****Begin File******************Begin File*******************Begin File**** *************************************************************************** ISSN 1069-7799 ALAWON ALA Washington Office Newsline An electronic publication of the American Library Association Washington Office Volume 2, Number 42 September 29, 1993 In this issue: (203 lines) ADMINISTRATIONS'S ESEA REAUTHORIZATION LEGISLATION FRIENDS OF EDUCATION HONORED OMB CIRCULAR A-130 REVISION DEPOSITORY LIBRARY COUNCIL TO MEET IN CHICAGO LIBRARY EDUCATION AND HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT AWARDS AVAILABLE *************************************************************************** ADMINISTRATIONS'S ESEA REAUTHORIZATION LEGISLATION On Thursday, September 23, Secretary of Education Richard Riley appeared at a hearing before the House Subcommittee on Elementary, Secondary and Vocational Education to present the Administration's proposal to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Representative Dale Kildee (D-MI), introduced the bill, HR 3130, Improving America's Schools Act of 1993, later that day. Kildee said he expected subcommittee mark-up on the bill to occur in mid-October. The majority of Secretary Riley's remarks were focused on revision to Chapter I--Financial Assistance to Meet Special Educational Needs of Children. During questioning, Riley explained that Chapter 2 block grants, the consolidated grant program which has school library materials as one of its seven purposes, would be merged with the Eisenhower Math and Science Education State grants, forming one fund--called the Eisenhower Professional Development Program--to be used only for teacher training. Members of the committee expressed approval for the legislation, but concern that the formula for Chapter I be broad enough to address pockets of poverty in otherwise wealthy areas. Rep. Gunderson (R-WI) was concerned that a 10-year reauthorization period in effect would turn authorizing authority to the Appropriations Committee, and that perhaps the legislation should be even more bold to provide for the year 2010. Stressing that one out of every 5 children lives in poverty, Riley said that according to a study cited in the _Washington Post_, there are more children in poverty in the United States than in any other industrialized country. Riley said the proposed legislation would target $7 billion for Chapter I in FY95, a 10 percent increase. He said resources had been spread too thinly which has led to fragmentation and resulting lowered expectations. He mentioned the National Assessment of Educational Progress _NAEP 1992 Reading Report Card for the Nation and the States_, just issued by the Department of Education, and said it is important to teach reading through literature and reading and writing programs. He suggested the following changes that the legislation would help to produce: high standards; an emphasis on teaching and learning; greater flexibility in federal regulations but greater accountability on the part of schools, teachers, parents and students; links among schools, parents, and communities; resources targeted to where needs are greatest. The legislation proposes a Title III--Expanding Opportunities for Learning, which would create an Office of Educational Technology in the Department of Education to help schools use technology to achieve high standards, and provide grants to states and school districts to help them develop plans and strategies for the effective use of technology. Rep. Sawyer (D-OH) asked whether the Department was prepared to support a broad and comprehensive use of technology, across professional development and curriculum enhancement. Riley said the technological aspect is so important it is included in Goals 2000, school to work, and almost every initiative including the ESEA reauthorization proposal. When asked what role the reinventing government initiative would play, Riley cited elimination of some 20 programs in the proposed legislation, "many of which are good programs;" consolidation of the Eisenhower math and science with Chapter 2 block grants; a general reorganization in the administrative process for state and local schools. For example, combining federal funds for administrative costs of several programs at the school level, and the consolidation of technical centers to create a "one stop shop" are innovations proposed in the legislation. In answer to a question about a provision for school choice, Riley said there is a reference in the proposal to charter schools and to magnet schools, which "really work well" but are under funded. *************************************************************************** FRIENDS OF EDUCATION HONORED The First Lady, two Senators and three Representatives were honored on September 27 at the eighth annual congressional awards dinner sponsored by the Committee for Education Funding. Hilary Rodham Clinton received a citizen service award for providing opportunities for youth and for recognizing that reforming the health care system is closely linked to the ability to improve the education of the nation's children. Rep. Ronald V. Dellums (D-CA) received an education leadership award for lifelong commitment. Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) received his second CEF congressional distinguished service award. Outstanding new member awards were presented to Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-CA), and Rep. Lynn C. Woolsey (D-CA). These awards honor first term members who have made education of students one of their top priorities. Constituents of the CEF award recipients may wish to congratulate them. The Committee for Education Funding is a coalition of nearly 100 education and related organizations. The CEF goal is to achieve adequate federal financial support for the nation's educational system. ALA is a founding member of CEF. *************************************************************************** OMB CIRCULAR A-130 REVISION The Office of Management and Budget has published a proposed revision of OMB Circular A-130, Management of Federal Information Resources, in the September 10 _Federal Register_, pp. 47790-97. OMB states that the proposed revisions address agencies' internal management practices for information systems and information technology, although there are also changes to the text of the revised Circular published on July 2, 1993 (58 FR 36068). Comments on the proposal should be submitted no later than November 9, 1993 to: Information Technology Management Branch, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, OMB, Room 3221 New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 20503. For further information, contact Stephen Holden (202-395-7231). The document is available on the Internet via anonymous File Transfer Protocol (FTP) from nis.nsf.net as /omb/omb.a130.rev3 (do not use any capital letters in the file name). For those who do not have FTP capability, the document can also be retrieved via mail query by sending an electronic mail message to nis-info@nis.nsf.net with no subject, and with "send omb.a130.rev3" (without the quotes) as the first line of the body of the message. Of particular interest are definitions for terms such as "information resources," "user," "information processing services organization," and "full cost." These definitions can, of course, affect how federal information policies are applied in federal agencies and those outside the government who seek access to federal information. A term like "user" may have little resemblance to the way it is applied in the library community. For example, in this proposed revision the term "user" ... means an organizational or programmatic entity that receives information processing services from an information processing services organization (IPSO). A user may be either internal or external to the organization responsible for providing information resources services, but normally does not report either to the manager or director of the IPSO or to the same immediate supervisor. And what is an "information processing services organization"? ...means a discrete set of personnel, information technology, and support equipment with the primary function of providing services to one or more users. *************************************************************************** DEPOSITORY LIBRARY COUNCIL TO MEET IN CHICAGO The Depository Library Council to the Public Printer will hold its Fall 1993 meeting on Monday, November 1, through Wednesday, November 3. The meeting will be held from 8:30-5:30 on Monday and Tuesday, and from 8:30- 12:00 on Wednesday, at the Allerton Hotel, 701 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60611. All portions of the meeting are open to the public. *************************************************************************** LIBRARY EDUCATION AND HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT AWARDS AVAILABLE The Department of Education is accepting applications for awards under the Higher Education Act title II-B Library Education and Human Resource Development Program. The program provides grants to institutions of higher education and library organizations or agencies to recruit, educate, and train persons, and to establish, develop, or expand programs, through courses of study or staff development (including institutes), fellowships, or traineeships in library and information science. Two types of awards are available: fellowship grants and institute grants. The deadline for submitting applications is November 30, 1993. For further information, see the _Federal Register_, September 10, 1993, pp. 47800-1, or contact Louise Southerland, Acting Director, Discretionary Library Programs Division, U.S. Department of Education, 555 New Jersey Avenue, NW, room 404, Washington, DC 20208-5571; phone 202-219-1315, TDD (Federal Information Relay Service) 1-800-877-8339. *************************************************************************** *************************************************************************** ALAWON (ISSN 1069-7799) is an irregular publication of the American Library Association Washington Office, 110 Maryland Avenue, N.E., Washington, DC 20002-5675. Internet: alawash@alawash.org; Phone: 202-547-4440; Fax: 202-547-7363. Editor and List Owner: Fred King (fdk@alawash.org). All or part of ALAWON may be redistributed, with appropriate credits. ALAWON is available free of charge and is available only in electronic form. To subscribe, send the message "subscribe ala-wo [your name]" to listserv@uicvm (Bitnet) or listserv@uicvm.uic.edu (internet). Back issues and other documents are available from the list server. To find out what's available, send the message "send ala-wo filelist" to the listserv. The ALA-WO filelist contains the list of files with the exact filename and filetype. To get a particular file, issue the command "send filename filetype" to the listserv. Do not include the quotes in your commands. *************************************************************************** ***End of file******************End of file******************End of file***