Education

National News

September 20, 1989 3 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Daiwa Securities Company of Tokyo has given the Committee for Economic Development $1 million to establish an endowment for a permanent education-studies program.

Robert C. Holland, ced’s president, said the grant marks the first time a Japanese firm “has targeted such a gift to improving U.S. elementary and secondary education.”

Takuro Isoda, chairman of Daiwa Securities America, said the gesture recognizes c.e.d.'s role as “a national leader in developing sound policies for improving public education in the United States.”

The nonprofit organization, whose board of directors includes university presidents and the leaders of major corporations, has been active in promoting business involvement in education. Its 1987 report, “Children in Need: Investment Strategies for the Educationally Disadvantaged,” has been influential in promoting early educational intervention for disadvantaged students.

The gift will establish the Owen B. Butler Program in Education Studies, named for ced’schairman, who has led the group’s education activities for the past seven years. Mr. Butler is the retired chairman of the board of the Procter & Gamble Company, where he now serves as a consultant.

The National Center on Education and the Economy has formed a commission to examine why the United States is losing its economic edge and to recommend strategies to improve workers’ skills.

The Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce plans to spend seven months interviewing policymakers, employers, educators, and employees in the United States and six other nations--Sweden, Japan, Singapore, Ireland, West Germany, and South Korea. The group hopes to compile “the largest database of its kind” comparing skill-development policies in the seven countries, a spokesman for the project said.

The panel, to be headed by Ira C. Magaziner, an international business strategist, will include business and labor leaders, educators, and government officials.

The project is being paid for by a $250,000 grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York with additional support from businesses, unions, and universities.

The commission will examine the role of government policies, education, and training in boosting workers’ skills. It will meet for the first time next month.

A coalition of educators and housing advocates has released a model curriculum for schools to teach children about the homeless.

At a Washington press conference, the National Education Association declaredlast week “National Housing Education Week,” and issued copies of the curriculum guide to its more than 6,000 affiliates.

In addition, District of Columbia school officials agreed to use the curriculum in schools throughout the district in October.

The guide, developed by an organization called Housing Now, includes materials for grades 4 through 12.

Its goal is to “dispel the myths about the homeless,” and to help students overcome prejudices against homeless children in their schools and adults they may meet.

The curriculum also encourages children to write the Congress to urge it to find a solution to homelessness and to increase affordable housing.

Housing Now has invited students across the country to bring their letters to Washington as part of a march planned for Oct. 7.

Sixty percent of Americans rate public schools as “only fair” or “poor,” according to a poll by Louis Harris & Associates released last week.

In 1986, a similar Harris poll reported that 54 percent of those surveyed thought public education in the United States was “pretty good” or “excellent.” Both polls asked respondents to rate public education according to one of those four categories.

The telephone poll, which was conducted last month, surveyed 1,250 adults nationwide. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Sixty percent of Americans rate public schools as “only fair” or “poor,” according to a poll by Louis Harris & Associates released last week.

In 1986, a similar Harris poll reported that 54 percent of those surveyed thought public education in the United States was “pretty good” or “excellent.” Both polls asked respondents to rate public education according to one of those four categories.

The telephone poll, which was conducted last month, surveyed 1,250 adults nationwide. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

A version of this article appeared in the September 20, 1989 edition of Education Week as National News

Events

Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and other jobs in K-12 education at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.
Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: February 21, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 7, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: January 31, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read
Education Briefly Stated: January 17, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read