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From: nccrest@cudenver.edu
Date: 12/01/03

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NCCRESt News, the electronic newsletter of the
National Center for Culturally Responsive Educational Systems

Volume 1, Number 6 November 2003
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Welcome to NCCRESt News, the monthly electronic newsletter of the National

Center for Culturally Responsive Educational Systems (NCCRESt). NCCRESt
News keeps you informed of the work of this project and other news and
information related to reducing the disproportionate representation of
culturally and linguistically diverse students in special education. Each
issue features resources, research, events, and examples of educational
practices that facilitate the learning and development of all children.

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PLEASE SHARE NCCRESt NEWS WITH YOUR COLLEAGUES!
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In this issue:
==> NCCRESt Update: Regional technical assistance meetings; NCCRESt new
hires
==> Events: National Inclusive Schools Week online forum (Dec. 1-5);
Illinois Bilingual Education Conference (Dec. 9-12); NABE Conference (Feb.
4-7)
==> News Brief: Assistant Secretary Pasternack Resigns
==> Web Site of the Month: Reading Rockets
==> New Resources: TASH book on inclusive education; NCLB's implications
for Hispanic students
==> NCCRESt Support Desk
 
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PLEASE SHARE NCCRESt NEWS WITH YOUR COLLEAGUES!
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NCCRESt UPDATE

==> Regional technical assistance meetings

NCCRESt's Mid South Technical Assistance meeting was held November 2-3 in
Baltimore, Maryland. Participants included teams of data analysts, special
educators, superintendents from urban districts, teachers, parent
representatives, and others from Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, South
Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Washington, D. C., and West Virginia, as
well as representatives from the Mid-South Regional Resource Center. All
of the teams worked diligently during the two-day meeting, and left with
technical assistance plans in hand.

NCCRESt continues its series of regional technical assistance meetings in
the Southeast on December 8-9 in Dallas, Texas. Teams from Alabama,
Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico,
Texas, and the Virgin Islands will develop individualized plans for
reducing the disproportionate representation of culturally and
linguistically diverse students in special education in their states.

==> NCCRESt hires new professional development coordinator and policy and
evaluation coordinator

Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins is NCCRESt's new Professional Development
Coordinator. Carolyn has 30 years experience in working with general and
special educators, students "at risk,a^?? and culturally and linguistically
diverse students in public and private school settings in Ohio, Colorado,
and nationally. Her experience has been in all aspects of urban education
including teaching, supervising, school site leadership, central office
administration, curriculum writing, professional development,
standards-based education, teacher quality, and administrator preparation.
Carolyn played a key role in establishing the alternative education
programs in the Cleveland Public School District, Ohio, and has received
awards for her advocacy for public education. Dr. Jefferson-Jenkins
received a Ph.D. in Urban Education/Leadership from Cleveland State
University, Cleveland, Ohio, and an Ed.S. in Curriculum and Instruction
from Kent State University, Kent, Ohio.

Steve Kennedy, NCCRESt's new Policy and Evaluation Coordinator, is in his
26th year as a public educator. He comes from the Sheridan School District
near Denver, where he was Director of Special Education and Professional
Development. Prior to that, Steve was Director of the Colorado
School-to-Career initiative in the office of Lieutenant Governor Gail
Schoettler, where he led a statewide systems change process in
collaboration with local, state, and national business and education
leaders as well as key policymakers. He has worked at all levels of P-12
education as director, principal, transition coordinator, school social
worker, and teacher. In his 10 years with the Adams Twelve School
District, also near Denver, Steve co-led the team that brought an
effective Cities-In-Schools partnership to Adams County, Colorado. He
started and chaired the first Adams County Transition Governing Board.
Steve's career-long focus has been on bringing schools, community groups,
and families together to build systems that provide the best possible
education and employment opportunities and related services to children
and youth.

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EVENTS

==> "Transitions: Managing Change Through and After School"

December 1-5, 2003 -- NOW UNDERWAY!

NCCRESt's partner, the National Institute for Urban School Improvement, is
pleased to announce invite you to join a free online discussion,
"Transitions: Managing Change Through and After School," which is taking
place on www.inclusiveschools.org as part of National Inclusive Schools
Week. This discussion will explore how students and families handle change
as young adults grow and become more independent and self-determined.

Facilitators include Robin Foley of the Federation for Children with
Special Needs; Stelios Gragoudas of the Beach Center on Disability,
University of Kansas; Kristin Powers of California State University, Long
Beach; and Hilda Sramek of California State University, Long Beach. They
look forward to engaging you in this very important conversation about the
journey of persons with disabilities' from school to life's opportunities
and obstacles outside of school.

Log into the discussion at www.inclusiveschools.org anytime between
Monday, December 1 through Friday, December 5.

==> Bilingual Statewide Conference
"No Language Left Behind"
27th Annual Statewide Conference for Linguistically and Culturally Diverse
Students

December 9-12, 2003 * Oak Brook, IL

NCCRESt's Co-Principal Investigator Dr. Alfredo Artiles will serve as
keynote speaker of this event. Other experts in the fields of literacy,
classroom management, academic standards, and student assessment will
offer presentations on important issues related to serving the needs of
students from diverse language backgrounds. Conference themes include: how
to identify and meet the needs of every child, accountability, parent and
community involvement, and the promotion of equity in the educational
community and academic standards.

For more information, visit
http://www.thecenterweb.org/irc/pages/event-bilingual.html or contact the
Illinois Resource Center at 847-803-3112.

==> National Association of Bilingual Educators Annual Conference

February 4-7, 2004 * Albuquerque, NM

Over 4,000 attendees will gather together to increase their expertise
related to helping students develop both their English language skills and
native languages. NCCRESt's Co-Principal Investigators Alfredo Artiles and
Janette Klingner are offering a session to introduce NCCRESt's conceptual
framework for reducing disproportionality. Other sessions will focus on
the following topics:
* teaching math, science, social studies and other content areas to single
and multiple language groups;
* recruiting and developing bilingual education personnel;
* choosing and using instructional technology and the Internet;
* working with Hispanic, Asian/Pacific American, Native American/Alaskan
Native, and other linguistic groups

For more information, visit http://www.nabe.org/conferences.asp.
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NEWS BRIEF

==> Assistant Secretary Pasternack Resigns

Robert H. Pasternack has resigned, effective January 2, as assistant
secretary for special education and rehabilitative services, a post he has
held since August 2001. In a letter to President Bush, Dr. Pasternack said
he feels he "can continue to serve children with disabilities and their
families in the private sector while at the same time trying my best to
achieve the educational goals that you have set for our country." To read
the complete press release, visit
http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2003/11/11182003.html.

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WEB SITE OF THE MONTH

==> Reading Rockets

Reading Rockets, a project funded by the U.S. Department of Education's
Office of Special Education Programs, aims to provide teachers, parents,
and anyone else who touches the life of a child with the information they
need to encourage the literacy development of young readers. "Teaching
Reading IS Rocket Science" is the title of a publication by one of Reading
Rockets' advisors Dr. Louisa C. Moats. In it, she notes that teaching
reading is complex and requires teachers to have knowledge, skills, and
supported practice with the many processes that underlie literacy. Visit
www.readingrockets.org, a comprehensive Web site that includes tools and
resources for teaching children to read and helping struggling readers.

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NEW RESOURCES

==> New TASH book on inclusive education!

TASH recently published the second edition of "The Foundations of
Inclusive Education - A Compendium of Articles on Effective Strategies to
Achieve Inclusive Education" Diane Lea Ryndak and Douglas Fisher, Editors;
with a foreword by Steve Taylor. This book includes articles covering both
the conceptual underpinnings of inclusion as well as the strategies that
have proven effective across the country--both the "whys" and "hows" of
achieving true inclusion in today's classrooms. The book is organized
according to the following four subject areas:

1) LRE and School Inclusion: Concepts, Advocacy, and Personnel Preparation
2) Strategies for Teaching and Learning in Inclusive Classes: Planning,
Implementing, and Evaluating Instruction
3) Strategies for Providing Supports in Inclusive Classes: Engaging Peers
and Paraprofessionals
4) Outcomes of School Inclusion: Short and Long Term Effects

For a complete table of contents or to order online, visit:
http://www.tash.org/publications/foundations_for_inclusion.htm, or call
410-828-8274 (ext. 0).

Implications of the No Child Left Behind Act for Hispanic Students

The National Council of La Raza (NCLR) has authored an issue brief, "The
No Child Left Behind Act: Implications for Local Educators and Advocates
for Latino Students, Families, and Communities." This issue brief examines
how the No Child Left Behind Act may impact Latino students, families, and
communities. It covers the history of the standards movement in Congress,
discusses challenges in implementing these reforms as they relate to
Hispanic students, and provides recommendations for state and local
policymakers. Many of the issues and recommendations from this brief also
apply to students with disabilities. To download a copy of the issue
brief, visit http://www.nclr.org/policy/briefs/.

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NCCRESt SUPPORT DESK

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Archives of NCCRESt News are available at
http://www.edc.org/hypermail/nccrest/
For more information about NCCRESt, please contact:
Shelley Zion, Project Coordinator
National Center for Culturally Responsive
Educational Systems (NCCRESt)
1380 Lawrence Street, Suite 625
Denver, CO 80204
Phone: 303-556-3990
Fax: 303-556-6141
Email: shelley.zion@cudenver.edu
Web: www.nccrest.org
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NCCRESt is a technical assistance center funded by
the Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education.
Project Officer: Grace Zamora DurA n. Award No. H326E020003.
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