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1975/07/30 - Work and Education Meeting
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1975/07/30 - Work and Education Meeting
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The original documents are located in Box 49, folder "1975/07/30 - Work and Education
Meeting" of the James M. Cannon Files at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Copyright Notice
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of
photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Gerald Ford donated to the United
States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.
Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public
domain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to
remain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid
copyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Digitized from Box 49 of the James M. Cannon Files at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library
MEETING WITH CAVANAUGH & QUERN
(Work and Education Meeting)
Wednesday, July 30, 1975
10:00 a.m.
1975
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GERALD 1943817 R. FORD
THE WHITE HOUSE
AA
WASHINGTON
pls
July 2, 1975
all
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MEMORANDUM FOR:
JIM CANNON
FROM:
ART QUERN
SUBJECT:
Follow-Up to Work and Education Meeting
Attached is a draft of a memo which would initiate follow-
up to Work and Education meeting. If this agrees with
your assessment of what we should do, I would suggest
getting Jim Lynn's reaction. With his concurrence you
might then jointly send it to the three Secretaries.
Attachment
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
DRAFT
July 2, 1975
MEMORANDUM FOR
THE SECRETARY OF LABOR
THE SECRETARY OF HEALTH, EDUCATION,
AND WELFARE
THE SECRETARY OF COMMERCE
FROM:
JIM CANNON
SUBJECT:
Follow-Up to "Work and Education" Meeting
I would suggest that based on yesterday's discussion with
the President the following steps need to be taken:
1.
Prepare a brief document summarizing the
available research on the nature of the
problem.
2.
Develop a separate problem identification
statement for secondary and higher education.
3.
Propose means of doing a brief sampling for
comparisons of like areas with and without
skill centers of similar projects.
4.
Identify specific application of items
within existing programs which can be applied
to specific elements of the problem.
5.
Determine how these applications might be
applied on:
A. National level.
B. Selected area basis.
6.
Propose staff mechanism and organization which
can be used to pursue the application of the
concepts which evolve out of the above process.
I would be pleased to discuss this with you to see if this
approach seems suitable and capable of producing timely
results.
ACTION
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
June 16, 1975
MEMORANDUM FOR:
THE PRESIDENT
FROM:
JIM CANNON June
SUBJECT:
Work and Education
This is to present for your decision recommendations from
Secretaries Weinberger, Dunlop and Morton on a proposal for
implementing a closer relationship between education and the
world of work.
BACKGROUND
In your August 1974 speech at Ohio State you called for the
identification of means of better relating the education
received in school with the needs of the world of work.
The Secretaries of HEW, Labor and Commerce were asked to
prepare an action plan but versions prior to this submission
have either been too costly or have lacked innovation.
PROPOSAL
The Secretaries' proposal (Tab A) is aimed at providing
leadership and giving direction primarily through existing
programs. They propose:
A. Leadership
1. Presidential activity and speeches highlighting
the work and education theme.
2. Creation of a Cabinet Committee on Work and
Education.
3. Creation of a Council on Education and Work.
B.
Giving Direction
1. Encourage work experience programs.
2. Research and development in area of competency
based education.
-2-
3.
Encourage career education.
4. Encourage economic education.
5. Use of television to introduce world of work
into schools.
6. Provision of occupational information through
the schools.
7. Better placement services.
8. Study means of assisting adults with problems
stemming from isolation of education from work.
COMMENTS
I believe that this set of proposals is far too vague and
lacking in specifics on how any of the eight means of giving
direction would be accomplished. More information is needed
before any clear approval can be given to these eight items.
In essence, the argument in favor of approving this proposal
is that all eight items are pointed in the right direction
and appear to have some promise. The argument against is
simply that they are without any content pointing to specific
resources which can be used in a specific fashion thereby
enabling us to estimate the ability to accomplish what they
promise.
In this regard the three items under the leadership category
can not be decided until there is some consensus on what
specifically is being attempted and what chance of accom-
plishing these goals exist.
I would recommend, therefore, that approval be withheld
until the three Departments can submit more detailed informa-
tion to OMB and the Domestic Council on how they mean to
implement these proposals.
OMB RECOMMENDATIONS
OMB (O'Neill) has suggested that while agreeing that the
recommendations are vague and lacking in specifics, it is
doubtful that asking for more information will result in a
significantly better product. OMB, therefore, recommends
(Tab B) that in effect you:
A.
Continue your leadership but do not create a special
council or a new Cabinet Committee. Rather, OMB
suggests creation of a Domestic Council Subcommittee.
-3-
B.
Approve their eight steps for "giving direction."
C.
Ask for a specific action plan within four weeks
on each of the eight items.
D.
Instruct the Secretaries to report to you every
six weeks.
STAFF COMMENTS
Phil Buchen:
"Votes with Cannon" on withholding
approval.
Alan Greenspan:
Withhold approval.
Robert Goldwin:
"I agree with the recommendation that
approval be withheld. My reason is not
only that it is not clear how the proposals
will be implemented, but, much more
important, it is not clear what the
problem is. The more education persons
have, the less unemployment. What we
need is attention to work for those
with too little education. "
Robert Hartmann:
"Cannot 3 Cabinet members carry out a
Presidential policy order in less than
10 months? I suggest he call all three
down here on the carpet and chew them
out and give them a 72-hour deadline to
do something he can announce on his
upcoming trip to Ohio. "
RECOMMENDATIONS
Option I: Withhold approval and request additional information.
Favored by: Buchen, Greenspan, Goldwin, Hartmann, Cannon.
APPROVE
DISAPPROVE
Option II: (OMB Option) Approve eight items and ask for
action plan and periodic reporting.
APPROVE
DISAPPROVE
Option III: (HEW, Labor, Commerce) Select leadership approach
and approve eight items for giving direction.
APPROVE
DISAPPROVE
May 29, 1975
MEMORANDUM FOR:
THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT:
EDUCATION AND WORK INITIATIVE
Your Ohio State speech on education and work generated
a favorable response. The problems you identified are
of great concern to many people. Your speech inspired
anticipation and support for a closer relationship
between education and the world of work.
Our extensive review of the evidence, of relevant studies,
and of ongoing activities and programs, as well as con-
sultation with many people in and outside of Government,
confirms the conclusion that many problems result from
the relative isolation of schools and colleges from work,
the community and even the family. The thrust of this
initiative should be bringing together these institutions.
In educational institutions and communities around the
country, there is a readiness to deal with the problems
you discussed, and the beginning of a consensus on how
it can be done. However, current efforts are highly
uneven in quality. This initiative should encourage
and build on these efforts.
Our strategy will be to energize local action. We want
to encourage rededicated effort from the many educators,
businessmen, workers and community leaders who are al-
ready striving to bridge the gap between schools and the
world outside. We hope that a range of activities can
be developed in some of these communities so as to demon-
strate the effectiveness of bridging that gap. And we
hope to stimulate the interest and involvement of many
people and communities which have yet to begin such ac-
tivities.
In addition to motivating local efforts, we can facilitate
and enhance them. We can redirect existing Federal pro-
grams and coordinate them in support of the initiative.
We can reduce barriers and increase flexibility to meet
individual and local needs. We can support research and
2
provide information about what seems effective and what
other communities are doing. In sum, we propose to focus
on influencing the huge expenditures which are already
being made for education and training, rather than adding
another shiny new program.
LEADERSHIP
To energize local action, we think three levels of Federal
leadership will be necessary.
1. Personal Leadership: Your leadership raised this
problem to national attention. Your continued involvement
is necessary to keep that attention and to encourage
action. We recommend that you continue personal leader-
ship of this initiative, include appeals for institutional
change in speeches to education and business groups, and
make the linking of education and work an important part
of Administration policy.
Approve
Disapprove
2. Cabinet Committee: You asked us to report to you on
ways to implement the initiative as this memorandum does.
We would like your approval to continue working to put
these proposals into practice. Each of us would partici-
pate in providing leadership and would assign a number of
senior staff to form a core group to be responsible for
implementation, and to redirect and coordinate Federal
activities in support of the initiative. We would like
to ask the Secretaries of Agriculture and Defense and the
Director of ACTION to participate with us.
Approve
Disapprove
3. Council on Education and Work: Stimulation of local
action will require a sense of participation by the various
interest groups involved. Prominent educators and young
people, businessmen and workers, community and organiza-
tional leaders should be called to share responsibility
for making the initiative a success. Represented on the
Council would be groups with wide responsibility and
influence in education such as the Chief State School
Officers and the National Education Association, as well
3
as organizations with networks of local chapters such as
the U. S. Chamber of Commerce, the AFL-CIO, the Boy Scouts
and the 4-H Clubs. These organizations will serve as
"extension agents" to encourage local action and demonstra-
tions and to provide communities with information from a
clearinghouse of "how to" information which would be staffed
by our Departments.
Approve
Disapprove
DIRECTIONS
Eight areas have been identified in which we should encour-
age improvement -- and in some cases expansion -- of ongoing
local activities. The areas were selected after a careful
review of the possibilities because they lent themselves
to collaboration between schools and other organizations,
because they offered particularly good opportunities for
constructive activity, and because they were mutually com-
plementary. In each area, we have identified specific
ways in which the Federal Government can encourage the
desired improvements. We will encourage such activities
everywhere there is a readiness to undertake them, but
we will be especially interested in supporting the efforts
of communities which are engaged in an array of such acti-
vities so as to demonstrate the effectiveness of such a
concentration of effort.
1. Work Experience: We should encourage communities to
make available to young people work experience of better
quality and more variety than is now offered and to relate
such work experience to secondary and postsecondary school-
ing. Most young people do get some work experience while
still in school, but they tend to be relegated to "youth
jobs" -- a narrow range of positions that require little
training and experience. Cooperative education programs,
in which students divide their time between the job and
the classroom, are the best-known examples of integrated
work-and-schooling. Although federally supported coopera-
tive education is primarily for vocational students, some
schools are now experimenting with planned work experience
for students in academic and general courses.
2. Competency-based Education: We should support research
to identify and to assess the capabilities actually used for
work and other adult activities. These competences should
be among those which form the basis for teaching, testing,
4
credentialing and accrediting in schools and colleges.
Schools now stress particular means by which a competence
might be acquired rather than attainment of competency,
however acquired. Important steps toward emphasizing
competency are being made under the concept of competency-
based education, in which interest has greatly increased
in the past two years. Many people believe that this con-
cept has significant potential. However, its potential
will not be realized without a substantial amount of care-
fully planned research and development. The need for this
R&D is most evident in the area of competency-based teacher
licensing (now mandated by law in 17 States and under con-
sideration in 15 more) and competency-based elementary and
secondary education (toward which several States are moving).
In other instances --- for example, occupational licensing
or dertifying special skills of young people assessment
capability may already be sound enough to implement com-
petency-based credentials.
3. Career Education: We should encourage development of
career education, placing high priority on bringing workers
and businessmen into schools to assist teachers and guid-
ance counselors, helping students to assess their interests
and abilities, including the family in working/learning with
students, and providing work exploration programs at the
junior high school level. The essence of the career educa-
tion concept is collaboration by schools with the world of
work, other community organizations and the family. Thus,
it is a precursor of this initiative. The concept stresses
including career awareness, exploration, planning and train-
ing as part of every person's education. It encompasses
vocational, academic and general courses, and seeks to
eliminate rigid tracking by these categories. Career educa-
tion also encourages life-long career development, including
continuing education.
4. Economic Education: We should encourage economic educa-
tion. Toward this objective, we recommend that you endorse
the efforts of the Joint Council on Economic Education to
improve the teaching of economics at elementary and secondary
levels and that we provide financial assistance for im-
proving economic education. Such education provides a
better understanding of the American economic system, but
is offered in only 39% of American high schools, and taken
by only one out of six students.
5. Television: We should develop techniques to use tele-
vision as another tool to bring together schooling with
5
the world outside, particularly the world of work. Children
spend more hours watching TV prior to graduation from high
school than they do in class. TV is uniquely suited to pro-
vide youngsters with vicarious experience in a wide variety
of careers, and to reach most everyone at low cost. Young
people can then examine in depth careers which seem inter-
esting by field trips, work experience and research into
occupational information. TV may also be used to increase
awareness of learning resources in the community and to
encourage family activities.
6. Occupational Information: We should develop a variety
of strategies for the effective use of occupational in-
formation by young people in making educational and career
plans. In ten States, grants to develop a variety of ap-
proaches to the delivery of occupational information are
now being supported by the Department of Labor. To the
extent possible without new funding, DoL, DoC and DHEW will
provide technical assistance to additional States and to
local organizations to help them improve the delivery of
occupational and educational information. In DHEW, a num-
ber of innovation-oriented programs are seeking to create
and evaluate more effective ways to help young people make
informed career choices.
7. Placement Services: We should make placement services
readily available to students and to those making the
transition to work. This could be done by encouraging
direct linkages between schools and the Employment Service
or between schools and CETA Councils or other appropriate
community or youth organizations.
8. The Adult Period: Prior recommendations centered mainly
on young people in the secondary and postsecondary years
because the most acute need is there. But the isolation
between education and work also hurts adults. Mature women
entering or reentering the labor force, veterans, employees
affected by technological or market changes, and people
whose abilities are developing or whose interests are chang-
ing, would benefit from increased flexibility in and dove-
tailing of school and work. We recommend that our three
Departments study and report to you on ways to assist adults
with the problems resulting from the isolation of work and
education. The study would include continuing education,
nontraditional education and improvements in the environment
of the workplace.
These eight recommendations are mutually supportive. They
would make easier the movement from school to work and back
6
again. But even more important, the quality of our education
and our work would be raised. More of our learning in the
early years would come from experience, in recognition of
the fact that education is diminished when it is confined
to schooling. And more of our work in the middle years
would provide for learning, even to the point of further
schooling, in recognition of the fact that we need to change
and want to grow during these years. Study and practice
would be encompassed by a new community of learning.
Approve
Disapprove
BUDGET PRIORITIES
Given current economic circumstances, we plan to begin this
initiative with existing funds. The Departments participating
have substantial research and program funds, some of which
will be redirected toward implementation of this initiative
and coordinated with similar funds from other agencies. More-
over, in the FY 1976 budget, some agencies' requests and
OMB decisions were made with the initiative in mind.
We identified some critical limitations in our ability to
shift existing funds. We also feel that some additional
funding would take advantage of the receptiveness we found
throughout the country. to get a good start toward our goals.
In future years, therefore, we may request additional funds
in support of this initiative.
Secretary CHANA of Commerce Secretary of Labor Secretary of Health
Education
and
Welfare
FORD i LIBRARY GENALD
EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20503
June 13, 1975
MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT
FROM:
Paul H. O'Neill
Ohein
SUBJECT: Work and Education
I agree with Jim Cannon's observations about the vagueness
and lack of specifics in the paper submitted by the
Secretaries. However, I doubt that asking them for more
information will result in a significantly better product.
Therefore, I recommend that you:
1) Approve their recommendation to continue your
personal leadership through speeches, etc.
2) Disapprove their recommendation to establish a
Cabinet Committee but agree to add the Secretaries
of Agriculture and Defense and the Director of
Action to their working group; constituted as a
sub-committee of the Domestic Council.
3) Defer their recommendation to create a Council on
Education and Work until they supply more specifics.
4) Approve their recommendations for directions.
5) Instruct the Secretaries to give you a specific
action plan within four weeks for each of the
areas you have approved.
6) Instruct the Secretaries to provide you with reports
every six weeks indicating the progress they are
making against the objectives established in their
action plans.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
June 21, 1975
ADMINISTRATIVELY CONFIDENTIAL
MEMORANDUM FOR:
JIM CANNON
FROM:
JIM CONNOR JE 2
SUBJECT:
WORK AND EDUCATION
The President has reviewed your memorandum of June 16th
on the above subject and indicated the following:
Option I Withhold approval and set-up a
meeting with Secretaries Weinberger, Dunlop and Morton.
Please follow-up with appropriate action.
cc: Don Rumsfeld
FORD is LIBRARY