Thread: THE WHITE HOUSE HISPANIC EDUCATION WEBSITE

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Welcome to "Ask the White House" -- an online interactive forum where you can submit questions to Administration officials and friends of the White House. Visit the "Ask the White House" archives to read other discussions with White House officials.


Adam Chavarria

Executive Director, White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans


February 3, 2004

Adam Chavarria

Thank you for allowing me to participate in today's "Ask the White House". First, let me state that I believe that we all have a stake in the education of our children - parents, families, businesses, entire communities. No Child Left Behind provides the platform that enables us to work together to ensure that all Latino children receive the high quality education they deserve. With that, I'll be happy to entertain your questions.

Rose, from Minneapolis 'Mn. writes:
How can we relate the importance of an education to so many Hispanic's comming into our country .

Adam Chavarria
Dear Rose, thank you for your question. Many Hispanic immigrants, like so many before them that came to this country at the turn of the last century, sought a better way of life for their children and families.

They share the same dreams and aspirations as we all do for our children's education. However, they do not always know how to navigate the public education system and may not be able to speak English.

Thus, they often lack the information they need help to guide their children through the education maze. However, thanks to the Title I (for low-income schools and school districts) and Title III (for English Language Learners) provisions of No Child Left Behind, these parents now have more options and opportunities to permit them to become strong advocates for their children's education.

Perhaps President George W. Bush put it best when he stated, "This nation of immigrants believes that all children, whatever their circumstances, deserve a chance to learn, and rise, and succeed. This principle has guided my education reforms as we work to raise the standards of public schools across America and bring hope to every classroom, for every child. I mean every child, not just a few, and not just those whose parents may speak English. We want educational excellence "para todos que viven en este pais."

WB, from Austin, TX writes:
Do you think the recently approved DC voucher program will be successful? Do you think it will influence school choice programs throughout the country? Is this a sign that members of congress are ready to commit to the pillars of No Child Left Behind?

Adam Chavarria
WB, thank you for starting us off with a very important question.

I believe parents, especially low-income parents, should be granted every opportunity and option to enroll their children in a school of their choice, particularly if their child is presently enrolled in a low-performing school.

A voucher program that provides parents this choice will not only help their children obtain a quality education, it also stands to improve public education overall.

Several studies suggest that this competition - the risk of losing students at low-performing schools to other schools - actually improves academic performance at the low-performing school.

So, the voucher program recently approved in Washington, DC is destined to succeed, as other vouchers programs have already demonstrated in other parts of the country.

Providing parents options and choices, a key pillar of the No Child Left Behind Act, is producing the positive results the President and Congress envisioned when it passed this educational reform in January of 2002.

I believe that Congress will continue to support and embrace the pillars of No Child Left Behind, particularly for the lasting implications it holds for finally ensuring that Hispanic children receive the quality education we wish for all American children.

paulo, from dc writes:
Who is the highest ranking hispanic in the Administration? Do you encourage hispanic-americans to get involved in government through your initiative?

Adam Chavarria
Hispanics serve at various levels of President Bush's Administration including Surgeon General Richard Carmona, White House Counsel Al Gonzales, Small Business Administrator Hector Barreto, Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez, former Housing Secretary Mel Martinez and former U.S. Treasurer Rosario Marin. In fact, more Hispanics have served in George W. Bush's Administration than under any previous President. Certainly, the call to serve this country through public service is an honorable one, not just for Hispanic Americans, but for all citizens.

Sarah,, from North Surry High School, NC writes:
How does one justify (under NCLB) forcing children to be accountable for their scores on high-stakes tests when all the research available on sencond-language learners and ELLs agrees that any test in English is a test of English?

Adam Chavarria
Sarah, thank you for your question. The response is, however, complex. Thanks to the work of the Office of English Acquisition (OELA) at the U.S. Department of Education, many of the issues confronting English Language Learners are being addressed by states, school districts, schools, educators, and administrators.

Let me begin by stating that under No Child Left Behind, states must develop English Language Proficiency Standards that are aligned to the Academic Content Standards.

Teachers will be teaching Academic language in any of the Language programs - not in what is often referred to as "playground English" or just social and communicative skills which is the instruction that has been offered in our classrooms for the past 30 years.

Currently, new assessments are being developed to measure the progress of acquisition of the English language. The assessment instruments will be piloted this spring. What I have just described is for language assessment.

As for Content Assessment, Title III under No Child Left Behind states, LEP students will be assessed for content (Reading and Math) on a valid and reliable instrument to extrapolate what a student knows. Students may be tested in native language (for content) for up to three years.

After three years in the system, students will be tested in English. The decision to NOT use native language testing for the first three years is a state choice. For the states that do not offer native language content assessment, they will test in English and may use "accommodations." The list of accommodations is available on the OELA website at the U.S. Department of Education or on OELA's Clearing House website www.ncela.gwu.edu.

The assessment instruments described above are two separate instruments and do not measure the same things. Therefore, a test administered in English is no longer a test of English. It will heavily depend on aligned instruction to the state's Content and English Language Proficiency Standards. I hope this helps answer your question.

Christian, from North Carolina writes:
Forecasts show that by 2020 at least one out of five high school graduates in many states will come form a Hispanic household. What are colleges andor university systems doing TODAY to cope with this unalterable future? How will states -especially those new to Hispanic immigration in the southeast or mid-west- face this phenomenon?

Adam Chavarria
We firmly believe that No Child Left Behind, the most important educational reform in the last 30 years, is the foundation for the increased educational attainment of our nation's Hispanic children and youth.

We anticipate that this increase in educational achievement will result in a dramatic increase of Hispanic youth that will be academically prepared to successfully undertake the rigors of a post secondary education.

As the President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans noted in their final report to the President, From Risk to Opportunity: Fulfilling the Educational Needs of Hispanic Americans in the 21st Century, postsecondary institutions must build capacity in order to accommodate this burgeoning student body.

These institutions must assess their institutional capabilities and develop an integrated vision and action plan in order to be prepared to meet the needs of this growing and better prepared student population.

Many states that are non-traditionally high Hispanic population states are encountering questions that they have not, until recently, been prepared to answer, we encourage these states to look towards those programs and initiatives that have been successfully implemented in traditionally high Hispanic population states, and to evaluate how these solutions may be adapted to meet their needs.

Tom, from Greeley, CO writes:
First, let me say I am a huge supporter of this President an his educational priorities. Thank you for taking my question

With the administration's focus on evidence-based outcomes and educational accountability (i.e. NCLB).

What role does (if any) does bi-lingual education play in today's educational setting?

Respectfully submitted,

Tom Muniz

Greeley, Colorado

Adam Chavarria
NCLB Title III does not speak to specific programs. NCLB Title III requires states to create an accountability system that measures two things for every non- English speaking student in the state.

States have ensure that all ELL's learn English and "hit" the same academic achievement targets set for all students. How a state chooses to operationalize these two aspects of the law is up to each state.

That they do this for each student is what we in OELA (Office of English Acquisition) monitor and provide technical assistance. A state may choose to offer bilingual programs, dual language programs, two-way immersion programs or just an immersion program in English.

It is state choice. Regardless of program - it must be administered based on the most current scientific-based research and it must produce student outcome results for English language proficiency and academic content.

Jasmin, from Wilmington, N.C. writes:
I would like to know how would a hispanic person could get schoolarships and grats to pay for college. Since I'm puertorican and my mother cannot help me pay for my education, maybe the goverment or associations can?

Adam Chavarria
Jasmin, thank you for a question we frequently receive. I would first direct you to the wealth of information that is available through the U.S. Department of Education.

The Department's student financial assistance program includes grants, work-study, and loans. Grants are financial aid you do not have to pay back.
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Alex, from San Antonio writes:
What are the top 5 or 10 priorities for the White House Initiatives?

Adam Chavarria
Our Initiative is not a program office, meaning that we do not distribute grants, rather we provide research, support and advice to the Secretary of Education Rod Paige issues pertaining to Hispanic education. We have one paramount priority - to close of the educational achievement gap between Hispanic Americans and their non-Hispanic peers.

scott, from denver writes:
What can we do to help bring the NCLB conference to Colorado?

Adam Chavarria
This weekend in the Bronx, we are hosting the third in a series of seven nationwide education conferences sponsored by the Partners in Hispanic Education. This historic collaboration brings together some of the nation's leading Hispanic organizations, corporate leaders and national private entities in the important mission to improve education for Hispanics in the United States. Although still in the pilot phase, we hope to rollout this effort further in the coming months.

Andrew, from Washington, D.C. writes:
Would you please describe the mission of your component, when it was established, and your approximate yearly budget?

Adam Chavarria
Andrew, thank you for your question. President George W. Bush signed Executive Order 13230 on October 12, 2001 creating the President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans (Commission).

In the same Executive Order, the President created our office. We work closely with the U.S. Department of Education Secretary Rod Paige and his staff to help implement the provisions of No Child Left Behind.

Joel, from Los Angeles writes:
Mr. Chavarria, I'm an American of Hispanic (Mexican) heritage. I work for Los Angeles Unified as a school psychologist. Everyday is an opportunity to touch one life at a time in what I do and it is good news to hear that President Bush promotes educational excellence for all Americans. By what means does the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans plan to impact Hispanic Americans on a larger scale and how do they anticipate Hispanics in local communities will benefit from its ideals in a tangible way? Thank you for the work you are doing. Best regards.

Adam Chavarria
Joel, thank you for your kind words. We are employing public/private partnerships as an important vehicle to help address the educational needs of Hispanic Americans.

Public/private partnerships have proven to be productive vehicles through which a range of organizations can collaborate in pursuit of common objectives and shared visions.

Effective use of such partnerships can draw upon the strengths and experiences of a variety of organizations to create innovative approaches to addressing the educational needs of Hispanic American children, youth, parents, and adult learners by engaging the entire family in the learning process.

And, there are important roles for the federal government, corporate America, business, community-based organizations, and other stakeholders to play in this process.

Paty, from Deerfield, Kansas writes:
Why do you think that there are so many hispanics students droping out of High School? What can we do to lower the rate?

Adam Chavarria
The President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans correctly identified the need to disaggregate data in their interim and final reports to the President.

While the Hispanic high school dropout rate has remained alarmingly high for too long, it is necessary to more closely examine the data in order to create and implement strategies that will be effective.

Answers are needed for such questions as: How many of the students that are being counted as dropouts are native born and foreign born? Are persons being counted as dropouts when in fact they came to this country to work? What is the impact of native education systems on the educational attainment of Hispanics in the United States?

Key to lowering the dropout rate is academic preparation, raising expectations, quality instruction, and accountability - all elements of No Child Left Behind. To do any less would relegate Hispanic Americans to the what the President calls the "soft bigotry of low expectations".

Adam Chavarria
Thank all of you for your questions and interest in the the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans. It is a priviledge and an honor to work with President Bush and Secretary Rod Paige to ensure that we provide all American children with the quality education they deserve. We will do our part and hope to enlist your help in this endeavor. To learn more about our work, please visit www.yesican.gov / www.yosipuedo.gov.

Return to this article at:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/ask/20040203.html

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Meet Pablo
Visit Pablo the Eagle, the official mascot for the White House Initiative on Hispanic Education. Also, check out the kid's views section, read bedtime stories and learn all about the resources available at WhiteHousekids.gov.


Tool Kit for Hispanic Families
Secretary Spellings announced the "Tool Kit for Hispanic Families" at the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) conference in Washington, D.C.

Hispanics have the highest dropout rate compared to other groups of students—27 percent in 2001, the latest year available, according to the Department's National Center for Education Statistics. This figure is about four times higher than that for white students and more than double the figure for African-American students.

"The Hispanic high school dropout rate has not changed substantially in the last three decades. Many Hispanic students are entering high school reading below grade level, not academically prepared in the core areas of math and science and lacking access to highly qualified teachers," said Adam Chavarria, executive director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans. "The President's High School Initiative, specifically the intervention programs, can and will help alleviate these issues by targeting resources to those Hispanic students who are most at-risk of dropping out."

http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/20 ... 2005a.html

Overview
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is a landmark in education reform designed to improve student achievement and change the culture of America's schools.



Historic Partnership
This historic collaboration brings together the WHI and some the nation's leading Hispanic organizations, corporate leaders and national private entities in the important mission to improve education for Hispanics in the United States.
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http://www.yic.gov/

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Partners in Hispanic Education


Spanish version
Background
The formation of an historic collaboration, Partners in Hispanic Education, was announced on July 9, 2003 in Washington, D.C. This effort brings together the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans (WHI) and some the nation's leading Hispanic organizations, corporate leaders and national private entities in the important mission to improve education for Hispanics in the United States.

The goal is to empower the Hispanic American community by equipping families with educational tools and informational resources afforded under No Child Left Behind (NCLB) in order to assist them in becoming stronger advocates for their children's education - from early childhood to college completion. The partners will work with local communities to reinforce positive expectations that include educational excellence, academic attainment, parental involvement and awareness, academic preparation, mentorship, engagement of the business community, accountability and enrollment in college. To accomplish these goals, partnership participants have committed to host education programs in seven pilot cities over the next several months. Each will involve a series of events including town hall meetings; educational workshops for parents, students, educators and business and community leaders; and a seminar on student financial aid and scholarships.

Partners
This partnership includes the following partners: White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans; United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Foundation; MANA, A National Latina Organization; Girl Scouts of the USA; Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU); National Council for Community and Education Partnerships (NCCEP); State Farm Insurance Companies; National Association of Hispanic Publications (NAHP); U.S. Army; Hispanic College Fund (HCF); Hispanic Council for Reform and Educational Options (CREO); National Society of Hispanic MBA's (NSHMBA), Association for the Advancement of Mexican Americans (AAMA); Cuban American National Council (CNC); El Valor; and College for Texans Campaign, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board; El Valor and the Mexican Institute of Greater Houston.

Local Community Involvement and Sustained Community Effort
Seven cities have been selected for this pilot effort. In each city, different partners will take on the responsibility as "lead partner(s)" and, in concert with local community leaders, coordinate the planning and implementation of the partnership events. A local steering committee is formed in each city in order to ensure that partnership events are informative and adapted to meet the educational needs of each community. Through the local steering committee, the community is not only actively engaged in the planning of events, but serves as a conduit to the community for providing updates, facilitating the dissemination of information about local education opportunities, and organizing follow-up conferences and events for local partners, based on identified needs.

Pilot Cities, Lead Partners and Preliminary Timetable
Pilot cities were selected using an information matrix taking into account several factors including: percentage of schools in need of improvement, percentage of Hispanic students enrolled in local school districts; change in Hispanic population from 1990-2000; percentage of English Language Learners enrolled in local school districts; percentage of schools with Free or Reduced Lunch Program (as determinant of low-income families); and whether Partner organizations have a local presence. The pilot cities, lead partner(s), and a preliminary schedule are listed below:

San Diego, CA release
Date: November 21 & 22, 2003
Site: San Diego State University, KPBS
Lead partner(s): MANA, A National Latina Organization; and Girl Scouts of the USA

Miami, FL release | program
Date: December 5 & 6, 2003
Site: Miami Dade College
Lead partner(s): NCCEP, USHCC Foundation

The Bronx, NY release | program
Date: February 6 & 7, 2004
Site: Hostos Community College (CUNY)
Lead partner(s): USHCC Foundation and NCCEP

Tucson, AZ release | program
Date: March 5 & 6, 2004
Site: University of Arizona
Lead partner(s): USHCC Foundation

Albuquerque, NM release | program
Date: March 19 & 20, 2004
Site: University of New Mexico
Lead partner(s): NCCEP

El Paso, TX / Las Cruces, NM release | flyer | program
Date: April 24, 2004
Site: University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP)
Lead partner(s): MANA, A National Latina Organization, Girl Scouts of the USA and State Farm

Partnership Events

Town Hall
A bilingual town hall meeting will be held in each city to allow the partners to hear directly from community members about local educational needs and to serve as a forum for educating the community about NCLB. Panelists will respond to questions from the audience about NCLB and other educational issues and concerns. In addition, WHI and Department publications, as well as education-related Partner publications, will be available for distribution at the event. Participants in the events will include public officials, prominent Hispanic role models, local business, community, and education leaders, and Hispanic parents and students.

Education Conference
A one-day education conference will be held to educate community members about NCLB, place the education tools for success into the hands of the parents, and raise awareness about local and national programs available to help Hispanic students in the area. The conference will be conducted along with concurrent strands, each directed towards a different stakeholder, such as students, parents, educators, education administrators, and community and business leaders

Financial Aid Seminar
As part of the education conference, a financial aid seminar will be held to inform middle and high school students and their parents about saving for college and leveraging financial aid resources. Speakers will include personnel from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Student Financial Aid, as well as independent experts. The objective of the seminars will be to familiarize Hispanic students and their parents with the process for securing financial aid resources.

Project Evaluation and Assessment
In upholding the spirit of NCLB accountability, the Partners in Hispanic Education pilot program includes project evaluation and assessment. Preliminary findings following a year of implementation will allow the partners to make adjustments to existing programs for even higher levels of success. Comprehensive evaluation will require an initial measurement of defined variables before the education events and a reassessment of the same variables after one year.

updated 6-4-04


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National Progress Being Made in Serving Students with Limited English Proficiency

Department's Title III Biennial Evaluation Report Details Progress


en Español

FOR RELEASE:
March 16, 2005 Contact: Sonya Sanchez, Jim Bradshaw
or Susan Aspey
(202) 401-1576

Thanks to No Child Left Behind, for the first time, all states have developed and implemented English language proficiency standards and annually assessed English language learners, according to a new report from the Department about the progress of serving these five million students in our schools.

"FY 2002-2004 Biennial Report to Congress on the Implementation of NCLB, Title III, the State Formula Grant Program" is the first in-depth report to Congress containing data from the 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico concerning the English language acquisition and academic achievement of limited English proficient students (LEPs) since NCLB was enacted. (English language learners or ELLs are also known as limited English proficient or LEP students.)

Prior to the implementation of NCLB in 2002, few states had developed these standards that now help teachers measure each student's progress in learning English. Currently, all states and the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico have established English language proficiency standards that are linked to state academic content standards in English in reading/language arts and mathematics.

"States have made significant progress toward implementing new Title III English language acquisition requirements in a very short period of time," said Secretary Margaret Spellings. "When President Bush envisioned helping all children in America who had previously been left behind, he knew that our English language learners faced some of the greatest challenges. That's why he made sure that the federal government played a vital role in ensuring their educational success, while at the same time, allowing the states the flexibility required to implement the Title III LEP language instruction programs effectively."

With the $477 million distributed through the Title III State Formula Grant program in FY 2003, states served more than four million LEP students. Based on the most currently available data from the states, there are approximately 5.1 million LEP students nationwide. Title III services reach approximately 80 percent of these students. Before NCLB, only approximately 15 percent of these students were being served through federal LEP programs nationwide. The change from competitive program grants to state formula grants means that many more LEP students are now being served.

"NCLB reflects a fundamental transformation in the relationship between the federal government and the states with regard to the education of LEP students," said Kathleen Leos, associate assistant deputy secretary of the Office of English Language Acquisition. "As a result, we are no longer funding programs, we are funding children."

States that receive Title III grants must also reserve up to 15 percent of their award for subgrants to local education agencies that have experienced a significant increase in the number of immigrant children and youths enrolled in schools.

Important data provided by the states about programs and participants in the 2003-04 school year indicate that:

51 of 52 state education agencies (includes D.C. and Puerto Rico) reported serving a total of 4,042,428 LEP students through 4,867 Title III formula subgrants to districts [local education agencies (LEAs)];
45 of 52 state education agencies (includes D.C. and Puerto Rico) reported funding 1,389 additional subgrants to LEAs that experienced significant increases in the number of immigrant children and youths;
All 52 state education agencies (includes D.C. and Puerto Rico) reported that out of a total of 1,218,238 immigrant children and youths, 827,638 were served by Title III;
51 state education agencies reported that 316,273 certified or licensed teachers were working in language instruction programs specially designed for ELLs;
All state education agencies reported using at least one type of English language instruction program offered through Title III, with 40 states using some type of a bilingual program in addition to their English as a second language (ESL) programs;
36 states, D.C. or Puerto Rico reported that 385,794 students transitioned out of language instruction programs into mainstream classrooms in 2002-03. In 2003-04, 44 states reported 447,905 students transitioned out of such programs.
"The No Child Left Behind changes for LEP students are making a big difference in the way our school systems view these children," added Spellings. "Because their achievement and progress must be carefully monitored and reported, there is more attention being placed upon their learning and ultimate success. We cannot afford to leave any group of children behind."

"No Child Left Behind has had a profound impact on the lives of these children and their families," said Leos. "Parents are getting more information about the progress of their children, and the law requires that they be notified in a language that they understand. They also have more options as to what program is best for their child. Recent studies have shown that most immigrant parents want their children to learn English, and this report shows us that these dreams are, in fact, being fulfilled."

Students are first identified as LEP by a state-approved English language proficiency assessment and then are recommended for placement in a language education program. The goal of these programs is that LEP students acquire English to allow them to achieve in academic content areas such as reading/language arts and mathematics in English at the same level of academic success established by the state for all students. Title III does not endorse or promote any specific type of language education program for LEP students, and states have the choice to use ESL or bilingual programs. Title III does require, however, that any language programs and professional development be scientifically based and effective.

States are also expected to provide professional development activities to assist personnel in meeting certification requirements for teaching LEP children. All 52 states require that all teachers of LEP students meet language fluency requirements.

Within the U.S. Department of Education, Title III is administered by the Office of English Language Acquisition, Language Enhancement, and Academic Achievement for Limited English Proficient Students (OELA).

The text of the report is available online at http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/oela/biennial05/index.htm.

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http://www.ed.gov/print/news/pressrelea ... 62005.html

Some insane Statistics just from 2000-2001
http://www.ncela.gwu.edu./stats/4_topla ... salpha.pdf

L.E.P.- Limited English Proficient Stats as of 200-2001

Spanish LEP Students in US =3,598,451 this is a wooping 79% of all LEP Students in the US, this is a direct result of the outta control Anchorism going on in our country. This go's to show the disproportionate expense of teaching these kids as opposed to other Enthic minorites coming into the U.S. Illegal or otherwise. Insane.

It stinks that teachers are being forced to undergo extra training to teach these kids. Then having to teach kids who really don't care.

The voucher thing bothers me to. What's to keep private schools from being dumbed down like public schools? Will they be forced to accept gang bangers who can't speak English and don't care about learning??