“In spite of the breadth and remarkable tenure of this current reform effort, changes within most schools and districts have been cosmetic at best,’' says Diana W. Rigden in “Sustaining Change in Schools: A Role for Business,’' a new report from the Council for Aid to Education.
For innovations in education to last, she argues, the business sector simultaneously must support reform in five areas: the classroom, the school, the district, the community, and the public-policy arena.
Ms. Rigden’s insightful report describes the elements of systemic education reform, and outlines how businesses can use money, advocacy, and human and material resources to both catalyze and buttress reform efforts at each level of the system.
“Sustaining Change’’ is the latest in a series of reports on pre-college education published by the council, a nonprofit group based in New York City. The council works with corporate-giving programs that support K-12 and higher-education programs.
Copies of the report are available for $25 each from the Council for Aid to Education, Publications Department, 51 Madison Ave., Suite 2200, New York, N.Y. 10010; (212) 689-2400.
Girls Incorporated--formerly known as Girls Club of America--has issued a new 22-page guide to help youth-serving organizations better meet the needs of girls in coed environments.
“What’s Equal?’' offers advice on how youth organizations can re-examine such areas as their mission, programming, and staff and board composition to better meet girls’ needs.
Copies of “What’s Equal?’' are available for $12 each, plus shipping and handling, from the Girls Incorporated National Resource Center, 441 West Michigan St., Indianapolis, Ind. 46202; (317) 634-7546.
The Employment Management Association Foundation recognized five school-business partnerships at its annual conference late last month in San Francisco.
The winners were: the Eastman Kodak Company and the Rochester, N.Y., public schools; G.T.E. Florida Inc. and Broward Elementary School in Hillsborough County, Fla.; the Potomac Electric Power Company and Dunbar Senior High School in Washington; the Prudential Insurance Company of America and Camden Middle School in Newark, N.J.; and Tenneco Inc. and Jefferson Davis High School in Houston.
--MEG SOMMERFELD
