters, married moth- • ers. This group tends to cite edu-; cation as their main concern L when determining whom tosupport during the presidential elections. Due to the funding woes,.! many states including West Virginia will have to cut the budgets of other programs in order to meet the demands and guidelines of the NCLB legislation. • About 45 percent of the state’s 728 schools did not meet the new • standards during NCLB’s first year of implantation. Already, the state’s revenue has dropped by; almost $(>() million for the 2003 fiscal year. Education, budgets, and funding are all issues that arise during an election year. However, budget deficits, lack of funding, and low education achievement levels could cause any incumbent to lose his/her scat in public office. It is great to have wonderful ideas and legislation for improving the nation’s education system, but these laws are no more valuable than the paper they are written on, if they never get off the ground due to a lack of funding. And as Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., stated, “The law (NCLB) made proven, effee- ’ tive reform a priority for all schools, but to make it a reality, we must fund it." # For speaking engagements or education workshops, contact me at: (tliK7tlM)iuloesm;itUT((i hot]iuil.itan or write me at: 9701 E. ti.'Jrd St., Indianapolis, IN. 4(>23(i. My contact number is (317) 502-0272