19 Oct2018
By Joyce Westgard, Vincent Alfonso and Bob Cooper
Members of the Washington Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (WACTE) met with Washington state lawmakers during WACTE’s inaugural “Day on the Hill” earlier this year—an effort to familiarize legislators with teacher preparation programs across the state, present ourselves as resources to legislators on teacher preparation and K-12 education, and articulate the WACTE agenda/priorities.
In the state of Washington, the legislative process is nothing like academia, where it can take a year from proposal to approval for a new program or process. The legislative sessions move at a furious pace. A bill can be amended to do something completely different than the original intent, and a legislative lobbyist can prevent the legislative process from “getting away from you before you know it.”
17 Oct2018
By Deborah Koolbeck
AACTE has awarded five state chapters the 2018-19 AACTE State Chapter Support Grant. The recipients are as follows:
- Arizona
- Colorado
- Indiana
- Iowa
- New Jersey
Each year, AACTE and the Advisory Council of State Representatives (ACSR) Executive Committee select recipients of the State Chapter Support Grants to help strengthen the capacity of the chapters on various levels, including advocacy and statewide collaboration to meet key challenges, as well as strengthen AACTE’s relationship with state chapters.
26 Sep2018
By Alicia Diaz
Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) across the country have just concluded another successful observance of National HSIs Week, celebrated this year from September 17-23. The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) joined the celebration by releasing a Resource Page dedicated to its new legislative initiative, the PK-12 and Higher Ed Collaboration. This initiative would create a new Part C under Title V of the Higher Education Act for a grant program to support partnerships and collaboration between HSIs and Hispanic-Serving School Districts (HSSDs) that educate the majority of Hispanic students.
On the Resource Page, you will also find a recently launched interactive map that shows the geographic relationship between HSIs, HSSDs, Emerging Hispanic-Serving Institutions, and Emerging Hispanic-Serving School Districts. Click on this link for details on our PK-12 and Higher Education Collaboration initiative and to view our interactive maps.
11 Sep2018
By Deborah Koolbeck
In case you missed it in State Directions, AACTE’s state-focused monthly e-newsletter, the ACSR Executive Committee created two new ad-hoc committees in response to participants’ feedback at the 2018 State Leaders Institute during AACTE’s Washington Week in June.
The two ad-hoc committees will focus on:
11 Sep2018
By Deborah Koolbeck
AACTE has an active network of state chapters across the country, and would like to help promote what’s happening in your local chapter through its communication channels. Is your state chapter providing activities to share best practices, engage on solutions to challenges, or advance professional skills? If yes, then please share your event details with AACTE!
Whether your state chapter convening varies from monthly meetings to large conferences in the spring and fall, AACTE would like to promote your event details on the state chapter and events pages of its website. If you are a state chapter leader, please take a moment to complete a short online form for each chapter meeting and conference that will take place during the 2018-19 academic year.
04 Sep2018
By Jerrica Thurman
As students and educators head back to school this month, there is a growing concern about school safety. One in 3 parents fear for their child’s physical safety in school, according to the 2018 PDK Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools.To help education leaders navigate disruptive and potentially traumatic events in schools, The School Superintendents Association (AASA) released in July the School Safety and Crisis Planning toolkit. The online resource features a select group of safety leaders throughout the country who are ready to provide guidance about a variety of crises that come without notice. AASA has also set up a crisis hotline that education leaders can call with questions and concerns about school safety. The 24-hour hotline gives access to mentors with experience dealing with floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, and school shootings.
29 Aug2018
By AACTE
AACTE President/CEO Lynn M. Gangone and the AACTE Board of Directors issued the following statement today regarding the Trump administration’s proposal to use federal funds for placing guns in schools:
“AACTE strongly opposes U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos’s consideration to arm teachers in the classroom as this will endanger the safety of both students and educators. Teacher preparation programs across the nation ensure profession-ready educators are prepared to create safe learning communities where children can learn without fear.
31 Jul2018
By Deborah Koolbeck
I am thrilled to announce that AACTE’s contact lists for state policy makers in each state and the District of Columbia have been updated and posted in the AACTE Resource Library (accessible to AACTE members only!). In addition, links to these lists can be found on the AACTE Advocacy Center’s State Advocacy page and on AACTE’s State Policy and Legislation page.
These documents are an AACTE member benefit to support you in your state-level advocacy work. Use them to find key state policy makers–for example, legislators for authorizing and appropriating education funds, state department of education contacts, and even your governor’s education staffer.
05 Jul2018
By Melissa Cuba
AACTE Consultant Jane E. West and the author at the Holmes Summer Policy Institute in Washington, DC
I often ask myself, “How can I use my work as an emerging researcher and scholar to help inform educational policy and practice?” Sadly, the implications section of the manuscripts I have produced and even read often feels distant and unattainable, especially without an audience that is empowered to take action. Thankfully, this month’s AACTE Holmes Summer Policy Institute helped me see how I could navigate a new space and translate my work to impact change.
During the sessions, I realized the importance of building relationships, knowing the agenda, and sharing my work in multiple mediums. I learned the importance of branding and using social media to promote the work I am doing and also to inform my community in ways that are accessible. While that may feel foreign to some, including me, I know I can post a section of a paper I am working on or some key data that might get some people to think twice about an education-related topic.
26 Jun2018
By Zachary VanHouten
As reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA) continues in Congress, AACTE is unveiling a new resource to support members in their advocacy efforts with members of Congress. The TEACH Grant Vignettes, collected in 2017 and 2018, provide powerful narratives on the significance that the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) grants have on access and financial assistance for teacher candidates.
Here is a sample vignette from an undergraduate grant recipient at Northern Kentucky University:
25 Jun2018
By AACTE
On June 22, AACTE President/CEO Lynn M. Gangone and the AACTE Board of Directors issued the following statement regarding President Trump’s executive order ending the immigration policy of separating children from families:
“Detaining children without their parents in prison-like environments is harmful to their mental, emotional, and physical health and well-being, and will be a detriment to their ability to thrive and perform at high levels in the classroom. While we understand that immigration policy is complex and often fraught with challenges, it is our duty to care for and protect children, regardless of their national origin. The executive order issued is prospective and accordingly does nothing to reunite already-separated children with their parents; it is only a temporary fix for a flawed policy.
22 Jun2018
By Kristin McCabe
Members of the Arkansas Association of Colleges for Teacher Education participate in a recent annual conference; at right, current chapter President Victoria Groves-Scott of the University of Central Arkansas addresses members.
The 47 state chapters of AACTE employ a wide variety of membership models, activity calendars, and strategic partnerships to meet the priorities of their members. While all chapters are based on the fundamental value of interinstitutional collaboration, these coalitions are not just about members talking to themselves or circling the wagons. They also provide an effective launching point for their individual and collective members to connect with external groups that lend important new perspectives and advantages.
The Arkansas Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (ArACTE) offers an example of how connections forged outside its membership boost its capacity to focus on advocacy priorities as a group–and on common programmatic concerns at the campus level.
12 Jun2018
By Kristin McCabe, Jerry Stephens and Mahlet B. Tesfaye
Oregon teacher educators meet with U.S. Representative Kurt Schrader (second from left) during AACTE’s Day on the Hill.
Last week, AACTE members, chapter leaders, and partners convened for the Association’s annual Washington Week events in Arlington, Virginia, and on Capitol Hill. United under the theme “Your Voice Matters,” participants joined in one or more of the three signature events: the State Leaders Institute, the Holmes Summer Policy Institute, and Day on the Hill.
State Leaders Institute
12 Jun2018
By Samuel Santos
AACTE intern Samuel Santos (second from left) joined this New York delegation June 6 at AACTE’s Day on the Hill.
My summer internship with AACTE started during the 2018 Washington Week, and I had the privilege of not only witnessing the week’s events but also accompanying members on their congressional visits during Day on the Hill.
My fellow interns and I were each paired with different scholars who took us along with them and acted as our mentors during the Hill visits June 6. I was paired up with Jacob Easley II, dean of the Graduate School of Education at Touro College in New York City. Along with other members from New York State, we spent most of the day meeting with representatives, senators, and their staff to advocate for AACTE’s current legislative agenda.
11 Jun2018
By Deborah Koolbeck
On June 6, while AACTE members and partners were on Capitol Hill advocating for educator preparation as part of AACTE’s Day on the Hill, Association President/CEO Lynn M. Gangone was testifying before the Federal School Safety Commission at a listening session at the U.S. Department of Education.
The Commission, tasked with quickly providing meaningful and actionable recommendations to keep students safe at school and headed by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, is composed of the leadership of the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Last week’s meeting was the fourth since the Commission’s inception in March of this year and the first public listening session.
