New data released by the U.S. Government show that 10th grade students enrolled in private schools in 2002 were nearly twice as likely as their public school peers to have earned a bachelor's degree, or higher, ten years later.  Moreover, students who succeeded in achieving a college degree were found to be more successful in finding jobs and earning better salaries, even in the grips of the recession and its aftermath.  These, and other findings appear in a report released last month by the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics, titled, "Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002): A First Look at 2002 High School Sophomores 10 Years Later."  The paper can be viewed or downloaded, here.  Key preliminary findings of the study are reported in this month's edition of the CAPE Outlook newsletter.

The longitudinal study found that only 31.1 percent of public school students who were sophomores in 2002 had earned bachelor's degrees, or higher, by 2012.  By contrast, 61.9 percent of sophomores attending Catholic schools in 2002 had earned bachelor's degrees, or higher, ten years later, as had 57.1 percent of student enrolled in other private schools.* 

The achievement of a college degree was generally accompanied by higher earnings.  Whereas one-third of those receiving bachelor's degrees by 2011 were enjoying salaries of $40,000 and upwards, only 14 percent of those with high school diplomas, alone, reported earnings at, or above $40,000.  Among those who were working but had failed to complete high school, the most frequently reported current occupations were "food preparation and serving related occupations."  Among those in their mid-20s who had completed at least a bachelor's degree, the most frequently reported current occupations included education, training, and library occupations (13.0 percent), office and administrative support occupations (11.0 percent), management occupations (10.9 percent), and business and financial operations occupations (10.1 percent). 

When, in the aftermath of the national recession, jobs became more difficult to keep, those who had earned a bachelor's degree or higher fared substantially better.  In the years spanning 2006 to 2012, 45 percent of those who failed to complete high school reported that they had lost a job, compared to 40 percent who possessed a high school diploma, only, and 19 percent of those who had earned a bachelor's degree, or higher.

It adds up: the completion of a college degree generally adds value to human capital, and students who attend private schools are far more likely, in proportionate terms, to earn college degrees. 
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A Democracy's prospects rest in no small measure upon the formation of a well educated and civically engaged citizenry.  Alarmingly, a task force created to examine the link between civic learning and civic engagement found that fewer than half of California high school seniors feel it is their responsibility to be involved in state and local issues.  A survey administered to 2,366 high school seniors found that just 60 percent
"could answer questions designed to test their knowledge of the structures and functions of government and of current political issues."  A national telephone survey of 1,000 Americans of voting age, also cited by the task force, found that members of the public are more likely to be able to name the judges on the "American Idol" television show, than the justices on the U.S. Supreme Court.

The California Task Force on K-12 Civic Learning was formed during the summer of 2013 by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, and Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye.  Recently, it issued a set of draft recommendations offered in the hope of revitalizing civic education.  The recommendations are grounded in what the task force labels "Six Proven Practices" that include:

This is an area in which private schools may have a great deal to contribute.  We talk about being "partners in the education of the public."  Here's a wonderful opportunity for private schools to share insights, best practices, and details of innovative civics education instruction, service learning and programming with the public-at-large.  Read the Task Force report, and contribute to the discussion! 

The University of North Georgia (UNG) will host the fourth summer language academy for high school rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors in June and July, 2014.  The Federal Service Language Academy (FSLA) is a three-week residential program for students who are interested in an immersive  intensive language experience, fitness, and exploring international-related careers with the federal government.  Last year 132 students from over 32 U.S. states and three foreign countries successfully completed the FSLA.

During the two three-week sessions, students will be immersed in intensive language instruction in First-Year Arabic, Chinese, Russian, German, Korean, Portuguese, or Second-Year Arabic, Chinese, Russian, German, Portuguese, and Korean from highly qualified teachers, participate in a daily fitness program, receive career counseling from federal agency representatives (CIA, DEA, FBI, State Department, Homeland Security, the Peace Corps and US Armed Forces), and possibly receive high school credit for successful completion of the academy.

The deadline for student applications is April 1, 2014.  The cost of the program to students is $1,895, which includes tuition, room, board, books and materials, and field trip fees.  (The price does not include transportation to and from the program.)  A limited number of scholarships in the amount of $500 are available.  Additional information can be obtained, here.


The eighth annual Green California Summit and Exposition will take place at the Sacramento Convention Center on April 8-9, 2014.  The program provides a unique opportunity to discover innovations in policy, best practices and technology that can help both public and private sector professionals achieve greater success in their sustainability efforts. The Expo offers its own educational experience - a chance for hands-on exposure to technologies and services that play a critical role in the planning, design and execution of green projects.

The two-day event features more than 100 companies offering green products and services, concurrent sessions addressing energy, water, transportation and other vital topics, and a Leadership Awards reception.  Pre-Summit seminars on April 7 will address Prop 39 and recent changes to the state's green building and energy codes.  Keynote speakers will include Anne Simpson, Senior Portfolio Manager and Director of Global Governance for CalPERS.

Admission to keynotes and the exhibit hall is free.  Additional information can be found, here.  Online registration is available, here.


No, not that kind of avalanche, though we surely could have used the water.  In the last few days the State Capitol has been deluged by an avalanche of legislation.  Whether you're thirsting for a wave of new laws or not, they're coming!  This Friday (February 21) marks the legal deadline for the introduction of new bills in the California Legislature.  Last year, 1,688 proposed new laws were introduced during the course of the ten-day period leading up to the deadline.  Because we are currently in the second year of the two-year legislative session, a relatively smaller number of bills, perhaps numbering 1,000, are expected to see the light of day prior to Friday's deadline.

Needless to say, a number of new bills are bound to contain provisions that will impact California's K-12 private schools. CAPSO's legislation screening software will be humming, and we'll be evaluating bills to determine whether they seek to impose undue regulations, or unreasonably curtail autonomy in the critical areas of admissions, personnel, curriculum, instruction, assessment, governance and finance. Before CAPSO takes a position on any pending piece of legislation, the matter is reviewed by the Association's Public Policy Committee, whose recommendations are subject to unanimous consent of the members.  In the weeks and months to come, you can keep abreast of legislation supported or opposed by CAPSO, and make your own voice heard by bookmarking and periodically checking our online Legislative Action Center.

 

The Latin term Deus ex machina - whose literal meaning is "God of/from the machine" - is an oft-used literary device by which a seemingly impossible situation is unexpectedly resolved by the sudden introduction of some new development.  As a runaway train barrels toward the pretty heroine tied to the tracks, a bear appears out of nowhere and claws through the rope binding one of her hands.  Just as the bad guy is about to shoot the good guy, a shot rings out and the bad guy falls down, dead. The bank is about to foreclose the family farm when, at the last second, a telegram arrives informing the owners that Aunt Matilda (whom they never knew) has departed this world and left them ten million dollars.  And just when you were ready to abandon all hope for any truly meaningful reform of the nation's public education system, the universal pre-kindergarten (UPK) movement picks up a tailwind.
 
Last month, the most powerful lawmaker in the California State Senate, Darrell Steinberg, introduced legislation in the form of SB 837, proposing an expansion of current transitional kindergarten programs so as to make them available to all four-year-old children.  The voluntary program is to be phased in over a five-year period beginning in the 2015-16 school year, at a cost estimated at $1 billion.  Proponents of the expansion, including State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, are quick to recite a litany of putative benefits that accrue from participation in early education programs.  Said Mr. Torlakson:

In Washington, President Obama has proposed a massive expansion of federally funded early education programs, to the tune of a whopping $75 million over the course of the coming decade.  Here's what the President had to say about his "Early Education for all Americans" proposal during last month's State of the Union Address:
 
Support for an expanded government role in early education comes from both sides of the aisle.  In fact, when during the State of the Union Address, President Obama said, "Research shows that one of the best investments we can make in a child's life is high-quality early education," Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner actually applauded.

Against a groundswell of support for what will almost certainly lead to the eventual downward expansion of the public education system, a lone voice of reasoned restraint recently resounded in the chambers of the United States Congress.  It emanated from an individual possessing impeccable credentials both as an academic, and a fashioner of education policy.  Grover "Russ" Whitehurst, served as the founding director of the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences, the federal government's key education research center.  He currently serves as Director of the Brown Center on Education Policy at the Brookings Institution, which might be about as close to a "middle of the road" think tank as can be found.  You can read Dr. Whitehurst's full bio, here.
 
On February 5, Dr. Whitehurst offered testimony before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, during which he not only made a compelling case as to why the prevailing UPK initiatives are misguided, but offered an intriguing substitute proposal.  His testimony, which is somewhat lengthy, albeit eminently readable, can be accessed, here.  The narrative is so rich for substance that I hesitate to provide so much as an abbreviated recap, but the following reflect a few of the findings, admonitions and exhortations he shared.

Perhaps surprisingly, the federal government currently spends a disproportionately greater amount of money on early education than on other levels of learning.  Twelve federally funded programs currently target early education, the largest of which are Head Start and the Child Care Development Block Grant program (CCDBG).  Annual spending on these programs is about $14 billion, with the bulk of benefits accruing to children who are three and four years old.  By contrast, a total of $15 billion of ESEA Title I funds is currently allocated to benefit children ranging in age from 5 to 18.  If a somewhat broader estimate of funding is accepted, Dr. Whitehurst estimates that, "we are spending roughly $10,000 per child per year on early learning and childcare for every child in poverty below school age in America."  And that figure is exclusive of state spending.  He concludes: "I don't think the problems we have with early childhood programs in this country are about underfunding, at least not at the federal level."
 
Having dismissed the charge of insufficient funding, Dr. Whitehurst flatly declares:  "We are not getting our money's worth from present federal expenditures on early childhood services."  He cites research conducted under governmental auspices that have produced clear evidence that favored programs such as Head Start, CCDBG, and Tennessee's Voluntary Pre-K program have failed to produce significant and/or sustainable positive results.  He then looks at the two programs commonly used to underpin claims that every dollar invested in early education produces subsequent returns on the order of $7, $13, or even $18, depending upon which study is referenced.  The problem with the programs upon which these studies are based - the Perry and Abecedarian programs - is that they can't possibly be brought to scale.  To produce its results, something on the order of $90,000 was spent by the Abecedarian program per child.  Scratch those.

He next notes that, "only some children need pre-K services to be ready for school and life," adding that as best his staff could determine, none of our nation's 44 presidents participated in a pre-K or nursery school program.  He cautions against adopting a point of view that regards early childhood education as de rigueur, with the admonishment that, "somehow we've gotten to the point as a society of thinking that pre-K is essential to normal child development and should be universal.  That's bunk."

Dr. Whitehurst doesn't expound the view that early education programs offer no benefits.  Rather, he qualifies benefits by observing that almost all impacts accrue to families at the lower end of the socio-economic spectrum and families in which parents don't speak English at home.  He also notes that differences in the quality of teachers and other staff will exert a far greater impact upon children than the quality of the centers they attend, adding that teacher and staff quality will be largely unrelated to the possession of credentials and participation in professional development programs.  Perhaps most importantly, he affirms that the programs under consideration perform, "important functions for parents and the economy, independent of their impacts on children," adding, "we ought not to focus exclusively on early learning as the yardstick for measuring the value of public expenditures on childcare."

As a bridge linking his analysis to his prescription, Dr Whitehurst makes the following remarkable statement:

How ought this best be accomplished?  Dr. Whitehurst suggests phasing out Head Start, significantly reforming CCDBG, and funding programs not from the top down, but through direct grants to...parents.  He proposes the creation of an Early Learning Family grant, or ELF, modeled after federal Pell Grants.  "Like Pell grants go to students," says Dr. Whitehurst, "ELF grants would go to parents in the form of a means-tested voucher that the family carries with them to the state-licensed childcare provider of their choice."  Such an arrangement, he adds, "would place families in the driver's seat instead of federal and state bureaucracies."  Here are the concluding words of his testimony:

Sadly, Dr. Whitehurst's testimony is likely to have fallen on deaf ears.  Which is a shame, inasmuch as the arrangement he proposes could be of considerable benefit to many of the excellent early education programs that currently serve as private school "feeders."  Indeed, many are operated under the respective "umbrellas" of various CAPSO member organizations. These programs are locally controlled, variegated, and highly responsive to parent's needs and preferences.  In light of Dr. Whitehurst's testimony, they sound like just the ticket.  But the UPK train has already left the station and is picking up speed.  Here's hoping our leaders devote due diligence to the matter before it becomes a runaway.

Ron Reynolds

The next edition of the CAPSO Midweek E-Mailer will be published March 19, 2014.