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Summary of Hillary's views on children and the law as expressed
in article in Harvard Educational Review in 1973 and chapter in
book on children's rights published by Teachers College Press in
1979, and suggestions for response to attacks misstating
Hillary's views (suggested response begins on page 7)
Harvard Ed Review piece:
489: "Dividing point at 21 or 18 years is artificial and
simplistic
obscures dramatic differences among children of
different ages
"
Historically, "children were regarded as chattels of the family
and wards of the state
" Now "older children have a few
additional legal rights
...
to drive a motor vehicle
drop out
of school
vote
and marry." Then refers to Gault, Board of
Education V. Barnette, and Tinker.
490:Rcfers to "apparent contradiction" between "powerful social
consensus" re parental control and "doctrine of parens patriae."
Says "most striking characteristic of children's law is the large
degree of discretion permitted decision-makers in enforcing
community norms."
491:Says this "will also subject members of social minorities to
the prejudices and beliefs of the dominant sector of the
community
[R]eservations against state intervention are most
easily overcome in cases involving poor, non-white, and
unconventional families."
"State has not proved an adequate substitute parent in
many
cases
[L]ed to increased rights of parents and
custodians to certain procedural guarantees before the state
may
remove
their
children
only recently
has attention
focused on the rights of the children
This attention is
struggling for legal recognition against the prevailing
assumption in children's law that a child's interests are
identical to those of his parents."
492: "The needs and interests of a powerless individual must be
asserted as rights if they are to be considered and eventually
accepted as enforceable claims against other persons or
institutions."
493: "The basic rationale for depriving people of rights in a
dependency relationship is that certain individuals are incapable
or undeserving of the right to take care of themselves and
consequently need social institutions specifically designed to
safeguard their position
P]resent and past examples
include
marriage, slavery, and the Indian reservation
system
[C]hildren
[are] uniquely vulnerable to this
rationale."
494: [T]he use of chronological dividing lines to mark legal
distinctions has continued."
"Present claims of right follow two general approaches:
extension of adult rights to children, and legally
enforceable recognition of children's special needs and
interests."
495: Goes on to give examples of each, saying former are often
"tailored to special charactoristics of children."
04/27/92
10:
10
0202 002
496: Says second type "1s reflected in the various bills of rights
which have been proposed for children, each unveiling a blueprint
for the child's fullest development." Says "their scope and
content raise troublesome questions." Easier to define physical
needs than psychological ones. Would be "necessarily broad and
vague, " and raise problems of broad state discretion.
497:"It is important to recognize the limited ability of the
legal system to prescribe and enforce the quality of social
arrangements."
497-503:Then discusses relevant Supreme Court decisions: Brown,
Gault (quotes Gault approvingly: "neither the Fourteenth
Amendment nor the Bill of Rights is for adults alone"), McKeiver
V. Pennsylvania (refusing to extend the jury trial right to
juvenile delinquency proceedings), Jefferson V. Hackney,
Rodriquez, and Wisconsin Y. Yoder.
503-505 Discussion of Yoder: "[I)n that case the children whose
interests were at stake had the capacity to evaluate their
interests for themselves. Douglas' view "ground-breaking" --
quotes him at length: 'The child should be given an opportunity
to be heard before the State gives the exemption which we honor
today. Points out that Douglas relied on Piaget, Kohlberg, Kay,
Gesell, and T1g. Majority does not disagree with Douglas on the
merits -- "only notes that the children are not parties to the
litigation."
505-506:Clinton analysis of the Court's posture: "These opinions
illustrate two persistent, general problems of legal theory which
children's rights advocates seek to overcome. First, legal
policy is ambivalent about the limitation of parental control and
the assertion of state control over children. There is an
absence of fair, workable, and realistic standards for limiting
parental discretion and guiding state intervention. Second, the
state generally fails to evaluate a child's independent status,
giving a competent child the chance to articulate his interests
for himself."
"Ascribing rights to children will not immediately solve these
problems, or undermine the consensus which perpetuates them. It
will, however, force from the judiciary and the legislature
institutional support for the child's point of view."
Discusses in detail:
507-509: "Abolition of minority status": "Age may be a valid
criterion
but
its application should be subjected to a test
of rationality
[C]ould be
legislative abolition
[on] an
area-by-area approach
[or] judicial declaration that the
present classification scheme is over-inclusive, after which the
state would bear the burden of justifying its restrictions on
infants
The abolition of minority
need not mean that
children become full-fledged miniature adults before the law
[C]ould still be limited or modified on the basis of supportable
findings about needs and capacities at various ages."
The thrust of the argument at this point is that the law should
"reverse its underlying presumption of children's incompetency
Empirical differences among children would then serve as the
grounds for making exceptions to this presumption and for
justifying rational state restrictions."
27792
10
CGNA 790 707.0.
GOLD DEANS
now reyalu the presumption or
incompetency as rebuttable and are legislatively removing some of
children's legal disabilities." citing: 18 year old vote.
509' Granting all procedural rights": major points discussed here
are Gault and provision of legal counsel, including "Independent
counsel for children should be required in any case where a
child's interests are being adjudicated."
510' Substitution of an evaluation of consequences for the implied
identity of interests between parents and children": Again cites
Yoder. Then says: [I]n cases of potential conflict between
parent and child the consequence to the child of parental action
or inaction should be considered. Where the consequences appear
irreversible, the assumption should be discarded in favor of an
extrafamilial decision that takes into account the opinions of
all interested parties. If the consequences appear reversible or
insubstantial, the assumption that the parent knows best should
probably continue to govern."
510-512: "Application of the new equal protection theory": argues
for suspect classification in relation to education of poor
children and AFDC benefits, says "There is less support for the
contention that children qua children should be treated as a
suspect class, but an argument may be constructed using the
original rationale for suspect classifications.' Essentially
the argument here is that children are discrete and insular
minority because of their political powerlessness.
512-514: "Moving away from the 'best interests' standard": says
"the unchecked discretion of the state has vices of its own. The
best interests standard
is
an empty vessel into which
adult perceptions and prejudices are poured.' Refers to Joe
Goldstein least detrimental alternative, says this "still falls
short because it does not specify the standards which should
govern such intervention
Sentiment against state intervention
stems from the state's poor record in caring for children removed
from their families." on the other hand, "some children, even in
these days of inadequate services, do benefit from a temporary or
permanent removal from their families. The principal challenge
lies in determining which children would benefit from removal.'
Then essentially lays out what became P.L. 96-272, with
reasonable efforts to prevent removal and periodic reviews and so
on. "Parental behavior that does not result in medically
diagnosable harm to a child should not be allowed to trigger
intervention, however offensive that behavior may be to the
community."
Finally, a suggestion that "Boards composed of citizens
representing identifiable constituencies -- racial, religious,
ethnic, geographical -- could make the initial decision regarding
intervention or review judicial decisions." Would also do
periodic reviews and make recommendations about terminating
parental rights. Membership: parent, professional, perhaps
3
children. Require 3/4 vote to remove child or terminate parental
rights.
Teachers College Press book chapter:
Much the same as the Harvard piece.
Divides children's rights issues into 4 categories: rights in
relation to the family, rights of children without families,
rights in juvenile-oriented institutions, and rights in society.
22-24:Children's rights and the family. State intervention is
first subissue, "either in response to voluntary requests for
assistance by the family or decisions by government
representatives to intervene between a family and a child."
Parental: "as when a parent tries to turn a child over to an
institution or requests assistance in raising a child because of
the child's alleged incorrigibility." One way to avoid excessive
state intervention on a coercive basis would be "a family policy
that provides stigma-free assistance to families in trouble
before their problems reach the extreme point of requiring
wholesale intervention
[E]ach family at some time needs a
certain amount of assistance from the community or government to
care for the needs of its members I believe that when we speak
about the rights of children in relation to their families under
conditions of family failures, we are really talking about the
needs of children to be cared for in order for their own families
to function successfully
24-26: Independent decisions by children is second subissue --
"whether and to what extent children have a right to make
decisions that conflict with the decisions that their parents or
other guardians wish made." The problem arises because of the
"invention" of adolescence.
25: "Because children now remain in the family for longer periods,
during which they are still dependent but becoming more and more
adult, the opportunities for intrafamily disputes have increased
dramatically." Points to letter sent out by opponents of Child
and Family Development Act (the child care legislation vetoed by
Nixon) saying bill would "allow children to take parents to court
if they were ordered to take out the garbage.' Says relevant
disputes are "of a more serious nature." Examples: disputed
medical procedure, including abortion, and situations where
family religious objections are overcome by medical necessity.
26: "Even among persons in the children's rights movement, there
is a concern that extending rights to children against their
parents is too difficult to control, and in all but the most
extreme cases should questions should be resolved by the
families, not the courts. I prefer that intervention into an
ongoing family be limited to decisions that could have long-term
and possibly irreparable effects if they were not resolved.
Decisions about motherhood and abortion, schooling, cosmetic
surgery, treatment of venereal disease, or employment, and others
4
where the decision or lack of one will significantly affect the
child's future should not be made unilaterally by parents.
Children should have a right to be permitted to decide their own
future if they are competent." (The next to the last sentence
is quoted out of context by Paul Gigot in the Wall Street
Journal.)
26-28:Rights of children without families: "Who protects the
child given over to the state?" Says litigation is difficult
because court orders tend to be able to deal mainly in numbers --
of staff, square feet, etc. Concludes, referring to need for
greater sophistication in agencies serving children, "The
educational job facing us is enormous."
28-29:Children's rights in institutions: says until Gault "it
was not even clear that children were persons under the
Constitution." Talks about the various then-recent Supreme Court
cases.
29-31:Children's rights in society: "issues are complex and
hard to define. Nice if child had "a right to grow up in a world
at peace
but none of us
has figured out a way to enforce
it." Some claims allowed: "child heir's claim to an inheritance,
a minor's right to sue for damages resulting from an automobile
accident,
infant's action for damages because of injuries
suffered in
womb."
"Question of onforcement
is an extremely difficult one.
...
The
principal difficulty in enforcing children's rights is that,
except for a very few, they are enforceable only vicariously."
Fashioning rights for children: 3 basic approaches. 1) extend
adult rights "wholecloth", 2) tailor adult rights "to fit a
child's special needs, 3) create special rights for children.
32: "Rights carry with them responsibilities, even when -- or
especially when -- we are discsusing their applicability to
children." Says "presumption of incompetency has profound
significance
because a child denied the opportunity to
exercise responsibilities is effectively denied the opportunity
to mature into a responsible adult."
33: "There are certain children at certain ages in certain
circumstances who can and should exercise responsibilities. The
task is to determine what those conditions are. The first thing
is to reverse the presumption of incompetency and instead assume
all individuals are competent until proven otherwise." Says easy
to decide newborns are incompetent, "more difficult" to decide 12
year olds are "totally incompetent," and "impossible to presume
the typical sixteen-year-old incompetent." Need laws which
differentiate. Not any harder than decisions lawmakers make in
other areas.
34-35: Concludes by calling for better advocacy.
5
04/27/92
10:19
0202 002 9055
Other background
Garry Wills' NY Review piece discussing Hillary's writings
Discussing the inconsistent Supreme Court decisions, he says:
"The decisions in these matters are spotty and inconsequent
because there is no comprehensive theory of graduated maturity.
Though Clinton admits it would be impossible to establish a
calibrated scale of increasing competence applicable to all
children, she thinks that the effects of such a scale could be
approached by a simple but radical proposal -- to reverse the
legal presumption of children's incompetence, to which exceptions
must be drawn up, and install a presumption of competence, to
which exceptions no more extensive would be made."
Wills says (his words, not Hillary's) that "the area of admitted
incompetence is smaller and more easily identified (the infant
and physically unmastered stages) than is the large and complex
area of growing competence. Children's advances in knowledge are
explosive." He goes on to cite Hillary's reference to Yoder, and
says if the presumption had been reversed, "A presumption of
competence would have included that consideration in every
Justice's ruling.' He then gives an example of his own creation
as to how the reversal in the presumption of competence would
work in relation to high school newspapers.
A bit later he quotes the language from the Teachers College
Press chapter about reversing the presumption of incompentency
and mentions Hillary's point about stressing children's
responsibilities.
Another point: Wills talks of Hillary's success in winning
support in Arkansas "for programs that have a radical basis."
"In the past, he continues, "the child's rights were asserted
vicariously through the parent. Ms. Clinton sees those rights as,
at times, to be asserted against the parent. This has always
been recognized in abuse cases, but she would extend it much
farther."
This generalized assertion by wills can be taken out of context.
This in turn leads to Paul Gigot of the Wall Street Journal, who
makes the following statements:
"she has long promoted a legal doctrine that would declare
children to be 'competent' persons who would have wide standing
to sue their parents
It's just what our lawsuit-happy society
needs: Kids suing dad over a job at McDonald's."
The foregoing, I hope, gives a basis for analysis of what might
be said about Hillary's writing.
6
04/27/92
10:20
202
9000
Talking Points
Suggestions for dealing with attacks on the articles:
The attack is the one Gigot makes in one sentence -- that Hillary
is advocating that children should have the right to sue their
parents, or, to be more precise, that they should "have wide
standing to sue their parents.'
This is an old right-wing tactic, Writing in the late 1970s,
Hillary herself pointed out that the right wing opposed the child
care legislation ultimately vetoed by Nixon in the early 70s on
the ground that it would allow children to take parents to court
if they were ordered to take out the garbage. There was nothing
-- absolutely nothing -- in the child care bill to support that
charge, but that sort of all too effective demagoguery caused us
to have to wait almost 20 years (until 1990) to get federal child
last
care legislation passed. (Nixon did a similar piece of
demagoguery in vetoing that bill, pointed out by Hillary in a
1977 Yale Law Journal piece, saying the bill would "commit the
vast moral authority of the National Government to the side of
communal approaches to child rearing over against the family-
centered approach.")
They are at it again. The child care bill of the early 70s
didn't provide for kids to sue their parents, and Hillary isn't
advocating kids suing dad over a job at McDonald's (Gigot's
phraselogy, whatever that means).
The two pieces that form the core of Hillary'e writing in this
-
area are a broad-ranging examination of the three-cornered
relationship between children their families, and the state.
Like most family law experts, Hillary found the existing law
unsatisfactory. Paradoxically, it allowed for both too much and
too little state intervention in families. It still does,
although there have been some salutary changes.
It allowed the state to intervene too easily to remove children
and put them in foster care, which it tended to do when dealing
with poor or minority parents. And it failed to protect other
children, particularly adolescents, when their parents refuse
them medical procedures or educational possibilities that would
make a major difference in their lives, or even more basic, when
their parents seek to institutionalize them against their will
for noncriminal behavior like repeatedly staying out too late at
night or running with a bad crowd.
Hillary was looking for a better way to protect children from
extreme overreaching by their parents. The idea she proposed --
that the presumption of incompetency be reversed -- can be
twisted if taken out of context, no question about it, and that
is what the Republicans are doing now.
7
04/27/92
10:21
20202 002 9055
Hillary herself was very careful to limit what she was saying,
even though Paul Gigot has her having kids suing dad over a job
at McDonald's (What does he mean? That dad wants the kid to take
a job and the kid does't want to?). She says very clearly that
she is not arguing "that kids become full-fledged miniature
adults before the law, and she goes on to say that their rights
"could still be limited or modified on the basis of supportable
findings about needs and capacities at various ages."
Gigot takes Hillary egregiously out of context. In the very same
paragraph that he quotes to claim that she wants to give kids
wide standing to sue their parents, she says, "[I]n all but the
most extreme cases
questions should be resolved by the
families, not the courts. " This language is not of interest to
Gigot. It gets in his way.
Hillary's examples illustrate the very limited nature of what she
is advocating. She talks about the situation when a parent tries
to turn a child over to an institution or requests assistance in
raising a child because of the child's alleged incorrigibility.
This is not about children being able to sue their parents. It
is about their being able to defend themselves (essentially, by
being entitled to representation by independent counsel, who will
assert the child's independent interest) when the parent seeks to
invoke the state's authority against the child.
These are very real situations. The Supreme Court has refused
constitutional protection for children who recist being
institutionalized at their parents' request, but state law could
easily -- and usefully -- provide it without endangering the
basic respect for the integrity of the family unit. Similarly,
most parents would be shooked by the idea that some states allow
parents -- and some parents accept the invitation -- to ask the
state to take an unruly child off their hands. In calling for
protection of children in these areas by creating a way for them
to assert their interest independently, Hillary was not making a
radical suggestion.
Hillary offers a number of other examples. Again, her context,
which Gigot also fails to quote, is that the only circumstances
in which she would allow children to assert an independent
interest would be with reference "to decisions that could have
long-term and possibly irreparable effecets if they were not
resolved." Her examples, as Gigot does quote, are "decisions
about motherhood and abortion, schooling, cosmetic surgery,
Only this when
treatment of venereal disease, or employment."
qual ty of life
a id is at
The medical examples all share in common that they are not life- stake
threatening situations, for which the law already typically
allows intervention. But take the cosmetic surgery point.
for example
Hillary was actually referring to a case she knew about in which
a girl had been refused permission by her mother to have a cleft
8
for example
subbling a
Child to
to consect
have surgery
a deft frot or Eyes
04/27/92
palate repaired, where the surgery would make a major difference
in her life. Hardly radical or shocking to find a way to allow
an adolescent to be able to decide for herself about such a
thing. This is exactly the principle that underlies the type of
parental notification statutes regarding abortion that have been
upheld by the Supreme Court in cases like Bellotti V. Baird and
Hodgson V. Minnesota. The child invokes a court procedure which
inquires into and determines her maturity and competence to make
the decision. This is essentially all that Hillary was
advocating in a limited number of areas regarding health and life
opportunities "where the decision or lack of one will
significantly affect the child's future," as Hillary put it.
To say that she advocates giving children "wide standing to sue
their parents" is a gross misrepresentation.
9
Additional notes to share with Hillary on questions relating to
her writings:
If parental notification statutes in regard to abortion do not
constitute the best example to use for one reason or another, it
can be noted that many states have passed laws enabling youth in
their mid-teens to make decisions independent of their parents
(i.e., without consulting their parents) to seek drug counseling
or treatment, medical or mental health care, or contraceptives.
Notice that these measures have nothing to do with litigation.
Legally enabling children to make certain decisions without
consulting their parents is a far cry from saying children can
sue their parents, but it is consistent with the idea of
reversing the presumption of incompetency.
on the literal question of children suing their parents, Mr.
Gigot has obviously not been following the case law. On December
17, 1991, in a case called Hartman V. Hartman, the Missouri
Supreme Court abrogated the doctrine of parental immunity for
negligence actions, adopting a reasonable parent standard to
provide appropriate deference to parents' broad discretion in
raising a child and to the exercise of parental authority within
reasonable limits. The Missouri court, hardly a bastion of
liberalism, noted that it had already abrogated the immunity for
emancipated minors, the estate of deceased parents, and non-
custodial parents. It said, "The interest in avoiding disruption
fo family harmony appears to be less significant than the
interest in the right of the injured child to rccover for
injuries." It explicitly rejected the Florida rule which
abrogates the immunity only to the extent of the parent's
insurance. The Missouri court cited related decisions in Alaska,
California, Hawaii, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New
Jersey, South Carolina, and Wisconsin, relying particularly on
the California case in which the court in that state adopted the
reasonable parent standard, all the way back in 1971. Very
importantly, the Restatement of Torts (section 895(G), Comment
k), recognizes reasonably prudent parent as the standard for
suits involving negligent exercises of parental discretion.
A summary of the Missouri case is attached.
upon as the sole income of the party who is to receive the
tension with the consequences of the sometimes brutal applica-
future payments. Rather, to the extent that the asset producing
tion of the doctrine. As the Supreme Court of Hawaii noted in
the income has been divided by requiring that party to pay a
Peterson V. City and County of Honolulu, 462 P2d 1007, 1009
part of the asset's present worth to the other party, a sum
(1969), "[w]e think that when A wrong has been committed,
representing the interest transferred must be subtracted from
the harm to the family relationship has already occurred; and
the transferor's income and added to the transferee's income
to prohibit reparation can hardly aid in restoring harmony."
before applying the statutory guideline. Failure to make such
The weight afforded the policy of preserving family harmony
an income allocation would give w the transferee A double
is also diminished by recognition that significant crosions of
credit. Criswell, J.
intra-family immunity have occurred in the area of the marital
relationship. Finding a close connection between parental and
MISSOURI ABROGATES PARENTAL IMMUNITY
spousal immunities, other jurisdictions have abolished one after
IN CHILDREN'S TORT ACTIONS AGAINST PARENTS
abolishing the other. Habel V. Hebel. 435 P2d 8 (Alaska SupCt
1967); Gibson V. Gibson, 92 CalRptr 288 (SupCt 1971);
State high court adopts "reasonable parent"
Rigdon V. Rigdon, 465 SW2d 921 (Ky SupCt 1971); Black V.
standard for actions based on alleged negli-
Solmitz. 409 A2d 634, 6 FLR 2250 (Maine SupJudCt 1979);
Plumicy V. Klein, 199 NW2d 169 (Mich SupCt 1972); France
gence of parents.
V. A.P.A. Transport Corp., 267 A2d 490 (NJ SupCt 1970);
The doctrine of parental immunity no longer bars a
Elam V. Elam, 268 SE2d 109, 6 FLR 2732 (SC SupCt 1980);
Goller V. White. 122 NW2d 193 (Wis SupCt 1963).
child from successfully pursuing a negligence action
Missouri has rejected the family harmony rationale as it
against a parent in Missouri, that state's supreme court
applied to Interspousal immunity. See Townsend V. Townsend,
declared December 17. Noting that the increasing num-
708 SW2d 646, 12 FLR 1345 (Mo SupCt 1986): S.A.V. V.
ber of judicially recognized exceptions to the doctrine
K.G.V., 708 SW2d 651, 12 FI.R 1345 (Mo SupCt 1986).
constitutes "a piecemeal abrogation of the immunity."
The interest in avoiding disruption of family harmony ap-
the court decided that the purpose of the doctrine-the
pears to be less significant than the interest in the right of an
injured child to recover for injuries. particularly when Missouri
preservation of family harmony-no longer outweighs a
recognizes all other forms of intra-family liability and applies
child's right to recover for injuries suffered as the result
the immunity only to actions in negligence involving unemanci-
of a parent's actions. The court further observed that it
pated minors. It is also apperent that the ever increasing
has previously abolished spousal immunity. and cited a
number of exceptions, which reflect the fault of the doctrine,
will eventually engulf the rule. The preferred course is to
number of decisions from other states in which abroga-
abrogate the doctrine in its entirety.
tion of one of these intra-family immunities has been
What remains of concern. however. is the interest in avoid-
followed by abrogation of the other.
ing subversion of parental care, control, and discipline. In view
The high court went on to explain that some deference
of this interest, the question becomes whether the need to
must be given to a parent's broad discretion in raising a
preserve parental prorogatives regarding child rearing justifies
barring all suits for negligence between child and parent. This
child. while recognizing that parental authority must be
court believes not. Parents should not be permitted to exercise
exercised within reasonable limits. Accordingly, after
parental prerogatives completely without concern for liability.
rejecting the approach of the Wisconsin Supreme Court,
It is incontrovertible, however, that parents must be able to
which abolished parental immunity except In circum-
exercise a great degree of discretion in control over the rela-
stances involving the exercise of parental authority or
tionship with their child.
In acknowledging that the doctrine of parental immunity is
the exercise of parental discretion regarding the provi-
difficult to justify, other jurisdictions have retained various
sion of necessities for a child, it adopted the reasonable
exceptions 11 a means of protecting the integrity of the parent's
parent standard previously articulated by the California
right and ability to exercise independent judgment in raising B
Supreme Court. (Hartman V. Hariman, Mo SupCt,
child. While the majority of courts that have re-evaluated
Nos. 73514 & 73568, 12/17/91)
parental immunity have decided that some form of abrogation
is warranted, they have not reached a consensus as to whether
Digest of Opinion: The court has consolidated for opinion
there is 8 standard of care required of parents or whether a
two cases in which the appellants request re-examination of the
limited immunity should be retained.
parental immunity doctrine articulated in Baker V. Baker, 263
One approach attempts to ensure that suits between parent
SW2d 29 (Mo SupCt 1953). In both cases the trial courts
and child will never engender familial discord by retaining
dismissed tort actions brought by minor children against their
immunity except to the extent of the parent's insurance. Sec
parents. Finding insufficient basis to retain the doctrine, this
Ard V. Ard, 414 So2d 1066, 8 FLR 2421 (Fla SupCt 1982).
court reverses the judgments below.
Formulation of different rules for the insured and uninsured,
Baker held that a 15-month-old infant could not suc her
however, is not justified. See Rousey V. Rousey, 528 A2d 416
father for negligent operation of an automobile. The decision
(DC CLAPP en banc 1987). Furthermore, such & limited
was grounded on the interest in preserving family harmony.
approach in Missouri would constitute an addition to the ever-
Since Baker, we have engaged in a piecemea! abrogation of the
lengthening list of exceptions to the immunity, thereby advanc-
Immunity. See Wurth V. Wurth, 322 SW2d 745 (1959) (eman-
ing the undestrable effects of piecemeal abrogation.
cipated minors); Brennecke V. Kilpatrick, 336 SW2d 68 (1960)
Other jurisdictions have abrogated parental immunity and
(estate of deceased parent); Fugate V. Fugate, 582 SW2d 663,
substituted approaches that they believe adequately protect the
5 FLR 2705 (1979) (non-custodial parent). Finally, in Kendall
family unit without unduly denying unamancipated minors $
v. Sears. Roebuck, and Co., 634 SW2d 176 (1982), we held
tort remedy. The first attempt at reform was undertaken by
that application of the immunity should be on a case by case
the Supreme Court of Wisconsin, which held that parental
basis.
immunity was abrogated except: "(1) where the alleged negli-
In Missouri, the adoption of the immunity rested primarily
gent act involves an exercise of parental authority over the
upon the need to "preserve and maintain the security. peace
child; and (2) where the alleged negligent act involves an
and tranquility of the home Baker, 263 SW2d at 30
exercise of ordinary parental discretion with respect to the
(quoting Cowgill V. Boock, 218 P2d 445, 451-52 (Ore SupCt
provision of food, clothing, bousing, medical and dental ser-
1950)). (Other jurisdictions have considered additional reasons
vices, and other care." Goller, 122 NW2d at 198; See also
for adoption of parental Immunity, see Wagner by Griffith V.
Wagner: Plumley: Rigdon.
Smith. 340 NW2d 255 (Iows SupCt 1983).)
The principal difficulty with the Goller approach is that the
Re-examination of the significant interest in avoiding disrup-
exceptions are vague, which has resulted in inconsistent ver-
tion of family harmony reveals that the interest exists in
dicts. Compare E.g., Thoreson V. Milwaukee & Suburban
1-21-92
Copyright 0 1992 by The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc.
18 FLR 1131
Transport Co.. 201 NW2d 745 (Wis SupCt 1972). with Paige
suggests that the man has assumed a quasi-contractual
V. Bing Const. Co., 233 NWZd 46 (Mich CLApp 1975).
Even more troubling than these interpretative difficulties is
support duty, that doing so and refusing to support the
that the exceptions appear to give parents "carte blanche" to
child sounds in tort, and that the statute's catchall
act negligently with respect to their children so long as their
provision concerning the performance of "any business
conduct falls within one of the exceptions. Gibson. There is no
work or service" within the state is not limited to
sound reason to distinguish among the various parental duties
commercial activity, and encompasses the conduct al-
so as to permit unfettered parental discretion with respect to
leged in this case.
provision of necessities or the administration of discipline.
The Supreme Court of California adopted a "reasonable
The court noted that other jurisdictions have found in
parent" standard in Glbson, giving deference to 8 parent's
the similar laws of their own states the bases for personal
exercise of broad disoretion in performing parental functions
jurisdiction over a non-resident putative father. The
yet recognizing that parental prerogatives must be exercised
within reasonable limits.
chief justice and two other justices dissented, arguing
The Minnesota Supreme Court, after 12 years of employing
that it is up to state lawmakers, not the courts, to provide
the Goller standard, decided that application of the exceptions
for jurisdiction in cases such as this. Two justices con-
was difficult and presented a danger of arbitrary line drawing.
curred, concluding that the man subjected himself to the
Anderson V. Stream, 295 NW2d 595 (1980). It concluded that
instructing the jury on a reasonable parent standard would
long-arm statute by negligently imprognating the moth-
adequately protect functions that are parental in nature. See
er. (Jones V. Chandler, Miss SupCt. No. 90-CA-0555,
also Nolechek V. Gesuale, 413 NYS2d 340, 5 FLR 2346
12/18/91)
(CtApp 1978) (Fuchsberg, J., concurring).
The reasonable parent standard permits an injured child. or
Digest of Opinions In 1977 and 78 Velms Hodges and Carl
a third-party. to recover only if the parent fails to meet the
Jones engaged in a sexual relationship while they were both
standard of care required of parents. This court, in the spouse!
students at Mississippi's Jackson State University. Hodges
immunity context, has recognized that courts are capable of
claims that Jones is the father of her son, who was born in
examining and adjusting the duty of care required between
October 1978. In 1989. after Jones moved to Tennessee,
family members according to the facts of the case. S.A.V.
Hodges commenced A paternity and support action against him
The Restatement (2d) of Torts (1979) recognizes that the
in Mississippi. The court found Jones to be the father of her
reasonably pradent parent is the applicable standard to be
child and imposed & support duty. Jones appeals, presenting no
applied in suits involving negligent exercises of parental discre-
question as to the merits of the case, but arguing instead that
tion. 1 895(G), Comment k.
the court did not have personal jurisdiction over him.
Some courts have abandoned the immunity doctrine without
There is no question that Jones was amenable to a paternity
committing themselves to an alternative general formula of
and support suit here so long as he remained in Mississippi.
parental tort Habilities and privileges. leaving the problem for
Jones says in effect that his subsequent (re)flight across the
subsequent cases. See, C.8., Nockionic V. Nocktonic, 611 P2d
state line to Tennessee changes all of this. The point arises
135, 6 FLR 2555 (Kan SupCt 1980); Black.
under the law of this state. No one suggests that Jones enjoys
This court concludes that a reasonable parent standard
any federal constitutional shield from suit here.
should be adopted. The primary criticism of the reasonableness
Had Jones and Hodges been married when they performed
standard is the belief that parental judgment regarding the
their "begatting act," all other facts being the same, Jones
required degree of discipline and supervision of a particular
would have been amenable to suit for support in Mississippi.
child cannot be subjected to a Judicial determination of reason-
Miss. Code Ann. 93-11-67(1) (Supp. 1990). Had just one of
ablences. Sco Brunner v. Hutchinson 770 FSupp 517 (DC SD
them been married (to someone else) and had they had
1991); Holodook V. Spencer, 364 NYS2d 859. 1 FLR 2168
intercourse is Mississippi, albeit fruitlessly, Jones would have
(CtApp 1974). (New York held that a child had no cause of
been amenable to suit here. Camp V. Roberts, 462 Sc2d 726
action against a parent for negligent supervision, reasoning
(Miss SupCt 1985), construing Miss. Code Ann. 13-3-57
that negligent supervision had not historically been a tort
(Supp. 1990) (non-resident defendant committing criminal
actionable by the child. Holodook is not in accord with the fact
conversation here may be sued here). On today's facts, Carl
that Missouri recognizes causes of action for negligent supervi-
Jones is on principle amenable to suit here as a matter of this
sion by children against individuals who could be considered
state's positive law.
standing to the shoes of parents. Rogger V. Voyles. 797 SW2d
The chancery court held Jones amenable to Rule 4, Miss.
844 (Mo CLAPP 1990) (grandfather); Swain by Swain V.
R.C.P. Jones charges this was error, and we agree, Rule 4
Simon, 699 SW2d 769 (Mo CLApp 1985) (bebyaitter); Smith
provides a procedure for serving process upon those amenable
v. Archbishop of St. Louis. 632 SW2d 516 (Mo ClApp 1982)
to suit here by reference to other law, but, in his survey of
(teacher).) Use of the reasonable parent standard, however,
"other law," Jones mistakenly assumes our bands are tied
provides a single test for all aspects of the parent-child relation-
because be says we may find no statute expressly making him
ship. The standard can be managed to ensure that clearly
amenable to the suit in Mississippi.
unacceptable conduct giving rise to tort liability may be sub-
In the first place, we see no reason why this case does not lie
jected to scrutify. - Covington, J.
within I 13-3-57. this state's general long-arm statute. Beget-
ting a cbild suggests the father has assumed a quasi-contrac-
INTERCOURSE IN STATE SUBJECTS NON-RESIDENT
tual obligation to support the child, the statute requiring only a
PATERNITY DEFENDANT TO LONG-ARM JURISDICTION
contract "to be performed in whole or in part by any party in
this state" in order for jurisdiction to arise over a non-resident.
Mississippi court says man's "begatiing" of
Begetting a child and refusing to support it sounds in tort, in
resident's child while in the state bestowed
the sense that we think 1 tort a "civil wrong." and the statute
clearly provides for jurisdiction over someone who "commit[s]
paternity court with personal jurisdiction
a tort in whole or in part in this state." Section 13-3-57's
over him.
catchall-"do any business or perform any character of work
A paternity court has personal Jurisdiction over a non-
or service in this state"-is 50 broad that it belies any sugges.
tion that it be limited to commercial activity.
resident who allegedly fathered a state resident's child
The states' legal long arms commonly take statutory form.
while attending school within the state, the Mississippi
but this does not have to be. To suggest that long-arm amens-
Supreme Court ruled December 18. Rejecting the man's
bility rules may be only statutory in furn and legislative in
appeal from a paternity and child support order, the
source is to confuse the familiar with the necessary and thus
fall into fallacy.
court noted three grounds for jurisdiction under the
We have accepted this view in an analogous context. Where
state's long-arm statute. It said that begetting a child
persons are married to each other and live in Mississippi, both
10 FLA 1192
Copyright c 1992 by The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc.
1-21-92
0148-7882/62/60+.80
,WASH # 4
(FRI) 7.24'92 19:45
/ NO. 3061251610 P. 2
To: George Steohanoooulos
As we discussed, I'm writing a story on Hillary Clinton's past
legal writings on the issue of children's legal rights. Here are the
questions. I am reachable Sunday after 12 noon EST or all day Monday
at 202-862-9290. If you need to reach me at home, 202-723-4788.
Many thanks,
Cathy Trost, Wall Street Journal.
1. Critics contend that Hillary Clinton advocates children suing
their parents. Has she ever said or written. that children should be
encouraged to sue their parents? How would she describe her views on
childrens' legal rights.
=:
2. How would she and Mr. Clinton respond to President Bush's
allegation Wednesday that They even encourage kids to hire lawyers
and haul their parents into court. And I believe kids need mothers
and fathers, not big brother bureaucracy', and the bond between the
parent and the child is sacred and it is fundamental."
3. Critics often quote a line from ``Children's Rights: A Legal
Perspective'' in which Hillary Clinton says 'Decisions about
motherhood and abortion. schooling, cosmetic surgery, treatment of
venereal disease or employment and others where the decision or lack
of one will significantly affect the child's future should not be
made unilaterally by parents. Children should have o right to be
permitted to decide their own future if they are competent.' Please
exolain what she means by this, how far she believes such rights
should be expanded, and any limitations she would impose on these
rights. For instance. some critics contend that she thinks children
should be able to sue their parents to resolve family arguments.
Please comment.
(more)
WASH # 4
(FRI) 7.24'92 19:46
/ NO. 3061251610 P. 3
4. Daniel Wattenberg writing in the American Spectator contends
chat ``she has likened the American family to slavery'' and has
called for a ``radical redefinition of the relationship between
state and family Please comment.
5. Critics from the right also contend that she will try to
further her views on childen's legal rights by counseling Mr.
Clinton, should he be elected. on legal policy and Judicial
appointments. They cite her statement that if you vote for him you
get me. Please comment on her intentions in this area should she
become First Lady.
=:
61 A Judge in Lake County, Fla. recently ruled that a
12-year-old child abandoned several times by his mother and now
living with foster parents has the right to take Tegal action on his
own behalf against his parents. Does Hillary Clinton view this as an
- important decision in the furtherance of children's legal rights.
7. Hillary Clinton has said she will be a voice for children in
the White House. and one of the first things that we will see
happen is a real childrens and family agenda. What would that
agenda include, and would it include efforts to expand children's
legal rights?
8. Please clarify Hillary Clinton's stand on abortion. Does she
advocate parental notification but not parental consent? What is Mr.
Clinton's opsition.
- U
*** END OF DOCUMENT ***
JUL-25-1992
17:46
FROM
PFAM
TO 15013993796--50
P.02
To: Jody & George
From: Melanne
Re: Response to Wall Street Journal questions on HC's legal writings
First, a few contextual points:
Trost's questions refer to"critics" It is important to
keep in mind the source of the criticisms. The attacks against
HC's writings thus far have come from Cal Thomas (former official
of the Moral Majority), Paul Gigot and the American Spectator.
Their attacks are an old right wing tactic. The right wing opposed
the child care legislation ultimately vetoed by Nixon in the early
70s on the ground that it would allow children to take parents
to court if they were ordered to take out the garbage. There.
was, of course, nothing in the child care bill to support the
charge.
The pieces that form the core of HC's writings were written a
long time ago, both in terms of years and the law. Children
Under the Law (Harvard Educational Review) was written in 1973,
almost 20 years ago when HC was 26 years old. The second key
piece, Children's Rights: A Legal Perspective was written in 1979.
These articles were not intended as a prescription for policy,
legislative or judicial action.
The views expressed are generally in harmony with mainstream
positions expressed by children's advocacy organizations such
as the Children's Defense Fund. CDF is hardly considered to be
outside the mainstrem, except by the ultra right.
For purposes of background for you, George, that is, HC's purpose
inthese writings. What she was trying to deal with in the articles
was an examination of the relationship between children, their families
and the state. Like most family law experts, she found existing
law unsatisfactory. It allowed for both too much and too little
state intervention in the family. It allowed the state to intervene
too easily to remove children and put them in foster care, which it
tended to do when dealing with poor or minority parents. And it
failed to protect other children, particularly adolescents, when their
parents refuse them medical procedures or educational possibilities
that would make a major difference in their lives, or even more basic,
when their parents seek to institutionalize them against their will
for noncriminal behavior like repeatedly staying out too late, etc.
HC was looking for a better way to protect kids from extreme overreaching
by their parents. Some of what she proposed can be twisted, if taken
out of context. The articles include sentences that if taken out of
context could be used to suggest HC is a radical out to destry the
family, and that is what her right wing critics are attempting to do.
Lastly, there is a question as to how all of this is relevant to BC's
Administration. As you rightly pointed out to the NYT this week,
these are HC's legal writings; they do not represent BC's future
policies (or past policies for that matter) Paul Gigot wrote, however,
MUL-25-1982 17:46 FROM PFAM
TO 15013993796--50
P.03
2
"Is it fair to link a candidate with the views of his spouse?
In the post feminist age, I think so, If a candidate's wife
is now First Partner the way HC claims to be, her policies
will shape his policy.'
NOW to Trost's questions. As you, no doubt, have noticed
questions 1,2, and 3 are all variations of the same theme:
does HC (and therefore BC) think kids should be encouraged
to sue their parents.
First, HC believes (and this is a core principle that informs
her writings) that the best thing for children is to grow up in
a strong and loving family. Her primary concern, and the focus
of her work on behalf of children, has been that families should be
allowed to flourish 30 that children can too.
Families not courts, should amke their own decisions. After all,
she is the mother of a 12-year-old daughter and understands how
important it is for parents to decide what's best for their kids.
But everyone understands that in the unfortunate situation where a
par ent abuses a child, the state has to act to protect the child.
There are other extreme cases where parents make decisions that
harm a child, and we haven't protected children so well in these
situations.
HC is not arguing "that kids become full-fledged miniature adults
before the law. (Children Under the Law, Harvard Ed Rev, p.508).
HC has written clearly about the limited nature of the court's
intervention (something her critics disregard)
"Even among persons in the children's rights movement, there is
concern that extending rights to children against their parents
is too difficult to control, and in all but the most extreme
cases such questions should be resolved by the families, not the
courts. I prefer that intervention into an ongoing family be limited
to decisions that could have longterm and possib ly irreparable effects
if they were not resolved." (Children's Rights: A Legal Perspective-
Teachers College Press: 1979, p.26).
HC's examples go on to illustrate the very limited nature of what
she is advocating.
02/ HC & BC believe too that"the bond between the parent & child
is sacred and fundamental" and they have worked to strengthen
that bond, to help families take care of their children. Bush's
allegation about "encouraging kids to hire lawyers" is patently
untrue and yet another example of Bush not knowing what he's
talking about and following the right wing's guidebook.
Q3/ The context for the quote cited is that the only circumstances
in which HC would allow children to assert an independent interest
would be with reference "to decisions that could have longterm
and possibly irreparable effects, if not resolved." (Teacher's
press, already cited).
Take the example of cosmetic surgery" for example.
HC was acutually referring to a case she knew about in which a girl
TO 150139937964-50
P.04
TUL-25-1992 17:47 FROM PEAM
3
had been refused permission by her mother to have a cleft palate
repaired, where the surgery would make a major difference in her
life. Hardly radical or shocking to find a way to allow an adolescent
to be able to Have recourse in such a situation. You may not
want to use this example, but this is exactly the principle
that underlies the type of parental notification laws regarding
conserve-
abortion that have been upheld by the Supreme Court in cases like Bel-
this
lotti V. Baird and Hodgson V. Minnesota. The child invokes a
count!
court procedure which inquires into and determines her maturity
and competence to make the decision. This is essentially all that
HC was advocating in a limited number of areas regarding health and
life opportunities "where the decision or lack of one will significantly
affect the child's future. To say that she is advocating that
children sue their parents for the most insignificant reasons is
a gross distortion of her work.
Nothing in her writings would even suggest that HC is seeking to
drive a wedge between parents and children. But as US News & World
Report rightly observed: "HC's concern simply is with giving adoles-
cents and teenagers a say in major decisions that could have longtern
and possibly irreperable effects."
Q4/ Nothing in her writings, work or life support the charges.
These are Wattenberg's lies.
ing
Q5&7/ As HC has often stated she has no intention of hold any
official position. As First Lady, she hopes to be a voice for
children. This does not mean that she sets the children's agenda
in the Administration. BC knows America's kids need help. You
can spell out the Clinton positions. BC & HC believe that if we
don't invest in our children, we have no future. HC intends to
go out to people across the country to develop support for the solu-
tions the Clinton Administration will put forward in areas
like health care, education and child care, not children's legal
rights.
HC will also be in touch with the best ideas across America
wonderful things happening for children. Washington has to be
responsive and build on what works, and people around the country
should be aware of what's happening elsewhere. HC will be in a
position to listen and make these voices heard in Washington and
she will be able to bring people together, including people who
haven't been involved in children's issues, to help implement
the next Administratfon's agenda for children.
Q6/ I don't think HC should comment on the Florida case. How is
it related to the campaign? It's a state case with no federal
claim. Every legal issue is case specific. She has been campaigning
and not closely followed the case. The case does have consequences
for children's rights law: see attached article; therefore, I think
it's best not to get into details. You can repeat the principle
that always in the first instance, the family should stay together,
but that's not always possible. Where children are abused in some
way, other systems of care need to be established.
Q8/ You are more qualified to discuss how BC & HC are discussing
JUL-25-1992 17:48 FROM PFAM
TO 15013993796--50
P.05
this issue. Just be sure that what's said is an accurate reflection
of what they ve both been saying. As I understand their position,
they strong support some form of adult involvement in the serious
decision of abortion by a young person and support parental notification
with a judicial bypass.
B10 THE WALL STREET JOURNAL WEDNESDAY, JUNE 17, 1992
child/inghts
LAW
of Donovan Leisure Newton & Irvine,
TOTAL P.06
Children's Rights Will Be Tested in Case
sued the New York law firm claiming that
they are owed about $1.1 million under a
deferred payment clause in their partner.
By HELENE COOPER
system view children's rights. Children
Children would be able to sue their parents
ship agreement.
5!0!! Repotter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
are coming to assume certain rights of
for, say. not taking them on a particular
Mr. Litvack and Mr. Kilcarr. now B
In a court battle beginning today, a
their own. and scholars say the law Is
vacation. Also. allowing children to sue
partner at Washington's Hogan & Hart-
TO 150139937964-50
udge will be asked for what Is believed to
evolving to affirm children's rights as
means they could, In turn, be sued by their
son. are also seeking punitive damages In
be the first time to determine whether
being equal 10, or perhaps even superior to,
parents.
their lawsult. filed In Los Angeles County
colldren have the right to take legal action
the rights of their parents.
Gregory's saga began In 1983. when his
Superior Court.
on their own behalf.
"Even 10 years ago. any concept of a
parents separated. The child's father as
As chairman of Donovan Leisure's ex-
At the heart of the dispute in 8 Lake
child having rights just wasn't In the realm
sumed custody of Gregory in 1984, keeping
ecutive committee In the mid-1980s. Mr.
County, Fla., courtroom is a small. bespec-
of consideration," says Leonard Loeb. past
him for five years until 1989, when a report
Litvack was widely viewed as the masler-
facled boy who
president of the American Association of
alleging neglect and physical abuse was
mind of an unusual plan to solve the major
claims his child
LEGAL BEAT
Matrimonial Lawyers. "But now the law
law firm's economic problems. Messrs.
filed with the Florida Protective Services
hood has been de.
has evolved. The existence of this case
Litvack and Kilcarr then left the firm in
stroyed and who is
Isn't shocking."
System. Gregory was turned over to his
1986.
doing battle with
Although moviegoers will remember
mother, who eventually gave him up, say-
Their attorney, Henry Ben-Zvl of Pros-
two formidable ad.
that a similar story was spun In 8 1984 film
Ing she wanted to put him up for adop-
kauer. Rose, Goetz & Mendelsohn in Los
versaries: his par-
starring Drew Barrymore, there 15 scant
tion.
Angeles. said Messrs. Litvack and Klicarr
ents and the U.S.
real-hife precedent for Gregory's case. In
A children's rights attorney whose fam.
had agreed that the firm could hold money
legal system.
1990 8 Fairfax, Va., circuit judge allowed
Ily took Gregory In as a loster child wants
It owed them for five years. "Our Interpre-
Gregory K., age
11-year-old Daniel Etlin to retain a lawyer
to adopt him, but the state slopped efforts
tation of the partnership agreement Is that
11. (his name is be
in 8 custody battle between his parents.
10 terminate Gregory's parents' parental
the money was due In March of 1992. and
Ing withheld by the
That case marked what is thought to
the firm hasn't paid," Mr. Ben-Zvl sald. A
rights when they objected.
edurt) has taken the unprecedented step of
be the first recognition of a child's right to
spokesmen for 150-lawyer Donovan Lei-
counsel in 6' custody case. Although he
That's when Gregory sued. "We talked
Uling 8 petition to divorce himself from his
sure couldn't immediately be reached for
parents.
gained counsel, Daniel ultimately lost his
for a long time before 1 agreed to take his
comment.
After & decade of being bounced from
bid to Ilve with his mother and was sent
case,' says Gregory's Tavares, Fla., attor.
the care of his parents to foster homes
back to his father.
ney. Jem Blair, who says the boy first
and an Institution, Gregory has asked that
Some legal scholars say Gregory might
talked with his loster father about retain-
NOTED: Federal Judge David N. Edel-
the parental rights of his mother and
have 8 shot at winning his case - II he IS
ing an attorney. "This boy Is Intelligent.
stein resentenced former congressman
father be terminated. In papers filed In
able to persuade the Judge to consider the
He knows what he's doing."
Robert Garcia to three years in Jail.
Lake County Circuit Court, the child at
real-life issues of the case, and not just the
Gregory's natural father has consented
the same length as before, but made the
JUL-25-1992 PEAM
goes that his father physically abused him,
legal precedents.
to the adoption, but his mother says she
former congressman immediately eligible
his mother emotionally abused and ne-
Unlike Daniel, Gregory 15 seeking not
wants her son back. "The boy's mother Is B
for parole. Mr. Garcia was convicted of
slected him, and the state of Florida
only the right to counsel. but also the right
loving. caring parent who made some
extorting a $20,000 no Interest loan from
bas Imprisoned him by "depriving him of
to sue on his own behalf. And that repre-
mistakes. but nothing 50 glaring that
Wedtech Corp., a Bronx, N.Y.. defense
the freedom to enjoy '8 normal child.
sents uncharted territory. says Chris Han-
hood.'
her rights should be terminated." says
contractor that was at the center of
sen. associate director of the Children's
Jane Carey, the mother's Orlando attor-
an Influence peddling scandal during the
Judge G. Richard Singeltary Is being
Rights Project at the American Civil Liber-
asked to decide whether Gregory has the
lles Union In New York. While suggesting
ney.
1980s. He had already served 104 days In
right to divorce his parents. The court Is
that the judge could hand down a narrow
prison before a previous conviction was
also being asked to allow Gregory's (oster
ruling in Gregory's lavor. Mr. Hansen
DISNEY GENERAL COUNSEL sues his
overturned In 1990. His wife, Jane Lee
parents - with whom the boy has been
predicts that & broad ruling giving children
former law firm.
Garcia, was resentenced to three months
living for nine months-to adopt him.
the right to sue Is unlikely.
Sanford M. Utvack, Walt Disney Co.'s
In prison: she previously was sentenced to
The existence of this case Illustrates
Such a ruling. legal scholars say, would
senior vice president and general counsel,
three years. They were both reconvicted
Me change in the way society and the legal
open the door to a wide variety of suits.
and Andrew Kilcarr. both (ormer partners
on different Wedlech-related charges.
DAVID PRYOR
COMMITTEES:
ARKANSAS
AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND
FORESTRY
RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
FINANCE
WASHINGTON, DC 20510
(202) 224-2353
United States Senate
GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON AGING
WASHINGTON, DC 20510-0402
ARKANSAS OFFICE:
3030 FEDERAL BUILDING
LITTLE ROCK, AR 72201
(501)
Josh Did
324-6336 you fax to Mebunne Me MAGGIE
November 9, 1992
Ms. Hillary Clinton
The Governor's Mansion
State of Arkansas
Little Rock, AR 72201
Dear Hillary:
I am writing about your efforts on behalf of children and to
recommend something which I think would be an excellent means of
extending your work in this area as First Lady here in
Washington. Your long-standing association with Arkansas
Children's Hospital prompted me to mention this to you.
Children's National Medical Center (CNMC) in Washington,
D.C., is a stellar pediatric health care facility, nationally
recognized as a champion for children and their families.
Children's Hospital is a free-standing 279-bed non-profit
pediatric hospital serving children and their families in
Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia. This
organization provides not only state-of-the-art pediatric health
services, but continually strives to incorporate a comprehensive,
holistic approach to care for children and their families. This
is accomplished through the development and implementation of
initiatives that help compensate for the fundamental
vulnerability and powerlessness of children, issues that I know
have always been of great concern to you.
I believe that your association with Children's Hospital may
be mutually beneficial, and I strongly recommend that you explore
this opportunity at your earliest convenience. I know everyone
at Children's is eager to help welcome you and Bill to
Washington, and to introduce you to their faculty and staff.
Enclosed for your information is a profile of CNMC and a summary
of their advocacy/community outreach initiatives which I think
you will find of particular interest.
Please have a member of your staff contact Mr. Henry Woods
of my Senate office staff (202-224-2353) to facilitate further
discussion on this matter. Children's is a wonderful institution
and we all look forward to your potential participation.
Sincerely,
Wonnd Sayor
David Pryor
DP:hw
NOV 25 '92 09:35 CHILDREN-NOW-LA
P.1
your
FACSIMILE COVER LETTER
Date Wed Nov 25
Time 9:30 AM
From Wendy Lazarus
Bay Area
FAX:
(510) 763-1974
Telephone:
(510) 763-2444
So. California FAX:
(310) 399-7399
Telephone:
(310) 399-7444
State Capital
FAX:
(916) 441-2463
Telephone:
(916) 441-2444
Total number of pages, including cover letter
Please deliver the following pages to:
Name Maggie Williams
Organization/Firm, Clinton Transition office
Location
FAX Number 501-399-7188
Message Maggre - Great to talk to you last
nite. As promised, here's a packet for Hillary.
We could meet with her Mon, Nov. 30th or over
the weekend. I'm reachable today at 310-399-7444.
Then at 310-394-599. Hello to 5usan T. too -
If you do not receive all pages, please call
Happy thanks
crime. Chees
P.2
NOV 25 '92 09:35 CHILDREN-NOW-LA
November 24, 1992
Hillary Rodham Clinton
c/o The Clinton Transition Office
Little Rock, Arkansas 72201
Dear Hillary:
My deepest congratulations on a superb campaign and an even more superb victory! I am so
very hopeful and excited about the prospects for our country under Bill's and your leadership.
The new spirit you have both kindled is already evident around us and is a great joy to feel
once again.
I am writing in hopes that Harley and I can spend a little time with you during the next few
days when you're in Southern California. Knowing that this is the time when you are
thinking through the role you want to play in the new Administration and how best to staff up
for it, we'd like to be helpful in any way possible, particularly on issues related to children
and families where we both bring a good deal of experience.
We would like to share some thoughts with you about how you might structure your role
most effectively (Harley discussed some of his ideas with Marian Edelman today in
Washington, and she seemed interested and asked that he put them down on paper). In
addition, I have some ideas about projects related to kids which should be considered early
on.
As background, attached is a brief memo laying out several initiatives you could spearhead
which would make a real difference for children. Also by way of background, you've met
Harley, but you might not know that he has chalked up an unusual list of accomplishments at
the federal and state levels which have given him experience that could be helpful as you plot
your course. Harley has had over a decade of Executive Branch experience in the federal
government (rare among Democrats of our generation), including running the Head Start
program, Deputy Director of Presidential Personnel, and Deputy Commissioner of the Bureau
of Indian Affairs. In addition, he has had extensive corporate experience during the 12 years
since we left Washington.
We could meet over the weekend if that's convenient for you or on Monday, Nov. 30th.
How about a walk on the Santa Monica beach? I will follow up with Maggie Williams to see
if we can get on your calendar. Or you can leave a message for me at 310-394-5999. In the
meantime, our very best wishes to you and Bill and happy holidays.
With Warm Regards,
Wendy
Wendy Lazarus
P.J
NOV 20 '02 00:00 CHILDREN NOW LA
November 24, 1992
To: Hillary Rodham Clinton
From: Wendy Lazarus
Re: Children's Initiatives To Consider Spearheading
As you explore various roles you might play as First Lady, I'd like to
suggest three initiatives related to children and families where you
could make an enormous contribution. I've developed these proposals
based on the following five criteria:
Their ability to improve the lives of large numbers of children;
Their practicality in these tight fiscal times;
Their importance in sustaining the Clinton Administration's
legacy for children and families--well beyond the eight years of
your Administraton;
Their value as positive political messages, e.g. that lasting
progress for children must involve the private sector as well as
government;
Their likelihood of success.
I. Corporate Campaign for Children
Through a well-planned campaign and wise use of the bully pulpit, you
can create a climate in which corporate responsibility for children and
families is expected and is rewarded by respect and recognition. This
sends a useful political message that you understand the importance of
the private sector in furthering publicly-held goals. Furthermore, while
enlightened and well-funded government policies are essential, they,
alone, will not fill the bill for children (since their parents' lives are so
heavily influenced by actions taken or not taken by employers).
Over the past few years, the corporate community has paid increasing
lip service to kids but, with few exceptions, has not taken meaningful
actions. This can change if you and Bill provide the strong moral
leadership that has been lacking over the past decade. The goals of this
initiative are to enlist the corporate sector in:
Establishing family-friendly policies for employees--e.g. child
care assistance, health insurance coverage, parental and sick
leave etc.;
Demonstrating what it means to be a good corporate citizen for
children--i.e. by providing money, training, and other kinds of
support for children's programs in the community;
Becoming vocal leaders for improved public policies that enable
children and families to thrive.
NOV 25 '92 09:37 CHILDREN-NOW-LA
P.4
You are ideally positioned to champion this effort directed at corporate
leaders and to lead the nation in this sustained public/private
partnership for kids. The initiative should involve leading corporate
executives and include a menu of ways employers can help, a media
component, and a means of recognizing achievement. Most importantly,
certain elements will need to be built in from the start in order to
institutionalize a corporate ethic of valuing children and families and to
sustain these positive corporate practices.
II. Blueprint for Sound Family Income Policy in America
While the Clinton Administration works on invigorating the economy,
1993 provides an opportune time to develop the blueprint for a
comprehensive income policy in America that rewards work and
assures at least subsistence income for all families. Our family tax
policies and welfare system badly need repair. And while there are a
number of valuable proposals floating around which are a part of the
solution--including Bill's campaign proposals for welfare reform, child
support enforcement and insurance, expanding the Earned Income
Credit and making it refundable, and a children's allowance--the work
has not yet been done to assemble these pieces into a coherent national
policy and build consensus around it.
The silver lining in these tough economic times is that they provide a
window for this crucial work. Hopefully, by the time a sound blueprint
is developed and political support for it is built, the economy will have
turned around enough to begin financing these elements. As the
economy improves, certain pieces of this comprehensive blueprint can
move forward as the first phase in implementing the longer-term
vision.
But this important initiative will happen successfully only if a serious
commitment is made now to assemble the most knowledgeable and
"fresh-thinking" people to focus on this isssue. In the same way that
you "chaired" the school reform issue in Arkansas, family income policy
would be an ideal issue for you to "chair" nationally. In my view, along
with health care reform there's no more important uncharted policy
area affecting America's families than family income policy. Because the
task requires such sophisticated thinking and political savvy, your
leadership could make a terribly important difference. Of course, the
politics of this issue and your precise role in it would need to be
considered further.
NOV 25 '92 09:38 CHILDREN-NOW-LA
P.5
III. Dedicating Special Funds to America's Children
After years of lobbying for funding for children's programs at the
federal and state levels, I have come to believe very strongly that
children will never get the sustained fiscal resources they need until we
find ways to compensate for the political disadvantages they face in the
budgeting process. Because children don't vote and their parents
represent a shrinking minority of voters, they will never be able to
comnete successfully in 1 hudnet pronem hored unon on onegin] intoment
unitured
KNOST
Roday
JUI)
Patest
detempts
10
close a multi-billion state budget deficit resulted in taking 43% of the
cuts out of programs for children.
While I'm confident that you and Bill will ensure that children receive
the best possible "fiscal shake" during the Clinton years, these gains will
evaporate in subsequent Administrations unless we can find a way to
restructure the budgeting process vis-a-vis children. Just as
policymakers have treated certain groups of deserving Americans (e.g.
seniors and veterans) as "special cases" and have earmarked money for
them, we should take a similar approach for children.
I'm convinced there is no more important legacy that you can leave
America's children over the long term than to level the playing field
when it comes to allocating public funds. In addition, I believe the
Clinton Administration is the key to getting this fundamental change
accomplished for kids because it obviously has to be done by leaders
who care and want children attended to properly over the long haul.
I'm in the process of drafting an op-ed piece on this subject. I'd be
happy to share it with you.
If this area is of interest, I would spend some time consulting our
colleagues about how best to frame and deal with the issue. Then, the
right people need to be convened to devise the most sensible policy
response (a Children's Trust Fund like Social Security has been floated
as one option). Finally, there must be a strategy to sell the idea
politically.
A Closing Note: Hillary: These ideas are presented in short form. I'd
be happy to elaborate on them and to work with you to develop any of
them in greater detail. You or your staff can reach me at 310-394-
5999.
Children's National Medical Center
NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE
Children's mission is four-fold: To provide quality programs of
excellence in the areas of Care, Advocacy, Research, and Education
Service Area: Children's began primarily as a local and regional
facility; now also serves national and International patients
Annual Patient Care Statistics:
11,000 hospital patients admitted
50,000 emergency medical department visits
240,000 children seen on an outpatient basis
Patients come from 46 states
1990 U.S. News & World Report named CNMC one of the top 13
hospitals in the nation for pediatrics
Children's is the clinical consultant to the National Institutes
of Health (NIH) for pediatric patients. We are the only institution to
provide this type of service to NIH
Medical Research
While total resources devoted to research are smaller than some of
our peers, Children's researchers publish more articles and
papers for professional journals than scientists at other
pediatric Institutions
More than 200 separate research projects are currently
underway, ranging from studies of the virus that causes AIDS to how
cancer tumor cells evade destruction from host defense mechanisms
With the recruitment of investigators such as Dr. Stephan Ladisch
(UCLA) for cancer/tumor research and Dr. Christie Holland (UMass)
for virology research, Children's is becoming fully competitive and is
exerting national leadership
Emergency Trauma Service:
Nationally recognized for its medical care and educational/training
activities
Regionally designated Trauma Center for D.C. and the
surrounding five-county region in Maryland
More than 1,800 trauma patients admitted annually -- transported
by helicopter, ambulance, or light aircraft
Patient referral base includes D.C., Maryland, Virginia, West
Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Delaware
Provides consultation to other pediatric trauma programs
throughout the country
Received a grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services to develop an Emergency Medical Services for Children
(EMSC) National Resource Center. As one of only two centers in
the country, Children's will help each state's Emergency Medical
Service mobilize the system of care for acutely ill and injured children.
Emergency/Trauma Training Programs:
Conducts the first paramedic training program in the nation for
pediatric emergency/trauma care
More than 250 Emergency Medical Service Directors from all 50
states, Guam, the Virgin Islands, and Canada have been trained
Children's provides pediatric emergency training to more than 500
nurses in the mid-Atlantic region over the next two years
Neonatology/ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation)
Program:
Children's offers one of only two training programs in the nation
for this procedure -- an intensive care/heart-lung system for prolonged
support of infants otherwise dying of heart and lung failure
Dr. Billie Short is known internationally for her research and
expertise in this area
2
Neonatology/ECMO, cont.
Children's has treated 350 babies since 1984 -- more than any other
ECMO center in the nation
Before ECMO, 80% of these children died; now, more than 85%
survive
Pediatric AIDS
Children's is one of six centers funded by the Centers for
Disease Control in its Pediatric Surveillance Definition
Project. Children's was selected in part because of the confidential
tracking system designed by Children's health professionals
Children's was the first hospital in the Washington metropolitan area to
establish an interdisciplinary team dedicated exclusively to the
care of HIV-positive children and their families: the Special
Immunology Service.
Children's also established a model of care specific to the needs of
adolescents infected with HIV: the Burgess Clinic, the only
comprehensive health care service In the Washington area for
patients ages 13 to 21 who are infected or at risk for HIV infection.
In October, 1991, researchers at Children's concluded a four-year
study funded by the Centers for Disease Control to ascertain the
incidence of HIV infection in adolescent patients seen in an urban
pediatric hospital. The study shows the prevalance of HIV infection in
urban teens is increasing rapidly.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation awarded a grant of $1
million to Children's National Medical Center for Project CHAMP:
Children's HIV and AIDS Model Program.
The goals of CHAMP are to prevent HIV infection in high risk
adolescents; to prepare a training curriculum for out-of-hospital
caregivers, and to broaden the number of people who are willing and
trained to care for HIV infected children.
Children's has also begun a multi-city training program for out-of-
hospital caregivers of HIV infected children.
3
Cancer Care:
Conducts the largest pediatric cancer treatment and research
program in the Washington region
One of 30 pediatric cancer centers throughout the U.S. and
Canada participating in the Child Cancer Study Group, a
professional consortia which shares diagnostic resources and research
data on childhood cancer
Dr. Gregory Reaman, Chair, Hematology-Oncology, Dr. Stephan
Ladisch, recently recruited from UCLA to be director of Children's
Center for Cancer and Transplantation Biology Research, are
nationally recognized for their efforts in patient care and research
Transplantation:
Programs exist in kidney, bone marrow and heart transplantation
Donors and recipients come from across the nation
In 1989, Children's performed the first pediatric heart
transplant in the Washington area
National SAFE KIDS Campaign:
Developed by Children's Trauma Department , SAFE KIDS is the only
national initiative to reduce the number of preventable childhood
accidents and Injuries
Chaired by Former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, M.D.
Children's coordinates the efforts of more than 110 local coalitions
participating in 40 states and Canada
Founding sponsor, Johnson & Johnson, provides $1 million annually to
SAFE KIDS
4
Division of Child Protection:
Largest pediatric, hospital-based program in the nation for
treatment of young victims of physical abuse, sexual abuse and neglect
Sponsors a National Symposium on Child Victimization
biannually; more than 2,000 professionals attended in 1990
Dr. Mireille Kanda, department chair, is nationally recognized for
her clinical expertise and frequently testifies at the local and
national levels on this subject
11/7/91
5
Maggie
File
Hunger-
Millions of kids are hungry in America.
POLICY GOALS OF THE CAMPAIGN TO END CHILDHOOD HUNGER:
A Statement of Principles
Hunger hurts everyone, especially children. In the long run, pursuit of various strategies to
reduce the level and pain of poverty will reduce hunger among American children. To
achieve this, we must assist families in their efforts to attain self-sufficiency by making
available to them quality education and training, income from work that lifts them out of
poverty, and adequate and affordable housing, child care and health care. We must also
provide assistance for these who for the long or short term are unable to provide for
themselves.
New and creative thinking is needed in our efforts to alleviate hunger and poverty. Of vital
importance is the achievement of food security -- access by all people at all times through
normal channels to enough nutritionally adequate food for an active, healthy life.
The Campaign to End Childhood Hunger supports the adoption of national policies
guaranteeing food security to all Americans.
However, hungry children cannot wait for the long run. The most immediate and direct way
to alleviate hunger and move toward food security is to strengthen an array of food
assistance programs already in place. These food assistance programs can and should offer
healthful and nutritious meals to children. Achievement of the following policy objectives
would result in a dramatic reduction of hunger among children in the United States.
1. The Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC)
provides essential nutrition assistance and access to health care to pregnant and postpartum
women and infants and children at nutritional risk. Study after study has shown WIC to be
highly effective in reducing low birthweight rates, averting infant mortality, improving the
nutritional status of children, and saving Medicaid funds for women and infants. Yet, almost
half of all those eligible for WIC nationwide fail to receive benefits due to a lack of program
funding.
The Campaign to End Childhood Hunger seeks to ensure that all eligible low income
women, infants and children can receive assistance through the WIC program.
2. The National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program often provide
the best meal of the day for low-income children. Studies show that these children receive
Campaign To End Childhood Hunger
1875
Connecticut
Ave.
:
W.
#540
Washington, D.C. 20009
202:986-2200
FAX 202)986-2525
sep
&
ACTION
one-third to one-half of their daily nutrient intake from school lunch. Studies also show that
participation in school breakfast programs results in significantly higher achievement test
scores. Yet today, less than half of the schools offering lunch operate a breakfast program
and school food programs have been targeted repeatedly for reductions in federal funding.
The Campaign to End Childhood Hunger seeks to make the School Breakfast
Program available to low-income children across the country and encourages federal,
state and local policies to ensure that the National School Lunch Program remains
broadly accessible to all such children.
3. Millions of low-income pre-school children do not have access to school meal programs
and millions of low-income school age children lose access to these meals during the summer
months. The Child and Adult Care Food Program and the Summer Feeding Program were
established by Congress to meet the needs of these children, yet each serves only a fraction
of the needy children eligible for these programs.
The Campaign to End Childhood Hunger seeks to greatly broaden the availability
of meals for low-income children through expanded use of the Child and Adult Care
Food Program and the Summer Food Program for Children.
4. The most important line of defense against hunger for millions of impoverished
Americans is the Food Stamp Program. Few people realize that over half of all food stamp
recipients are children, and that families with children receive over 80 percent of all benefits
paid. Yet. barriers to food stamp participation prevent millions of eligible families from
receiving assistance and benefit levels are so low that many food stamp families run out of
food before the end of each month.
The Campaign to End Childhood Hunger seeks to make the Food Stamp Program
accessible to all who are eligible and supports changes in benefit levels so that
children and their families will have enough to eat each month.
Millions of kids are hungry in America.
April !!, 1992
Sept. 8
Hunger in the United States
Extent of Hunger
About five million American children under 12 go hungry each month and millions more are at risk of hunger
according to estimates based on the results of the most comprehensive study ever done on childhood hunger in the
United States the Community Childhood Hunger Identification Pre ect (CCHIP). Hunger was shown to be a major
problem among low-income families with children less than 12 years old in all of the CCHIP sites. Based on the results
of seven CCHIP surveys in Alabama, California. Connecticut, Florida, Minnesota, Michigan and New York applied
to the best available national data, FRAC estimates that approximately 12 percent of all familles with children under
12 are hungry. The CCHIP estimates are based on pre-recession data: current hunger rates are probably much higher.
Other private and government surveys conducted throughout the last decade also document dramatic increases in the
demand for emergency food:
Since 1983. the U.S. Conterence of Mayor: has documented an annual increase in the demand for emergency
food In major cities across the namen. in 1991. requests for emergency food increased in the survey cities by
an average of 26 percent. up substantially from increases of 19 to 22 percent each year between 1988 and 1990.
The number of families with children requesting assistance MSO increased by 26 percent. Two out of three
persons requesting emergency food assistance were members of families with children. In 79 percent of the
cities, emergency food assistance facilities turned away people in need because of lack of resources.
Employment-related problems led the list of causes of hunger
A nationalsurvey conducted by Catholic Charities USA, the nation's largest private human service organization,
shows that Six out of every 10 people (62 percent) who west to Catholic Charities agencies in 1990 needed
emergency food or shelter. Ten years ago, only two out of every 10 people (23 percent) sought those services.
While no one knows exactly how many people in this country are hungry. there is no question that millions face hunger
every month. Harvard University's Physician Task Force on Hunger in America estimated in 1985 that 20 million
people suffer from hunger.
Causes of Hunger
During the 1980s and early 1990s. hunger increased primarily due to a combination of economic factors and cuts in
federal assistance programs.
Income and poverty data released annually by the U.S. Commerce Department's Bureau of the Census show that the
lion's share of the income gains during the seven year economic expansion of the 1980s went to those at the top end
of the income scale while poverty remained consistently high (see "Hunger and Poverty," below). As recession hit in
1990 signaled by a slowing economy, increases in the unemployment rate, rapidly growing demand for food stamps
and other public assistance programs, and emerging hudget crises at all levels of government -- an already high poverty
Campaign To End Childhood Hunger
1875 Connecticut Ave. N.W. #540
Washington, D.C. 20009
(202)986-2200
FAX (202)986-2525
Sep 09,92 14:51 FOOD RSCH & ACTION CENTER WASH DC
P.05
rate began to grow. Participation in the Food Stamp Program and Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)
have increased substantially throughout the recession and are now at all-time high levels. In fact, one in 10 Americans
is now receiving food stamps.
This recession came on top of significant cutbacks in federal programs aiding low-income people in the early 1980s.
This weakening of the "safety net included cuts in programs like AFDC, Medicaid, and Unemployment Compensation.
in addition to food assistance programs. According to the Congressional Budget Office, food stamp and child nutrition
programs incurred a cumulative cut of $12.2 billion between fiscal year 1982 and fiscal year 1985. Despite some
restoration of funds to these programs, the cuts have had lasting effects.
State and local governments and private charities, which were enlisted to make up for federal curbacks and budget
restraints, are increasingly unable to shoulder the burden. Many states are now in financial crisis and are announcing
severe cuts in human services programs. And private charities -- such as soup kitchens and food banks designed to
meet emergency need find donations unpredictable amid increasing demand. Every city participating in the U.S.
Conference of Mayors' 1991 survey reported that the recession has affected the problem of hunger In their jurisdiction.
And, all cities expect the demand for emergency food assistance to increase during 1992. Catholic Charities USA,
reacting to the results of their agency survey, collected 10,000 letters to Congress voicing support for improvements in
the Food Stamp Program to meet the growing need.
Moreover, CCHIP data and other sources indicate that because of barriers to participation, lack of information about
eligibility, or inadequate funding. many of the federal food assistance programs are not used by million of people who
appear eligible to participate in them. Aiso, survey results consistently show that food stamp benefits are not sufficient
to protect many low-income families from experiencing hunger.
Without significant improvements in the economy and stronger safety -net programs. hunger will persist.
Hunger and Poverty
Hunger is a condition of poverty. Living below the poverty line puts tremendous strains on a household budget,
adversely affecting the ability to purchase a nutritic naily adequate die: In fact, governmentsurveys show that as income
goes down, the nutritional adequacy of the diet goes down as well.
1992
35.7
14.2
According 10 data released by the U.S. Census Bureau in September 1991, 33.6 1990 million Americans or 13.5 percent
of our population lived in poverty in 1990. This increase, from sie million in 1989. reflects the first annual increase
in the poverty rate since 1982 and in the number of poor people since 1983. The increase showed the early effects of
the recession. Largest number of people impoverty since 1965.
Children continued to represent the poorest age group in the country, a tragic distinction they have had for 18 years.
In 1000
/
21.8 20.0 percent of all American children were poor. (14.3milion)
25,529 percent of children under age three lived below the poverty line.
One in every two black children under age Six was poor.
12.4 12.2 percent of all Americans 65 and over were poor.
The 1990 recession came as a major blow to the working poor, whose numbers grew throughout the 1980s. The
working poor are at risk of hunger because their income often is not sufficient to cover all of their living expenses,
including food. Roughly 15.2 percent of all heads of households living in poverty worked year-round and full time in
1990. Among poor householders, 403 percent worked for some period of time in 1990. The average amount of money
needed to raise the incomes of each poor family (including those with working members) to its respective poverty
threshold was $5,192. So, despite efforts to lift themselves and their families out of poverty, wages for many working
people were inadequate to do SO. And, recession meant that even those low-paying jobs might be lost dropping those
families deeper into poverty.
The 1991 poverty figures, reflecting the full impact of the recession, will, without doubt, be higher still.
Sep 14:52 FOOD RSCH & ACTION CENTER WASH DC
P.06
Health Consequences of Hunger
Hunger and undernutrition contribute to a number of negative health consequences:
Hungry children suffer from two to three times as many individual health problems, such as unwanted weight
loss, fatigue, headaches, irritability, inability to concentrate and frequent colds, as low-income children whose
families do not experience food shortages, according to CCHIP.
The infant mortality rate is closely linked to inadequate quantity or quality in the diet of the Infant's mother.
The United States ranks 21st among developed nations in preventing infant deaths, down from 16th in 1980.
Black infants in the U.S. die at nearly twice the rate of white infants.
Stunting and wasting in children result from inadequate nutrition. According to the U.S. Public Health Service,
the Surgeon General's 1990 goal of eliminating growth retardation of infants and children caused by inadequate
diets could not be met because significant numbers of low-income children continue to suffer retarded growth.
Iron-deficiency anemia in children can lead to adverse health effects such as developmental and behavioral
disturbances and increased susceptibility to lead poisoning Anemia remains a significant health problem
among low-income children. according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Hunger has a negative impact on children's ability 10 learn. Recent research indicates that low-income children
who participate in the School Breakfast Program showed an improvement in standardized test scores and a
decrease in tardiness and absenteeism compared to low-income students who did not eat breakfast at school.
Hunger and malnutrition exacerbate chronic and acute diseases and speed the onset of degenerative diseases
among the elderly. This notionly leads to an unnecessary decrease in the quality of life for many older people,
but also increases the cost of health care in the United States. National data for people ages 55 to 75 show
that a majority are not consuming even two-thirds of the nutrients they need to stay healthy.
Public Attitudes Toward Hunger
The public is very concerned about what is seen as a growing hunger problem. A national public-opinion poll released
in April 1992 reveals that over 90 percent of registered voters believe that hunger in the U.S. is a serious and growing
problem. Hunger ranks with education, health care policy and poverty and homelessness as a serious issue, trailing
concerns about unemployment. drugs, the deficit. AIDS and the economy. Unlike these other issues, however, hunger
is seen as a very solvable problem.
Voters place the responsibility for ending hunger squarely in the government's lap. It is clearly understood that private
feeding efforts, as valuable as they are, are not the most effective *ay to feed families over time. The poll found very
strong support for school breakfast and lunch programs, senior feeding. WIC. and the Food Stamp Program. In fact,
when told that half of food stamp recipients are children and that more than 80 percent of food stamp benefits go to
families with children, the approval rate for the Food Stamp Program jumped from 61 percent to 81 percent. The
sentiment that the government needs to increase its anti-hunger efforts is so strong that voters would be willing to
earmark $100 more in taxes annually to end hunger.
The poll was commissioned for release with the Medford Declaration to End Hunger in the U.S, the broadest collective
statement ever made that hunger in this country can and must be ended. The declaration, which calls for an end to
domestic hunger by 1995 through improvements in the federal food assistance programs and lays the foundation for
ending poverty in the U.S. by the end of the decade, has been endorsed by more than 2,000 leaders of American
society. Endorsers include approximately 170 U.S. Senators and Representatives, Governors and Mayors; 62 corporate
CEOs and presidents; 135 entertainment and sports personalities; 33 labor union presidents; 215 presidents of
universities and educational institutions; 220 doctors and medical association heads; 110 philanthropic leaders; 340
religious leaders; and the directors of 530 hunger and poverty groups. The Medford Declaration was coordinated by
the Center for Hunger, Poverty and Nutrition Policy at Tufts University, FRAC, the End Hunger Network and World
Hunger Year. The poll was conducted in January 1992 by Dr. Vincent Breglio, current Republican pollster for the Wall
Street Journal/NBC News monthly surveys and former polling director for the 1988 Bush/Quayle presidential campaign.
Sep 09,92 14:52 FOOD RSCH & ACTION CENTER WASH DC
P.07
Federal Food Assistance Programs
The federal food assistance programs are our nation's first line of defense against hunger. These programs, which are
administered by the Food and Nutrition Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, are intended to provide access
to a nutritionally adequate diet for families and persons with low-incomes, and encourage better eating patterns among
the nation's children.
The Food Stamp Program improves the nutrition of low-income people by providing coupons or, in some areas, an
electronic benefits ("debit") card to cover part or all of a household's food budget. The program operates as an
entitlement and is the only food program in the United States that is available to all who meet eligibility standards
regardless of their age or family composition. Recent studies, including CCHIP, have shown that current benefit Icvels
are inadequate and millions of children, women and men are denied benefits because of barriers to participation.
Reflecting the economic recession, food stamp participation increased by 6.36 million people between July 1989 and
January 1991. June 1992 (June 92- participation 7.1 25.74million.
The Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) safeguards the health of pregnant,
postpartum and breast-feeding women, infants and children who are at nutritional risk because of inadequate nutrition
and inadequate income. WIC benefits include supplemental nutritious foods, nutrition education and access to health
care. Numerous studies, including a 1991 USDA study, have found WIC to bc both successful in achieving its mission
and cost-effective. WIC is not an entitlement program and currently serves roughly 60 percent of those eligible.
The National School Lunch Program was started in 1946 as a "measure of national security, to safeguard the health and
well-being of the nation's children." In 1970, national guidelines were established for free and reduced-price school
lunches for needy children participating in the program. All public and private пепргоfit schools are eligible for the
program. Lunches are available to all children at participating schools.
The School Breakfast Program provides a nutritious morning meal to children in schools. Established in 1966 as a pilot
program, it was permanently authorized in 1975. The program operates under the same eligib Lity criteria and
administration as does school lunch. Despite its proven effectiveness in improving school performance and attendance,
breakfast is currently available in less than half of those schools offering lunch and serves only 31.5 percent of the
number of low-income children served by school lunch.
The Summer Food Service Program for Children provides nutritions meals 10 low-income children during the summer
months when school is out. The program is available free to all children under age 18 who attend the meal site of a
sponsor organization. Though II is an entitlement, the program serves only a fraction of those children receiving school
lunch.
The Child and Adult Care Food Program provides nutritious meals for all children up to age 12, handicapped children
up 10 age 15. and handicapped or older adults who participate in nonprofit. licensed or approved day care programs.
This entitlement program only serves 3 small proportion of those who could benefit from its services
Conclusion
Hunger in the United States increased significantly during the 1980s. and currently affects the lives of millions. Jobs
lost during the 1990-1992 recession, exacerbated by cuts in federal and state safety-net programs early in the '80s and
'90s, consistently high poverty rates, and budget crises at the state and local levels. have left the poer and near poor
extremely vulnerable to hunger.
New and creative thinking is needed to actually end hunger and poverty. Of vital importance is the achievement of
food security -- access by all people at all times through normal channels 10 enough nutritionally adequate food for an
active, healthy life. However, those who are hungry. especially children, cannot wait for the long run. The federal food
assistance programs - including the Food Stamp Program, the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants
and Children (WIC), the School Lunch and Breakfast Programs, the Summer Food Program, and the Child and Adult
Care Food Program - are this country's first line of defense against hunger. With improved access, funding and benefit
levels, these programs can go a long way toward ending hunger in the United States.
Millions of kids and adults are hungry in America. And we can do something about it.
Sep 09,92 14:55 FOOD RSCH & ACTION CENTER WASH DC
P.10
FRAC
CONTACT: Ann K. Kittlaus
Christin Driscoll
(202) 986-2200
HOLD FOR RELEASE:
Thursday, August 6, 1992
FOOD RESEARCH
& ACTION CENTER
SUMMERTIME MEALS FAIL TO REACH
MILLIONS OF NEEDY CHILDREN
Communities, Schools, Government Share Responsibility
for Missing Chance to Feed Kids
Millions of low-income children may be going hungry this summer because a
program designed to provide them with summertime meals is severely
underutilized, according to the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC).
Only 15 percent of the low-income children who received low-cost or free
lunches during the 1991 school year participated in the federal Summer Food
Service Program for Children last summer, according to government data
analyzed by FRAC. Participation figures for this summer are not yet
available, but anecdotal reports indicate that, while program use is expected
to be higher than last summer. the overall increase will do very little to close
the gap.
"On Mondays during the academic year, teachers see children who devour
their school lunches like they're the first real meals the kids have had since
Friday," said Robert J. Fersh, FRAC's Executive Director. "Just think what
happens to these children when Monday at school is three months away."
Government studies show that low-income children receive one-third to one-
half of their daily nutrient intake from the National School Lunch Program.
The Summer Food Service Program for Children is designed to fill the void
when school is not in session. Both programs are operated by the U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA) as federal entitlements to schools and
communities to provide nutritious meals to children.
More than 12 million low-income children received low-cost or free school
lunches daily in 1991. When the school year ended, however, only 1.8 million
such children participated in the summer food program nationally.
Responsibility for the summertime nutrition gap lies at the local, state and
federal levels, according to FRAC. First, most local community groups, public
agencies and schools that are eligible for federal money to operate programs
1875 Connecticut Ave., NW
do not apply for funding. Second, some state agencies have not done enough
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Washington, DC 20009
TFL: (202) 986-2200
-more-
FAX. (202) 986-2525
The Leland bill passed the House as part of the
children's Initiative on Aug. 6 by a vote of 256- June 23,
1992
Billismost significantanti hunger initiative in 15 years.
Senate is
Talking Points on Mickey Leland Childhood Hunger Relief Act
unsertain.
hopefully Fart
Over 90 percent of its benefits would be provided to families with children, primarily through
Urba
reforming the federal Food Stamp Program.
Aid
6:11
o
This is a scaled-back version of the Panetta-Emerson anti-hunger bill that has won broad support
in the House and Senate Agriculture Committees and on the House floor over the last two years.
o
The House Agriculture Committee passed the bill twice, most recently in October 1991
by a voice vote.
o
The Leland Bill passed on the House floor in 1990 by a 336-83 vote, with every
Democrat who voted and a majority of Republicans supporting it.
o
The Senate Agriculture Committee reported out a more expansive version of the Leland
Bill in November 1991 with only one dissent.
o
The nationwide Community Childhood Hunger Identification Project (CCHIP) released in March
1991 found evidence of widespread hunger among children in the United States.
About 5 million children under the age of twelve were estimated to go hungry each
month. With the rapid increase in poverty brought on by the recession, the number
today is almost certainly higher.
Hungry children were sick significantly more often and missed more days of school than
non-hungry children.
Polls indicate widespread support for the Food Stamp Program and for expanding programs to feed
hungry children and their families.
o
A 1992 poll of 1,000 registered voters conducted by Dr. Vincent J. Breglio, Republican
pollster for the Wall Street Journal/NBC News monthly survey, found that when voters
are informed that 80% of food stamp benefits go to families with children, support for
the program reaches 80%.
O
That poll also found that 67% of voters are willing to pay $100 more in taxes to end
hunger among children and their families.
o
The Leland Bill would make substantial improvements in the Food Stamp Program for families
with children.
o
It would help families with children on the brink of homelessness by allowing them to
deduct high shelter costs in the same way that elderly and disabled households do at
present.
o
It would assist custodial parents seek and absent parents meet child support obligations.
It would help working families with children by raising the $4500 limit on the value of
a vehicle a household may own.
2-of-3
to encourage program use. Third, USDA has not adequately promoted the program and has made
participation by some eligible sponsors unnecessarily difficult.
"There may be millions of kids who wait out the summer at risk of hunger because they do not have
access to a program specifically designed for their benefit," said Fersh. "As the result, they may lose
ground nutritionally and developmentally compared to other children when they arrive at school
in the fall. These kids are likely to be at an educational disadvantage."
"Our society pays a huge price for social problems like hunger," said Fersh. "When parents go
hungry or see their children go hungry in this land of plenty, it can only contribute to the sense of
anger and injustice that many poor people feel."
"Hunger deprives children of important opportunities to be creative and learn," said Fersh. "In the
summer or anytime, childhood hunger is unconscionable. We have successful nutritional assistance
programs in place to help families who are experiencing financial difficulties. Community groups
and government agencies at all levels must make it a priority to see that these programs reach all
children who are in need."
A FRAC study of low-income families with children, which was based on pre-recession data and
released last year, indicates that about five million American children under age 12 are hungry and
millions more are at risk of hunger on a monthly basis. Although all of the households interviewed
by the Community Childhood Hunger Identification Project (CCHIP) were potentially eligible for
the summer food program, more than half had not heard of it. Of those that were aware of the
program, less than half (48 percent) were participating. Overall, less than one-quarter of the
CCHIP households were benefitting from summer meals for their children.
Of the households interviewed by CCHIP that had heard of summer food but were not
participating, 43 percent attributed their lack of participation to no local program or difficulties
accessing the program (including site inconvenience, scheduling or transportation difficulties),
according to the CCHIP study.
"Lack of program information, outreach and availability has left parents struggling in the summer
to make ends meet without the benefit of an important nutrition insurance program for their
children." said Fersh. "Other program benefits they may receive, such as food stamps, do not
increase to compensate for the loss of school meals. And, emergency food programs are hard-
pressed to feed all who are in need. Summer is often a low point for charitable food donations."
"Instead of enjoying the long, lazy days of summer, many children from low-income families eagerly
await the first day of school and the opening of the school cafeteria," said Fersh.
Public sentiment is squarely behind federal anti-hunger initiatives. Despite the heroic efforts of
private charity to feed hungry Americans, voters place the primary responsibility for fighting hunger
-more-
Sep 09, 92 14:56 FOOD RSCH & ACTION CENTER WASH DC
P.12
3-of-3
with government. According to a recent poll conducted by former Bush/Quayle pollster Dr. Vincent
Breglio, support for federal food assistance programs is very high. In fact, a strong majority of
voters is willing to earmark $100 more in taxes annually to solve the hunger problem.
Summer food program expansion is one of the primary policy goals of the one-year-old Campaign
to End Childhood Hunger. Through the Campaign, FRAC and a 50-state network of anti-hunger
advocates and emergency food providers are educating the public and policymakers on the extent
and causes of childhood hunger and advocating solutions to the problem. Campaign partners are
working with local governments, agencies and schools to program summer food program expansion.
The federal Summer Food Service Program for Children was established in 1968. Sponsors may
operate feeding sites in areas in which at least one half of the children are from low-income
households (those with incomes below 185 percent of the federal poverty line) or at sites where 50
percent of the children participating are documented to be from low-income households. All
children who attend a summer food site are eligible to receive free meals.
Eligible summer food sponsors include public or private nonprofit schools; units of local, municipal,
county or state government; summer camps; and certain private nonprofit organizations, such as
Boys' Clubs, community action agencies, churches and YWCAs. Sponsors contract with their state
operating agency (usually the state education agency) or with USDA to receive federal operating
funds. Meals served through the program must meet specific nutritional requirements.
Congress and the Administration can show their commitment to promoting the well-being of
children and families by supporting summer food program expansion efforts and improvements in
the program as part of the 1995 legislative reauthorization of the program. Additionally, significant
anti-hunger legislation is being considered today by the House of Representatives. The
Downey/Panetta Children's Initiative includes critical federal anti-hunger and child welfare program
reforms. The nutrition program improvements are targeted on families with children, particularly
those with high shelter costs.
A list of state and local partners in the Campaign to End Childhood
Hunger is available from FRAC.
###
The Food Research and Action Center is one of the leading national groups working for more effective public policies to
eradicate hunger and undemutrition in the United States. FRAC, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, was established in
1970.
The Campaign to End Childhood Hunger is a long-term, public education and advocacy campaign which is being waged
by FRAC and a 50-state network of anti-hunger groups and emergency food providers. The Campaign has been endorsed
by more than 100 national organizations and has an advisory council composed of bipartisan congressional leaders and
mayors, business and union leaders, physicians, creative artists, and the directors of anti-hunger, child advocacy and religious
organizations.
School Lunch vs. Summer Food
State-by-State Low-Income Participation Rates, 1991
State
School Lunch
Summer Food
SF Participation as % of SL
AL
297,877
46,745
15.7%
AK
19,498
******
******
AZ
193,365
18,617
9.6%
AR
149,388
10,301
6.9%
CA
1,474,643
148,709
10.1%
CO
120,432
11,360
9.4%
CT
84,989
19,235
22.6%
DE
20,821
14,477
69.5%
DC
37,116
6,318
17.0%
FL
623,227
195,850
31.4%
GA
396,307
66,514
16.8%
HI
42,280
2,993
7.1%
ID
53,883
1,842
3.4%
IL
511,095
77,984
15.3%
IN
181,759
14,728
8.1%
IA
102,793
6,953
6.8%
KS
105,035
5,871
5.6%
KY
238,772
26,757
11.2%
LA
409,257
53,939
13.2%
ME
42,684
2,268
5.3%
MD
144,577
28,463
19.7%
MA
153,111
19,489
12.7%
MI
317,231
49,766
15.7%
MN
150,469
13,827
9.2%
MS
292,695
45,649
15.6%
MO
216,873
18,859
8.7%
MT
35,559
3,013
8.5%
NE
65,370
5,057
7.7%
NV
29,917
1,280
2.1%
NH
19,787
1,236
6.2%
NJ
228,732
66,960
29.3%
NM
122,271
51,181
41.9%
NY
891,263
335,679
37.7%
NC
339,445
42,667
12.6%
ND
28,899
1,885
6.5%
OH
390,670
34,663
8.9%
OK
182,411
7,532
4.1%
OR
100,351
9,874
9.8%
PA
359,747
86,070
23.9%
RI
29,256
8,512
29.1%
SC
232,029
67,246
27.3%
SD
43,159
5,359
12.4%
TN
255,832
25,211
9.9%
TX
1,194,781
78,368
6.6%
UT
83,767
9,621
11.5%
VT
15,677
454
2.9%
VA
207,948
27,495
13.2%
WA
165,069
13,676
8.3%
WV
114,751
7,591
6.6%
WI
161,387
14,628
9.1%
WY
19,267
1,898
9.9%
US
12,178,102
1,839,674
15.1%
*Participation rates are based on average daily attendance in July. Because of
weather conditions, programs in Alaska generally don't operate until August.
LANDMARK STUDY SHOWS SCHOOL BREAKFAST PARTICIPATION
IMPROVES TEST SCORES AND REDUCES TARDINESS
A recent study found that low-income elementary school children
participating in the School Breakfast Program showed an
improvement in their standardized test scores and a decrease in
tardiness, compared to students who did not eat breakfast at
school.
School Breakfast Program and School Performance - conducted by
Alan Meyers, M.D., M.P.H. from Boston University School of
Medicine, Boston City Hospital; Amy Sampson, B.S., from Tufts
University School of Nutrition; Michael Weitzman, M.D., from
Boston University Schools of Medicine and Public Health, Boston
city Hospital; and Herb Kayne, Ph.D., from Boston University
School of Public Health - was released at the Ambulatory
Pediatric Association's Annual Meeting, May 2-6, 1988 in
Washington, D.C.
In August 1986, Massachusetts enacted legislation requiring all
public schools to offer a School Breakfast Program if at least 40
percent of the students qualified for free or reduced price
school meals. This circumstance allowed Meyers, et al conduct a
study on children participating in the school Breakfast Program
for the first time in Lawrenceville, MA.
The study found that:
0
achievement test scores on a scale of 200 to 800, which
improved for both groups, showed a greater increase for
students in the School Breakfast Program, an average of 48.4
points as compared with 40.9 points for those students not
participating;
0
students participating in the School Breakfast Program
showed slightly decreased rates of tardiness; and
0
increases in absentee rates were less for Breakfast Program
participants.
In summary, the study found "a small but statistically
significant positive association between participation in the
breakfast program and improvement in standardized achievement
test scores and in tardiness
there may be even greater
measurable effects over periods of time longer than the three
months the Program was in place in Lawrence prior to the 1987
achievement testing."
For a copy, contact Alan Meyers, Boston City Hospital, Boston U
School of Medicine, 818 Harrison Avenue, Boston, MA 02118 (617)
424-5506.
FRAC
CONTACT: Ann K. Kittlaus
(202) 986-2200
HOLD FOR RELEASE:
Thursday, February 13, 1992 (10:00 am)
FOOD RESEARCH
3 ACTION CENTER
SCHOOL BREAKFAST PROGRAM MISSES
MILLIONS OF NEEDY CHILDREN
Bush Budget Proposal Threatens Program Expansion Efforts
Millions of needy students are going without school breakfast -- many without any
breakfast at all -- because their schools have not enrolled in the federal School
Breakfast Program, according to a report released today by the Washington, D.C.-
based Food Research and Action Center (FRAC).
FRAC's School Breakfast Score Card shows that in 1991, fewer than half of the
schools that ran federal lunch programs also operated school breakfast programs.
As a result, participation by low-income students in school breakfast was less than
one-third that of low-income students in school lunch. The Score Card includes
state-by-state data on school and low-income student participation in breakfast.
"Children starting school without breakfast are at a significant disadvantage," said
Robert J. Fersh, FRAC's Executive Director. "Hunger in the morning leaves
children cranky and lethargic. They are tired and unable to concentrate."
"Most significantly," said Fersh, "hunger deprives children of important
opportunities to be creative and learn. Teachers will tell you that hungry kids
can't learn."
"The good news is, school breakfast works," said Fersh. "Studies have
documented the significant relationship between eating a nutritious breakfast at
school and the ability to perform in class. Compared to non-participating low-
income students, low-income students who eat school breakfast achieve higher
standardized test scores, and have lower rates of tardiness and absenteeism."
The School Breakfast Program, like the widely-utilized school lunch program, is
available as a federal entitlement to any public or non-profit, private school that
wishes to participate, according to Fersh. And, all children attending participating
schools can take advantage of school breakfast.
"The bad news is that potentially millions of school children do not receive this
1875 Connecticut Ave., NWboost to academic excellence because their schools haven't requested the federal
Suite 540
Washington, DC 20009
money to run a breakfast program," said Fersh.
TEL: (202) 986-2200
FAX: (202) 986-2525
Sep 09, 92 14:59 FOOD RSCH 2 ACTION CENTER WASH DC
P.16
2 of 4
"Schools sometimes perceive barriers to starting breakfast programs, like
rearranging bus schedules and monitoring students. But, these barriers can be
overcome," said Fersh. "It's time to make school breakfast a priority. When
administrators, teachers, parents and community groups work together, barriers
fall and kids benefit."
In fact, school breakfast organizing efforts are underway in sites across the
country, according to Fersh. To highlight successful efforts, the Score Card
includes state-by-state information on recent program expansion among schools
and low-income students.
Across the country, school participation in school breakfast increased by eight
percent between 1990 and 1991, according to the Score Card. Low-income
student participation jumped by 9.7 percent during that time.
Increases in participation by low-income students also reflect the impact of the
current recession on the need for school breakfast, noted Fersh.
"Parents who have recently lost jobs are looking for ways to save money," said
Fersh. "The School Breakfast Program is designed to serve these children in
need. But it only works if schools choose to offer it. A: a time of severe financial
difficulties in states and households across the country. it makes no sense at all
to ignore federal money that is readily available."
The Score Card also indicates states' use of tools for breakfast expansion,
including breakfast mandates for certain schools, state funding for the program,
application for federal breakfast start-up funds. and direct certification for free
meals for students participating in other assistance programs.
Fersh expressed concern that current efforts to expand school breakfast will be
hindered if President Bush's fiscal year 1993 budget proposal is adopted by
Congress. The President's proposal would lower the reimbursement rates to
schools for meals served to children from households earning more than 185
percent of the poverty line.
Schools are reimbursed by the federal government for every breakfast served.
The reimbursement rate varies depending on the family income of participating
students. Children from very low-incorne households can qualify for free meals.
Children in households with income between 130 and 185 percent of the federal
poverty line can get meals at a reduced price. The price of school meals for
other students is set by the school.
To compensate for the cut in the reimbursement rate for paying students, schools
will likely increase the price of the meals, making school breakfast a less-
affordable option for middle-income students, according to Fersh. The program,
then, becomes less attractive for schools that are not yet participating.
3 of 4
"In the end, all students - particularly low-income students attending schools in
predominantly middle-income areas - lose," said Fersh.
The Administration proposes to use program savings to lower the cost of reduced-
prices meals that go to low-income students.
"We support whole-heartedly efforts to lower the cost of meals to needy students,"
said Fersh. "But the eventual impact of shifting the money may inadvertently
sabotage school breakfast expansion efforts across the country."
"In this election year, candidates are jockeying to be seen as the most sensitive to
the well-being of our children. We must hold our President, other elected officials
and candidates accountable," said Fersh. "FRAC is proud to be a partner in the
Coalition for America's Children, which is highlighting children's issues in the
political debate. Vocal support for the School Breakfast Program is one clear
way in which candidates can indeed prove: Who's for Kids and Who's Just
Kidding?"
A FRAC study of hunger among low-income families with children. which was
based on pre-recession data and released last March, indicated that an estimated
five million children under age 12 are hungry on a monthly basis in the United
States. The Community Childhood Hunger Identification Project (CCHIP)
demonstrated that children who were eating both school breakfast and school
lunch were significantly less likely to suffer from problems associated with low
energy reserves (fatigue, irritability and inability to concentrate) than those who
were getting school lunch only. In addition, children were less likely to have
increased school absences if they got breakfast at school.
"Millions of kids are hungry in America." said Fersh. "School breakfast is just one
of our nation's successful food assistance programs helping struggling families.
We are working at the state and local levels to expand school breakfast and there
are tremendous opportunities at the national level as well. Right new, Congress
is considering passage of the most significant anti-hunger bill since the late 1970s."
"The Mickey Leland Childhood Hunger Relief Act (HR 1202, S 757) would make
critical improvements in the Food Stamp Program, our nation's most important
childhood nutrition program," said Fersh. "Half of all food stamp participants are
children and more than 80 percent of program benefits go to households with
children. Improvements included in the Leland bill are heavily targeted toward
families and would go a long way toward helping them weather this recession and
other financial crises they may experience."
"Despite strong congressional support, the President's budget does not include
funding for the Leland bill," said Fersh. "Last fall, the bill passed the House
Agriculture Committee unanimously and passed the Senate Agriculture
Committee by a vote of 14 to 1. And, the Leland bill passed the full House in
1990 by a vote of 336-83. It is terribly unfortunate that the President has chosen
to ignore this measure to provide relief for struggling families."
Sep 09, 92 15:00 FOOD RSCH & ACTION CENTER WASH DC
P.18
4 of 4
The School Breakfast Score Card is being released as part of the nationwide
Campaign to End Childhood Hunger, an effort by FRAC and advocacy groups
in 49 states to improve and expand the federal food assistance programs and
ultimately achieve food security in the United States. Among the Campaign's
primary goals is to: make the School Breakfast Program available to all low-income
children across the country. Campaign events in support of the School Breakfast
Program are scheduled in sites across the country on February 13.
###
In addition to Robert J. Fersh, speakers at the February 13 news conference in Washington, D.C.
include:
Keith Gelger, President, National Education Association
Sue Greig, R.D., President, American School Food Service Association
Thomas M. O'Neill, Executive Director, Partnership for New Jersey
Marcia Jackson, R.N., Certified Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, District of Columbia Commission
of Public Health. Bureau of School Health
Julius Jacobs, Director of Food Services, District of Columbia Public Schools
Michele A. Tingling-Clemmons, Coordinator. National School Breakfast Campaign, FRAC.
The Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) is widely recognized as the leading national group
working for more effective public policies to eradicate hunger and undernutrition in the United
States. FRAC, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, was established in 1970.
IMPACT OF PRESIDENT BUSH'S FISCAL YEAR 1993
BUDGET PROPOSAL ON THE SCHOOL BREAKFAST PROGRAM
The Bush Administration's FY 1993 Budget Proposal Would Have a Negative Effect on the
School Breakfast Program and the National School Lunch Program.
The Administration is proposing to cut six cents from the subsidy paid to schools for
breakfasts served to students whose families' incomes exceed 185 percent of the
poverty level ($24,790 for a family of four in FY 1992). The effect of this cut on the
School Breakfast Program reimbursement would be significant. A six cent per meal
reduction in this program represents a 33-1/3 percent cut in the subsidy provided to
schools for this category of school breakfast funding.
In order to compensate for this loss in reimbursement. schools will have to raise the
price of breakfasts to middle-income students. (Schools would have to raise the price
of school breakfasts to cover their costs since schools cannot by law raise the price
of free or reduced-price meals.) It is likely that a significant price increase in the
School Breakfast Program would result in a decrease in program participation by
middle-income children. This loss of middle-income students has the potential of
stigmatizing school breakfast participation .n some schools (i.e., "Only poor students
participate in school breakfast").
This kind of cut in school breakfast subsidies would have a chilling effect on
expansion of the program to new schools, and on the use of the Program by middle-
income children who for one reason or another are not eating a nutritious breakfast
at home.
The Administration justifies this cut by proposing to use the savings to lower
breakfast charges for students from families whose incomes are between 130 percent
and 185 percent of poverty from 30 cents to 10 cents. This change would be a great
help to low-income children, their families, and their schools' meal programs.
However, coupling this improvement with a cut in subsidies for breakfasts consumed
by middle-income children makes it an undesirable trade-off. It is unclear how
schools or children will benefit if. because : the need to increase charges to middle-
income students in order to make up for the cuts, schools have to risk stigma and
decreasing participation levels.
The Administration also proposes to cut SIX cents from the subsidy paid to schools
for lunches served through the National School Lunch Program to students whose
families' incomes exceed 185 percent of the poverty level. This proposal would
reduce the FY 1993 reimbursement level for lunches from 31-1/2 cents to 25-1/2
cents, a 20 percent reduction in this category of funding. The Administration also
proposes to use the savings from this cut to lower student lunch charges for families
whose incomes are between 130 percent and 185 percent of poverty from 40 cents
to 15 cents. Similar concerns to those raised above about the breakfast program
apply to this proposed cut and trade-off in the lunch program. In fact, this kind of
cut could have an even more profound effect on the School Lunch Program because
almost half of its participants are middle-income. The American School Food Service
Association estimates that if this cut went into effect, one to two million children
would drop out of the lunch program. This cut could contribute to a growing trend
of schools dropping out of the lunch program for a variety of reasons. It should be
noted that if a school drops its lunch program, it is very likely to drop its breakfast
program as well. Therefore, the economic viability of lunch programs should be of
concern to those who wish to expand the accessibility of the School Breakfast
Program to more students.
TRENDS IN SCHOOL BREAKFAST PARTICIPATION
Participation in the School Breakfast Program by schools and low-income students is
increasing.
The number of schools nationwide participating in the School Breakfast Program
increased by 8.0 percent between 1990 and 1991.
Participation nationwide by low-income children in the School Breakfast Program
increased by 9.7 percent between 1990 and 1991.
These increases in participation probably reflect two on-going trends -- greater need
for the Program (increasing poverty among children and increasing participation in
the work force by mothers) and strong efforts on the par: of community organizations.
and school officials to expand the School Breakfast Program to more children. In
addition, it is likely that these increases reflect the increased need for assistance
brought on by the current economic recession.
February 13, 1992
Food Research and Action Center
(202) 986-2200
HELPING ARKANSAS' CHILDREN
Governor Clinton and Hillary Clinton recognized from the outset how many of
the state's economic handicaps have been rooted in the problems caused by poor
beginnings for many of Arkansas' children. These problems are particularly acute in
a state where many families live in poverty, often in remote rural areas complicating
access to services, and where the funds to address these problems (especially in view
of federal cutbacks) are severely limited.
In these circumstances, Governor Clinton's record on helping Arkansas' children
is an exceptionally strong one. Arkansas has developed some innovative programs
with highly beneficial results.
For example:
Governor Clinton has been an outspoken proponent of school-based health
clinics. The state now funds 26 such clinics reaching thousands of Arkansas children
who wouldn't otherwise have access to health care. Clinic services include one or
more of the following: health, vision and hearing screenings, scoliosis screenings,
wellness promotion, treatment of minor illnesses and injuries, immunizations, and
presentations on family life/health education topics (i.e. safety, self-esteem, alcohol
and drugs). State health personnel work through the clinics to fight the problems
which can devastate young lives.
*
EPSDT screening of children has increased by more than 2,000 percent (from
4,000 in 1986 to around 85,000 in 1991) because of a new emphasis on this
program by Governor Clinton.
*
Today the Arkansas Health Department performs approximately 90% of all
immunizations given to children in the state.
*
Arkansas' infant mortality rate dropped from 16.4 to 9.3 deaths per 1,000
births from 1978 to 1990, a decline of 43% (while the national rate dropped only
34%). Arkansas' infant mortality rate has been reduced from 20% above the national
average in 1978 to virtual parity in 1990.
Through Governor Clinton's efforts, the state has also:
*
Created a Children's Trust Fund, financed by a $5 fee on marriage licenses,
which grants funds for local child abuse and neglect prevention projects; and
established a Child Sexual Abuse Education Commission to train social workers,
teachers, police officers and others on the problems of child sex abuse.
-11-
*
Introduced the Healthy Beginnings/Nurse Midwife Programs in East Arkansas
to provide low income women with access to comprehensive maternity care. Then,
through Good Beginnings, expanded components of the Healthy Beginnings Program
(prenatal education classes, early discharge home visits) statewide. Through Good
Beginnings, these projects have demonstrated that access to proper care is critical in
reducing infant mortality.
*
Established a Good Beginnings Program to increase basic health services for
pregnant women and their children from birth to age five if they are at or below the
national poverty line. Arkansas was the first state to participate in such a program.
Initiated two major media campaigns, "Teen Pregnancy: Arkansas" Time
Bomb" and "Campaign for Healthier Babies." The teen pregnancy campaign's goals
are to focus public attention on adolescent pregnancy and its associated problems,
and to increase public support for adolescent pregnancy prevention strategies. The
Campaign for Healthier Babies promotes awareness, education and incentives for
pregnant women to seek early prenatal care.
*
Initiated a newborn hearing screening program which now screens about 70%
of all newborns for hearing loss.
*
Most recently, Governor Clinton proposed and passed a "Health Care Access
Law," a program designed to, among other things, prepare a plan to provide for
universal health coverage for all Arkansas children under age 16, regardless of family
income, with an emphasis on preventive and primary care.
The Arkansas Child Support Enforcement Unit has received national
recognition for identifying fathers and aggressive enforcement of child support
payments. Among the tools used by the Child Support Enforcement Unit are income
withholding for children's health care coverage, reporting overdue support payments
to consumer reporting agencies, and the establishment of a rebuttable presumption
of paternity if the father's name and social security number are recorded on the birth
record. The Child Support Enforcement Unit collected more than $41 million in 1991,
a 20% increase from 1990.
*
Raised standards for licensing child-care centers, created more state
inspectors to insure those standards are enforced, and perhaps most important,
established a training fund to train child care workers. A loan guarantee fund was
also established to support development of additional child care centers.
*
Established the first statewide HIPPY (Home Instructional Program for Pre-
School Youngsters) program in 1986. An Israeli program promoted in Arkansas by
Hillary Clinton, HIPPY teaches parents how to become their children's teacher. One
of the most successful pre-school programs in the world, Arkansas' is now the largest
in the nation and has been "exported" to many other states.
-12-
*
Clinton's newest state initiative, the Arkansas Better Chance Program,
reflects a major state commitment to child care and early childhood programs. The
Program provided $5,000,000 last fiscal year and another $10,000,000 this fiscal
year to provide financing for early childhood programs for at-risk children ages 3-5.
*
Because of Bill Clinton's leadership and additional Arkansas Better Chance
monies, Arkansas can now serve 35% of the state's four-year-olds in free pre-school
programs; that number will increase in 1992.
There has recently been considerable controversy and misinformation
concerning Arkansas' child welfare system. Like systems all across America,
Arkansas' child welfare system problems have been growing because of the
irresponsible behavior of the parents of abused and neglected children. Governor
Clinton, with the assistance of a team of nationally recognized experts, together with
child welfare advocates in Arkansas, developed a thoroughgoing Child Welfare Reform
Proposal. This proposal and a $15 million appropriation to finance it were passed by
a special session of the legislature, called by the Governor for that purpose, in
February 1992. The initiatives will provide extensive additional services to foster
parents, insure adequate health care for foster children, reduce caseloads of family
service workers, and strengthen the state's capacity to deal with child abuse. These
and other reforms will better protect children and give foster and adoptive families the
support they need.
Clearly, Governor Clinton has no stronger or more steadfast commitment than
that he has demonstrated over the past eleven years to children's welfare.
-13-
9-1-92 Susan Thrmases -
missu - have HRC
We shmed do dothin
This. Can Maggie
media?
Campayns Children's Stephanie
Williams be the K
Stephane- I that
Coalition for America's Children
we should do the tape
but not the live
Patti-
Who's
for
affeerance by staff. Can
you show
Kids
this to Frank.
9/24
Maybe
HRC
Kate Mattos called 8/27
and Who's
703-524-2793
mike
DC
Just
Kidding
August 17, 1992
TM
Coalition for
Governor Bill Clinton
America's Children
Bill Clinton for President Committee
1710 Rhode Island Avenue NW
Attn: Susan Morris
4th Floor
P. O. Box 615
Washington DC 20036
Little Rock, AR 72203
Tel (202) 857-7829
Fax (202) 857-7841
Dear Governor Clinton:
A project of the M. B. Fund
I am writing on behalf of the Coalition for
Steering Committee
America's Children, which I chair, to invite
American Academy
your video appearance and the participation of
of Pediatrics
an issues staff member in a National Satellite
American Association
Summit on Children' Issues to take place
of Retired Persons
September 24, 1992 in Washington, D.C.
American Association
The Coalition is a nonpartisan alliance of
of School Administrators
roughly 200 nonprofit groups and public
American Federation
agencies, representing over 40 million members,
of Teachers
which has come together to raise the concerns of
Association
children to the top of the nation's public
of Child Advocates
policy agenda. Our members include business
leaders, heads of children's hospitals, Junior
Association of Junior Leagues
International
League and PTA presidents, pediatricians,
principals, school teachers, parent groups and
Benton Foundation
older Americans. We are Republicans, Democrats
Child Welfare League
and Independents, all of whom want to see
of America
children's needs given a high priority in future
Children Now
years.
Florida Center for
On September 24th, we will use a national
Children and Youth
corporate satellite network to broadcast a
Food Research
program to our membership which, with your
and Action Center
participation, will present the two presidential
For the Children
candidates' approaches to children's issues.
National Association
Specifically, we would ask you to:
of Children's Hospitals
and Related Institutions
provide a five minute taped presentation
National Association of
stating how you and your administration would
Elementary School Principals
approach the health, education, safety and
National Association
security needs of American children over the
of Secondary School Principals
next four years; and
National Black Child
Development Institute
National Education Association
Save the Children
designate a Children's Issues Director on your campaign
no
staff to join us in a live question and answer session at a
Washington studio, following broadcast of your taped
segment.
In addition, should there be a national presidential debate
on September 22, as the Debate Commission has recommended, we
would plan to tape any responses that directly address children's
issues and replay these in their entirety in the course of our
program.
The National Satellite Summit on Children's Issues will be
hosted by our national spokesperson, Bob Keeshan (better known as
Captain Kangaroo). We expect that it will be broadcast to 50
major cities, 30 of which have already committed to host the
broadcast. In addition, it will be available to commercial, PBS
and cable stations all across America. And, while this will not
be a media event per se, we will be inviting reporters to watch
and cover the broadcast at these sites. Tapes of the
teleconference will also be distributed as widely as possible to
our Coalition's 40 million members.
In keeping with our nonprofit status, this broadcast will be
strictly nonpartisan in nature. The Coalition will not endorse
any candidate for public office. While we expect to ask tough
questions, we will not critique the respondents' answers, nor
will we attack or promote either candidate's record. We are
simply interested in eliciting from both you and President Bush
how you would approach the needs of our children in the next four
years and in making this information widely available.
We would be happy to meet with your staff to discuss this
request further and to answer any questions they may have.
Please note that we would prefer, because of the costs, to have
your campaign provide the five minute taped interview (preferably
in Betacam). However, should this prove prohibitive, we can
dispatch a crew or provide a studio for the taping.
Your children's issues director would need to be available
on September 24 here in Washington from noon to 3:30 p.m. S/he
should be prepared to answer questions from the host as well as
those from the field, available as audio calls from the downlink
sites.
This electronic town meeting offers us all a thoughtful
moment to reflect on family values, the needs of our children and
the nation's role in securing our children's future. As a
Coalition, we recognize that there are often several promising
approaches to the problems that confront us. We hope your vision
will help our members see your candidacy more clearly, and help
them consider carefully the many potential ways we can direct
attention to our children's needs.
We hope you will give this invitation a top priority and
will agree to provide our membership with your views on our
children's future. Mindful of the demands of the campaign trail,
we have tried to make your participation as easy as possible.
Please let us know if we can provide you or your staff with any
additional information or answer any questions.
Lisasate Very truly yours,
Lisa Tate
Chair
OVERA
LT/snb
662-7460
Coalition for America's Children
Who's
for
MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS
Kids
(As of AUGUST 5, 1992)
and Who's
ACTION FOR ALASKA'S CHILDREN
Just
ADOPTION ACTION NETWORK (NY)
Kidding
ADVOCACY ON BEHALF OF CHILDREN (CA)
TM
ADVOCATES FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH (MD)
AGENDA FOR CHILDREN (LA)
ALLIANCE FOR CHILD SURVIVAL (MD)
Coalition for
ALLIANCE FOR THE RIGHTS OF CHILDREN (VA)
America's Children
ALLIANCE TO END CHILDHOOD LEAD POISONING (WDC)
1710 Rhode Island Avenue NW
AMERICAN ACADEMY OF CHILD AND
4th Floor
ADOLESCENT PSYCHIATRY (WDC)
Washington DC 20036
AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS (WDC)
Tel (202) 857-7829
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGES
Fax (202) 857-7841
FOR TEACHER EDUCATION (WDC)
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF PSYCHIATRIC SERVICES
A project of the M. B. Fund
FOR CHILDREN (NY)
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF RETIRED PERSONS (WDC)
Steering Committee
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS
American Academy
(VA)
of Pediatrics
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS (UT)
American Association
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS (WDC)
of Retired Persons
AMERICAN HUMAN ASSOCIATION (OH)
American Association
AMERICAN PSYCHIATRIC ASSOCIATION (WDC)
of School Administrators
AMERICAN PUBLIC WELFARE ASSOCIATION (WDC)
ASSOCIATION OF CHILD ADVOCATES (NY)
American Federation
ASSOCIATION OF JUNIOR LEAGUES (WDC)
of Teachers
ASSOCIATION OF OHIO CHILDREN'S HOSPITALS
Association
ATHENS COUNTY CHILDREN'S SERVICES (OH)
of Child Advocates
AWARE INC. (NJ)
Association of Junior Leagues
BAYSTATE MEDICAL CENTER CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL
International
(MA)
BEECH BROOK (OH)
Benton Foundation
BELLEFAIRE/JEWISH CHILDREN'S BUREAU (OH)
Child Welfare League
BENTON FOUNDATION (WDC)
of America
BLACK CHILD DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE (MD)
Children Now
BREAD FOR THE WORLD (WDC)
BLYTHEDALE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL (NY)
Florida Center for
CALIFORNIA CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION
Children and Youth
CALIFORNIA MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCATES FOR
Food Research
CHILDREN AND YOUTH
and Action Center
CALIFORNIA RURAL LEGAL ASSISTANCE FUND
For the Children
CAMPAIGN FOR KIDS' TV (MD)
CARDINAL GLENNON CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL (MO)
National Association
CENTER FOR MULTICULTURAL HUMAN SERVICES (VA)
of Children's Hospitals
and Related Institutions
CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION NETWORK (TX)
CHILD ADVOCATES, INC. (TX)
National Association of
CHILD CARE CONNECTION OF BROWARD COUNTY (FL)
Elementary School Principals
CHILD WELFARE LEAGUE OF AMERICA (WDC)
National Association
CHILD WELFARE LEAGUE WESTERN OFFICE (CA)
of Secondary School Principals
CHILDREN AT RISK, INC. (TX)
National Black Child
CHILDREN NOW (CA)
Development Institute
National Education Association
Save the Children
CHILDREN UNDER SIX (AR)
CHILDREN'S ACTION ALLIANCE (AZ)
CHILDREN'S ALLIANCE (WA)
CHILDREN'S ADVOCACY INSTITUTE (CA)
CHILDREN'S CONSORTIUM, INC. (FL)
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL AND HEALTH CENTER (CA)
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL MEDICAL CTR OF AKRON (OH)
CHIDLREN'S HOSPITAL MEDICAL CTR, CINCINNATI
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL MERITCARE (ND)
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF ALABAMA
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF LOS ANGELES
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF MICHIGAN
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OAKLAND (CA)
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF PITTSBURGH
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF SAN DIEGO
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL - VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY (TN)
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF WISCONSIN
CHILDREN'S HOUSE (NY)
CHILDREN'S MIRACLE NETWORK (UT)
CHILDREN'S MEDICAL CENTER (Dayton, OH)
CHILDREN'S MEDICAL CENTER OF DALLAS
CHILDREN'S NATIONAL MEDICAL CENTER (WDC)
CHILDREN'S SERVICES CENTER (CA)
CITIZENS FOR MISSOURI'S CHILDREN
COALITION FOR MAINE'S CHILDREN
COLEMAN ADVOCATES FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH (CA)
COLORADO CHILDREN'S CAMPAIGN
COLUMBUS CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL (OH)
COMMUNICATIONS FOR YOUTH (IL)
COMMUNITY MEDIATION SERVICES CENTRAL OF OHIO
CONFERENCE OF PRIVATE CHILD CARING AGENCIES OF OREGON
CONGRESS FOR HOUSTON TEACHERS
CONNECTICUT ASSOCIATION FOR HUMAN SERVICES
COOK-FORT WORTH CHILDREN'S MEDICAL CENTER (TX)
COSHOCTON COUNTY CHILDREN'S SERVICES (OH)
COVENANT HOUSE (NY)
CROSSROADS PROGRAMS, INC. (NJ)
DADE COUNTY CHILDREN'S SERVICES COUNCIL (FL)
DAWN FOR CHILDREN, INC. (RI)
DENVER BOYS, INC. (CO)
DENVER GIRLS, INC. (CO)
DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES (KY)
DC PUBLIC LIBRARY (WDC)
DRISCOLL CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL (TX)
EASTERN KENTUCKY CHILD CARE COALITION
EASTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY TRAINING RESOURCE CENTER
EGLESTON CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL (GA)
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CENTER (NY)
ERIKSON INSTITUTE (IL)
FLORIDA CENTER FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH
FOOD RESEARCH ACTION CENTER (WDC)
FOR THE CHILDREN (OH)
FOR THE LOVE OF CHILDREN (WDC)
FRIENDS OF THE FAMILY, INC. (MD)
GENERAL FEDERATION OF WOMEN'S CLUBS (WDC)
GIRLS INCORPORATED (WDC)
GOOD KNIGHT CAMPAIGN FOR PROTECTION (MD)
HAWAII ADVOCATES FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH
HEALTH AND WELFARE COUNCIL OF NASSAU COUNTY, INC (NY)
HERMANN CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL (TX)
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT CENTER (MS)
JAMES WHITCOMB RILEY HOSPITAL FOR CHILDREN (IN)
JUNIOR LEAGUE OF ASHEVILLE, INC. (NC)
JUNIOR LEAGUE OF SALT LAKE CITY
JUNIOR LEAGUE OF SAN FRANCISCO
JUVENILE JUSTICE TRAINERS ASSOCIATION (NY)
JUVENILE LAW CENTER (PA)
KANSAS ACTION FOR CHILDREN
KANSAS CHILDREN'S SERVICE LEAGUE
KENTUCKY YOUTH ADVOCATES
KERN CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION COUNCIL (CA)
KOSAIR CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL (KY)
LA'S BEST (CA)
LAKESIDE FAMILY & CHILDREN'S SERVICES (NY)
LEGISLATIVE COALITION FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES (UT)
LUTHERAN CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES (PA)
MARION COUNTY CHILDREN'S SERVICES BOARD (OH)
MARYLAND COMMITTEE FOR CHILDREN
MARYLAND RESULTS
MASSACHUSETTS CHILD WELFARE LEAGUE OF AMERICA
EXECUTIVE GROUP
MEMORIAL HOSPITAL (FL)
MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION IN TEXAS
MENTOR PROJECT (WA)
MICHIGAN ASSOCIATION OF CHILDREN'S ALLIANCES, INC.
MICHIGAN CITIZENS FOR AMERICA'S CHILDREN
MINNESOTA PARENT AND TEACHER ASSOCIATION
MOTHER'S PROTECTING CHILDREN (CT)
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR ASIAN AND
PACIFIC AMERICAN EDUCATION (CA)
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE EDUCATION
OF YOUNG CHILDREN (WDC)
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CHILDREN'S HOSPITALS
AND RELATED INSTITUTIONS (VA)
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS (VA)
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL NURSES (WDC)
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS (VA)
NATIONAL BLACK CHILD DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE (WDC)
NATIONAL CENTER FOR CLINICAL INFANT PROGRAMS (VA)
NATIONAL CHILD SUPPORT ADVOCACY COALITION (TN)
NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR THE PREVENTION OF CHILD ABUSE (IL)
NATIONAL EDUCATION ASSOCIATION (WDC)
NATIONAL EMSC RESOURCE ALLIANCE (CA)
NATIONAL JUVENILE DETENTION ASSOCIATION
NATIONAL NETWORK OF RUNAWAY AND YOUTH SERVICES (WDC)
NATIONAL PERINATAL ASSOCIATION (FL)
NATIONAL TASK FORCE FOR CHILDREN'S
CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS
NATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE (NY)
NEW ENGLAND HOME FOR LITTLE WANDERERS (MA)
NETWORK DIRECT, INC. (WA)
NEW FUTURES, INC. (MD)
NEW HAMPSHIRE ALLIANCE FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH
NEW ORLEANS BREAD FOR THE WORLD
NORTH CAROLINA CHILD ADVOCACY INSTITUTE (NC)
OHIO ASSOCIATION OF CHILD CARING AGENCIES
OHIO MENTOR
OHIO YOUTH ADVOCATE PROGRAM, INC
OKLAHOMA INSTITUTE FOR CHILD ADVOCACY
ORGANIZATION OF PAN ASIAN AMERICAN WOMEN (WDC)
PARENT ACTION (MD)
PHILADELPHIA CITIZENS FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH
PORTABLE PRACTICAL EDUCATIONAL PREPARATION (AZ)
PRIMARY CHILDREN'S MEDICAL CENTER (UT)
PUBLIC CHILDREN SERVICES ASSOCIATION OF OHIO
RAINBOW DAYS, INC. (TX)
RESULTS (UT)
RESULTS (WDC)
RYTHER CHILD CENTER (WA)
ST. CHRISTOPHER'S HOSPITAL FOR CHILDREN (PA)
ST. JOSEPH'S CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL (FL)
SASHA BRUCE YOUTHWORK, INC. (WDC)
SAVE THE CHILDREN (WDC)
SOUTHERN ASSOCIATION OF CHILDREN UNDER SIX (AR)
SOUTHERN JUSTICE INSTITUTE (NC)
STATE COMMUNITIES AID ASSOCIATION (NY)
STATEWIDE YOUTH ADVOCACY (NY)
SUPPORT CENTER FOR CHILD ADVOCATES (PA)
TASK FORCE ON PERMANENCY PLANNING
FOR FOSTER CHILDREN
TEXAS CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL
TEXAS COALITION FOR THE PREVENTION OF CHILD ABUSE
TEXAS NETWORK FOR MEDICALLY FRAGILE AND CHRONICALLY ILL CHILDREN
TRAVELERS AID INTERNATIONAL (WDC)
UNITED ACTION FOR YOUTH (IA)
UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST SERVICE COMMITTEE (MA)
UPPER VALLEY YOUTH SERVICES (NH)
UTAH CHAPTER OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS
UTAH CHAPTER OF THE NATIONAL COMMITTEE FOR THE
PREVENTION OF CHILD ABUSE
UTAH CHILDREN
UTAH EDUCATION ASSOCIATION
UTAH PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION
VALLEY CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL (CA)
VOICES FOR CHILDREN IN NEBRASKA
VOICES FOR ILLINOIS CHILDREN
WASHINGTON FOOD POLICY ACTION CENTER
WAVE, INC. (WDC)
WAYNE COUNTY INTERAGENCY CHILDREN'S CLUSTER (OH)
WEST VIRGINIA TASK FORCE ON CHILDREN,
YOUTH AND FAMILIES
WESTCHESTER CHILDREN'S ASSOCIATION (NY)
WINGS FOR CHILDREN (SC)
WISCONSIN COUNCIL ON HUMAN CONCERNS
YOUTH RESOURCES (OR)
AFFILIATE MEMBERS
CHILDREN'S DEFENSE FUND (WDC)
CHILDREN'S DEFENSE FUND OF MN (MN)
COMMUNITY MEDIATION SERVICES CENTRAL OF OHIO (OH)
NATIONAL PTA (WDC)
CLINTON GORE ON HELPING AMERICA'S CHILDREN
For far 100 long we have failed to address the needs of America's children. We do not provide
them with adequate health care, the best education or protection from violence, and we do not
address the special problems of the disadvantaged. We need to achieve bold reform to help
every child reach his or her full potential.
It is time to put children first. The next generation of young people should not be America's first
to grow mto a less certain future than their parents. Bill Clinton and Al Gore will make sure that
America's children are prepared for the 21st century - with the education, the health care, and
the safe neighborhoods they need.
Our children and our country cannot afford another four years of neglect. It is time for action.
THE CLINTON/GORE PLAN
Provide access to quality, affordable health care
Revolutionize lifetime learning
Make our homes, schools and streets safer for children
Support pro-family and pro-children policies
Paid for by the Clinton/Gore 92 Committee
12
THE CLINTON/GORE PLAN
Guarantee quality, affordable health care
Control costs, improve quality, and cover everybody under a national
health care plan. The Clinton/Gore plan will require insurers to offer a core
package of benefits, including pre-natal care and other important
preventive care benefits.
Create a nationwide program like Arkansas' "Good Beginnings" to
provide health care services to more low-income women and their children.
Develop a comprehensive maternal and child health network to reduce
both the infant mortality rate and the number of low birth-weight babies -
because every child deserves a fighting chance to grow up healthy.
Fully fund the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program and other
critical initiatives recommended by the National Commission on Children
that save us several dollars for every one we spend.
Revolutionize lifetime learning
We need an
Make good on the Bush Administration's broken promises by fully
Education
funding Head Start and other pre-school programs.
President who
Through innovative parenting programs like the Home Instructional
shows up for class
Program for Pre-school Youngsters (HIPPY), help disadvantaged parents
every day, not just
work with their children to build an ethic of learning at home that benefits
once every four
both parent and child.
years.
Dramatically improve K-12 education by establishing tough standards
and a national examination system in core subjects, leveling the playing
field for disadvantaged students, and reducing class sizes.
Give every parent the right to choose the public school his or her child
attends, as Governor Clinton has done in Arkansas.
Create a Youth Opportunity Corps to give teenagers who drop out of
school a second chance, Community youth centers will match teenagers
with adults who care about them, and will give kids a chance to develop
self-discipline and skills.
Develop a national apprenticeship system to give kids who don't want to
go to college the skills they need to find high-wage jobs.
Give every American the opportunity to borrow money for college:
retain the Pell grant program but scrap the existing college loan program
and establish a National Service Trust Fund. Those who borrow from the
fund will be able to repay the balance either as a small percentage of their
earnings over time, or through community service - as teachers, law
enforcement officers, health care workers or peer counselors helping kids
stay off drugs and in school.
Make our homes, schools, and streets safer for children
Crack down on violence against women and children. Sign the Violence
Against Women Act, which would provide tougher enforcement and stiffer
penaities to deter domestic violence.
Launch a Safe Schools Initiative so kids can focus on learning again:
make schools eligible for federal assistance to pay for metal detectors and
security personnel if they need them; encourage states to grant school
We ought to
officials greater authority to conduct locker and automobile searches; and
restore schools as
fund mentoring and outreach programs SO kids in trouble with crime, drugs
the safest, not the
or gangs will have someone to turn to.
most dangerous,
Establish school-based clinics and drug education programs to prevent
places in our
society -- places
drug abuse, and to help kids who get hooked on drugs.
where kids do fire
Promote AIDS education in American schools.
drills instead of
Set standards for crime emergency areas by making communities hit
bullet drills.
hardest by crime eligible for federal matching funds to assist in the war on
crime when they adopt proven anti-crime measures.
Fight crime by putting 100,000 new police officers on the streets; create
a National Police Corps and offer unemployed veterans and active military
personnel a chance to become law enforcement officers here at home.
Expand community policing, fund more drug treatment, and establish
community boot camps to discipline first-time non-violent offenders.
Sign the Brady Bill, which will create a waiting period for the purchase
of handguns and allow authorities to conduct background checks before
guns fall into the wrong hands.
Work to ban assault rifles that have no legitimate hunting purpose.
Support pro-family and pro-children policies
Expand the Earned Income Tax Credit to guarantee a "working wage"
so that no American who works full-time is forced to raise their children in
We need a leader
poverty.
who values
families, not one
Lower the tax burden on middle class Americans by asking the very
who just preaches
wealthy to pay their fair share; give middle class taxpayers a choice
about family
between a children's tax credit or a significant reduction in their income tax
values. I'll work to
rate. Virtually every industrialized nation recognizes the importance of
empower those
strong families in its tax code; we should, too.
who rely on
welfare with the
Sign into law the Family and Medical Leave Act, which George Bush
education, child
vetoed in 1990, so that no worker is forced to choose between maintaining
care and medical
his or her job and caring for a newborn child or sick family member.
coverage they
Create a child care network as complete as the public school network,
need to break the
tailored to the needs of working families; establish more rigorous standards
cycle of
dependency and
for licensing child care facilities and implement improved methods for
go back to work.
enforcing them.
Promote tough child support legislation and develop stricter, more
effective methods to enforce it: crack down on deadbeat parents by
reporting them to credit agencies, so they can't borrow money for
themselves when they're not taking care of their children; use the Internal
Revenue Service to collect child support; start a national deadbeat
databank; and make it a felony to cross state lines to avoid paying support.
THE RECORD
Health care
Governor Clinton established 21 school-based health clinics serving thousands of Arkansas
children who wouldn't otherwise have access to health care. State health personnel use the clinics
to fight problems that can devastate young lives.
Introduced programs to provide low-income women with access to comprehensive maternity
and infant care. Arkansas' infant mortality rate has dropped from 16.4 to 9.3 deaths per 1,000
births, one of the lowest for a Southern state.
Proposed and passed a Health Care Access Law, a program designed to provide universal
health care coverage by the year 2000 for all children 16 and under, regardless of family income.
Senator Gore was a principle sponsor of the Infant Formula Act to improve nutrition and safety
standards.
Authored legislation that led the FDA to ban the use of life-threatening suifites on fresh fruits
and vegetables.
Voted for the Family and Medical Leave Act, which President Bush vetoed.
Authored and helped to enact into law the Trauma Core Revitalization Act, which makes grants
to hospital trauma centers incurring substantial uncompensated costs in providing trauma care in
areas with high rates of crime related to drug trafficking.
Gore conducted hearings that led to the passage of the National Organ Transplant Act, which
he also helped to write. The Act established a national network to match organ donors and
recipients.
Protecting children
Governor Clinton created a Children's Trust Fund, financed by a $5 fee on marriage licenses,
which grants funds for local child abuse and neglect prevention projects.
Established a Child Sexual Abuse Education Commission to train social workers, teachers, and
others on the problems of child sexual abuse.
Cracked down on deadbeat parents by reporting those who owe more than $1,000 in support to
major credit agencies.
Senator Gore cosponsored the Child Welfare and Preventive Services Act, which establishes
innovative child welfare and family support services that strengthen families, keep children out of
foster care, promote the development of comprehensive substance abuse programs for pregnant
women, and provide improved health care services for low-income children.
Early childhood programs
Governor Clinton established the first state-wide Home Instructional Program for Pre-school
Youngsters in 1986, which helps mothers teach their children to read. Arkansas' is now the
largest in the nation.
Launched the Arkansas Better Chance Program, which expands early childhood programs for
at-risk children ages 3-5.
Raised standards for licensing child-care centers, hired more inspectors to enforce them, and
established a fund to train child care workers.
Senator Gore voted for legislation to expand Head Start and bolster programs that help children
into elementary school.
Fought to continue funding for the Coporation for Public Broadcasting, in order to continue
high quality programming like Sesame Street.
Education
Governor Clinton created tough new standards for students, teachers and schools.
Provided matching funds to assist school districts in obtaining up-to-date scientific and technical
equipment.
Demanded responsibility from students and parents. In Arkansas, students who drop out of
school for no good reason lose the privilege of a driver's license, and parents are fined if they
repeatedly fail to show up for parent-teacher conferences.
Permitted parents to choose the public schools their children attend as long as an acceptable
racial balance is maintained.
Created the Arkansas Academic challenge scholarships to provide college scholarships to
middle income and poor students who achieve good grades, score 19 on the ACT and stay off
drugs.
Got real results: under Bill Clinton's leadership, Arkansas students' test scores, graduation rates,
and college attendance rates increased dramatically.
Senator Gore voted for the Neighborhood Schools Improvement Act, which provides assistance
to school based management efforts, increases parental involvement, improves teacher training
and aids dropout prevention.
Voted for legislation to expand funding for Chapter 1 and 2 programs for disadvantaged
children.
Voted to expand the Pell Grant program, increasing the number of grants and lowering income
eligibility standards.
18
19
(3) HEAD START AGENCY.-The term "Head Start agency"
SEC 135. REQUIREMENTS.
means any agency designated as a Head Start agency under the
(a) IN GENERAL-The Secretary shall award grants under this
Head Start Act.
subtitle to Head Start agencies and local educational agencies in
(4) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY. The term "local education-
both rural and urban areas.
al agency" has the same meaning given such term in section
(b) SPECIAL RULE.-The Secretary shall award at least one grant
1965. 1471(12) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
to one eligible applicant in each State before the Secretary may
award a second grant within any one State.
(5) SECRETARY.-The term "Secretary" means the Secretary of
(c) CONSIDERATION.-In awarding grants under this subtitle, the
the Department of Health and Human Services.
Secretary shall consider-
(6) SUPPORTIVE SERVICE.-The term "supportive service"
(1) the commitment of the Head Start agency and local educa-
means service that will enhance the physical, social, emotional,
tional agency to the program for which assistance under this
and intellectual development of low-income children, including
subtitle is requested;
providing necessary support to the parents of such children and
other family members.
(2) the quality of the Head Start program operated by a Head
Start agency desiring financial assistance under this subtitle,
SEC. 133. HEAD START TRANSITION GRANTS
as measured by compliance with Head Start program perform-
(a) IN GENERAL -With funds made available under section 639(c)
ance standards;
of the Head Start Act to carry out this subtitle, the Secretary may
(3) the proportion of low-income children in the school attend-
make demonstration grants to Head Start agencies and local educa
ance area where the program assisted under this subtitle will be
tional agencies to develop and operate programs that assist low-
located;
income elementary school students grades kindergarten through 3
(4) the suitability of the proposed program for replication in
(giving priority to students entering their first year of elementary
other locations;
school) and their families in-
(5) the quality of information and plans in the application;
families, including health, immunization, mental health, nutri
(1) obtaining supportive services that build on the strength of
and
(6) the commitment of the community to the proposed pro-
How Conf Rep 10/5/90
tion, parenting education, literacy. and social services (includ
gram, as evidenced by additional resources, in cash and in
ing substance abuse treatment. education, and prevention serv-
kind, available to the applicant to support the program.
ices); and
(ii) PRIORITY. The Secretary shall give priority to applicants that
(2) supporting the active involvement of parents in the educa-
will operate a program under this subtitle at a school designated for
tion of their children.
a schoolwide project under section 1015(a) of the Elementary and
(b) TERM OF GRANT.-Each grant awarded under this subtitle
Secondary Education Act of 1965.
shall be for a period of 3 years and shall be not less than $200,000.
SEC. 136. APPLICATION.
SEC. 134. ELIGIBILITY.
(a) IN GENERAL.-Each Head Start agency or local educational
(a) HEAD START AGENCY.-A Head Start agency shall be eligible
agency desiring a grant under this subtitle shall submit an applica-
for " grant under this subtitle if such Head Start agency has
tion to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accompa-
formed a consortium with one or more local educational agencies
med by such information as the Secretary may reasonably require.
that received funds under part A of chapter 1 of title I of the Ele-
Each such application shall include-
mentary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and that serves chil-
(1) a description of the activities and servcies for which assist-
dren who have been served by such Head Start agency.
ance is sought;
(b) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.-A local educational agency
(2) a description of members of the consortium established in
shall be eligible for a grant under this subtitle if such agency re-
accordance with section 134, including any cooperating agency;
ceives funds under part A of chapter 1 of title I of the Elementary
(3) a self-assessment of the Head Start agency's and local edu-
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and has formed a consortium
cational agency's programs to address the health, immuniza-
with one or more Head Start agencies serving children who will
tion, mental health, nutrition, parenting education, literacy,
enroll in any elementary school located within the school district of
social service (including substance abuse treatment, education,
such local educational agency.
and prevention), and educational needs of low-income students
(c) COOPERATING AGENCY.-A nonprofit agency or institution of
and their families, including the use of a developmentally ap-
higher education with experience in child development may partici-
propriate curriculum such as a model approach under the
pate in any consortium formed under subsection (a) or (b) in develop-
Follow Through Act;
ing, operating, and evaluating programs assisted under this subtitle
(4) a plan for the development of a supportive services team of
(d) FOLLOW THROUGH GRANTEES - A local educational agency
family service coordinators to-
that is receiving assistance through a program under the Follow
(A) assist families, administrators and teachers to re-
Through Act shall also be eligible for a grant under this subtitle if
spond to health, immunization, mental health, nutrition,
such agency meets the requirements of subsection (b).
social service and educational needs of students;
"They Are All Our Children"
Governor Bill Clinton
East Los Angles College
Los Angeles, CA
May 14, 1992
Thank you very much, President Suarez, ladies and gentlemen. Thank
you for coming here today and for giving me the opportunity to
come == this very important institution cí education == talk about
a subject that : care about very deeply.
= wanted == come == a community college in this community to talk
about this subject. because you represent the future of America's
education - and the future of America's economy.
= LS enrollment 17 these kinds of institutions that 13 exploding.
In my state. last year, with the support of the state's business
community, we raised the corporate income tax one half of one
percent and put it all into two-year institutions of higher
education to try to make more opportunities for people like you.
Your president told me on the way in today that this year, this
institution had to turn away between four and five thousand people
who wanted to take advantage of the programs here. That is a
significant problem for our economy and one which I hope to
address today.
= want == talk about the role that education will play 1n your
future and in your country's future. Education is the issue that :
know most and care most about because I've spent more than 11
years now as a governor on the front lines of the battle ==
revoluticnize, revitalize, and reform education.
As a governor, as a co-chair of the nation's education summit,
and as a parent of a child in the public schools of Little Rock,
Arkansas, : have devoted more of my time and energy == education,
than == any other issue.
We know = things about education in our country today. It's more
important == our economic well-being than ever before. And we
still don't have the educational quality or opportunities that cur
people need.
The key to our economic strength in America today is preductivity
growth - at phrase that means more products and services from each
one of us. In the 1990s and beyond, the universal spread of
education, computers, and high speed communications means that
what we earn will depend on what we can learn and on how well we
can apply what we learn to the workplaces of America.
-2-
That's why, as we know, 3 college graduate this year will earn 70
percent more than if high school graduate in the first year of
work. That's wny the earnings of younger workers who dropped out
of high school, or who finished but received no further education
or training, dropped by more than 20 percent over the last ten
years alone.
We know that too many students drop out of school. And too many
who do finish still don't have the basic skills they need to get
and keep good jobs. We know, too, that all children can learn, but
that it's tougher to teach them when so many bring society's
greatest problems through the schoolhouse door.
We know we have real gaps in American education. opportunity gaps
and responsibility gaps which are more important == our national
security today than the missile gaps which played such an
important role in the presidential election of 1360.
The education opportunity gaps between ourselves and the rest of
the world - and among our own people - are immense. We have a
shorter school year than all our major competitors. We do less
well than most all of them on comparative tests in math and
science. And while we send more of our high school graduates on to
college than any other nation, we do far too little for the
forgotten half that do not go on to college or don't even finish
high school, a group that other nations take care to train and
retrain throughout their lifetimes.
Within our country there are wide gaps in the level of readiness
for children to start school. Many lack the basic building blocks
of knowledge and thinking without which learning simply cannot
occur. There are huge gaps in how much we spend on students, and
in what kinds of courses and other opportunities they nave. The
distinguished American writer, Jonathan Kozol, has called these
gaps "savage inequality."
Most important, there are massive performance gaps among our
schools that cross economic and social lines, schools that I have
seen with my own eyes in this country.
Take for example, the Beasley Academic Center in Chicago. Here's
a school located in the neighborhood with the highest murder rate
in Illinois, yet it ranked consistently in the top ten percent of
the schools in all tests.
or Thomas Jefferson Junior High School, a mile from our nation's
capital in Washington with a 98 percent minority population. In
the mid-1980s, during three out of four years, Thomas Jefferson
sent a team to the final four in the national junior high school
mathematics competition.
3
: could give you example after example after example from Maine ==
California which prove beyond question that all children can
learn, cut that fact leaves us all the more frustrated when these
results are not achieved everywhere.
Just as there are opportunity gaps in education. there are
responsibility gaps as well. Places where our system fails because
people don't do their part. Politicians who posture instead of act
on education. Schools where turf battles get more attention than
gang batties. Bureaucrats who'd rather shuffle paper than change
lives. Teachers who have burned out and have given up, and are
just going through the motions. Parents who treat school as
government-financed child care. Citizens who couldn't care less
about education as long as they keep their local taxes down, and
students who sometimes act more like kids in "Beverly Hills 90210"
than the kids in "Stand and Deliver."
Just look at the Student Loan Program. for example. Since 1380,
the cost of defaults in the Government Guaranteed Student Loan
Program have increased 14 times over, from $239 million in 1980,
to $3.4 billion this year.
In Washington, D.C., five doctors who got the government to
finance their medical education in return for promising to
practice in chronically underserved rural or urban areas are now
being sued for breaking their promise.
People like these deadbeat doctors cost more than money. They deny
medical education to others who would have kept their word and
deny urgently needed medical care to blighted urban areas and
forgotten pockets of rural poverty.
Look at the President's own record on education. At the education
summit in 1989, : was part of a small group representing
Democratic and Republican governors in the White House, who worked
late into the night to hammer cut six national education goals for
our nation in the year 2000.
And, let me just repeat them here. By the year 2000, all students
should be mentally and physically ready to learn. By the year
2000, we should raise the all-time high school graduation rate to
90 percent, the international standard. By the year 2000, we
should have national standards that our children should know at
the 4th, 8th, and 12th grades, in math and science and language,
and geography, and history, and other subjects, and a meaningful -
- not a meaningless -- a meaningful set of national exams to
measure whether we know what we're supposed to know.
By the year 2000, we should be second to none in achievement in
mathematics and sciences. By the year 2000, our schools should be
safe, disciplined, and drug-free. By the year 2000, we should have
a lifetime system of learning which guarantees that we give all
adults the chance to learn to read, the chance to get a GED if
they don't have a high school diploma, and the chance to get
trainino *hrouabout their
7
Now we knew that state and local governments would have to provide
most of the funding for public education as they do now. But we
also knew that in the decade of the eighties. the percentage of
the federal budget going to education had declined by about 50
percent. And the percentage of local school budgets coming from
federal funds had declined dramatically.
so in the agreement we asked the White House to make some
commitments, and the White House promised to fully fund the Head
Start pregram, among other things. Yet now, in the fourth year of
Mr. Bush's administration, according to one study, only 36
percent of the eligible children of this country are being served
by Head Start.
The President promised to support bilingual education. = has been
cut by 47 percent during the 1980s while we have faced an
explosion of immigrants arriving fom around the world.
The President now promises to improve worker training, but federal
employment and training outlays have gone down 26 percent in the
1980s. And the President's current budget calls for removing
224,000 trainees from the Job Training and Partnership Act, an act
his own Vice President helped to write into law.
He himself has pledged to help end adult illiteracy by the year
2000, yet the President's proposed budget eliminates four needed
literacy programs, including one that helps to teach literacy to
inmates incarcerated in prisons, when we know that ignorance is
one of the main causes of crime in this country.
But one promise he has kept. When he said, and I quote, "I don't
believe 1= is the federal role to say the federal government will
pay for every kid to be educated in college." Now that's a
commitment he's kept.
He has taken bold, decisive action to keep that promise. He's
proposed eliminating Pell grants for any family that earns more
than $10,000 a year. If your income's over $10,000 at year, you're
too rich to get any college aid. Sut, if you make $300,000 a year
you're still poor enough to need a capital gains tax cut. It
isn't right.
Those who do receive Pell grants know that they are SO small: they
are worth about half as much as they were a decade ago. The 1993
budget cuts overall student aid by $79 million. The President even
recently vetoed a bill that would have allowed Americans to deduct
the interest on their student loans from their tax returns, and
use IRA savings for college costs.
Why did he veto that bill? Because the bill payed for this
assistance to the middle class with a modest tax increase on the
richest Americans. And he was opposed to the tax increase on
people whose incomes went up in the 1980's, while their tax
burdens went down.
Now that the election is upon us. he has reversed part of 11 years
of administrative effort by advocating a policy to give greater
access to students to student loans, eight or nine months after =
called for universal access to student loans for all Americans.
It took this President more than a year after our education summit
to send an education plan to Congress. And. while there are some
impressive sayings in the President's "America 2000" proposal, the
heart of the Bush education plan is to tinker around the edges, to
build 535 new public schools, one for every congressman and
senator. That's how that number was decided.
Instead of providing real incentives = improve and to restructure
all of cur schools, they want to raise up a few and leave the rest
behind. The President's education plan amounts to a form of
trickle-down education that won't help Americans anymore than
trickle-cown economics helped us in the 1980s.
We must close the gaps in our society between what people are
capable of achieving and what we ask of them: between what we
promise our people and what we deliver. Regardless of who's to
blame, and there's always enough blame to go around, what we
really need is to forget about blame, roll up our sleeves and get
to work.
Let's be clear. This situation is not all bad. There are great
schools, great teachers, great principals in America, great places
where learning is occurring against all the odds. There are huge
numbers of Americans, like you, who understand the importance of
education to your future, and who are filling the classrooms of
our community colleges.
There are public officials from school boards to governors and
legislators, to members of Congress, and yes, people in this
administration in Washington, who really do care about education.
But the fact is we are not doing enough. Because I've spent so
much of my life over the last decade working on education, I wish
we had time to talk about every aspect of it today. But today I
have to confine myself to what I believe the President and the
national government could do. Otherwise, we won't be out of here
until luncntime and you'll be sorry I came.
America needs an education President who shows up for class
everyday, not just once every four years. In the first 100 days
of my administration, I'll give Congress and the American people a
real education reform package. I'll work day and night to get it
passed, unlike our current President who often proposes and then
leaves it to someone else to dispose of or not to act at all.
First, we must implement that portion of the national education
goals which calls for the establishment of world-class standards
in math and science and other subjects.
Today we have an educational system that too citen moves people up
the ladder whether they study or not, graduates people whether
they know anything or not, and dumps people into the work force
whether they have the skills it takes to succeed cr not. And that
is wrong.
We must develop a meaningful national examination system. Not one
of these so-called norm reference tests that you give two or three
years and then every American is making above the national
average, and the only people who make cut are the people who sell
the tests.
We need to determine whether our students are meeting the
standards we set and we shouldn't use the national standards and
the national test simply to measure performance. They should be
used to increase expectations, and to give schools incentives and
structures to improve students' performance. It is just not true
that only our most gifted students can do demanding work. Our
competitors all around the world know that effort, not ability,
makes the biggest difference in educational achievement.
That is the real lesson of the outstanding national achievements
achieved in inner city poor and rural schools by remarkable
teachers. It is the lesson of the wonderful movie "Stand and
Deliver,' set here in Los Angeles, in which Edward James Olmos
played Jaime Escalante, whose advanced math students at Garfield
High School, led the nation in passing the advanced placement
tests.
My wife and daughter and I have watched that movie together a lot
of times. Every few months my daughter asks me to go rent it
again. I asked many members of my administration to go and see the
movie when it came out. And when they would come out of the movie,
I would say, "What was the lesson of the movie?" And they would
say, "That guy is an amazing teacher."
I would say no, that's one lesson. The real lesson is: all
children can learn.
All over this country, when parents and teachers and
administrators challenge students to do their best, they come
through with world-class performances. It is not a question of
I.Q. It is a question of vision, will, organization, and effort.
We will never close the achievement or the opportunity gaps
without high standards and real measurements.
The second thing we need to do is to make sure all of our kids
start out on a level playing field, because national standards
can't be fair unless we do. We have to work hard to see that
every American school has a challenging, rich curriculum, that
every teacher has the opportunity to develop the skills that he cr
she needs to teach well.
In the past, the poor and the minority and the immigrants have too
often been the victim of the system which held them to lower
standards than others and provided fewer opportunities than other
children got. Too often less is expected -- and less is provided.
We must both have high standards and a level playing field of
opportunity so that all can reach the standards.
One of the things that means is preschool for every child who
needs it. Surely a country that found $500 billion == bail out the
savings and loan industry can find $5 billion to fund the Head
Start program. Surely we can carry out the recommendations of the
National School Readiness Task Force, which I chair, so that
states and localities can offer prenatal care, day-care, and
family support services that can prevent learning problems and
equip children to make the most of school.
Surely we can provide more funds to the Chapter One program so
that we can have smaller classes in the early grades for poor and
disadvantaged children. There are now clear national studies,
coming out of the state of Tennessee, which demonstrate
conclusively that if you get class sizes for poor kids down as low
as 15-to-1 in the early grades, they have permanent measurable,
lasting learning gains which increase the chances of their staying
in school. succeeding, and winding up in a place like this, just
as you have. And we ought to pursue those reforms.
Finally, we cught to restore schools as the safest, not the most
dangerous, places in our society again - not a place where kids do
bullet drills instead of fire drills.
Earlier this year, I visited Thomas Jefferson High School in
Brooklyn. One month later two students, to whom I spoke, were shot
to death while walking in the hall.
Three years ago I visited a grade school in south central L.A.,
6th grade class. And I asked these children what they were most
worried about. They were bright, articulate, intelligent children.
They were most worried about being shot going to and from school.
They were most worried then about being forced to join gangs when
they got in the eighth grade. Those kids now are in the ninth
grade. I've often wondered in the last few days after what
happened here, how many of them wound up in gangs, and whether
they looted and whether they're all still alive. They're all our
children.
A national government sught to provide security equipment. help
cities put more police on the streets, on the beat, in the
neighborhoods, and around school. And it ought to pass the Brady
Bill and require a waiting period before people with criminal
records, or mental health histories, or those who are too young
can just get guns without proving anything.
These are all our children. And there can be no level playing
field where people are not safe in their schools.
I also believe that we need to give some people a level playing
field by giving them some more leverage in the schools they
attend. : support magnet schools in big cities. I support public
school choice. I think parents of children ought to have the
ability to go to schools other than the ones their residence
dictates within the public school system. But the present
administration wants to use public funds to subsidize parents to
send their children to private schools.
Now, while I support public school choice, and our state was the
second state to adopt it, I am unalterably opposed to a voucher
system to give people public money to take to private schools.
We already spend less than many of our competitors on kindergarten
through twelfth grade education, a smaller percentage of our
income. Now is not the time to further diminish the financial
resources of schools, when budgets are being slashed by states all
across America. When the federal government has restricted its
commitment to education, now is not the time to adopt a private
school plan.
The third thing I think we ought to do is to launch an all-cut
effort == increase our high school graduation rate to 90 percent
by the year 2000. Nearly a quarter of our high school students
fail to graduate on time. In some cities the drop-out rate is 50
percent. That dooms the people who do it to a series of low skill,
low wage jobs or a life on the outskirts of society which often
leads to crime and to prison.
It's no wonder we have the highest incarceration rate in the world
and spend more money to keep people in prisons than to send them
to college. Ne need to make something of the lives we're wasting.
In my state we do something that might not work in a big city but
it works in a rural state. You drop out of school for no good
reason, you lose your driver's license. More than 1,750 young
people have lost their driver's license since we passed the law,
but our state now has the highest graduation rate in our region.
The other state that's about tied with us is West Virginia,
another poor state that was the first state to adopt the driver's
license law.
If I were President, and when I become President. we will help
schools prevent dropouts and reach cut to the young people who do
drop cut to bring them up to the same world class standards that
we expect of everyone else. We need to give students incentives to
stay in high school. Programs like the "I Have a Dream" program in
New York, where Eugene Lang, a businessman, promised a group of
students that if they'd stay in school, he would send them to
college. A program like "Contact" in Orlando, Florida. where a
young friend of mine named Charles White organizes businesspeople
to work one-on-one with students who might get in trouble and keep
them in school and give them summer jobs and insure there's a
future for them after they get out of high school.
A program like the Academic Challenge Grant that we adopted in my
state where we made the bottom two-thirds of our kids. by income,
eligible to get S1, 000-a-year scholarship for four years. If they
made a C+ average on the recommended college courses. stayed off
drugs and behaved themselves, as a matter of right they got the
scholarship. We need to give people incentives to stay in school.
But we need to help those who drop out anyway. We need things like
youth opportunity centers, which have been proposed in New York,
opportunity centers that would provide youngsters regular contact
with an adult who cares about them. It would give students who
don't succeed in traditional school settings a second chance to
make it in an alternative learning environment.
I'd like us to consider forming a Youth Opportunity Corps that
would recruit young high school dropouts for a year or two, pay
them entry-level wages, and help them develop self-discipline,
learning skills and skills training.
As we reduce our military forces in the wake of the Cold War, we
could make the most of the training facilities and the expert
personnel of cur military -- the best training ground on Earth --
by using them to teach in the Youth Opportunity Corps, and giving
them a chance to continue to serve their country instead of just
putting them into the street. A Youth Opportunity Corps would give
dropouts the opportunity and the discipline to complete their high
school diploma at the same standards as everyone else and a second
chance to earn a decent living.
The fourth thing we should do is to challenge American business to
live up to its responsibility, to help Americans develop skills in
the workplace.
Something's wrong with a country that strips the dignity from blue
collar work by permitting younger workers with a high school
diploma watch their earnings drop 20 percent over a decade.
In our administration, we'll establish a national apprenticeship
program, like those in Europe, that will encourage non-college-
bound students to stay 17 school, take challenging courses, move
into the workforce and then get two years of further training on
the job. in cooperation with institutions like this community
college. That's what we need to do for those kids.
Last year in our state we passed a statewide apprenticeship bill.
The other day, a woman in northwest Arkansas told our program
director there how proud she was that her daughter, as a result of
the apprenticeship program, will now be earning a higher wage than
her own mother makes in her regular job. For that mother and that
daughter, the American dream is still coming true. Knowing your
child can have an opportunity for a better life is an important
part of restoring hope in this country.
We also need to establish a national system to teach every adult
in the work force = read and give every working adult the chance
to earn a high school diploma within the next five years. It
doesn't cost that much money. You could do a lot of it in the
workforce. In my state, a very small state of 2.4 million people,
we spend more money on adult education now than cur next-door
neighbors in Texas, a state five times our size. But it is the
best money we have ever spent.
We have increased by more than four times in the last eight years
the number of adults in our job training program and it is working
to lift their incomes. We ought to teach everybody to read who has
got a job, give everybody who has a job a high school diploma.
Then they can come to places like this.
Instead of treating job training as a poor stepchild, in our
administration we will require employers to invest 1 to 1.5
percent of payroll in the retraining of their own workforce. This
is what our competitors do. And we will require them to spend it
on workers up and down the line.
In America, 70 percent of the job training paid for by private
companies goes to the top 10 percent of the employees. But our
competitors in Europe and Japan give job training programs to
people up and down the line. Because smart folks know that the
frontline workers make the money for you, and you'd better retrain
them every year if you want your productivity to continue to rise.
At the same time, we need to force our government to straighten
out and streamline the unbelievable bureaucratic maze of the
countless of publicly funded training programs, each with their
own application forms, eligibility criteria, rules and procedures.
That needs to be done, too.
Finally, to respond to what your president said, we need to make
sure every American who wants to, has the chance to go to college.
We have done some things no other state has done. :.e cecame the
first state in the country to require existing teachers to take
and pass a test to continue to get recertified. You can imagine
how popular that was. But you know what? After two years, most cf
them passed, and those that didn't shouldn't have been
recertified, and they weren't. And we raised pay and morale in the
end.
We became the first state to require students at the eighth grade
level to pass an exam to be promoted to high school. They said,
"Oh, you can't do that, you'll increase the dropout rate." But you
know what? The dropout rate went down and the graduation rate went
up because there were no more bored kids in high school who
couldn't at least read, because of the eighth grade test.
We went for smaller classes in the early grades. for elementary
counseiors for the kids. i.e had the lowest high school
college-going rate in the country in 1980, but now we are up to
the national average.
These things can happen. We can change the future and the
opportunity for all the people in America if we work together, if
we have high standards, if we close the opportunity gap, if we
close the responsibility gap.
You know, I was born at the end of World War II in a state where
the whole state had a per capita income that was just a little
above half the national average. Most of us lived, in other words,
below what you would call the poverty line now. We didn't know
much about that cr anything else having to do with federal
statistics. But we did know that if we worked hard and played by
the rules and got a good education, we could get anead.
What bothers me so much about America today is that there are SO
many people who are being left cut of that opportunity channel.
I got a chance to get a world-class education, starting in my
public schools. I had the opportunity to work my way through
college, to work my way through law school. I had six jobs doing
it but it didn't kill me. But it was economically possible because
I also had a scholarship and a loan. I had the kinds of things
that now too many people don't have. And I know that if it hadn't
been for my education, the help I got in scholarships and loans,
as well as the chance I had to work my way through school, I
wouldn't be standing here giving this speech today.
And I got into this race because I could not tolerate any longer
seeing millions of Americans squander the opportunities that ought
to be theirs because we do not have a good economic policy to
create more jobs in this country and because we do not take
advantage of what is there because of educational gaps in
performance, achievement and standards.
For the last 12 years, under the last two Presidents, until this
President's election year conversion last month in Pennsylvania,
these administrations have worked harder to make it harder for
millions of Americans to get help to go to college.
Here's what : would like to do. I think we ought to scrap this
existing student loan program. We waste over $3 billion on default
and $1 billion of bank subsidies every year. I'd like to replace
it with what I call a domestic GI bill, a national service trust
that would give every American, regardless of income, the right to
borrow the money to finance a college education.
All of you could show up and borrow the money. You won't have to
be poor, although to be sure, you could be poor and get it. You
could be middle class and get it. You could be upper-middle class
and get it. But you have to be willing to pay the money back.
And it would be your choice.
You'd have cne of two options. You could sign a contract to pay
the money back as a small percentage of your income after you go
to work, which you would pay at tax time so you couldn't beat the
bill. But you would pay not just according to how much you
borrowed but also according to how much you make. So we would
never cripple people or discourage them from becoming teachers or
public servants or doing other work that might pay less money but
be otherwise more rewarding. You would pay according to your
ability to pay.
or you could chose to pay it off with public service. If you
borrowed the funds for two years of education, you could do one
year of work at a reduced salary, paid by the national government,
as a teacher, a law enforcement officer, in a drug program, with
troubled children, or you could work to help kids stay out of
gangs and in schools, solving the problems of your community and
getting your own education. We could get a whole generation of
Americans to do that.
In the end, politicians can't and won't solve this problem for
you. If we are going to compete and win again, we are all going to
have to work harder and work smarter and become lifelong learners.
I know this can happen because I have seen it happen before.
In 1978, a distinguished educational advisor consultant named Kern
Alexander came to my state and said that a child would have a
worse chance to get a good education in Arkansas than virtually
any other state in the country. We didn't point the fingers or
place blame. We just went to work.
In the early 1980s when I became Governor for a second time, my
wife and I and a committee of distinguished Arkansans that she
chaired traveled our state and talked to parents and teachers and
ordinary citizens. We began what has been a decade-long struggle
to raise standards and improve opportunity in-our state. We've
raised taxes twice and put all the money into education The
212-505-3653
16:11
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3359 288 203 FROM RECORDED
Parental
Involvement
Parental and Community Involvement:
Rx for Better School Discipline
by William B. Thomas
It is up to educators to forge a productive liaison
between home and school, says Mr. Thor 15. Miller Elementa
School in Pittsburgh is a shining example
P
arents and educators alike see dis-
cipline as a major U.S. public
Table 1. Frequencies and Percentages of Teacher Ratings
school problem. This problem has polit-
of Achievement and Behavior as Criteria for Favoring Pupils
cal overtones, because economically de-
prived urhan children are the voungsters
Ratings
educators are most likely to label as
(N=60)
problems. This labeling. of
Lasst
Less
Most
deprives such voungsters initally of
Criteria
Favorable
Favorable
ted
Favoragia
Savorable
till and ultimately of societal
is
f %
( %
i
I %
High achievers, usually well-behaved
3.3)
11 1.7)
12 (20.0)
15 (75.0)
not intend to take issue here with
High achievers. often mistenaved
19(317)
35(58.3)
1(1.7)
goal
tereloping
tudent
LOW achievers. usually weil-behaved
1(1.7)
6 (10.0)
40
13(21.6)
10 behavioral madards in-
Low achievers misbehaved
38 (63.3)
1(1.7)
named to focus on A.1 expedient not
ten-repored strategy for achieving that
of this sents other groups of teach-
Other research date sugye
children
Edecators should be
USE and in Pennsylvania have
from economical dep.
carents
albes
"
their
single-
shown these "undings w be surprisingly
charrol.
parent families are also
vely than
consistent
others to be suspended.
highly
The producty credemiating
The andings seggest that there is a hid-
in
the
probable that many of
uspended
STATUS
den educational agenda. The distribution
students will malize
and
Teachers,
theref
of school rewards (e.g., high grades, high
economic bracks
impletion
gatekeepert Grough a system of rewards
class rank. scholarships, leadership posi-
purports offer
and punishments, they determine to a
sensi estensibly based on objective per-
have DC doubt that
requires
instiderable degree who will and visa will
Formander and achievement criteria. Yet
some discipline. Yes the
certain
aut
san
crizes
of
many teachers apparently evaluate and TC.
relationship between *
edience
Dower, wealth, and pressige student
ward students at least informally
to the teacher authorit
or her
for limited supply
D/
primarily on the basis of their behavior
mastery of basic skills.
and resources for obtain-
This hidden agenda has ramifications
The data relating beha
roblems
are unequally distrib-
that extend far beyond the classroom
to social class or minoray
are
ernficial bar-
Students who are labeled as behavioral
compounded by PVO other
First,
that
some
problems are more likely than not (=) the
teachers often
30.
working-
overcome
urban black youngsters. it the suspension
class
of school
fleerively
data from a nine-year period in the Pitts-
behavioral standards. For example, when
competition
burgh public schools (Table 2) are typical.
asked
a
in Penn-
ample,
experi-
Table 2. Frequencias and Persentages of
need teacher, envolled graduate educa-
Pittsburgh Students Suspended 1970-79, Classifier
courses at in University of Plus-
Racial Group and School Population
asked the samele. drawn from
rural
schools
BLACKS
WHITES
western Pennsylvania, terank
the kinds of mudents toward whom they
Frequencies
School
Percent
Frequencies
School
Percent.
in
favorably insposed. The results.
01
Popula
age
or
Popula
age
Year
Suspensions
tion
Suspended
sugnsions
for
sepended
apa-
hown in Table 1. suggest that some
om.
veachers stress pupil behavior over pupil
120
29.027
3
28
43.800
DE
Whieverment. High achievers are serne
245
28,564
35
5.
St.
times penalized for antisocial behavior
19727
298
28,706
:2
14
on."
Some teachers favor well-behaved low
1973-74
252
15
09,238
11
hole
achievers over high achievers with be-
1974.75
245
27,529
50
46
37,507
.12
to a
havioral problems. Moreover, replications
1975.76
190
27,456
d9
41
34,884
11
onfi-
1976-77
342
26,820
: 27
65
32,202
20
he
1977-78
389
25,858
1.50
111
29,353
.37
WILLIAM B. THOMAS is associate pro-
1978-79
429
24,756
1.73
109
26,978
40
fessor of education, University of Pittsburgh.
20'd 010 ON 12:15
das
YALE/CSO
A30
HDS
PHOTOCOPY
PRESERVATION
this l' улим process
sionals, who usually do not
bility Mental health profes.
greatest expertise or responsi-
that's "not the area of their
unless for a specific event (since
Know Jurgeueur 10 Smound
trv to involve parents in academic
Comer is opposed to programs that
nize dances and other activities
being met. Most often, parents orga-
monitors whether or not goals are
school, deals with staff issues, and
develop a comprehensive plan for the
ent-teacher organization") works to
sophisticated than the standard par-
Comer describes as great deal more
sional support staff. This body (which
health teams-as well as nonprofes-
professional support staff and mental
teachers. and members of both the
ed by parents, teachers Selected by
including the principal, parents select
adults with a stake in the school
up in each school representing all the
and Management Team," group set
what Comer calls the "Governance
Not the least of the credit goes to
any of the city elementary schools.
boasted the best attendance records of
Low Moderate High
predominantly lower- and working class
school's rapport with ILS patrons and com-
1
!
%
families in Pittsburgh, is a good example
munity members contributes to the high
Elementary
of such a home/school liaison and its
morale among reachers, parents, and
have
School
positive outcomes. At Miller an open-
pupils. Requests for teacher transfers to
(N 39)
3 ( 21 (53.8) 15 (38.5)
door policy encourages parents to visit
other schools are almost nil. Pupil at-
cent
High School
school personnel at any time; appoint-
tendance averages 96%. Most important.
coci
(N 20)
2 (10.0) 13 (65.0) 5 (25.0)
ments are not necessary. Principal Booker
there are no suspensions for disciplinary
nan
Total IN = 591 5 8.5) 34 (57 20 (33.9)
T. Reeves supervises classes himsclf, when
problems.
100
necessary, to free teachers for onferences
What has happened at Miller Elemen
16,(
Second. teachers tend to hold parents
with parents.
tar hool can happen at any school
at bay through aloofness, rigid bureau-
The administration and faculty sce
tim/ for educators to stop talking
tint
cratic practices, and claims of territorial
Miller School as much more than an insti-
discip
toblems and wart taking
gan
rights and professionalism. My study
tution for imparting knowledge and skills;
ties
rection - the recruiting of
2,5
showed the these same 59 Pennsylvania
it is also a community resource and ad-
low
working-class parents as allies
sch
teachers.
ample, firmly believed that
vocacy center. Reeves coaches basketball
- holds considerable promise
the
parental support is a significant factor in
and baseball during and after school
Net
maintaining school discipline, but their
hours; Miller teachers voluntarily conduct
the
agement of active parental involve-
after-school activities and urge all young-
! Sec the lates Gallup poll report in the September
An
often only rhetorical. Sociologist
sters to participate. Moreover, Reeves
1980 Kappan.
Becker has suggested that teach-
counsels many parents and frequently in-
: For data on social-class discrimination THE are of
school suspensions, see the report by inc Children's
and
inclined to see parents as "an un-
vokes the power of his office to help them
Defense Fund, Children Out of School in America
and
free. the and uncontrollable element,
cut through red tape to obtain necessary
(Washington, D.C.: Washington Research Project.
bui
as a force that endangers and may even
help from governmental, judicial. and
Inc., 1974). RF 134. 133.
desiriby the existing authority system over
social service agencies.
1. Richard A. Clossard and Lame: 1. souce. "Social
kep
Class: Educational Animales Participation :
sha
which the teacher has some measure of
Miller parents, for their part. volunteer
A. Harry Passon ed., Education ." Depressed Area.
ag:
as tutors. teacher aides, chaperones for
(New York Teachers College Fee. 19707 of
lat
schism between parents and
field trips and overnight camping trips.
190-216
ign
will not be resolved until edu-
and as advisors to after-school cooking
4. Howard Recker. "Th: Teacher
System at the Public School, Journate i recember
for
accept the idea that must parents
classes for fourth- and rifth-graders.
Sociology. November 1953. DD 12M-2 Fice also
ha
the bell for their children (even
Thanksgiving and end-of-year banquers
Becker. "Social-Class Variations di the Teacher-Pepal
Relationship." Journal " Educations Sherology.
is
April 1952. pp. 451-65; and H. Allison Davis Social
in
Class Influences upon Learning (Cambridge. Mas:
Harvard University Press, 1950;
loc
5. Hecker. "The Teacher in the Authority System.
ha
op cit.
it
6. The following sources ::ffer theoretical and 27
of
pirical evidence of corretations between participater
du
to instructional Surganizational aftairs IDS predicter
or indicators of individual support of the costitution
tic
organization and the success of the 2:
tie
ganization* mission Robert i '&' Marchan
qu
Goldstein. Who If as Rule the Schools' Culti
su
Class Crisis (Belmont, Call Wodsworth a
112-30; Sidney Verba Small Group! one Politice
m
havior (Princeion N.J.: Princeton University Press.
pl
19611. DP 206-43: and Free D. Carve: and Than
Sergiovanni, od. Organization ..." Humar %
hi
navior: Focur ON Schools New YORK M.coraw-Ha.
1909, Other relevant sources are Cloward and Jones
OP CIT.. PR. 212, 216 Wilbur B. Brookner, A.:
Paterson. and Sharler 14%
: and School Activement (East ansing M.C.
Bureau of Educational Research Service VII bream
ca
Cotham
Mate University and Base: S.n.t. the
"
Effer of Personal Reinti deslip or Per
entr Attitudes Foward 254 Participation " Local
PHOTOCOPY
School Affairs disferration, Northwestern
65
think i'll like the aay off!
University 1963:
PRESERVATION
KAPPAN
uol.
Nov.
1980,
203-204
boasted the:best attendance records of
any of the city's elementary schools.
Not the least of the credit goes to
what Comer calls the "Governance
and Management Team," a group set
up in each school representing all the
adults with a stake in the school-
including the principal, parents select-
cd by parents, teachers selected by
teachers. and members of both the
professional support staff and mental
health teams-as well as nonprofes-
sional support staff. This body (which
Comer describes as "a great deal more
sophisticated than the standard par-
ent-teacher organization") works to
develop a comprehensive plan for the
school, deals with staff issues, and
monitors whether or not goals are
being met. Most often, parents orga-
nize dances and other activities.
Comer is opposed to programs that
try to involve parents in academic
planning or managing money
unless for a specific event (since
that's "not the area of their
greatest expertise or responsi-
bility"). Mental health profes.
sionals, who usually do not
become involved with a stu.
dent until a crisis arises, are
encouraged to work as a team with
classroom teachers, focusing on pre-
vention and looking for a pattern of
problems (absenteeism, destructive-
ness, fearfulness) before a crisis can
Comer's work at the Grant school and
occur. In one New Haven school,
others in Now Haven is now serving as a
when a transfer student kicked a
model for schools across the country.
teacher on the first day of school, the
staff, instead of assuming that the
also to receive it. I was almost as
youngster was just another problem
of traditional school that Comer
frightened as he was One part of me
child, immediately set up an orienta-
remembered from his own child-
said, What am I doing here?! and
tion program for all new students
shood creating climate of trust and
Three principles obtain in all the
wanted to run. The other part said,
cooperation took much longer. So did
operations of the Governance and
You want to make a difference-and
efforts to improve the students' scores
this " your chance."
Management Team. One is collabora-
on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills, the
Shake but determined, Comer
tion: "The group can't paralyze the
staridardized achievement test used
settled PA in "live in that system and
principal. and the principal can't
throughout the district. When the
try to understand it." Slowly and
ignore the group." A no-fault policy
project started, both Baldwin and the
is in force at all times: "Don't blame
sometimes painfully (an angry group
Marrin Luther King School (the other
of parents once marched on one of the
anybody" is the rule. Arriving at deci-
main site for the early phase of the
schools demanding to see "rhis person
sions by consensus is another impor-
project) ranked at the bottom of New
from alen, Comer carefully began
tant goal. "If you vote," savs Comer,
laven's thirty-three elementary
PHOTOCOPY
PRESERVATION
9
09.08.1992 16:18
RECEIVED FROM 203 785 3359
PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT EFFECTS
295
two groups. T-test analyses facilitated the testing of the hypotheses
that significant non-zero gain occurred or did not occur. The level
of significance for rejecting the null hypothesis was set at .05.
Results
The research hypotheses were substantially supported by the
results. The results are discussed according to the respective de-
pendent measures and are summarized In Tables 1 and 2.
Table 1
Mean Changes on Dependent Measures for Experimental Sample
1988
1986
X
Measures
X
X
Change
Sx
t
P
Self-Concept
Behavior
8.0
8.9
.9
.37
2.4
.015*
School
7.8
9.2
1.4
.41
3.4
.001°
Physical
5.9
6.3
.4
.35
1.1
.175
Anxiety
3.9
4.3
.4
.30
1.3
.179
Popularity
2.6
3.2
.6
31
1.9
.077
Happiness and
Satisfaction
4.0
4.6
.6
.31
2.0
.053*
TOTAL
5.0
6.1
1.1
.31
3.5
.000
Teacher Assessment
Classroom Behavior
50
53.7
3.7
.90
4.1
.000*
Group Participation
19.6
24.5
4.9
.93
5.3
.000*
Attitude to Authority
24.5
23.8
I
.7
.98
.71
.510
TOTAL
31.0
32.8
1.8
1.0
2.0
.050*
Percent Days Absent
33.2
29.0
-4.2
2.1
2.0
.050*
Achievement
Classroom Reading
Grade
1.8
2.0
.2
.06
3.3
.010*
Classroom Math Grade
1.6
1.6
0
.57
0
1.00
Reading Grade
Equivalent
2.0
2.5
.5
.05
10
.000*
Math Grade Equivalent
2.3
3.1
.8
06
13.3
.000*
Language Grade
Equivalent
2.3
2.8
.5
.08
6.3
.000*
TOTAL BATTERY
2.1
2.8
.7
.05
14.0
.000*
NOTE: N - 176. of - 175
Significant Change
90°d 010 ON 12:14
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das
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SCH DEV PGM YALE/CSC
PHOTOCOPY
PRESERVATION
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60:91
3359 288 203 FROM RECEIVED
PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT EFFECTS
297
concept dimension (t[90] . 2.3, p < .02), and no significant
changes on the other dimensions.
Overall the experimental sample showed significant Improve-
ment on self-concept (t(175) = 3.5, p < .000), while the control
sample showed no significant change.
Assessment of Students' Behavior
The experimental sample showed significant Improvement on
classroom behavior (t[175] = 4.1, p < .000), and group partici-
pation (t[175] - 5.3. < .000). A negative but Insignificant change
was noted on attitude toward authority. The control sample showed
a significant negative change on group participation (f[90] = 2.0,
p < .04).
Overall, the experimental sample showed a significantly posi-
tive change In behavior (t[175] = 2.0, P < .053), as measured
by the Teacher Questionnaire Scale while the control sample
showed no significant change.
Attendance
Children in the experimental sample showed a significant
decrease In the per cent of days absent (t[175] = 2.0, p < .053),
while children in the control sample showed no significant change.
Achievement
Children in the experimental sample showed a significant Im-
provement In classroom reading grades (t[175] - 14.0, p < .000),
and no significant change in classroom math grades. Children in
the control sample showed no significant changes in classroom
reading or math grades.
On the California Achievement Test, children in the experimen-
tal sample showed significant gains In grade equivalent units in
Reading (t[175] - 10, < .001), Language (f[6.3] = 6.3, P <
.000), Math (t[175] - 13.3, < .000). and the total battery (t[175]
- 14.0, < .000). Children in the control sample showed signifi-
cant gains in grade equivalent units In Math (t[90] = 2.7,p < .010),
and the total battery (t(90] = 4.1, P < .000), but not in Reading
and Language.
sold 0100 ON 12:14 88.62 das
SCH DEV PGM YALE/CSC TEL:203-785-3359
PHOTOCOPY
PRESERVATION
60:91
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RECEIVED FROM 203 785 3359
296
EDUCATIONAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH
Table 2
T Test for Mean Changes on Dependent Measures for Control Sample
1985
1986
X
Measures
X
X
Change
Sx
t
P
Self-Concept
Behavior
8.7
7.7
1
.97
.42
2.3
.02'
School
8.1
8.9
.8
.48
1.7
.09
Physical
6.3
8.0
-
3
.48
.63
.55
Anxiety
5.8
6.2
.4
.48
.85
.48
Popularity.
4.9
5.2
.3
.44
.68
.37
Happiness and
Satisfaction
4.2
3.6
-
.6
51
1.2
.23
TOTAL
6.3
6.3
0
.47
0
1.00
Teacher Assessment
Classroom Behavior
50.0
51.9
1.9
3.5
.56
.54
Group Participation
22.7
19.5
-3.2
1.6
2.0
.04'
Attitude to Authority
23.8
26.7
2.9
1.7
1.7
.09
TOTAL
32.0
31.1
-
.9
2.3
39
.40
Percent Days Absent
30.5
33.2
2.7
4.2
.66
511
Achievement
Classroom Reading
Grade
1.9
1.9
0
.58
0
1.00
Classroom Math Grade
1.6
1.7
.1
.73
1.6
726
Reading Grade
Equivalent
2.5
4.1
1.6
.89
1.8
065
Math Grade-Equivalent
3.8
4.5
.7
.26
2.7
010*
Language Grade
Equivalent
3.3
4.0
.7
.39
1.7
.098
TOTAL BATTERY
2.9
3.6
.7
.17
4.1
.000*
NOTE: N - 91, df - 90
. Significant Change
Self-Concept
The experimental sample showed significant improvements on
three of the six self-concept dimensions: behavior (t(175) as 2.4,
p< .015), school and intellectual status (t[175] = 3.4), P < 001.
and happiness and satisfaction (f(175] - 2.0, p < .053) The
control sample showed a significant decline on the behavior self-
P.04 010 ON 12:14
das
SCH DEV PGM YALE/CSC TEL:203-785-3359
PHOTOCOPY
PRESERVATION
Sep 04, 92 14:49 FOOD RSCH & ACTION CENTER WASH DC
Aunger P.02
Millions of kids are hungry in America.
POLICY GOALS OF THE CAMPAIGN TO END CHILDHOOD HUNGER:
A Statement of Principles
Hunger hurts everyone, especially children. In the long run, pursuit of various strategies to
reduce the level and pain of poverty will reduce hunger among American children. To
achieve this, we must assist families in their efforts to attain self-sufficiency by making
available to them quality education and training, income from work that lifts them out of
poverty, and adequate and affordable housing, child care and health care. We must also
provide assistance for those who for the long or short term are unable to provide for
themselves.
New and creative thinking is needed in our efforts to alleviate hunger and poverty. Of vital
importance is the achievement of food security -- access by all people at all times through
normal channels to enough nutritionally adequate food for an active, healthy life.
The Campaign to End Childhood Hunger supports the adoption of national policies
guaranteeing food security to all Americans.
However, hungry children cannot wait for the long run. The most immediate and direct way
to alleviate hunger and move toward food security is to strengthen an array of food
assistance programs already in place. These food assistance programs can and should offer
healthful and nutritious meals to children. Achievement of the following policy objectives
would result in a dramatic reduction of hunger among children in the United States.
1. The Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC)
provides essential nutrition assistance and access to health care to pregnant and postpartum
women and infants and children at nutritional risk. Study after study has shown WIC to be
highly effective in reducing low birthweight rates, averting infant mortality, improving the
nutritional status of children, and saving Medicaid funds for women and infants. Yet, almost
half of all those eligible for WIC nationwide fail to receive benefits due to a lack of program
funding.
The Campaign to End Childhood Hunger seeks to ensure that all eligible low income
women, infants and children can receive assistance through the WIC program.
2. The National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program often provide
the best meal of the day for low-income children. Studies show that these children receive
Campaign To End Childhood Hunger
1875 Connecticut Ave. NW. #54
shingion. D.C. 20009
(202)986-2200
FAX (202)986-2525
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one-third to one-half of their daily nutrient intake from school lunch. Studies also show that
participation in school breakfast programs results in significantly higher achievement test
scores. Yet today, less than half of the schools offering lunch operate a breakfast program
and school food programs have been targeted repeatedly for reductions in federal funding.
The Campaign to End Childhood Hunger seeks to make the School Breakfast
Program available to low-income children across the country and encourages federal,
state and local policies to ensure that the National School Lunch Program remains
broadly accessible to all such children.
3. Millions of low-income pre-school children do not have access to school meal programs
and millions of low-income school age-children lose access to these meals during the summer
months. The Child and Adult Care Food Program and the Summer Feeding Program were
established by Congress to meet the needs of these children, yet each serves only a fraction
of the needy children eligible for these programs.
The Campaign to End Childhood Hunger seeks to greatly broaden the availability
of meals for low-income children through expanded use of the Child and Adult Care
Food Program and the Summer Food Program for Children.
4. The most important line of defense against hunger for millions of impoverished
Americans is the Food Stamp Program. Few people realize that over half of all food stamp
recipients are children, and that families with children receive over 80 percent of all benefits
paid. Yet, barriers to food stamp participation prevent millions of eligible families from
receiving assistance and benefit levels are so low that many food stamp families run out of
food before the end of each month.
The Campaign to End Childhood Hunger seeks to make the Food Stamp Program
accessible to all who are eligible and supports changes in benefit levels so that
children and their families will have enough to eat each month.
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-P.04
Millions of kids are hungry in America.
1992
Sept.
Hunger in the United States
Extent of Hunger
About five million American children under 12 go hungry each month und millions more are at risk of hunger
according to estimates based on the results of the most comprehensive study ever done on childhood hunger in the
United States - the Community Childhood Hunger Identification Project (CCHIP). Hunger was shown to be a major
problem among tow-Income families with children less than 12 years old in all of the CCHIP sites. Based on the results
of seven CCHIP surveys -- in Alabama, California, Connecticut, Florida, Minnesota, Michigan and New York -- applied
to the best available national data, FRAC estimates that approximately 12 percent of all familles with children under
12 are hungry. The CCHIP estimates are based on pre-recession data; current hunger rates are probably much higher.
Other private and government surveys conducted throughout the last decade also document dramatic increases in the
demand for emergency food:
Since 1983, the U.S. Conference of Mayors has documented an annual increase in the demand for emergency
food in major cities across the nation. In 1991, requests for emergency food increased in the survey cities by
an average of 26 percent, up substantially from increases of 19 to 22 percent each year between 1988 and 1990.
The number of families with children requesting assistance also increased by 26 percent. Two out of three
persons requesting emergency food assistance were members of families with children. In 79 percent of the
cities, emergency food assistance facilities turned away people in need because of lack of resources.
Employment-related problems led the list of causes of hunger.
A nationalsurvey conducted by Catholic Charities USA, the nation's largest private human service organization,
shows that six out of every 10 people (62 percent) who went to Catholic Charitics agencies in 1990 needed
emergency food or shelter. Ten years ago, only two out of every 10 people (23 percent) sought those services.
While no one knows exactly how many people in this country are hungry, there is no question that millions face hunger
every month. Harvard University's Physician Task Force on Hunger in America estimated in 1985 that 20 million
people suffer from hunger.
Causes of Hunger
During the 1980s and early 1990s, hunger increased primarily due to a combination of economic factors and cuts in
federal assistance programs.
Income and poverty data released annually by the U.S. Commerce Department's Bureau of the Census show that the
Hon's share of the income gains during the seven year economic expansion of the 1980s went to those at the top end
of the income scale while poverty remained consistently high (see "Hunger and Poverty," below). As recession hit in
1990 -- signated by a slowing economy, increases in the unemployment rate, rapidly growing demand for food stamps
and other public assistance programs, and emerging hudget crises at all levels of government -- an already high poverty
Campaign To End Childhood Hunger
1875 Connecticut Ave N.W. #540 Washington, D.C. 20009 (202)986-2200 FAX (202)986-2525
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rate began 10 grow. Participation in the Food Stamp Program and Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)
have increased substantially throughout the recession and are now at all-time high levels. In fact, one in 10 Americans
is now receiving food stamps.
This recession came on top of significant cutbacks in federal programs aiding low-income people in the early 1980s.
This weakening of the "safety net" included cuts in programs like AFDC, Medicaid, and Unemployment Compensation,
in addition 10 food assistance programs. According to the Congressional Budget Office, food stamp and child nutrition
programs incurred a cumulative cut of $12.2 billion between fiscal year 1982 and fiscal year 1985. Despite some
restoration of funds to these programs, the cuts have had lasting effects.
State and local governments and private charities, which were enlisted to make up for federal cutbacks and budget
restraints, are Increasingly unable to shoulder the burden. Many states are now in financial crisis and are announcing
severe cuts in human services programs. And private charities such as soup kitchens and food banks designed to
meet emergency need find donations unpredictable amid increasing demand. Every city participating in the U.S.
Conference of Mayors' 1991 survey reported that the recession has affected the problem of hunger in their jurisdiction.
And, all cities expect the demand for emergency food assistance to increase during 1992. Catholic Charities USA,
reacting to the results of their agency survey, collected 10,000 letters to Congress voicing support for improvements in
the Food Stamp Program to meet the growing need
Moreover, CCHIP data and other sources indicate that because of barriers to participation, lack of information about
eligibility, or inadequate funding, many of the federal food assistance programs are not used by million of people who
appear eligible to participate in them. Also, survey results consistently show that food stamp benefits are not sufficient
to protect many low-income families from experiencing hunger.
Without significant improvements in the economy and stronger safety-net programs, hunger will persist.
Hunger and Poverty
Hunger is a condition of poverty. Living below the poverty line puts tremendous strains on a household budget,
adversely affecting the ability to purchase a nutritionally adequate diet. In fact, government surveys show that as income
goes down, the nutritional adequacy of the diet goes down as well.
1992 1992 35.7 35.7
14.2
According to data released by the U.S. Census Bureau in September 33.6 1991, 23.6 million Americans or 13.5 percent
of our population - lived in poverty in 1990. This increase, from 31.5 million in 1989, reflects the First annual increase
in the poverty rate since 1982 and in the number of poor people since 1983. The increase showed the early effects of
the recession. Larget number of people poverty since 1965.
Children continued to represent the poorest age group in the country, a tragic distinction they have had for H8 years.
In 1090
1991
21.8 20.6 percent of all American children were poor. (14.3million)
25. 525 percent of children under age three lived below the poverty line.
One in every two black children under age Six was poor.
12.4 12.2 percent of all Americans 65 and over were poor.
The 1990 recession came as a major blow to the working poor, whose numbers grew throughout the 1980s. The
working poor are at risk of hunger because their income often is not sufficient to cover all of their living expenses,
including food. Roughly 15.2 percent of all heads of households living in poverty worked year-round and full time in
1990. Among poor householders, 40:3 percent worked for some period of time in 1990. The average amount of money
needed to raise the incomes of each poor family (including those with working members) to its respective poverty
threshold was $5,192. So, despite efforts to lift themselves and their families out of poverty, wages for many working
people were inadequate to do so. And, recession meant that even those low-paying jobs might be lost dropping those
families deeper into poverty.
The 1991 poverty figures, reflecting the full impact of the recession, will, without doubt, be higher still.
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Health Consequences of Hunger
Hunger and undernutrition contribute to a number of negative health consequences
Hungry children suffer from two to three times as many individual health problems, such as unwanted weight
loss, fatigue, headaches, irritability, inability to concentrate and frequent colds, as low-income children whose
families do not experience food shortages, according to CCHIP.
The infant mortality rate is closely linked to inadequate quantity or quality in the diet of the Infant's mother.
The United States ranks 21st among developed nations in preventing infant deaths, down from 16th in 1980.
Black infants in the U.S. die at nearly twice the rate of white infants.
Stunting and wasting in children result from inadequate nutrition. According to the U.S. Public Health Service,
the Surgeon General's 1990 goal of eliminating growth retardation of infants and children caused by inadequate
diets could not be met because significant numbers of low-Income children continue to suffer retarded growth.
Iron-deficiency anemia in children can lead to adverse health effects such as developmental and behavioral
disturbances and increased susceptibility to lead poisoning. Anemia remains a significant health problem
among low-income children, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Hunger has a negative impact on children's ability to learn. Recent research indicates that low-income children
who participate in the School Breakfast Program showed an Improvement in standardized test scores and a
decrease in tardiness and absenteeism compared to low-income students who did not eat breakfast at school.
Hunger and malnutrition exacerbate chronic and acute diseases and speed the onset of degenerative diseases
among the elderly. This not only leads to an unnecessary decrease in the quality of life for many older people,
but also increases the cost of health care in the United States. National data for people ages 65 to 75 show
that a majority are not consuming even two-thirds of the nutrients they need to stay healthy.
Public Attitudes Toward Hunger
The public is very concerned about what is seen as a growing hunger problem. A national public-opinion poll released
in April 1992 reveals that over 90 percent of registered voters believe that hunger in the U.S. is a serious and growing
problem. Hunger ranks with education, health care policy and poverty and homelessness as a serious issue, trailing
concerns about unemployment, drugs, the deficit, AIDS and the economy. Unlike these other issues, however, hunger
is seen as a very solvable problem.
Voters place the responsibility for ending hunger squarely in the government's lap. It is clearly understood that private
feeding efforts, as valuable as they are, are not the most effective way to feed families over time. The poll found very
strong support for school breakfast and lunch programs, senior feeding, WIC, and the Food Stamp Program. In fact,
when told that half of food stamp recipients are children and that more than 80 percent of food stamp benefits go to
families with children, the approval rate for the Food Stamp Program jumped from 61 percent to 81 percent. The
sentiment that the government needs to increase its anti-hunger efforts is so strong that voters would be willing to
earmark $100 more in taxes annually to end hunger.
The poll was commissioned for release with the Medford Declaration to End Hunger in the U.S, the broadest collective
statement ever made that hunger in this country can and must be ended. The declaration, which calls for an end to
domestic hunger by 1995 through improvements in the federal food assistance programs and lays the foundation for
ending poverty in the U.S. by the end of the decade, has been endorsed by more than 2,000 leaders of American
society. Endorsers Include approximately 170 U.S. Senators and Representatives, Governors and Mayors; 62 corporate
CEOs and presidents; 135 entertainment and sports personalities; 33 labor union presidents; 215 presidents of
universitles and educational institutions; 220 doctors and medical association heads; 110 philanthropic leaders; 340
religious leaders; and the directors of 530 hunger and poverty groups. The Medford Declaration was coordinated by
the Center for Hunger, Poverty and Nutrition Policy at Tufts University, FRAC, the End Hunger Network and World
Hunger Year. The poll was conducted in January 1992 by Dr. Vincent Breglio, current Republican pollster for the Wall
Street Journal/NBC News monthly surveys and former polling director for the 1988 Bush/Quayle presidential campaign.
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Children d
Nutution
IMPACT OF PRESIDENT BUSH'S FISCAL YEAR 1993
BUDGET PROPOSAL ON THE SCHOOL BREAKFAST PROGRAM
The Bush Administration's FY 1993 Budget Proposal Would Have a Negative Effect on the
School Breakfast Program and the National School Lunch Program.
The Administration is proposing to cut six cents from the subsidy paid to schools for
breakfasts served to students whose families' incomes exceed 185 percent of the
poverty level ($24,790 for a family of four in FY 1992). The effect of this cut on the
School Breakfast Program reimbursement would be significant. A six cent per meal
reduction in this program represents a 33-1/3 percent cut in the subsidy provided to
schools for this category of school breakfast funding.
In order to compensate for this loss in reimbursement, schools will have to raise the
price of breakfasts to middle-income students. (Schools would have to raise the price
of school breakfasts to cover their costs since schools cannot by law raise the price
of free or reduced-price meals.) It is likely that a significant price increase in the
School Breakfast Program would result in a decrease in program participation by
middle-income children. This loss of middle-income students has the potential of
stigmatizing school breakfast participation in some schools (i.e., "Only poor students
participate in school breakfast").
This kind of cut in school breakfast subsidies would have a chilling effect on
expansion of the program to new schools, and on the use of the Program by middle-
income children who for one reason or another are not eating a nutritious breakfast
at home.
The Administration justifies this cut by proposing to use the savings to lower
breakfast charges for students from families whose incomes are between 130 percent
and 185 percent of poverty from 30 cents to 10 cents. This change would be a great
help to low-income children, their families, and their schools' meal programs.
However, coupling this improvement with a cut in subsidies for breakfasts consumed
by middle-income children makes it an undesirable trade-off. It is unclear how
schools or children will benefit if, because of the need to increase charges to middle-
income students in order to make up for the cuts, schools have to risk stigma and
decreasing participation levels.
The Administration also proposes to cut six cents from the subsidy paid to schools
for lunches served through the National School Lunch Program to students whose
families' incomes exceed 185 percent of the poverty level. This proposal would
reduce the FY 1993 reimbursement level for lunches from 31-1/2 cents to 25-1/2
cents, a 20 percent reduction in this category of funding. The Administration also
proposes to use the savings from this cut to lower student lunch charges for families
whose incomes are between 130 percent and 185 percent of poverty from 40 cents
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to 15 cents. Similar concerns to those raised above about the breakfast program
apply to this proposed cut and trade-off in the lunch program. In fact, this kind of
cut could have an even more profound effect on the School Lunch Program because
almost half of its participants are middle-income. The American School Food Service
Association estimates that if this cut went into effect, one to two million children
would drop out of the lunch program. This cut could contribute to a growing trend
of schools dropping out of the lunch program for a variety of reasons. It should be
noted that if a school drops its lunch program, it is very likely to drop its breakfast
program as well. Therefore, the economic viability of lunch programs should be of
concern to those who wish to expand the accessibility of the School Breakfast
Program to more students.
TRENDS IN SCHOOL BREAKFAST PARTICIPATION
Participation in the School Breakfast Program by schools and low-income students is
increasing.
The number of schools nationwide participating in the School Breakfast Program
increased by 8.0 percent between 1990 and 1991.
Participation nationwide by low-income children in the School Breakfast Program
increased by 9.7 percent between 1990 and 1991.
These increases in participation probably reflect two on-going trends -- greater need
for the Program (increasing poverty among children and increasing participation in
the work force by mothers) and strong efforts on the part of community organizations
and school officials to expand the School Breakfast Program to more children. In
addition, it is likely that these increases reflect the increased need for assistance
brought on by the current economic recession.
Peope need nograms these because 11/2/15 more economic xe take children away
February 13, 1992
Food Research and Action Center
(202) 986-2200
$ the
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09/04/92
14:27
904 787 4341
SELLAR SEWELL
002
HOTOCOPY
SELLAR, SEWELL, Russ & SAYLOR, P. A.
ESERVATION
ATTORNEYS AND COUNSELLORS AT LAW
907 WEBSTER STREET
LEESBURG, FLORIDA 34748
CHARLES B. P. SELLAR
MAILING ADDRESS:
STEPHEN G. SEWELL
POST OFFICE BOX 492722
GEORGE H. Russ
LEESBURG, FLORIDA 34749-2722
BRUCE A. SAYLOR
TELEPHONE (904) 787-2308
CHARLES D. JOHNSON
September 4, 1992
FAX NUMBER (904) 787-4341
AN OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT GEORGE BUSH
Dear President Bush:
You and other prominent Republicans have, directly or indirectly,
criticized Gregory K., a twelve year old young man in foster care
in Florida, for "hiring a lawyer to sue his parents," and accusing
him of "divorcing" his parents. First, he has no resources to
"hire" an attorney and, second, he is not "divorcing" his parents.
The United States and Florida Constitutions guarantee that all
persons and citizens are equal before the law and have the right to
"due process" and the right to "pursue happiness." Nothing could
be more fundamental to a child's pursuit of happiness than some
input into the legal process which will decide the family with whom
he will live the rest of his life. The Florida foster care statute
specifically provides that its purpose is to protect children from
abuse and neglect, and to provide them a permanent home with a safe
and nurturing environment. Further, the statutes' express purpose
is to obtain recognition and enforcement of children's constitu-
tional and other legal rights, and that ideally no child should
remain in foster care for more than one year. This young man has
been in state foster care, in violation of the law, for almost
three years.
Gregory K. claims that he was abused and neglected for the first
nine years of his life, and when then placed in the foster care
system, he was moved from foster home to foster home, with no
effort by the State to provide him with a permanent stable home.
When he finally resorted to legal self-help the State claimed that
he was an incompetent minor, and had no right to do SO. Now his
President has also sent a message to millions of Americans that
children have no right to sue their parents to extricate themselves
from abusive and neglectful families, and from foster care systems
which are dysfunctional and refuse to respect their legal and
constitutional rights. You have also left the false impression in
the collective American mind that this young man has done something
sinister, or unamerican.
Because others who are responsible for him (including his
President), failed him, he took responsibility for himself. Like
Rosa Parks, who brought national attention to the black civil
rights movement by "sitting down" for her rights on the front of a
bus, Gregory K. has "stood up" for his legal and constitutional
09/04/92
14:28
904 787 4341
SELLAR SEWELL
003
PHOTO
President George Bush
September 4, 1992
PRESERV
ON
Page 2
rights. Thus, he has brought national attention to the children's
rights movement and to the plight of millions of children who are
treated in our society as something to be owned or possessed, as
opposed to their true nature as human beings. Now a judge who is
familiar with the failings of the system, has ruled in Gregory's
case that he is a "natural person" or a "human being," and entitled
to the same constitutional rights of due process as yourself and
other human beings. The judge has had the courage to say that
there is nothing inherently wrong with listening to what a child,
or his advocate, has to say when the court is making judgments that
will effect the child for the rest of his or her life.
When the full truth is presented in a proper courtroom setting,
there will be ample evidence to demonstrate that this young man is
merely attempting to possess the very things to which you yourself
have indicated he is entitled. Your wife has quoted you at the
recent Republican National Convention as having stated: "Every
child should have someone he can count on."
She further indicated that you were "determined to preserve a
nation of strong families." Gregory K. on the second occasion he
was placed in foster care, indicated, as he wept, that all he
wanted was "a place to be." He has now found that place, and he
has found a family that he can "count on."
Your comments in the media have been in the context of supporting
"traditional family values." Because something is traditional,
does not make it good or right. Were it so, Rosa Parks would still
be relegated to a position at the back of the bus, blacks would
still be slaves, and women would continue to be disenfranchised and
unable to vote. It is admirable to retain worthy traditions. It
is despicable to perpetuate indignities that are unjustly imposed
upon minorities in our society. I trust the comments of high
placed Republican leaders would not have been so lightly uttered,
if children had the power to vote.
At the Convention, your wonderful family was held out as an ideal
for which all Americans should strive. I applaud your family, as
well as you and your wife for a wonderful job of parenting. I too
have such a wonderful family. It includes nine beautiful children,
one of which is Gregory K., the young man you have criticized for
attempting to remain with the family he has come to count on.
If the Republicans insist on being the champions of "traditional
family values," it would be well for them to ask the question,
"What do we value in a family?" The United States Supreme Court
has recognized that the emotional attachments stemming from
intimate daily association form the crucial determinate in
ascertaining the existence of a "family." They have recognized it
is the "nature," and not the "name," of the relationship that
determines whether it should be constitutionally protected. I
would submit that the "family" which both the Republicans and
Democrats should be seeking to protect, and the one that should be
09/04/92
14:30
'904 787 4341
SELLAR SEWELL
004
President George Bush
September 4, 1992
Page 3
valued and constitutionally protected, is the one that loves,
cherishes and cares for the child, and with whom the child feels
secure and desires to live.
It is time to stop trashing Hillary Clinton on the children's
rights issues. At least she has researched the subject
sufficiently to have written a number of credible and scholarly
articles in the past on this subject. If she is guilty of
anything, it is her failure to stand up and be counted by
responding to the false impressions created by the Republican
party. I believe you, and others in the Republican party, owe an
apology to the hundreds of thousands of children who depend on you
as their President to defend their right to have, in your words,
"someone they can count on." I thank God that this young man's
fate is in the hands of a judge, who will hear all of the facts and
make an informed decision based on the law and equitable
principles, and not in the hands of politicians.
Even abusive parents have a right to hire lawyers and seek to force
the return of defenseless children to an abusive environment. In
this regard we never hear the question raised of whether they are
"mature enough," as we do so often with children. What could
possibly be so wrong with giving an abused child an attorney to
prevent his return to abuse and neglect, and to present his case
and his viewpoint to a judge, thus giving more than just lip
service to the concept of doing what is in the best interest of the
child.
The subject of children's rights is not a proper subject for
uninformed, shallow political rhetoric. We all make mistakes and
misstatements, and we only strengthen our credibility when we
openly acknowledge them and make corrections. The subject is
complex and of great importance to our nation's future. It
deserves intelligent and vigorous debate, and not irresponsible
comments without proper investigation. It is not too late for the
Republican party to do the right thing, or for Hillary Clinton to
set the record straight. I would be happy to discuss Gregory K.'s
case with you in greater detail, and provide you with accurate
information, at your option.
Sincerely,
4L
PHOTOCOPY
PRESERVATION
George R.
Foster Father/Co-Legal Counsel
for Gregory K.
pc: Hillary Clinton
We-need to malle some
FROM : Kate Mattos
PHONE NO. : 703 524 2803 tomorrow decisions by closes aminess P01
Maggie, Give me a cael +wellwork tout Glorid
X2666
FAX
KLM PUBLIC AFFAIRS
5310 NORTH BLUEMONT DR.
ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA 22203
PHONE 703-524-2793
FAX
703-524-2803
FAX COVER SHEET
To:
Name GLORIA JOHNSON
Company
Phone #
FAX #
(501) 370 - 2670
From:
Name
KATE MATTOS
Date: SEPT. 2, 1992
THIS COMMUNICATION CONSISTS OF 5 PAGES
INCLUDING THIS COVER SHEET.
HERE'S THE LETTER. THANKS So
COMMENTS:
MUCH FOR your HELP. THERE
WILL BE AT LEAST 45 SITES PARTICIPATING
WITH 25-200 PEOPLE PER SITE. PRESS
will BE INVITED. WE KNOW Gov. CLINTON
will MAKE A TREMENDOUS CONTRIBUTION TO THIS
PROGRAM. THANKS FOR your CONSIDERATION
FROM : Kate Mattos
PHONE NO. : 703 524 2803
P02
Need the tape
Coalition for America's Children
Who's
by Sept 21
for
Kids
and Who's
Just
Kidding
August 17, 1992
TM
Coalition for
Governor Bill Clinton
America's Children
Bill Clinton for President Committee
1710 Rhode Island Avenue NW
Attn: Susan Morris
4th Floor
P. O. Box 615
Washington DC 20036
Little Rock, AR 72203
Tel (202) 857-7829
Fox (202) 857-7841
Dear Governor Clinton:
A project of the M. B. Fund
I am writing on behalf of the Coalition for
Steering Committee
America's Children, which I chair, to invite
American Academy
your video appearance and the participation of
of Pediatrics
an issues staff member in a National Satellite
Summit on Children's Issues to take place
American Association
of Retired Persons
American Association
The Coalition is a nonpartisan alliance of
of School Administrators
roughly 200 nonprofit groups and public
American Federation
agencies, representing over 40 million members,
of Teachers
which has come together to raise the concerns of
Association
children to the top of the nation's public
of Child Advocates
policy agonda. Our members include business
leaders, heads of children's hospitals, Junior
Association of Junior Leagues
International
League and PTA presidents, pediatricians,
principals, school teachers, parent groups and
Benton Foundation
older Americans. We are Republicans, Democrats
Child Welfare League
and Independents, all of whom want to see
of America
children's needs given a high priority in future
Children Now
years.
Florida Center for
On September 24th, we will use a national
Children and Youth
corporate satellite network to broadcast a
Food Research
program to our membership which, with your
and Action Center
participation, will present the two presidential
For the Children
candidates' approaches to children's issues.
National Association
Specifically, we would ask you to:
of Children's Hospitals
and Related Institutions
provide a five minute taped presentation
National Association of
stating how you and your administration would
Elementary School Principals
approach the health, education, safety and
National Association
security needs of American children over the
of Secondary School Principals
next four years; and
National Black Child
Development Institute
National Education Association
Save the Children
FROM : Kate Mattos
PHONE NO. : 703 524 2803
P03
designate a Children's Issues Director on your campaign
staff to join us in a live question and answer session at a
Washington studio, following broadcast of your taped
segment.
In addition, should there be a national presidential debate
on September 22, as the Debate Commission has recommended, we
would plan to tape any responses that directly address children's
issues and replay these in their entirety in the course of our
program.
The National Satellite Summit on Children's Issues will be
hosted by our national spokesperson, Bob Keeshan (better known as
We expect that it will be broadcast to
30 of which have already committed to host the
broadcast. In addition, it will be available to commercial
and
all across America. And, while this will not
be a media event per se, we will be in
Tapes of the
teleconference will also be distributed as widely as possible to
our Coalition's 40 million members.
In keeping with our nonprofit status, this broadcast will be
strictly nonpartisan in nature.
for public office. While we expect to ask tough
questions, we will not critique the respondents' answers, nor
will we attack or promote either candidate's record. We are
simply interested in eliciting from both you and Prosident Bush
how you would approach the needs of our children in the next four
years and in making this information widely available.
We would be happy to meet with your staff to discuss this
request further and to answer any questions they may have.
Please note that we would prefer, because of the costs, to
your campaign provide
(preferably
in Betacam). However, should this prove prohibitive, we can
dispatch a crew or provide a studio for the taping.
would need to be available
on
S/he
should be prepared to answer questions from the host as well as
those from the field, available as audio calls from tho downlink
sites.
This electronic town meeting offers us all a thoughtful
moment to reflect on family values, the needs of our children and
the nation's role in securing our children's future. As a
Coalition, we recognize that there are often several promising
approaches to the problems that confront us. We hope your vision
will help our members see your candidacy more clearly, and help
them consider carefully the many potential ways we can direct
attention to our children's needs.
FROM : Kate Mattos
PHONE NO. : 703 524 2803
P04
We hope you will give this invitation a top priority and
will agree to provide our membership with your views on our
children's future. Mindful of the demands of the campaign trail,
we have tried to make your participation as easy as possible.
Please let us know if we can provide you or your staff with any
additional information or answer any questions.
LisasDate Very truly yours,
Lisa Tate
Chair
LT/snb
FROM : Kate Mattos
PHONE NO. : 703 524 2803
P05
Condition for America's Children
Who's
for
MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS
Kids
(As of AUGUST 5, 1992)
and Whos
ACTION FOR ALASKA'S CHILDREN
Just
ADOPTION ACTION NETWORK (NY)
Kidding
ADVOCACY ON BEHALF OF CHILDREN (CA)
TM
ADVOCATES FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH (MD)
AGENDA FOR CHILDREN (LA)
ALLIANCE FOR CHILD SURVIVAL (MD)
Coalition for
ALLIANCE FOR THE RIGHTS OF CHILDREN (VA)
America's Children
ALLIANCE TO END CHILDHOOD LEAD POISONING (WDC)
1710 Rhode Island Avenue NW
AMERICAN ACADEMY OF CHILD AND
4th Floor
ADOLESCENT PSYCHIATRY (WDC)
Washington DC 20036
AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS (WDC)
Tel (202) 857-7829
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGES
Fax (202) 857-7841
FOR TEACHER EDUCATION (WDC)
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF PSYCHIATRIC SERVICES
A project of the M. B. Fund
FOR CHILDREN (NY)
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF RETIRED PERSONS (WDC)
Steering Committee
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS
American Academy
(VA)
of Pediatrics
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS (UT)
American Association
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS (WDC)
of Retired Persons
AMERICAN HUMAN ASSOCIATION (OH)
American Association
AMERICAN PSYCHIATRIC ASSOCIATION (WDC)
of School Administrators
AMERICAN PUBLIC WELFARE ASSOCIATION (WDC)
ASSOCIATION OF CHILD ADVOCATES (NY)
American Federation
ASSOCIATION OF JUNIOR LEAGUES (WDC)
of Teachers
ASSOCIATION OF OHIO CHILDREN'S HOSPITALS
Association
ATHENS COUNTY CHILDREN'S SERVICES (OH)
of Child Advocates
AWARE INC. (NJ)
Association of Junior Leagues
BAYSTATE MEDICAL CENTER CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL
International
(MA)
BEECH BROOK (OH)
Benton Foundation
BELLEFAIRE/JEWISH CHILDREN'S BUREAU (OH)
Child Welfare League
BENTON FOUNDATION (WDC)
of America
BLACK CHILD DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE (MD)
Children Now
BREAD FOR THE WORLD (WDC)
BLYTHEDALE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL (NY)
Florida Center for
CALIFORNIA CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION
Children and Youth
CALIFORNIA MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCATES FOR
Food Research
CHILDREN AND YOUTH
and Action Center
CALIFORNIA RURAL LEGAL ASSISTANCE FUND
For the Children
CAMPAIGN FOR KIDS' TV (MD)
CARDINAL GLENNON CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL (MO)
National Association
CENTER FOR MULTICULTURAL HUMAN SERVICES (VA)
of Children's Hospitals
and Related Institutions
CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION NETWORK (TX)
CHILD ADVOCATES, INC. (TX)
National Association of
CHILD CARE CONNECTION OF BROWARD COUNTY (FL)
Elementary School Principais
CHILD WELFARE LEAGUE OF AMERICA (WDC)
National Association
CHILD WELFARE LEAGUE WESTERN OFFICE (CA)
of Secondary School Principals
CHILDREN AT RISK, INC. (TX)
National Black Child
CHILDREN NOW (CA)
Development Institute
National Education Association
Save the Children
Waggle -
National Commission on Children
1 have given a copy
to Patts, but thought
you should have a one
November 23, 1992
150.
Damon
es.
ake
Dear Hillary,
use
help
As chairman of the bipartisan National Commission on Children. I
es.
am writing to ask you to join me as co-chair of the National Summit on
Children and Families. We plan to convene the summit on April 1-2, 1992
ks
in Washington, DC to showcase the plans and initiatives of many public
and private sector leaders who are working to put children and families at
ree
the top of the nation's agenda. It will also mark the end of the
and
Commission's four-year tenure. Because of your longstanding leadership
e
and involvement with these issues and because Governor Clinton has been
a member of the Commission since its establishment, your willingness to
serve as co-chair would mean a great deal. It would send a powerful
message to America's parents and children and to those who touch their
d
lives most closely that this nation is once again serious about making life
nd
better for its youngest citizens.
We see the summit as a "drumbeat event". Our intention is to
n a
refocus national attention on the needs of America's children and families
we
and revive a spirit of shared commitment by all parts of society:
be an
government at all levels, private sector employers and professionals, the
= a
voluntary community, parents and children themselves. As the first major
national forum on these issues in many years, the summit will spotlight and
help link the action plans of many disparate public and private sector
groups. With the Governor's victory earlier this month, it has also become
a special opportunity to celebrate new leadership in the White House and
a new era of cooperation between the President, the Congress, and the
many organizations outside the federal government that are dedicated to
improving children's lives and prospects.
Coming in the first 100 days after the inauguration, the summit also
provides a neutral, bipartisan forum for the new administration to join
hands with children's advocates, professionals who serve children, and
others who work on these issues. As you know, most of these individuals
and groups have received little attention or recognition from national
leaders over the past decade. Therefore, the summit presents an
important opportunity to make these individuals and groups once again
feel connected and to see themselves as valuable allies rather than
adversaries. It is a vehicle for marshalling their support and constructively
channelling their energy to help the new President and those of us who
will work with him in Congress.
Page Two
In addition, our strong view is that the summit should not just be about children
and families, it should involve them. Therefore, we hope this event will provide an
opportunity for the President and other national leaders to reach out to parents and
young people, to communicate directly with them about the future policy agenda, to give
them a voice and make them a significant force in the policymaking process.
Plans for the summit are still at a very formative stage. We are tentatively
thinking about a day-and-a-half long event for approximately 500 to 1,000 children's
"leaders" from many domains. It would have several major components:
an opening that sets the tone and combines a sense of urgency about the
problems facing children with a sense of hope, opportunity, and new forward
movement to address them:
a platform, an eager, friendly audience, and extensive media for the President to
publicly announce his plans and priorities related to children and families;
an opportunity for the leaders in Congress to publicly present their legislative
goals and to link them to the President's plans and priorities:
several sessions that will enable key groups or coalitions of groups outside the
federal government to showcase their plans and initiatives in a visible and
prestigious forum and demonstrate their readiness to help the President get his
children's agenda moving;
a televised town meeting (as an element of the summit agenda or as an adjunct
activity) that will enable children (and perhaps their parents) to engage national
leaders directly on issues that are of great concern to them and will give national
leaders an opportunity to take their message directly to real people.
Our conversations over the past couple of months with children's advocates and
others suggest that there is enormous enthusiasm for the summit. A brief prospectus
describing our preliminary thinking about the themes and structure for the event is
enclosed. Also enclosed is a brief summary of several other possible activities that
might be undertaken in conjunction with the summit, including a children's gala, a
televised town meeting, a photo exhibition, and a series of community-based summits on
children and families. Let me emphasize that none of these ideas is set in concrete, and
we welcome your help in shaping the events and bringing them to life.
As you probably know, the National Commission on Children is a joint creation
of Congress and the President. Its 34 members were appointed in equal numbers by the
President, the President pro tempore of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House.
They come from many walks of life and represent an array of viewpoints, professional
Page Three
affiliations, and political perspectives. Yet in June 1991, they unanimously approved a
bold blueprint for a comprehensive national policy for America's children and families.
Against this hackdrop, your participation as a co-chair of the summit would make
a strong statement about the future partnership between Congress and the White House
on children's issues. It would signal a serious commitment to action. And it would help
launch a new phase of creative activism on behalf of the nation's children and families.
I realize how many decisions you will be pressed to make in the next few weeks
and how difficult it is right now to schedule events as far off as next April. Yet for
obvious reasons planning for the summit must proceed. My hope is that you will agree
to serve as co-chair, and then over the coming several weeks we can work with you and
your staff as well as the transition staff on more specific issues. Please know that we
will be comfortable with whatever level of involvement you would like to have in
planning and organizing this event.
Hillary, I want you to know how much your participation in the summit would
mean to me, other commissioners, and to the individuals and organizations, inside and
outside of government, who work on behalf of children and families. The National
Commission on Children has significantly changed the terms of the debate over
children's issues, and it has provided a very special experience for all who have been a
part of its activities over the past three and a half years. I am quite confident that we
have the talent. resources, and commitment to produce a national summit that will be an
important focal point in the early days of the new administration and that will make a
real difference in the course of children's policy over the coming several years.
I will be in touch with you by phone in the next week to follow up. In the
meantime, I hope you will give this invitation serious consideration.
With all best personal regards,
Sincerely,
John Day D. Rockefeller IV
Chairman
Mrs. Hillary Rodham Clinton
105 West Capitol Street
Suite 400
Little Rock, Arkansas 72201
PROSPECTUS:
NATIONAL SUMMIT ON CHILDREN AND FAMILIES
On April 1-2, 1993, the National Commission on Children plans to convene a
National Summit on Children and Families. This event, which will be held in
Washington, DC, will bring together children's "leaders" from many domains to showcase
the plans and initiatives of individuals and organizations, within and outside of
government, that will continue to work to put children and families at the top of the
nation's agenda and to mark the end of the Commission's tenure.
The National Summit on Children and Families will be a "drumbeat event" to
refocus national attention on the needs of America's children and families and to revive
a spirit of shared commitment by all parts of society to meet them. With Governor
Clinton's victory in the November Presidential election, the summit has also become a
special opportunity to launch and celebrate a new eΓa of cooperation between the
President, the Congress and the many organizations outside the federal government that
are dedicated to improving children's lives and future prospects.
As the first national forum on these issues since the White House Conference on
Children in 1970 and the regional White House Conferences on Families in 1980, the
summit will highlight and help link the efforts of many disparate public and private
sector groups. The previous White House conferences were intended to get delegates to
agree on prescribed statements of policy and program goals. In contrast, the National
Summit will focus public attention on the action plans of governmental and non-
governmental groups who play a role in shaping public and private sector policies and
programs, against the backdrop of the National Commission on Children's broad
framework for a comprehensive national policy for children and families. It will also
involve parents and children, enabling national leaders to communicate directly with
them about the salient issues and the future policy agenda.
Background on the National Commission on Children
The bipartisan National Commission on Children is a joint creation of Congress
and the President. It was established under the provisions of P.L. 100-203 to serve "as a
forum on behalf of the children of the Nation." The Commission's 34 members were
appointed in equal numbers by the President, the President pro tempore of the Senate,
and the Speaker of the House. They include a diverse group of elected and appointed
officials, experts in child health and development, representatives of key advocacy and
professional organizations, corporate and labor leaders, philanthropists, and community
volunteers.
In June 1991, after two and a half years of intensive investigation and
deliberation, the Commission unanimously approved the bold blueprint for a national
policy for children and families. It presented its recommendations to the President, the
Congress, and the American people in a report entitled, Beyond Rhetoric: A New
American Agenda for Children and Families. To ensure that children have an
opportunity to become healthy, literate, and productive adults, the Commission urged
the nation's public and private sector leaders to take decisive steps to ensure families'
income security, improve children's health and educational achievement, strengthen and
support families, protect vulnerable children, and create a culture of individual and
collective responsibility for the well-being of the America's youngest citizens. In every
area but one, the commissioners reached consensus. Nine of the 34 commissioners
disagreed with the majority recommendations for addressing the health needs of
pregnant women and children.
Since the release of its final report, the Commission has been involved in an
ambitious series of dissemination and public education activities aimed at 1) heightening
awareness of issues affecting the health and well-being of America's children and
families, 2) identifying steps toward the implementation of its proposals for policy and
program development, and 3) building the necessary base of support to get the job done.
The National Commission on Children will conclude its work in the spring of
1993. The National Summit on Children and Families is planned as the culminating
event.
Purpose of the Summit
The National Summit on Children and Families will be a major national forum
that brings together leaders from many walks of life to focus public attention on issues
affecting the health and well-being of children and families and to launch a new phase
of creative activism to solve them. The summit has several purposes:
Revive a sense of urgency and a shared commitment. Over the past decade, the
plight of many of America's children and families has become more imperiled.
The National Commission on Children called on all parts of society to take
leadership and work together to improve children's lives and give them a brighter
future. The summit provides an opportunity to take stock of the status of the
nation's children and families and mobilize public leaders, professionals, and
private citizens to support mutual efforts to make things better.
Highlight new federal leadership on children's issues. The election of Governor
Clinton will usher in a new period of national leadership on children's issues and
a productive partnership between the White House, the Congress, and groups
outside the federal government. The summit provides a platform for the new
President and the leaders in Congress to announce their plans and priorities and
to marshall broad support for moving their agendas forward.
Demonstrate widespread concern and involvement across all sectors of society,
At the national, state and local level, among public officials, advocates,
professional groups, and the philanthropic community, activities are being planned
or are already underway to translate awareness of the needs of children and
families into meaningful, sustained solutions. The summit provides an
2
opportunity to showcase these efforts and highlight a sense of common purpose
and direction among disparate public and private sector groups.
Bring the outsiders in. For more than a decade children's advocates,
professionals who serve children and families, and others who work on these
issues have received little attention or recognition from our national leaders. Yet
they are important players in the policymaking process at all levels. The summit
represents an important opportunity to bring them on board and constructively
channel their energy to help the new President and the leaders in Congress
advance their children's agendas.
Engage children and families directly in a dialogue with national leaders. The
national summit will not just be about children and families, it will involve them
directly. This event provides an arena for the President and other national
leaders to reach out to parents and young people, to communicate directly with
them about the future policy agenda, to give them a voice and make them a
significant force in the policymaking process.
If there is a single message we would like to come out of the summit, it would be
that America is committed to addressing the needs of its children and families, and all
parts of society are working together to make it happen.
Summit Participants
The summit will bring together "leaders" from many parts of society who will
continue to play a role in shaping public and private sector policies and programs for
children and families:
the President and senior officials in the new administration
Congressional leaders and members of their staffs
Governors, state legislators, and other key state-level officials (e.g., health and
human services executives)
Mayors, city council members, and community leaders
Child advocates and representatives of relevant professional religious, and civic
organizations
Foundation executives and other representatives of the philanthropic community
Labor leaders
Corporate leaders
3
Representatives of the entertainment and communications industries
Parents and children
Form and Content for the Summit
The summit should have a serious, substantive focus on the critical issues facing
the nation's children and families, directions for future policy and program development,
and the action agendas of the new Clinton administration, the Congress, and other
public and private sector groups outside the federal government. In order to successfully
spark the national imagination and mobilize a broad-based children's campaign the
event should be structured and orchestrated to take full advantage of its intrinsic media
value. It should combine compelling presentations in plenary and break-out sessions
with powerful visual images and exchanges among summit participants that will capture
the attention and interest of a broad audience. To achieve this the Commission will
seek advice and assistance from a skilled and experienced events producer.
Regardless of how the agenda for the summit is structured, however, it will
incorporate four major components:
A strong beginning that sets the context and tone. The summit should open with
a general session that conveys a sense of urgency about the problems facing the
nation's children and families and a sense of hope, opportunity, and forward
movement for solving them. The focus should be on the challenge ahead, not
just rehashing how bad things are. The Commission presented the nation a bold
framework for action and a sense of direction for addressing income security,
health, education, and family support needs, while leaving plenty of room for
others to hammer out the specifics of national policy and programs as well as
community responses. Therefore, the message from the opening session should
be: We know what the problems are, and we know what to do about them. We
are entering a new eΓa when there will be real national leadership on domestic
social policy. It is time for all parts of society to come together, face up to the
challenge, and get going. The subtext is that the National Commission on
Children has fulfilled its mandate by providing a long-term strategic plan, and
now we applaud the efforts of others who will carry on and make it happen.
A plenary session that provides the President a platform for announcing his plans
and priorities, Coming in the first 100 days after the inauguration, the summit
presents a significant opportunity for the President to demonstrate his
commitment to address children's issues, launch his agenda, and publicly join
hands with all or many of the relevant governmental and nongovernmental groups
that will continue to play a role in shaping children's policies and programs.
Because the Commission is a neutral, bipartisan body, the summit will offer an
authoritative platform, an eager friendly audience, and extensive media coverage
for a major policy address.
4
A plenary session that provides Congressional leaders an opportunity to publicly
announce their legislative goals. The summit can also provide leaders in
Congress an opportunity to present their legislative goals and plans and to link
them to the President's children's agenda. Bringing the President and key
congressional leaders together on the same platform (presumably at different
times) would make a powerful statement about putting an end to partisan
gridlock and forging a new partnership between the White House and Congress
on children's issues.
A series of break-out sessions that showcase the plans and initiatives of groups or
coalitions of groups outside the federal government. One of the Commission's
important messages was that the federal government needs to provide leadership,
a policy framework, and some support, but it cannot and should not be expected
to do the job alone. The summit will highlight the role and action plans of many
other players in the process. It will give key groups or coalitions of groups an
opportunity to announce new initiatives or call attention to activities they already
have underway in a visible and prestigious forum. It will validate and hopefully
add momentum to these individual efforts, which are critical elements of a
renewed nationwide movement on behalf of children.
Other Related Activities
Many people have encouraged the Commission to think about the summit not
just as a single event, but as a constellation of events designed to reinvigorate those
involved in policy making and those who work directly with children and families, as
well as to capture the spirit and imagination of the broader American public. Adjunct
activities should contribute to the general tone of hope and optimism, and they should
symbolize America's coming together to meet the needs of its children and families.
Among the ideas that have surfaced:
Televised Town Meeting. Preliminary conversations with commercial and cable
network producers suggest there may be strong interest in holding a televised
town meeting with children (or parents and children) as an element of the
summit agenda or as an adjunct activity on the evening of the summit's final day.
In such a setting, children would have an opportunity to ask questions or offer
comments to several high profile national leaders (e.g., the President and/or Mrs.
Clinton, Senator Rockefeller). A high profile moderator (e.g., Peter Jennings,
Jane Pauley) would help direct the discussion and serve as host and moderator.
During the recent campaign, events like this enabled citizens to engage the
candidates on the issues, and are now being credited with reviving the nation's
democratic spirit and contributing to the large voter turnout. Whether or not this
is true, such events offer regular people, including young people, an opportunity
to communicate face-to-face with national leaders in ways that are likely to foster
a positive sense of connection to them and to their agendas.
5
Children's Gala. As a prelude to the summit, there is interest in staging a
"Children's Gala" on the evening before the formal meetings begin. Such an
event, perhaps at the Kennedy Center or the recently renovated Warner Theatre,
would combine performances by child artists (e.g., Harlem Boys Choir) and well-
known artists who have a longstanding interest in children's issues (e.g., Paul
Simon) with a series of awards to individuals who would be recognized for their
efforts on behalf of children and families. If the project attracts sufficient interest
from a top producer and performers with marquis value it could be televised on
PBS or a commercial network, greatly extending the audience for the summit.
Photo Exhibit. As a part of its work, the National Commission on Children
commissioned Eric Futran to prepare an extensive portfolio of photographs of
children and families across the country. Many of these extraordinary images
appear in Beyond Rhetoric and the Commission's other publications. To make
them available to a broader audience, the Commission may assemble an
exhibition and unveil it in conjunction with the summit. If a children's gala is
held at the Kennedy Center, for example, the exhibition could be set up there
with an opening reception before the performance. Alternatively, if the gala is
not held or the gala location does not lend itself to an exhibition, space may be
available in the Capitol or the Library of Congress or the National Capitol
Children's Museum.
Community-Based Summits. To extend the sense of involvement and build a
strong base of support for addressing the needs of children and families in their
communities, there may be an opportunity to replicate the national summit in
several local communities across the country (either simultaneously or soon after
the Washington event). Convened in partnership with a coalition of children's
advocates, relevant professional organizations with large grass roots memberships,
labor unions, elected officials, and the community foundations, these community-
based summits would bring together local "leaders" in the same way that the
national summit will bring together national leaders and representatives of many
relevant non-governmental groups. These events would present opportunities for
local leaders to take stock of the needs of children in their communities, confront
their values, identify available resources, and clarify their commitment to work
together to translate their concern into real and sustained solutions.
Media
It is likely that the summit and many of the candidate related activities will stir
great interest among the broadcast and print media. Strategic media planning will seek
to take full advantage of the public relations value of the events. The Commission in
conjunction with the Communications Consortium will work to expand the reach of the
media strategy by forming a child and family policy media strategies group involving
public information officers from many of the relevant professional and advocacy
organizations, as well as selected press secretaries for members of Congress. This group
will work closely with the summit organizers and the organizers of community-based
6
summits to begin briefing child and family policy reporters and editorial writers as early
as January, continuing through and beyond the summit.
In addition, the Commission will orchestrate a major media operation for the
summit and other related activities that are convened in conjunction with the summit.
This will include a media center at the summit; a "news service" for major markets and
those of community-based summits; satellite and audio feeds; advance placement on
public affairs talk shows; editorial boards; and placement of opinion pieces and signed
articles.
7
Children's National Medical Center
Community Outreach Activities
Advocacy Programs and Services
Fiscal Year 1992
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction
Advocacy Initiatives
Adolescent Employment Readiness Center (AERC)
Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine/Burgess Clinic
Annual Food and Gift Giving Drive
Burn Unit
Cardiology
Child Life
Child Protection
Community Pediatric Health Center (CPHC)
Dentistry
Emergency Trauma Services
General Pediatric Ambulatory Care (GPAC)
Great Kids Program
Healthy Children 2000
Hearing and Speech
Home Health Care Services
Human Resources
Immunization Initiative
Neonatology(PEEP)
Nursing Education Staff Development and Training
Nursing Research and Development
Patient Registration and Scheduling (Car Seat Loaner
Program)
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Project CHAMP - Children's HIV/AIDS Model Program
Research
Respiratory Care Services
SAFE KIDS Campaign (Local Coalitions)
Social Work
Special Immunology
Speak Out Lecture Program
Washington Child Welfare Coalition
Ongoing Local Community Projects
i
Introduction
Children's Hospital, like similar institutions across the country, finds itself
operating in an extremely difficult environment. Escalating uncompensated
care, diminished reimbursements and unnecessary limitations on the
provision of care have severely compromised our ability to meet the needs of
all the children and families who look to us for their care.
In spite of the difficult environment in which we operate, Children's remains
committed to its mission of advocacy. Through a combination of programs
geared toward clinical intervention, community awareness, education and
political empowerment, the entire hospital family works diligently to address
the myriad of challenges confronting children and families in our
community.
As advocates for children, many of our departments have found small
windows of opportunity to stretch the bounds of limited resources. The
result has been the provision of many unique services that reach beyond the
four walls of the institution to provide much needed services and programs
to vulnerable children and their families. With the generous donation of
time, public and private sector support, and institutional commitment,
Children's National Medical Center's advocacy programs remain on the
leading edge of quality, creativity and effectiveness. This document
highlights just a few of the advocacy and community outreach initiatives
undertaken by Children's Hospital staff and faculty.
2
ADVOCACY INITIATIVES
Adolescent Employment Readiness Center (AERC)
The AERC is a national model for pre-vocational services developed at
Children's Hospital through a grant from the Maternal and Child Health
Bureau and the Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation. The AERC
provides comprehensive pre-vocational services for teens with chronic
illness and physical disabilities, including career assessment and counseling,
academic guidance, and early work experiences. Since 1988, this outreach
program has served 2,500 children.
Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine/Burgess Clinic
The number of youth at risk for HIV infection has increased dramatically
over the last few years. To address this growing trend, the Adolescent and
Young Adult Medicine Department and the Burgess Clinic, in the spring of
1991, established a unique program which targets teens to serve as peer
educators in their communities. The program, funded in part by the Child
Health Center Board, provides training to teens on the provision of
HIV/AIDS health information and referrals.
The Burgess Clinic is the only comprehensive health care clinic specializing
in HIV infection for adolescents in the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Area.
Annual Food and Gift Giving Drive
The Children's Hospital family continues to demonstrate its commitment to
sharing and giving to patients and families in need through their strong
support for CNMC's Annual Holiday Food and Gift Giving Drive. In 1991,
contribution of food, clothes, toys and gifts met the needs of over 100 needy
children and their families. Last year, the food and gift giving drive
incorporated a new "adopt-a-family for the holidays" project. This initiative
was spearheaded by the staff of the Evoked Response Clinic. Over 30 hospital
departments participated in this effort, serving nearly 50 patient families.
Burn Unit
A child who has suffered the effects of a traumatic burn injury often faces the
very difficult task of re-entering the world that he or she left behind. This
trauma can also be difficult for family members and friends. In an effort to
3
help ease the entry or re-entry of burn victims into the school environment,
the Children's Hospital Burn Unit nursing staff developed an off-site puppet
show targeted to the classmates of burn patients. This unique show which
utilizes puppets to depict scenarios about the physical and emotional impact
of burns, provides answers to questions about burns, and includes a session
on fire safety. Since 1985, the program has been conducted at schools
throughout the local metropolitan area and has been presented to nearly 500
children.
Cardiology
A major advocacy goal of the Cardiology department is to promote access to
care for children living in underserved areas. For example, cardiology staff
make bi-weekly visits to Waldorf, Maryland to examine patients who have
problems with access to care. Approximately 250 children receive this service
annually. In addition, professional staff also make visits to Milford,
Delaware, and Salisbury, Maryland to provide services to children who would
not otherwise have access to much needed services in their own
communities. The department estimates that approximately 700 children are
served annually by this initiative.
Additionally departmental staff seek to enrich the the diagnostic capabilities
at local hospitals by providing training to local pediatricians.
Child Life
Child Life Workers conduct health fairs geared toward first and second
graders from Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia. This hands-on
program provides knowledge about medical equipment and services in an
effort to ease childrens tensions about going to visit the doctor/hospital, and
to increase the interest of young children in the field of medical science.
In addition, staff members participate in the burn unit school re-entry
program and provide assistance to the Community Pediatric Health Centers
in Shaw and Adams Morgan. The department also offers a peer education
program geared to adolescents in the community. High risk youth are trained
to educate their peers about appropriate sexual behavior.
Child Protection
The 23-member team of pediatricians, nurses, psychologists, social workers,
attorney and administrative staff that comprise the Division of Child
Protection provide medical and mental health services to approximately 1800
4
children and their families, as well as advocate for families at both the local
and national level.
The Division's multi-disciplinary and culturally sensitive approach -- both in
services and in staffing -- has required a strong advocacy component as
integral to the other three prongs of its mission (clinical services, education
and research). A current research endeavor, for 1992, is the issue of HIV in
sexually abused children.
The main outreach project, sponsored by the Division of Child Protection, is
project REACH. This seven year old program, located in far southeast
Washington (Ward 7), provides mental health services, which include both
treatment and prevention of child abuse and neglect, and seeks to improve
parenting skills of at-risk women in the surrounding community. The
program serves residents of the District, Maryland and Virginia.
In addition to project REACH, there are several other outreach advocacy
programs in which the the department is involved. They include: parenting
and counseling for women and children residing at the House of Ruth, a
battered women's shelter; providing parenting and counseling for
incarcerated women and their children at the Lorton Women's Prison;
providing educational sessions on child abuse and prevention in Maryland,
Virginia and D.C. schools, including sessions for professional teaching staff,
school employees and PTA groups; and providing counseling and
supervision to runaway youth at the Sasha Bruce shelter.
This year, the Division hosted the eighth biennial National Symposium on
Child Victimization in Washington, D.C. Under this year's theme "Shattered
Dreams: Childhood Recaptured," this multi-disciplinary conference, for those
who serve a diversity of children and their families, attracted more than
1,500 social workers, lawyers, pediatricians, psychologists, educators and
advocates from around the country. The keynote speaker was Alex
Kotlowitz, author of "There Are No Children Here."
Community Pediatric Health Center (CPHC)
This program has been part of the community since 1967, providing primary
health care needs to indigent families and children in the Shaw and Adams
Morgan neighborhoods of Washington, DC. In July, 1991, the
Comprehensive Health Care Program (COMP) changed its name to the
Community Pediatric Health Center (CPHC) to better reflect its services to the
communities of Adams-Morgan and Shaw. Last year, approximately 13,000
children were served at these community-based pediatric health care centers.
5
The facilities are equipped with 24-hour on-call access to doctors,
appointment and walk in services, bilingual staff, convenient neighborhood
locations, and on-site services that provide assistance to parents who want to
apply for Medicaid and/or the Financial Assistance Program of Children's
Hospital. Some of the services available are primary preventive health care,
routine screenings, diagnosis and treatment of illness, specialty referrals, on-
site blood drawing, and counseling. In addition, both clinic sites serve as the
distribution point for the DC SAFE KIDS Coalition safety packets. In 1992, the
Community Pediatric Health Care Program will celebrate 25 years of service
and commitment to children and families of the District of Columbia.
CPHC recently initiated a program to provide monthly health and parenting
classes at both clinic sites. Funding for the program was provided by the
Child Health Center Board (CHCB). In addition to working with the CHCB,
the CPHC has recently been become the beneficiary of attention by the
Children's Hospital Youth Perspectives Council (CHYPS). In 1991, CHYPS
hosted a holiday party for CPHC children and their families and recently held
a fund raising event to benefit CPHC.
CPHC continues its participation in community health fairs, and in
networking with community-based agencies in health presentations, support
groups and health education classes.
Dentistry
The Department of Dentistry provides dental care to children with special
needs at the Edward Mazique Parent Child Center and offers free dental
screenings to children at health fairs and elementary schools. Dentistry staff
provide their time on a volunteer basis to ensure that approximately 850
children can benefit from these services. Over the last five years, staff have
participated in career fairs at local high schools, and career days are conducted
for younger children. In addition, medical staff visit schools, day camps, and
children's centers to teach the importance of good dental hygiene and to
distribute toothbrushes and toothpaste to between four and five thousand
students throughout Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia. All
supplies, educational material, and toothpaste are solicited from, and donated
by, corporations.
Emergency Trauma Services
The Emergency Medical Trauma Service is involved in numerous
advocacy/education programs including the Pediatric Advanced Life Support
(PALS), the Pediatric Emergency Nursing Education (PENEP), and the
Pediatric Emergency Medical Services Training Program (PEMSTP). The
6
purpose of these programs is to provide health care providers with
information and education about pediatric emergencies and how to best
respond to them. Training is provided regionally to care-givers in Maryland,
Virginia and the District of Columbia, and nationally. PENEP was developed
in 1990 and is the newest of the three programs. PALS was developed and
implemented in 1989, and PEMSTP began in 1986. All three programs are self
supporting.
In addition to providing training to health care professionals, EMTS staff are
also involved in community education. Staff routinely visit schools and day
care environments teaching children from 3 to 14 years of age lessons of safety
and injury prevention. Components of the department's "safety first"
program include: bike riding and helmet safety; seat belt compliance; poison
control; fire safety; pedestrian and street safety; swimming safety; awareness of
animal and stranger dangers; bites & stings, and safety in the home, including
how to access and use 911. Last year, four area schools benefitted from this
training.
General Pediatric Ambulatory Care (GPAC)
As the institution's largest provider of primary health care services, the
General Pediatric Ambulatory Care center has as one of its major outreach
goals the promotion of immunization rates among young children, and
lead poisoning prevention. Many of the departments efforts in this regard
extend beyond the walls of the institution. GPAC health care professionals
also participate in the community Head Start initiative; the LEAD Poisoning
Prevention Program; and the Fitness Club for overweight children, eight to
twelve years of age. The GPAC medical staff provide camp physicals for
underprivileged children, volunteer to provide health education to the
Oberlin community National Parochial School, and facilitate a support group
for grandmothers.
Great Kids Program
The Great Kids Program is a working parents seminar designed to teach step-
by-step solutions to parenting problems and seeks to provide parents with the
necessary skills to raise well adjusted children. Since 1986, the program has
made a positive difference in the lives of hundreds of parents and children in
the Washington Metropolitan region. The program is self-supporting.
In 1991, the program received partial funding from the Child Health Center
Board and the Board of Lady Visitors to develop a new brochure. The
brochure has been completed and efforts are currently underway to market
the Great Kids Program to other children's hospitals.
7
Healthy Children 2000
In 1991, through the Healthy Children 2000 Campaign, NACHRI launched a
year-long immunization initiative with a publication entitled "Healthy Kids:
Give It A Shot!" which encouraged hospitals to undertake ambitious
immunization activities. The 1992 initiative is prevention of unintentional
injury.
The Government and Community Affairs Department serves as CNMC's
liaison with NACHRI for this initiative and in July, 1992, hosted the Healthy
Children 2000 Campaign Coordinators Conference. During the conference,
which was attended by 50 coordinators from NACHRI member hospitals,
resolutions were presented to the Deputy Surgeon General, Julia Plotnick,
expressing member hospital's concerns regarding the need to make children's
health issues a national priority.
Hearing and Speech
Advocacy initiatives include community and parent awareness and
education on communication disorders among the multi-cultural population
in the District of Columbia, and ensuring access to hearing and speech
services at the Scottish Rite Center, regardless of financial circumstances.
Throughout the month of May, Better Hearing and Speech Month, the
department conducted free speech-language and hearing screenings at three
CNMC satellite locations.
The department has an on-going contract with the District of Columbia
Government to sponsor the Scottish Rite and Adams Morgan programs
which provide diagnostic services to District children, including children
with multi-cultural backgrounds.
Hearing and Speech staff are also involved in a program that enrolls 45
students between the ages of two and-a-half to three years and follows them
until they are ready to enter kindergarten or the first grade. The program
involves both the children and the parents for the three year period and
twenty-nine children have successfully entered into the school system. The
success rate is determined by the number of children who are able to enter,
adapt, and thrive in a normal classroom setting.
Ongoing participation by staff on community-wide Boards and/or
commissions representing the interests of children with special needs
continue to be a major component of the Hearing and Speech advocacy
mission. Recently, a staff member, while serving as the Chair of Mayor
Kelly's Developmental Disabilities Council, was active in the establishment
of a toy lending library for children with special needs. In addition, as a
8
member of the Interagency Coordinating Council of the D.C. Early
Intervention Program, this staff member was also instrumental in the
establishment of the Home Ownership Program for Families with Members
with Disabilities.
Home Health Care Services
Home Health Care Services serves as the District of Columbia's provider of
the Perinatal Outreach Program (POP). Under the leadership of the CNMC
Home Health Care Services department, the POP program has been
instrumental in helping to minimize the District of Columbia's infant
mortality rate, serving hundreds of women and children. The POP program
targets women at-risk for complications in pregnancy due to substance abuse,
lack of prenatal care and/or other socioeconomic indicators.
Home Care staff also participate in the training of school nurses on the
provision of specialized care to disabled children in Montgomery County,
Prince Georges County and the District of Columbia. In addition, the Home
Care team provides practice setting and administration training to graduate
and undergraduate nurses in five area colleges.
Human Resources
Human Resource staff conducted numerous presentations to local high
schools, junior high schools and elementary schools to discuss careers in
health care. Forums for these presentations include health fairs and career
fairs. In addition, as a part of a District of Columbia Hospital Association
initiative, this Department hosted guidance counselors from the District of
Columbia school system and provided them with information on various
health care career opportunities, the educational requirements for these
careers, expected salary ranges, and existing CNMC job opportunities available
for students. Over 1000 children have benefitted from these programs.
In an effort to provide the District of Columbia youth with a solid foundation
for succeeding in the professional business world and to expose youth to a
variety of health care careers, the Human Resources Department, in
conjunction with the District of Columbia's Summerworks '92 Program, and
the Washington Urban League Summer Jobs Program, employed over 33
District of Columbia residents, ages 14 to 22, for 22 weeks. Students were
placed in various departments throughout the hospital. In addition to the
student's work-site experience, each student attended a weekly four-hour
training program, coordinated by Human Resources staff, on a variety of
topics such as, Careers in Health Care; Career Planning and Assessment;
Resume Writing and Interviewing Skills; Effective Communication Skills a
9
Work, and Educational Opportunities and Financial Aid Planning. It is
anticipated that as cut backs in the District's budget for summer youth
programs increase, this program can expect to have an increased number of
students in need of summer jobs.
In addition to the program described above, the Department also provided job
internship experiences for individuals with disabilities through the Life
Experiences Activities Program (LEAP). Many of these internships have lead
to both paid and volunteer jobs within CNMC, and with other businesses
located in the District of Columbia.
The Department also received funding from the Board of Lady Visitors to
develop a "Careers in Health Care" brochure listing all types of health care
careers available at Children's Hospital, the level of education required for
each, the schools that offer programs in those disciplines and a listing of
financial aid programs. This brochure is available to employees and the
community.
Immunization Initiative
Children's Hospital played a major role in planning a City-Wide
Immunization Campaign spearheaded by the D.C. Commission of Public
Health, the Carter/Bumpers Campaign for Early Immunization, and the DC
Medical Society. The campaign consisted of a ward-by-ward initiative to
increase the immunization rates of all District children, especially those birth
to two years of age. Currently the rate of compliance in the District for this
age group is 43%.
The campaign began with Ward 8, which was selected as the first target area
because over 5,000 children residing in that Ward are under the age of two.
Immunization sites, strategically located at local neighborhood public schools,
churches and recreation centers, were made available to the public on selected
Saturdays from April through September, 1992. In addition, mobile vans
were located in grocery store parking lots and on street corners. All sites
included a follow-up and referral station to encourage parents to enroll their
children in a comprehensive primary care program. Other services such as
lead testing, and WIC and Medicaid information stations were also available
at each site.
In addition, Children's participated in writing a comprehensive, city-wide
plan that was submitted to the Centers For Disease Control.
10
Neonatology/Perinatal Education Exchange Program (P.E.E.P.)
This program was implemented in 1980, under the auspices of the
Department of Neonatology, in an effort to improve the quality of perinatal
health care in the metropolitan Washington area. The program provides
high quality continuing education to health care professionals in a format
that is economical, and readily available. A target audience for the program
are hospitals that lack the financial means to obtain additional continuing
education for their health care professionals, particularly in neonatology.
There are currently 20 to 25 institutions being served regularly by the PEEP
program. Participants include: D.C. General; Prince George's Hospital; Shady
Grove; Laurel Community; Holy Cross, and Greater Southeast. In addition to
the educational classes geared toward health professionals, the department
conducts perinatal education classes for women participating in the Healthy
Babies Project located in Ward 5. Ward 5 is listed as having one of the
District's highest infant mortality rates.
Nursing Education Staff Development and Training
Nursing Education staff co-lead a parenting support group that discusses
topics such as childhood growth and development, safety, nutrition, and
health pertaining to children. There are also sessions geared toward drug
prevention and discipline. The service is provided in the Arlington
Temporary Housing Shelter in Arlington, Virginia.
Nursing Research & Development
Research associates study populations in the community regarding issues
centered on immunizations, vaccines, HIV/AIDS, hematology/oncology and
provide advice to locals school systems on how they can become involved.
One study in particular is studying the health care needs of Hispanic children.
Staff also provide volunteers to local community immunization initiatives
and technical advice to parents whose children are on apnea monitors. In
addition, staff provide support for continuing education and consultation to
the Center for AIDS Research, and are currently working on a study of the
health care needs funding for the Community Pediatric Health Clinics.
Patient Registration & Scheduling (Car seat Loaner Program)
Children's Hospital is a designated District of Columbia car seat loaner site.
The car-seat loaner program is housed in the Patient Registration and
Scheduling Department. Staff distribute infant and toddler car seats to
11
residents of the District of Columbia, Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m.
until 4:30 p.m. An average of 80 car seats are distributed annually. In
addition, the department provides appropriate information to Maryland and
Virginia parents regarding car-seat loaner programs in their states.
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Children's National Medical Center has the only program for medically
related, physically disabled children in the tri-state area. Two thirds of the
medically related, physically disabled children are seen at CNMC. One
outreach goal of this department is to provide information to the
community, and to provide and facilitate parent support groups. This year,
plans are being developed to create a support group for physically disabled
adolescents.
In addition, the Department is involved in writing educational pamphlets for
educators and parents, and in providing visits to community clinics and
schools for physical and occupational therapy, and special education. Faculty
and staff provide instructors for continuing medical education seminars, held
monthly, that instruct educators about the different physical handicaps
affecting children, and lead seminars at the Brittle Babies Clinic at NIH.
Project CHAMP (Children's HIV & AIDS Model Program)
Project CHAMP started in 1989 with grant support from the Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation under its AIDS Service and Prevention Programs
initiative. This purpose of the initiative is to develop a comprehensive HIV
education and community outreach program for care givers beyond the
hospital-based staff and to prepare community-based caregivers to provide
competent care with sensitivity and compassion. Consequently, enabling care
givers to enhance the level and quality of services offered to HIV-affected
children and their families. Project CHAMP includes the following
components:
Education Outreach Program: Four comprehensive training guides have
been developed as part of the Hugs Invited Series:
"Access to Primary Care for Children with HIV." This training
guide helps community physicians, nurses and social workers
to prepare their practices to care for HIV-affected children.
Its recommendations for care, counseling, education,
support and advocacy correspond with protocols, tables,
references and resources.
12
"Caring at Home: A Guide For Families" A guide written with
and for families of newly-diagnosed children affected with HIV,
addresses daily care and psycho-social issues in simple, easy-to-
read language.
"Caring in the Community for Children with HIV", a training
guide that enables care providers to recognize how their own
fears and biases create obstacles to care giving.
" Youth & HIV: It's Up To You and Me", a guide for service
providers in residential settings will be published in late 1992.
The Buddy Program: This program has trained over 100 volunteers to
provide care to HIV-affected children both in the hospital and at home.
Volunteers bring much needed support to medical staff with routine care and
an extra set of hands with complex procedures. This has reduced the number
of hours required of professional staff per patient. In addition, these
volunteers provide support and respite care to families on the home front.
As a result more children have been allowed to return home where
previously they would have remained in the hospital beyond the medically
appropriate time. The implementation of the "Buddy Program" has greatly
reduced the cost of inpatient care services for HIV/AIDS infected patients.
The Train-the-Trainers Program: CHAMP staff developed the "Train-the-
Trainer" program, with support from the U.S. Maternal and Child Health
Bureau, to provide training to health care providers in six cities having a
high incidence of pediatric HIV disease. In 1992, programs will have been
conducted in the following cities: Saint Petersburg, FL; Norfolk, VA; Buffalo,
NY; Boston, MA; Chicago, IL; Oakland, CA. This demonstration project was
developed in collaboration with CNMC and the Child Welfare League of
America.
Research
For twenty years, this Department has been involved in outreach to the
community through voluntary participation in parenting classes scheduled
by the Montgomery County Public Schools, Adult Education Division.
Several times a year, the Director serves as a co-teacher, or guest lecturer at
county sponsored parenting classes called "A Day with Dad" The Director
interacts with parents and responds to questions about general pediatric
problems, and interprets matters of general and specialty health care. Parents
with outstanding issues and concerns are referred to their private
pediatrician's for additional assistance and follow up. Approximately 10,000
Montgomery County families have benefited from this program, and through
13
it, they have become aware of Children's National Medical Center and the
services it provides.
Respiratory Care Services
Staff lecture at area high schools and community programs in Maryland,
Virginia and the District of Columbia, about Respiratory Care career
opportunities. Nearly 200 students have been reached through this program.
SAFE KIDS (Local Coalitions)
The National SAFE KIDS Campaign has 125 Coalitions representing 42 states
and the District of Columbia. In the Washington Metropolitan Area, there
are now six SAFE KIDS coalitions: D.C., Maryland, Virginia, Fairfax County,
Montgomery County, and Prince William County. These coalitions recently
collaborated to conduct child safety activities at the annual White House
Easter Egg Roll, where this year's theme was childhood injury prevention.
In addition, art work for the program was adapted from children in the
CNMC New Horizons program, and a large mural, painted for the event by a
local artist has been donated to the Hospital by the White House.
On June 30, 1992, the Washington area SAFE KIDS Coalitions held a joint
press conference at CNMC to announce changes in the child passenger safety
laws in all three metropolitan area jurisdictions. The news conference was
sponsored by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
On October 3, 1992 the coalition will present the "SAFE KIDS Family Fun
Day" in conjunction with the D.C. Government, community health
organization's and radio station, WKYS. Free immunizations and lead
screenings will be provided along with information on safety and injury
prevention. Over 2,000 children are expected to participate.
Social Work
Social work staff are involved in local chapters of national disability groups,
education programs, boards of directors, and information distribution. One
such educational program is the school adaptation and/or re-entry program.
In an effort to help children integrate their hospital experience and illness
into their school life, social workers routinely visit local schools and arrange
school/family conferences to facilitate special accommodations and support.
The different departments involved in this program include the Burn Unit,
Special Immunology, Nephrology, Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation,
14
Rheumatology, and Spina Bifida. The goal of this program is to ensure
success of the child's educational experience.
Most recently, social workers became involved with Government &
Community Affairs in an information session geared toward educating the
public about changes in the Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
requirements for disability payments. As a part of this effort, they have
joined with other CNMC departments and outside agencies to plan a
campaign to obtain SSI benefits and medical coverage for every eligible child
in the District of Columbia. CNMC social workers currently reach potentially
eligible SSI participants through active distribution of flyers, newsletters, and
community canvasing.
Special Immunology
The Special Immunology Department has been actively involved in advocacy
activities since it opened its doors in 1985. In an effort to educate medical
staff, families, and children with HIV, this department has been involved
with the D.C. AIDS Education and Training Center (DCAETC) since June 1992,
and the Family and Children's Care Panel since February 1992. DCAETC is
only offered to children who reside in the District of Columbia and who test
positive for HIV/AIDS. In addition, a number of the nurses on staff have
organized a training class that teaches area nurses how to deal with children
infected with HIV/AIDS.
Although these programs are geared predominantly toward the educating
health professionals, they affect nearly 500 children and their families. It is
projected that by 1995 these programs will benefit approximately 650 children.
Speak Out Lecture Program
In response to requests from the community, Public Affairs staff has
coordinated 60 speaking engagements by clinical and administrative staff. In
addition, 29 Speak Out Lecture series have been conducted by hospital staff at
area satellite clinics and other locations in the surrounding communities.
Washington Child Welfare Coalition
The Department of Government & Community Affairs continues to play a
lead role in the direction and administration of this diverse Child Advocacy
Coalition. On September 27, 1991, the coalition hosted a seminar entitled
"Translating Rhetoric Into Action: A Community Campaign for Kids",
successfully bringing over 100 members from seven of the leading advocacy
15
coalitions in the city together to develop a children's agenda through
coordination and collaboration of resources and expertise. In addition, the
coalition has been investigating the feasibility of replicating San Francisco's
successful ballot box referendum, Proposition J, in the District of Columbia.
Proposition J requires that 2.5 percent of the City of San Francisco's annual
property tax revenue be dedicated to a special children's fund.
In the Spring of 1992, the Washington Child Welfare Coalition agreed to take
on the responsibilities of the Coalition for America's Children and the
"Who's for Kids and Who's Just Kidding" campaign.
On-going Local Community Outreach Projects
Government and Community Affairs staff continues to focus its local
community outreach efforts through well established ongoing programs such
as the Pre-School Visitation Program, the Adopt-a-School partnership with
Parkview Elementary, Hospital tours, School Health and Career Fairs, and the
Car Seat Loaner Program.
GCA/09/30/92 (Revised 6)
16
Putin
$15
own
Book Reviews
All Our Children: The American
A belief in families runs through
faced-to achieve or just to sur-
Family Under Pressure. By Ken-
the book, which in some circles
vive-required a thoughtful, un-
neth Kenniston and the Carnegie
today is a quite old-fashioned idea
hurried examination. The individ-
Council on Children. New York:
but one the council embraces en-
uals involved came to their tasks
Harcourt Brace Janovich, 1977. 255
thusiastically, holding that there is
from different experiences and per-
pp. $10.95.
still no better way to care for chil-
spectives. They shared an openness
Reviewed by Hillary Rodham, at-
dren. This attitude permeates the
toward their responsibilities and a
torney with Rose, Nash, Williamson,
council's exorcism of certain myths
willingness to test preconceptions
Carroll, Clay, and Giroir of Little Rock,
that serve only to inhibit the devel-
and unorthodox ideas; they sought
Arkansas, and member of the Board of
opment of a realistic family policy
out persons from all walks of life
Arkansas Advocates for Children and
in this country. The myth of the
and from all over the country; they
Families.
housewife whose life centers only
tested ideas on each other and criti-
Readers looking for an unbiased
on her home is effectively dispelled
cal third persons; they struggled to
review of this important new book
by statistics demonstrating that the
capture in writing the tone of vigor-
will not find it here. The Carnegie
average school child now has a
ous debate; they rewrote and edit-
Council on Children, a varied
working mother. The myth, or per-
ed again and again.
group of experts and interested citi-
haps more accurately, the prej-
Every subject the council exam-
zens, spent five years under the
udice, that each family should be
ined seemed to raise the same ques-
leadership of M.I.T. professor Ken-
self-sufficient is challenged in a
tions: How does a parent, even a
neth Kenniston studying the ways
compelling chapter on the "stacked
well-meaning, committed one, pro-
America regards and raises its chil-
deck" faced by the poor, minority,
vide for children in our increas-
dren. The result is a thorough, and
or handicapped children who are
ingly fragmented society? How
thoroughly valuable, analysis of the
born into a situation of inequality
does he or she cope on an in-
social pressure cooker in which the
and, most of them, kept there for
adequate income, unable to pur-
family and the children it is respon-
the rest of their lives.
chase the services needed by chil-
sible for rearing find themselves.
One of the freshest contributions
dren? How does society assist fami-
The analysis supports specific pub-
the book makes is to the under-
lies in a manner that promotes,
lic policy recommendations for the
standing of technology's impact on
rather than discourages, individual
next ten years-it draws a broad vi-
the family. Americans in the rich,
responsibility and dignity? Does
sion of the future we should all
poor, or any other category, are sur-
not every family, at some time,
work toward.
rounded and victimized by tech-
need help-and, if so, what deliv-
The book's central argument
nology: television, nuclear plants,
ery systems are required? If one be-
avers that the family cannot be seen
automobiles, drugs. American fam-
lieves, as the council does, that it is
as an atomistic element in the larger
ilies that hope to achieve complete
the family's and not the state's re-
society, moving or stagnating sole-
control over their children's up-
sponsibility to raise children, then
ly as an effect of its own efforts.
bringing find themselves com-
it follows that the family needs
Rather, solutions to the so-called
peting with powerful influences.
strengthening in order to have a
"crisis of the family" require that
Collective action is needed on the
chance to survive and overcome the
we see the family as one of many
community, state, and federal level
ravages of poverty and its hand-
social institutions, and one influ-
to wrest from machines and those
maidens of disease, ignorance,
enced by cultural, economic, and
who profit from their use the ex-
hunger, and hopelessness.
political events as certainly as by
traordinary power they hold over
But if we are going to require re-
the fortunes of its individual mem-
us all, but particularly over our chil-
sponsibility, then we must offer the
bers. Thus, the council urges that
dren.
opportunity for it to be accepted.
attention be turned to the impact
Lest you think the book's analy-
Consequently the council proposes
on families of external factors such
sis and recommendations were pre-
a new formula for measuring pover-
as income distribution, accessibil-
ordained, let me share with you my
ty, to help redress economic in-
ity to health care, educational serv-
experience as a staff member and
equality. It offers suggestions in
ices, legal rights, and runaway
consultant with the council. The
other areas: employment, health,
technology. Its conclusion-that
council and staff faced with consid-
and law. Underlying all its recom-
many families face problems over
erable trepidation the awesome
mendations is the need for advo-
which they have little or no con-
charge by the Carnegie Foundation
cacy on behalf of children, particu-
trol-will come as no surprise to
to study the American child. The is-
larly by their parents. Children can-
persons in the social welfare field,
sue of child-rearing is a con-
not speak for themselves; they do
but it is a significant finding for
troversial one, and it seemed to us
not vote or contribute to special in-
public policy that will affect all fam-
that the changing role of the family
terest lobbies. Yet, their futures are
ilies.
and the increasing pressures it
inextricably bound up with politi-
56 PUBLIC WELFARE / WINTER 1978
cal decisions about the allocation of
program covers more than 90 per-
must be addressed to even begin to
resources. Adults must represent
cent of the labor force; each year it
update the system are-
the interests of children that are im-
pays out more than $83 billion in
1. the increased numbers of
plicit in such issues as full and fair
benefits to over 30 million aged and
women in the labor force, which
employment and flexible working
disabled and their dependents and
has led to a majority of families
schedules for working parents.
survivors. Promises of future bene-
being two-worker rather than one-
They must urge the passage of a na-
fits already exceed $4 trillion. Ini-
worker units;
tional health insurance plan that
tially implemented at a modest lev-
2. the substantial decline in fer-
will provide preventive care for the
el with the passage of the Social
tility rates, which threatens the sys-
many treatable conditions afflicting
Security Act in 1935, the program
tem's future pay-as-you-go method
thousands of children. They must
was inevitably designed without
of funding;
write and pass the laws that will
prophetic insights into future social
3. a substantial increase in the
protect our children against envi-
and economic changes and the re-
divorce rate and the fluidity of the
ronmental pollution. They will
sultant growth of the system itself.
family, which causes substantial
have to reorganize our existing
Among the many changes that
gaps in the benefits for many fe-
service network and implement
have occurred since 1935 and that
male homemakers;
necessary new programs so that
people, not bureaucracies, are
made stronger.
Columbia University
Whether or not one agrees with
School of Social Work
the council's work, All Our Children
does fuel the debate over the future
Offers Educational Opportunities
of public policy on children and
their families-and in that sense is
Leading to the Degrees of
almost required reading for social
MASTER OF SCIENCE
welfare professionals and poli-
cymakers alike.
Concentrations in direct services; community organizing, planning,
and administration; and research.
A Reduced Residency Program is available for applicants experi-
The Future of Social Security. By
enced in social work or allied professions.
Alicia H. Munnell. Washington,
A limited number of qualified graduates of accredited undergraduate
D.C.: The Brookings Institution,
social work programs are able to earn the degree through the Ad-
1977. 190 pp. $9.95; $3.95 paper.
vanced Standing Program which grants up to 30 points for under-
Reviewed by Gary Hendricks, M.A.,
graduate social work study.
senior research associate, The Urban In-
stitute, Washington, D.C.
DOCTOR OF SOCIAL WELFARE
When a program touches as
Concentrations in advanced practice; social policy, planning, and
many people's lives as does Social
organization; and research.
Security's old age survivors and
disability insurance, a book that
and
scrutinizes the principles of indi-
vidual equity embedded in the pro-
Programs with Other Professional
gram's rules, examines its adequa-
cy in fulfilling specified social
Schools Leading to the Joint Degrees of
goals, and considers the soundness
Master of Science in social work and Master of Business Administra-
of the financing base for future pro-
tion in cooperation with the Graduate School of Business. A com-
gram obligations, needs little justi-
bination of social work with a minor in business administration is
fication. However, Alicia Munnell's
also available.
book deserves close attention.
Master of Science in social work and Master of Public Health in CO-
It appears at a time when sub-
operation with the School of Public Health, College of Physicians
stantial program changes are being
and Surgeons.
proposed in the midst of public
Master of Science in social work and Master of Science in urban
controversy over its long-run via-
planning in cooperation with the Graduate School of Architecture
bility. It also has the very special
and Planning, Division of Urban Planning.
virtue that those who are not long-
For further information write or call
time students of Social Security can
Admissions Office
read it and come away with an un-
derstanding of the program's prob-
Columbia University School of Social Work
622 West 113 Street
lems and the difficulty of solving
them.
New York, N.Y. 10025
(212) 280-2856
Currently, the Social Security
PUBLIC WELFARE / WINTER 1978
57
File
CHILDREN
children
IN CRISIS
The Tragedy of Underfunded Schools
and the Students They Serve
BY SANDRA FELDMAN
N
OT TOO long ago, one of our high schools in Brook-
lyn, N.Y., made national headlines when two stu-
dents were shot dead in a hallway. Just three months ear-
lier at that same high school, another student had been
killed and a teacher shot. Fifty students from that school
have died on the streets of Brooklyn during the past five
years. The school has "grieving rooms," where students
can go to express and share their grief, along with teach-
ers, aides, administrators, and counselors. That's how
much violence, tragedy, and death there is in these young
people's lives.
I spent a good deal of time at that school, which is locat-
ed in the midst of a poverty-stricken neighborhood, filled
with vast, dreary public housing projects, boarded-up
buildings, and empty lots. Yet, I can assure you, amidst
so much desolation, the school is an oasis of hope. The
faculty is outstanding and the principal is dedicated and
caring. The great majority of the students are hungry for
an education and dream the typical dreams of young peo-
ple who want to better their lives. Although many of
them don't make it to graduation, of those who do. about
80 percent apply to college.
In the past two years of budget cuts, the school lost
approximately 10 percent of its staff. There is no doubt
that with more resources-from teachers to textbooks
to laboratory equipment-that high school could suc-
ceed. Yet right now it is struggling just to maintain a safe
and secure environment.
Jefferson High School's tragic story is representative
of both the promise and the problems of education in
much of America today, from impoverished inner cities
to factory towns hard hit by the recession to rural com-
munities facing a less-publicized but equally painful
poverty. All across America, young people are bringing
more problems with them to school each day. Yet, at a
time when the schools need to do more than ever
before to help our young people survive and succeed,
they're being denied the resources they need because
of recession-hit tax revenues and shortsighted budget
Sandra Feldman is president of the United Federation
of Teachers in New York City and a vice president of the
American Federation of Teachers.
8 AMERICAN EDUCATOR
SPRING 1992
cuts at all levels. For ten years, the federal government
has slashed programs and services for poor children
while also cutting aid to states and localities. Left in the
wake is a generation mired in poverty: one in five chil-
dren nationwide, double that in my own city. That's 24
million nationally.
Ironically, while our schools, our students, and our
society's future are being shortchanged, the Bush admin-
istration and the nation's governors have committed
themselves to six "national education goals" for the year
2000, including the following.
Readiness for School: By the year 2000, all children
will start school ready to learn.
High School Completion: By the year 2000, the high
school graduation rate will increase to at least 90 percent.
First in the World: By the year 2000, U.S. students
will be the first in the world in science and mathematics
achievement.
Disciplined and Drug-Free Schools: By the year
2000. every school in America will be free of drugs and
violence and will offer a disciplined environment con-
ducive to learning.
These goals seem like a mockery to many American
teachers striving to do the best they can for their students
in schools that are overcrowded, under-equipped, and,
all too frequently. unsafe as well. Often the school is the
only stable institution in many students' lives. and teach-
ers feel that the burden of society's unsolved problems
has been placed on their shoulders. The stresses and
strains of trying to cope with the nation's most severe
problems, without the tools they need to do their jobs.
explain why a health newsletter recently ranked "inner-
city teacher" as America's most stressful job. And of all
the tensions in the teacher's life, the worst may be the
PHOTO JONATHAN SMITH
terrible sense that we're watching helplessly while beau-
tiful kids are being shortchanged and enormous poten-
tial lost.
T
WO YEARS ago, the AFT created a Task Force on Chil-
Changing classes in an overcrowded
dren in Crisis to study and suggest solutions for the
high school, Queens. New York.
problems of young people who need so much more from
our schools at the very time our schools are being forced
SPRING 1992
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS 9
to make do with less. To begin to cope with these prob-
lems. the AFT has called upon President Bush to declare
a state of emergency for children in crisis and has urged
Congress to take immediate legislative action. Specifi-
cally. we're proposing that $10.5 billion of what this
nation used to spend on defense be spent on ten basic
education. health care, and school facility repair pro-
grams. Most of this money would be used to expand exist-
ing, proven. successful-but never fully funded-pro-
grams. such as Chapter I and Head Start (see sidebar,
page 16).
As chairperson of that AFT task force. I've spoken with
teachers all across the country and heard first-hand
accounts of how America is abandoning many of its chil-
dren and neglecting most of them. at an untold cost to
its future.
Those anecdotes have been given broad national valid-
ity by the steady drumbeat of recent reports document-
ing the deteriorating condition of America's children.
One of the most comprehensive and perceptive of these
is a book by Sylvia Ann Hewlett entitled When the Bough
Breaks: The Cost of Neglecting Our Children (Basic
Books, June 1991).
Hewlett's book looks at children's entire lives. not just
their education, and concludes that our government has
just about given up on the younger generation. period.
Citing everything from inadequate prenatal care to cut-
births; the juvenile incarceration rate jumped by 41 per-
backs in child health programs and early education to a
cent from 1979 through 1987; and the percentage of chil-
crying lack of decent, affordable housing for families,
dren living in families with only one parent went from
Hewlett shows how our children are at much greater risk
21 percent to about 24 percent of all children.
than children elsewhere in the industrial world.
Hewlett shows how these problems have all been
Although the U.S. ranks number two in per-capita
exacerbated by the squeeze on public funds for programs
income, we don't even make it into the top ten on any
that affect children: "Federal expenditure on all child-ori-
significant indicator of child welfare.
ented programs-AFDC. Head Start, food stamps, child
"Each day in the United States, sixty-seven newborn
nutrition, child health, and federal aid to education"-
babies die," writes Hewlett. "Had they been born in
fell from $51 billion in 1978 to $48.3 billion in 1987.
Japan. only thirty-seven would have died. Over the
When it comes to education spending. she writes, "the
course of a single year, approximately 40,000 American
United States ties for twelfth place among sixteen indus-
babies die before their first birthday. The U.S. interna-
trialized nations. To bring our primary and secondary
tional ranking in infant mortality worsened from sixth in
schools up to the average level found in the other fifteen
the mid-1950s to twentieth in 1987. Japan. on the other
countries, we would need to increase spending by over
hand. went from seventeenth to first place over the same
$20 billion annually."
span of time
A black baby born in the shadow of the
Hewlett isn't blind to the fact that the breakdown in fam-
White House is now more likely to die in the first year of
ily and social structure over the years has also contribut-
life than a baby born in Jamaica or Trinidad."
ed to the problems. She notes, for example, that about 50
For many of those children who do make it beyond
percent of today's teenagers are products of divorced fam-
their first year, the author paints a picture of life that is a
ilies and that 42 percent of all divorced fathers fail to see
continuous battle to survive. "The problems of our youth
their children after the divorce. But her key point is that
range from elemental issues of health and safety to more
at this time of social breakdown, we live in a country that
complicated issues of motivation and performance
hasn't developed a policy to protect its children.
Nationwide, the incidence of child abuse has quadrupled
If no action is taken. the future looms worse. By the
since 1975
A child is safer in Northern Ireland than
year 2000, the very year President Bush predicts we'll
in America
Millions of American children are failing
reach educational nirvana, more than 23 percent of
to receive immunizations against polio, measles. and
America's children will likely live in poverty. That
mumps." And on and on go the grim statistics.
means nearly one in every four children will be living
Other reports-notably those prepared by the Chil-
in families earning less than $10,857 a year for a family
dren's Defense Fund and by KIDS COUNT. a project of
of three.
the Center for the Study of Social Policy-echo Hewlett's
findings: During the decade of the eighties. the percent-
age of children living below the government's poverty
W
HILE POOR children are suffering the most, all of
our young people-the children of middle Amer-
line increased. from 16 percent to 19.5 percent: the rate
ica and upper America. as well as the children of the
of violent deaths among teenagers increased by 12 per-
poor-are having a harder time growing up healthy in
cent from 1984 through 1988 alone: births to unmarried
mind. body. and spirit. With fathers and mothers work-
teenagers climbed from 7.5 percent to 8.6 percent of all
ing longer hours just to hold onto their piece of the Amer-
10 AMERICAN EDUCATOR
SPRING 1992
ican dream. the time that families spend together is
becoming shorter and more stressful.
Thus, Svlvia Hewlett cites the findings of University of
Maryland sociologist Joan Robinson. who reports that
"total contact time"-the time parents spend with chil-
dren doing things other than the most basic activities like
feeding and dressing them-has dropped 40 percent dur-
ing the past quarter-century. Children who spend so
much less time with their parents suffer an incalculable
cost in emotional security and self-esteem. Part of that
price may be reflected in the increase over the past thir-
ty years in obesity, behavioral disorders, and even suicide
among American children, as reported in a recent edi-
tion of Science magazine. Even among the children of the
wealthy. whose parents often lavish them with every-
thing but time and attention, there is an increase in feel-
ings of aimlessness and alienation that Children's
Defense Fund President Marian Wright Edelman calls
"affluenza" condition portrayed on Fox television's
popular show "Beverly Hills 90210."
PHOTO: JONATHAN SMITH
Given the tremendous strains on American families,
and in the virtual absence of any other institutions to shel-
ter and nurture and guide young people, the public
schools find themselves with an awesome responsibility
for the next generation of Americans. Public education
is the universal service. If family problems are not being
Above and below: In many school districts
addressed in health clinics or by caseworkers, they are
across the country, closets, cloakrooms, halls,
finding their way to school. Yet far from receiving the
bathrooms, and lunchrooms have been pressed
resources they need, our schools-and especially those
into service as classrooms. "There's no air in the
in the neediest urban and rural communities-are forced
closet and the children get listless," reports the
to make do with less.
New York teacher pictured above.
During a national economic recession that is now well
into its second year, schools have suffered from often
severe reductions in state aid and shortfalls in local prop-
erty taxes. State and local governments are in no condi-
tion to make up for what the federal government is no
longer sending. According to the National Governors'
Assn., thirty-seven states are in dire fiscal condition.
To make things worse-much worse-this financial
strain comes on top of the fundamental inequity in how
we pay for our children's education: With substantial,
and, in some states. most funding coming from local
property taxes, wealthy communities can afford to pay
much more than poor communities where the needs
are greatest. Rather than correcting for this inequity,
some state aid formulas actually add to it. In New York
City, for example, each child receives $350 less aid than
students elsewhere in the state, despite their greater
needs. These problems are presented in vivid-and
appalling-detail in a book that paints a devastating pic-
ture of the education offered to poor children in this
country: Savage Inequalities by Jonathan Kozol
(Crown Publishers).
PHOTO COL K77 CHICAGO TEACHERS CNION
Studying school systems throughout the country,
Kozol finds that students from poor communities have
to put up with the worst, while young people from
communities with greater wealth (and more political
clout) get better schools. From personal experience, I
know that Kozol is right on target in his observations
about conditions in New York City and its suburbs. For
instance, in a visit to a school district in the Bronx that
spans the gamut of middle class to poor schools, Kozol
observed one elementary school serving a low-income
population-a school housed in a former skating rink.
SPRING 1992
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS 11
It's a school I know well from several visits.
claustrophobic room. Seeing no reference books. I ask a
Here is some of what he saw: Classes "as large as 37";
teacher if encyclopedias and other reference books are
"Textbooks are scarce, and children have to share their
kept in classrooms. 'We don't have encyclopedias in
social studies books"; "A ratio of 930 children to one
classrooms, she replies. That is for the suburbs."
counselor"; "To make up for the building's lack of win-
I am constantly reminded of our system's "savage
dows and the crowded feeling that results, the staff puts
inequalities" by the schools I visit during my work week.
plants and fish tanks in the corridors."
And recently a revealing incident occurred during a fam-
Kozol writes: "The library is a tiny, windowless and
ily outing. As it SO happens, my niece goes to the same
RURAL AREAS HARDPRESSED, TOO
Lack of equipment makes mockery of Science 2000 goal
BY DAVID KUSNET
A
TROUBLED youngster doesn't
get the counseling she needs. A
science lesson is taught with a lec-
ture, instead of laboratory work.
8302
And almost one out of five students
drop out before finishing high
school.
These are some of the human
costs of the lack of funds for the
public schools in Logan County, as
business, jobs, and people continue
to flee the coal country of southern
PHOTO: JACKIE MC NEELY
West Virginia.
Over the past ten years, Logan
County's population has declined by
ty in these hills," Gore says, referring
consecutive days of school need a
more than six thousand, and school
specifically to the more poverty-
doctor's excuse," explains Moss
enrollment has dropped by more
stricken rural areas, particularly
Burgess, a science teacher at Logan
than three thousand during the past
those in the "hollows" between the
High School and president of the
five years alone. The unemployment
mountains. "The environment is not
Logan County Federation of Teach-
rate is close to 10 percent, among
conducive to learning, not con-
ers. "We get notes back from their
the worst in the state and the
ducive to getting up in the morning
parents saying they can't get a doc-
nation.
and going to school.
tor's note because their family
With state aid linked to declining
"Sometimes, when I visit a home
doesn't have medical coverage."
student enrollment figures and an
where a child isn't going to school, I
Sometimes, students are legally
additional 1 percent cut imposed on
walk into the house and almost fall
adopted by their grandparents in
education funding throughout West
through the floor," Gore recalls.
order that they can be covered
Virginia, Logan County schools have
"The porches are falling off the
under their health insurance.
lost at least $250,000 this year. On
house. The steps are falling down.
Students' needs and schools'
top of that, local property tax rev-
And, sometimes, the adult at home
resources seem to be moving in
enues have also declined during the
is just sprawled out on the couch,
opposite directions. In a community
recession, particularly after the
watching TV, like he or she has
where regular medical checkups are
bankruptcy of Columbia Gas, the
given up."
luxuries many families can't afford,
biggest natural gas distributor in the
With many of the more ambitious
the entire Logan County school sys-
state. And these cuts in school fund-
young people leaving the state to
tem has only two nurses serving
ing hit especially hard at a school
look for jobs, often leaving their
more than nine thousand students
system that has always been hard-
children behind, an increasing num-
in thirty-one schools. Nurses try to
pressed for resources, with aging
ber of school-aged youngsters are
visit each school for a half-hour to
buildings and outmoded equipment.
growing up in single-parent homes
an hour each week-nowhere near
Meanwhile. students are coming
or with their grandparents, who
enough time to examine students
to class with more problems and
often are retired or disabled miners.
who often bring health problems
some aren't showing up at all. The
Except for working or retired min-
that hinder their learning to school.
percentage of students eligible for
ers or government workers, many
"We should have one nurse per
free or reduced-cost school lunch
families lack health insurance-a
thousand kids-seven more nurses."
has climbed to forty-five.
problem that's poignantly brought
says Jack Garrett, assistant superin-
Attendance officer Charles Gore
to the attention of their teachers.
tendent of schools.
often gets a first-hand look at the
"We have a new policy on absen-
Nurses aren't the only personnel
problems. "There's a cycle of pover-
teeism-students who miss five
in short supply; so are counselors.
12 AMERICAN EDUCATOR
SPRING 1992
public school I attended in Brooklyn. There are thirty-
seven kids in her class. 1 overheard my niece swapping
I
N COMMUNITIES across the country, cuts in school
funding are having devastating effects. In my own city
stories with a young friend. the same age, who lives and
of New York, we have suffered budget cuts reaching a
goes to school in Scarsdale. a wealthy suburb of New
mind-numbing three-quarters of a billion dollars in the
York. There are eighteen children in her class. The con-
last two years. The situation is dire. When I asked mem-
trast was a grim reminder that school spending per stu-
bers of New York City's United Federation of Teachers to
dent is about $2,500 higher in the suburbs around New
send in reports about the impact of budget cuts at their
York City.
schools, more than 8,000 responded with stories of
Logan Grade School. with 365 stu-
announced that the U.S. is going to
the school, and, as principal Robert
dents, tries to make do by having a
be first in science by the year 2000."
Adkins explains, "At noon, when the
teacher squeeze in an hour or so of
At Logan Junior High School, sci-
kids hit the bathrooms, you can
counseling between her other
ence teacher Anthony Grando's
smell the sewage." Because of a lack
duties each day. Principal Norma
class also suffers from a lack of basic
of usable classrooms, a special edu-
McCloud says that often she has to
equipment. A few years ago, when
cation class meets in the service
do counseling herself-a fact that
the pipes froze, they were never
room of the library where materials
was verified during a recent visit to
replaced. And the classroom doesn't
such as encyclopedias are stored.
her office, where one child had just
have an exhaust fan, so, when some-
Meanwhile, Logan Grade School
left and a line of others were wait-
thing is burned, the smoke stays in
doesn't even have a library. "I just
ing to meet with her.
the room, even if the windows are
finished ordering a set of encyclope-
"You see a need, and you do it for
open, discomforting everyone and
dias and dictionaries, but where am
kids," McCloud said. "I see a kid in
causing special problems for stu-
I going to put them?" asks principal
crisis every day. We can't alleviate
dents with asthma. The lack of
Norma McCloud.
the home problems, but we can
equipment makes it difficult for a
make the children more comfort-
Dealing with these difficulties,
teacher to do demonstrations, much
able with themselves and get them
teachers often dip into their own
less for students to conduct experi-
in the frame of mind to go back into
ments of their own.
pockets to provide resources for
the classroom." She recently spent a
their students, from chemistry sam-
Inevitably, the result is a style of
half-day counseling a troubled girl.
ples for experiments to books and
teaching where "you tell but don't
"What do you do? You can't walk
videotapes. Science teacher Moss
show-and that's book science,"
away from that kind of alienation."
Burgess, for instance, spent his own
warns Burgess. "Real science is
money to buy paint, nails, and other
learning for yourself. The tragedy is
materials to repaint and repair the
F
OR ALL THE dedication of the
that the kids' Nintendo games at
cabinets in his chemistry room. "I
staff, sometimes the schools
home are more modern than most
don't know of any teachers who
don't have the resources to bring
of the lab equipment they use at
don't spend their own money to
out the best in the students. The
school."
make things a little better," says
lack is particularly painful in science
Science isn't the only subject that
superintendent of schools Cosma
classes, which usually don't have
suffers from the lack of equipment.
Crites.
laboratory equipment in the junior
At Ralph R. Willis County Vocational
highs and which frequently have
School, the newest car they have to
Many Logan County teachers
were born and raised here, went
antiquated equipment at best in the
work on is eight or nine years old,
says Cosma Crites, county superin-
away to college to receive their
high schools.
tendent of schools. "Many engine
teaching degree, and then returned
Logan High School science teach-
to teach new generations. "This is
er Moss Burgess says that, in his
components are now computer con-
our home," said one teacher. "If we
chemistry class, "The faucets finally
trolled," she explains. "But our auto
just rotted away-they were
mechanics students don't have the
don't give up, maybe these children
won't either."
replaced eventually-but the gas
computer equipment to learn on.
line wasn't replaced for most of the
You can't fix things with just a
But, despite their best efforts,
bunsen burners." Now, Burgess
screwdriver and a wrench anymore."
teachers and administrators are
explains, "Kids have to double up,
Problems with physical facilities
haunted by the living evidence that
and we have a hard time doing
also put a crimp on the schools.
the schools aren't doing everything
experiments."
Crites says that many buildings have
possible for young people discour-
Ticking off an inventory of anti-
leaky roofs. "The roofs leak SO badly,
aged from achieving their full poten-
quated equipment, Burgess men-
it gets into the asbestos, then the
tial.
tions "a barometer made in Ger-
ceiling tiles begin to fall. We have to
"When students drop out, they
many before World War II" and "a
shut the place down while the
hang around for a while and get jobs
distiller bought twenty years ago-
asbestos is removed, which is more
at Wendy's and McDonald's when
it's a matter of time before it goes,
money we don't have."
they can," Burgess explains. "Some-
and then it'll cost $1,500 to replace.
Logan Junior High School pre-
times they end up on welfare."
I don't know where the money will
sents a different problem. It is built
"So many kids get out of high
come from. It's kind of hard, with
into a hillside. where most houses
school and I see them two or three
these conditions, to read in the
have no septic tanks. Raw sewage
years later, just hanging out trying to
papers that President Bush has
runs downhill in a creek alongside
find a job," Crites concludes.
SPRING 1992
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS 13
human tragedy.
spending more time warehoused in "study halls." Mean-
Class sizes are increasing to as many as forty students
while. bathrooms. halls, closets, and lunchrooms all have
because we have 2.500 fewer teaching positions at the
been pressed into service as classrooms.
same time that school enrollments have increased by
Reading many of the teachers' responses was truly
20,000 over last year. The school population is rapidly
heartbreaking:
approaching its peak of 1971, yet we have 3,500 fewer
A junior high school teacher wrote: "My blackboard
classrooms and 100 fewer schools than we had then. Cur-
broke last year. There's no money to replace it. SO I have
ricula have been cut back. from advanced-placement
a gaping four-foot space in front of my room. I have to
classes to electives and foreign languages, music, and art.
write around it."
Counselors, psychologists, and social workers have seen
A special education science teacher from Brooklyn
their caseloads skyrocket because of reductions in staff
described the shortage of books and supplies: "Our
and growing numbers of students with severe problems.
school doesn't have enough textbooks for students to
Because schools lack the funds to buy new textbooks and
take home. I can't even give them handouts because
workbooks, many students are "doubling up" on them.
we're out of paper for the copy machine. The science
While laboratory work has been curtailed, students are
department can't afford any science supplies. Our cur-
Los ANGELES: THE NEW 'ELLIS ISLAND'
L
OS ANGELES has been called
cent, or more than $630 million, in
meeting that test, particularly in the
"America's new Ellis Island." Like
the last three years. During that
aftermath of state and local budget
time, enrollment has mushroomed
New York City at the turn of the
by more than forty-five thousand
cuts. Bruce Williams has taught
twentieth century, Los Angeles, at
new students. More than 75 percent
social studies for nine years at John
the turn of the twenty-first century,
of the $3.9 billion the district
Muir Junior High School and is a site
has become the home for immi-
spends annually comes from the
representative for the United Teach-
state. but last year the state had to
grants from every continent on
grapple with its own $14.9 billion
ers of Los Angeles.
earth, seeking freedom and oppor-
deficit, SO education spending was
tunity in the United States.
pared down and across-the-board
The children of many of these
cost-of-living increases virtually
eliminated.
immigrants-and the children of
"My experience confirms the fact
"The school board had already
many older residents as well-bring
that teaching is a job that breaks
reduced administrative spending,
to Los Angeles' public schools not
borrowed from its construction
your heart every day. Most of my
only the rich diversity of their cul-
accounts, cut custodial services and
colleagues love teaching, but we
tures but the many problems of
dipped into its insurance reserves
have trouble liking our jobs. You try
to narrow the budget gap, before it
poverty.
to start each day with optimism, but
voted last summer on more cuts.
Eighty-four different languages are
within the hour, you're confronted
Ultimately, almost 2,000 teachers
spoken in Los Angeles' schools. And
were laid off, hundreds of courses
with so many things that make
in 413 of these schools, at least half
were eliminated and the remaining
teaching difficult.
classes were crammed with addi-
the students are not fluent in
"First, let me tell you about our
tional students. and spending on
English.
school. Its demographics are rough-
such basic supplies as textbooks,
Fully 50 percent of the children in
pencils and paper was curtailed."
ly 58 percent Latino and 42 percent
Los Angeles schools were born into
African-American. It's right in the
poverty. One of every four babies in
As Helen Bernstein, president of
heart of South Central Los Angeles.
the city is born to a young and
the United Teachers of Los Angeles,
It's on territory that's disputed
unwed mother. And over 20 percent
explains: "The image of Los Angeles
between the gangs.
of the city's adult population is illit-
is one of opulence, Hollywood, and
"Out of 1,604 students, we have
world-class wealth. Teachers see the
about three hundred who speak lit-
erate.
other-the real-L.A. We work and
While the needs of the city's chil-
tle, if any, English. They are identi-
dren have been growing, the
promote learning under the most
fied as Limited English Proficiency
resources of its schools have been
adverse conditions. 'Our' Los Ange-
(LEP). We have another five hun-
les is one of sweatshops, factories
dred who are less than fluent in
dwindling. The average kinder-
garten class size is now thirty-five,
and hotels, where the parents of
English. They are identified as
while high school academic classes
many of our students spend their
English as a Second Language (ESL).
workdays."
"About two-thirds of our students
have forty or more students.
A recent story in the Los Angeles
America's greatness has always
come from families that are on Aid to
Times Magazine described what
been its ability to bring such young
Families with Dependent Children.
has been happening:
people into the mainstream of our
And, another grim fact, approximate-
society. In the passage that follows,
ly 75 percent of our children score
a junior high school teacher from
below the twenty-fifth percentile on
"Squeezed between rising costs
and shrinking state funding, the Los
Los Angeles discusses how one of
standardized tests.
Angeles Unified School District has
the largest and fastest-growing
"We are exactly the kind of school
had to cut its spending by 15 per-
school systems in urban America is
where resources, money, staff, small
14 AMERICAN EDUCATOR
SPRING 1992
rent situation is beyond hopeless."
leaders described the situations in their cities at a news
A third-grade teacher in upper Manhattan talked
conference held in Washington this past winter. The
about the crowding: "The classroom is SO small (12 feet
cross-section of cities represented made it clear that
by 18 feet). no additional desks will fit. Children have to
poverty does not discriminate: it destroys urban and rural
crawl under desks to get in and out of the room."
children. white, African-American. Latino, and Asian
A teacher from Queens described the effect on spe-
children alike.
cial ed students: "The classes are so large, we cannot
In Los Angeles, where half the students come from
mainstream the special ed students when they are ready.
poor families and many have limited proficiency in
This has set special education back five years!"
English, the average kindergarten class size is thirty-five.
"How can I teach pipe welding without any pipes?"
while high school academic classes have forty or more
asked a Manhattan vocational high school teacher.
students. Meanwhile. enrollment in the Los Angeles Uni-
And an elementary school teacher from the Bronx
fied School District is expected to grow by 15,000 to
summed it all up: "No gym, no music, no nurse. no guid-
20,000 every year for the next twenty years. Helen Bern-
ance counselor, no trips, no art supplies. What's left?"
stein, president of the United Teachers of Los Angeles,
Similar tragedies are unfolding across the country. AFT
explained: "The linguistic, psychological, and economic
classes, individual attention are
we have one. We used to have two
the problems we face, a lot of our
urgently needed. Unfortunately,
art teachers; now we have one. In
time is taken up with bureaucratic
we're not receiving them.
the elementary schools in L.A., by
paperwork, when really every
"For example, as a result of some
the way, art and music positions
minute is needed for teaching stu-
of the budget cuts, my department,
have been totally eliminated.
dents or preparing for classes. For
the Social Studies Department. has
"Another example of the impact
example, the governor of our state
decreased from ten teachers to
of the cuts is that the Board of Edu-
has proposed that we take and
eight, and class sizes have
cation has frozen our instructional
report formal attendance four
increased. In the five seventh-grade
materials account, and it's only a
times a day instead of just the first
classes that I teach, my smallest
matter of time before we run out of
period of the day. The reason is
class has twenty-nine students and
paper for duplicating teaching mate-
that state aid is based in part on
my largest has thirty-three. So the
rials. To make matters worse, not
average daily attendance, and the
amount of time that I can spend
every student has a textbook. I have
state saves money if attendance
with any individual student is mini-
a class set, so everyone has a book
declines during the school day.
mal, if it exists at all.
during class, but not everyone has
Think about that for a minute-we
"Our maintenance staff was
one to take home at night. That
would be taking time that could be
down to the bones to begin with,
means I can't use textbook-based
used for teaching and spending it
but, in January, we lost three more
homework assignments, so I often
instead to compile statistics that
positions. Now, they're SO hard-
need to reproduce material to give
could be used to further cut our
to the children for homework. And
resources.
pressed, they can barely do more
than empty the trashcans every
that means paper, which, as I said, is
"What pains me most is the stu-
night. My classroom hasn't been
in short supply.
dents I'm afraid we're losing. and,
swept in two weeks. That used to
"Looking at the needs of the stu-
worse yet, the students I'm afraid
be something you could count on.
dents who aren't fluent in English
we've lost.
And with one hundred fifty kids
or for whom English is a second
"I think about a seventh grader
coming in and out of this room
language, we do have a shortage of
who lives in a group foster home.
each day, you can envision how
bilingual teachers. In my school
Every day, he comes to school with
much it is needed. I'm not blaming
right now, out of a total of sixty-
myriad problems, most of them
the staff; there's just fewer of them,
three classroom teachers, we have
relating to self-esteem. Unfortu-
and they can only do so much.
only seven fully credentialed bilin-
nately, he's in my largest class—
Every morning, the students in my
gual teachers, that is, teachers flu-
with thirty-two other students-
homeroom class help me out, and
ent in both English and Spanish.
and it's difficult for me to give him
we straighten up the room and
That's a money problem. too,
the individual attention he needs.
pick up the floor. Half my Venetian
because we need to pay a differen-
When I try to work with him, I
blinds are broken-and have been
tial to attract teachers with the
envision a circle-a wall circled
for two years-and the wall clock
bilingual language skills we need.
around him-and everywhere I
doesn't work. Supplies for the
What's even worse is that class-size
turn. I just keep seeing barriers. He
school's bathrooms are not regular,
limits are the same in the LEP and
responds to personal attention,
and we have water fountains that
English as a Second Language class-
but, unfortunately, we don't have
are broken and windows that are
es as in other academic classes
the time and the staff it takes to
boarded up.
although, when we're teaching stu-
give him the attention he really
"We used to have a school nurse
dents who are not proficient in
needs.
each day, but now we have one only
English, the class size needs to be
"The tragedy is: we could do
three or four days a week. We used
smaller.
more for him. And for SO many oth-
to have two music teachers; now
"Meanwhile, in the midst of all
ers who never had a fair chance."
SPRING
1992
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS 15
CHILDREN IN CRISIS: AFT PROPOSALS
WHAT YOU CAN DO
Parts of this program are moving in different bills in the Congress. However, success of the overall package still rests with having
someone friendly in the White House. AFT members who agree that this program is a very high priority item should write to their
members of the House and Senate urging them to take action on behalf of schools and children in crisis.
Program
Proposed
Purpose
Increases
Chapter 1
$1 billion
To serve an additional 1 million educationally disadvantaged
(compensatory
(current authorization
students, with 50 percent going toward concentration grants and the
funding)
$6.1 billion)
other 50 percent used for regular distribution.
Chapter 1
$1 billion
This money should be earmarked for full-day early childhood
(other funding)
(current authorization
education for four- and five-year-olds.
$1.98 billion)
Education for
$800 million
Funding is used to improve the education
All Handicapped
of children with physical and/or mental disabilities.
Children Act
Medicaid
Entitlement
To provide elementary school counselors and clinicians in the schools to help
children facing temporary health and emotional problems and to prevent
inappropriate placement of children into special education programs.
Head Start
$1.75 billion
Head Start is an example of how early childhood education can put a student on the
(current authorization
right path to quality education. The $1.75 billion should be used to increase enroll-
$2.2 billion)
ment by at least 50 percent and to expand the number of children who are eligible.
Health clinics
$2.5 billion
Inadequate health care and poor educational performance are closely related.
at or near schools
These funds would help provide primary and preventative care for 15 million children.
Five-year public
$500 million*
This program would solve the infrastructure problems of our schools and help
works program
bring the country out of the recession by putting people to work. It should be fund-
to rebuild schools
ed at $500 million for the first year and increased to a total of between $8 billion
and $10 billion over five years.
Other special-
$100 million (current
These funds should be targeted to programs like the Education of Homeless
needs programs
funding for similar pro-
Children and Youth and Emergency Immigration Education, including bilingual
grams: $250 million)
education and English as a Second Language.
Child care,
$2.5 billion
These funds should be used to:
prenatal care, and
expand child care and development block grants
preventive health care
fund community health centers
expand maternal and child health services grants
increase funding for nutrition for women, infants and children
assist public and community health clinics to administer child immunization vaccines
Expand pro-
$100 million
To provide additional training for elementary and secondary school math
grams targeted
(current authorization
and science teachers through programs like the Dwight D. Eisenhower
to math and science
$240 million)
Math and Science Education Act.
*first-year costs
PHOTO. MILLER PHOTOGR win
Above: It's hard to move, let alone teach or learn,
needs of these children are at once more critical and
in this class of forty-four in New York City.
more daunting than any one of us has ever known."
In Peoria, Illinois, the shutdown of the city's largest
Below: Coats in the classroom aren't the excep-
employer, Caterpillar. as well as the closing of the Pabst
tion. they're the rule for these Chicago students,
brewery and the Hiram Walker distillery, mean that 47.9
who wage a seasonal battle against cold indoor
percent of the students are now classified as low-income
temperatures.
families. As Judy Fuson, president of the Peoria Federa-
tion of Teachers, observed, "The recession, rising pover-
ty, lack of health insurance, and single-parent homes are
not just big-city problems."
Baltimore Teachers Union co-president Lorretta
Johnson reported that teachers and paraprofessionals in
the city's schools are stretched to the limit. "We consid-
er ourselves lucky at the elementary school level if we
have specialists for art. music. and physical education,"
she said. "And although problems of weapons, violence,
and gangs have migrated down to the elementary level,
we consider it a luxury to have a school nurse. guidance
counselor, or security officer in a Baltimore elementary
school."
Responding to a survey by the United Teachers of
New Orleans, where many of the schools were built at
the turn of the century, 19 percent of teachers said the
roofs of their schools leaked, and a significant number
reported sewers backing up into the school building.
Twenty-nine percent of the student sinks were reported
notele
to be not working, and 33 percent of all water fountains
were broken. As union president Nat LaCour observed.
"If a hurricane swept across the Gulf and devastated New
Orleans, we would qualify for federal disaster relief. I
don't think we should wait for a strong wind: let's declare
a state of emergency for the children of New Orleans and
other American children today."
PHOTO con 'RTESY or CHICAGO TEACHERS UNION
D
espite the disgraceful conditions exemplified in
these accounts from around the country, many,
many schools that serve poor children are performing
heroically. Last year, in my own city of New York, with
65 percent of our children living at or below the pover-
ty line, our high school students won about $110 million
worth of college scholarships. And in this year's presti-
gious Westinghouse Science Talent Search. seventy-nine
(Continued on page 46)
SPRING 1992
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS 17
CHILDREN IN CRISIS
IT TAKES Two To TANGO
(Continued from page 17)
(Continued from page 23)
of the three hundred nationwide semi-finalists came from
bination of vague general knowledge and inspired guess-
New York City public high schools.
work."
Throughout this nation, hundreds of thousands of chil-
In the last ten years. 1 have been amazed to see the kinds
dren are saved from falling off the edge of the world by
of kids colleges are accepting. Affluent white kids who
their connection to school, the one stable institution in
have been kicked out of several private schools before
their lives. The teachers and other school personnel
landing in my class. who barely had a C average. and who
working with them do it on sheer grit and dedication and
have been addicted to alcohol and other drugs have been
with very little support. They do it under extremely dif-
getting into what I once thought were respectable
ficult circumstances and with great generosity of spirit.
schools. Minority kids who are barely literate have been
They will not give up on these children.
waltzing into higher education. Even many of the bright-
Yes, we are losing too many of our students. But we're
est kids who get into the super-selective schools are doing
saving enough of them to know that, if only we could
as little as possible as they build the resumes that the Ivies
make an adequate investment in programs that work, it
and other competitive schools are looking for. And the
would be possible to save almost all of our young people.
point is, the kids know it. They see their do-nothing older
Money does make a difference. For instance, in New
buddies getting in, and they realize they don't have to
York City, state and local education funding increased
work.
throughout the late 80s, and per-pupil expenditure grew
Columnist Robert Samuelson put the problem in per-
by more than $1,500 in the last half of the decade. The
spective in a Washington Post essay last year: "College
money was targeted to a few well-defined objectives, and
leaders see themselves as the victims of poor high
it worked. Attendance is at its highest level in twenty-four
schools. This rationalization is at least half backward. Lax
years, and the dropout rate has been edging steadily
high school and college academic standards feed on each
downward. A special math initiative raised math scores
other. In our society, the badge of successfully complet-
five percentage points, the largest one-year gain in twen-
ing high school is not just the degree but the ability to go
ty years. And perhaps most gratifying, reading achieve-
to college-and almost anyone can go to college."
ment for those with the least skills soared ten percentage
Samuelson suggests taking some of the fault-free qual-
points.
ity out of education. He suggests that states could "shut
But it took money. Now there's no money. Because
down 10 percent to 20 percent of their colleges and uni-
the federal well has dried up, we at the local level can-
versities, so schools wouldn't have to continually
not make the president's America 2000 program work.
scrounge for students. States could also sharply raise their
No one can ask teachers to shoulder the burden of
tuition and couple the increases with big boosts in schol-
improving education alone in underfunded schools
arships. But to keep scholarships, students would have
serving children whose basic needs haven't been met.
to maintain a C average."
If the president is willing to put resources and political
Likewise, Shanker favors paying the full costs for stu-
will behind the national goals, teachers will take respon-
dents who meet rigorous standards but could not other-
sibility and be held accountable for improved educa-
wise afford college. And, he adds, "it's not a now-or-never
tion. But we must have the tools, conditions, and
proposition. America has always been the land of second
resources to do our job. We must be allowed to focus on
and third chances. There should be multiple opportuni-
what we do best: teach. And we must be assured of a
ties to meet the standards and lots of help to do so. But
real partnership with school management and with the
no one should be admitted to college without being able
government.
to do college-level work."
When I think of what our schools could do, I think
Samuelson is right on the mark when he says that
about a night high school in our city, where a regular high
establishing real college admission standards "would
school program is restructured into a 5:30 P.M. to 11:00
instantly improve high schools." Students do respond to
P.M., plus Sunday, week, so that students-many of whom
challenge when they see it is in their best interests to do
might otherwise be homeless-can work during the day
so. But instead of offering challenges and clearly defined
to pay their rent.
goals that kids can work toward, we let them slide by for
At their graduation last June, the valedictorian, a love-
fear that not all of them will choose to-or be able to-
ly young woman who had won a scholarship-on aca-
attain those goals. As Samuelson puts it. "We prefer to
demic merit-to a prestigious private university, spoke
maintain poor schools-high schools and colleges-that
eloquently of her own struggle out of a life on the streets
everyone can attend rather than have good schools that
and in shelters. She talked about a support network that
might benefit most students. We prefer to complain
included a social worker in the shelter and a counselor in
about "underinvestment in education rather than face
the school system who brought her to this special high
the harder question of why our massive investment in
school. At one point, she broke down in tears. Her class-
education produces such poor results No
matter
how
mates-all of whom have heartbreaking stories-rose
worthy, reforms can't succeed unless students work
instantaneously and gave her a prolonged standing ova-
harder."
tion.
Samuelson and Shanker are right. Several decades ago.
Thinking about her story, I am reminded of all the other
if a child didn't learn, we blamed the child. That was
stories we could tell. And even more, of all the new sto-
wrong. Now if the child doesn't learn, we blame the
ries we could help create-if only we had the resources
adults or the system. That, too, is wrong. It's time we
we need to do the job.
insisted on both halves of the learning equation.
46 AMERICAN EDUCATOR
SPRING
1992
Coalition for America's Children
Who's
for
Kids
and Who's
Just
Kidding
TM
Coalition for
America's Children
1710 Rhode Island Avenue NW
4th Floor
Washington DC 20036
Tel (202) 857-7829
National Satellite Summit
Fax (202) 857-7841
A project of the M. B. Fund
on Children's Issues
Steering Committee
American Academy
of Pediatrics
American Association
Coalition for
of Retired Persons
American Association
of School Administrators
America's Children
American Federation
of Teachers
Association
of Child Advocates
Association of Junior Leagues
September 24, 1992
International
Benton Foundation
Child Welfare League
of America
Children Now
Florida Center for
Children and Youth
Food Research
and Action Center
For the Children
Supported by: Benton Foundation
National Association
of Children's Hospitals
Prudential Foundation
and Related Institutions
National Association of
American Association of Retired
Elementary School Principals
Persons
National Association
of Secondary School Principals
Aetna Corporation
National Black Child
Debate America
Development Institute
National Education Association
Washington International Teleport
Save the Children
On Sept. 24, 1992 the Coalition for America's Children delivered the first domestic policy debate of
the 1992 presidential campaign in a National Satellite Summit on Children's Issues. The 90-minute
teleconference linking 7,500 community leaders in 48 cities featured video messages outlining the Clinton
and Bush platforms on children's issues, and a live studio debate between Wade Horn, commissioner of
the HHS Administration for Children, Youth, and Families, for the Bush campaign, and Representative
Patricia Schroeder (D-Colo.) for the Clinton campaign. What follows are the transcripts of the platform
statements by Governor Bill Clinton and by HHS Secretary Louis Sullivan on behalf of President Bush,
and extended excerpts from the debate between Schroeder and Horn, moderated by journalist Maureen
Bunyan and Coalition spokesperson Bob Keeshan (Captain Kangaroo).
The coalition, using the theme "Who's for kids and who's just kidding," is a nonpartisan alliance of
200 national, state, and community-based nonprofit organizations working to raise concerns for children
to the top of the public policy agenda.
Earlier this year, the coalition released the results of its State of the Child report, a national public
opinion survey that showed that 70 percent of American voters think the situation for children has gotten
worse over the last five years; 85 percent believe our political leaders are not doing enough to help solve
the problems children face; three in five voters say it is very important to them that candidates for public
office have a children's platform; and two-thirds say they would be more likely to vote for a candidate
who supported increased spending for children's programs even if it meant an increase in their taxes.
The coalition has encouraged the development of community coalitions to conduct voter education,
candidate education, and debate and general public awareness about children's issues.
Armed with thousands of "Questions for Candidates" brochures, "Block Walks for Kids" packs, and
a massive army of community leaders and citizen groups, children's advocates are vowing to keep up their
voter education effort long past November. One Wisconsin coalition is preparing ads for the day after the
election that read, "Now that they're in office, what are they going to do for the children?"
Introduction
Bob Keeshan: Today the condition of
commissioner to president
will
be
making
America's children can only be described as a
thousands of decisions affecting children: the fate
nightmare.
of Medicaid, Head Start, school financing, school
We're here today because the people who need
breakfast, gun control, tax credits. These decisions
the most attention from the candidates, America's
can help or hurt American families and their
64 million children, can't vote. We can. It's that
children.
simple.
When the coalition began its campaign, we
If children had a voice in American politics,
adopted a slogan: Who's for kids and who's just
we would not see one young child in four living in
kidding?
poverty. We would not see five million children
Our basic question to all the candidates is a
hungry in America. One child in three without
simple one: What are you going to do for children?
adequate health insurance.
What will you do to translate our concren for kids
The people we elect this year
from county
into a mandate for government action?
1
Bush/Quayle Campaign
health services it provides.
Another presidential initiative called "Healthy
Message by Dr. Louis Sullivan
Start" is helping to improve the health and well-
I cannot say enough in praise of the Coalition
being of mothers and infants. Through this pro-
for America's Children for bringing together such a
gram, we hope to reduce infant mortality rates by
great number of public and private organizations,
50 percent in targeted communities within 5 years.
business leaders, educators, health care profession-
Tragically, of the nearly 40,000 infant deaths each
als, parents, and others on behalf of America's
year, at least 10,000 are preventable. The "Healthy
children. Efforts like this summit illustrate the
Start" strategy to combat infant mortality will mean
widespread, intense national resolve Americans
increasing prenatal care and nutrition services for
have to address the pressing health and social
low-income pregnant women, targeting services and
problems facing our children today.
programs in areas with very high infant mortality
President Bush shares that firm resolve. Like
rates, and raising public awareness of infant
all of you, he believes strongly that America's
mortality.
children are our most precious resource. He has
In May, the administration launched another
consistently backed that conviction with policies
important child health initiative-an unprecedented
and programs that are bringing help and hope to
immunization program through which we hope to
millions of children and families in need. Since
attain a 90 percent immunization level of the
President Bush took office, funding for children's
nation's two year olds by the year 2000. To make
programs has nearly doubled. Major new initia-
life-saving vaccines accessible and available to all
tives have been launched that address the problems
children, we are trying a variety of innovative
of infant mortality, child abuse and neglect, immu-
approches. The president has requested $349
nization, lead poisoning, alcohol and drug abuse,
million for the effort in fiscal year 1993. This more
and tobacco use among children.
than doubles the $141 million spent on immuniza-
And last year, a major new agency was created
tion in 1989.
that combines my department's wide array of
I could go on much longer than my allotted
programs for children and families under a single
time about the many initiatives underway right
roof. With a staff of 2,000, and a proposed budget
now to helping bring help and hope to American
of $28 billion for fiscal year 1993, this new agency,
children and families who are struggling. But the
the Administration for Children and Families, is
efforts are far too numerous to mention in these
providing a strong unified base for initiatives that
few minutes. I say that because this president has
effectively meet the needs of children and families-
consistently backed his convictions with effective
initiatives like Head Start, for example. This early
action on behalf of the most vulnerable citizens,
childhood development program for low-income
children in need.
children has witnessed the largest expansion in its
Early this year, the head of a national charity
25 years history under the Bush Administration.
spoke of the vital importance of enlighted public
And in keeping with his number one national
policy in helping meet the needs of children and
education goal to help every child in America start
families. He said, "All the soup lines and shelters
school ready to learn, the president has asked
won't do as much for children as enlightened
Congress for a $600 million increase in funding for
public policy." This administration is forging such
Head Start next year. If Congress approves that
enlightened public policy on behalf of children and
request, and I believe they will, it will be the largest
families. And together with million of Americans
increase in Head Start funding ever, bringing total
like those of you watching today, we will break the
Head Start funding to $2.8 billion. This will enable
cycle of poverty and despair that yet blights the
nearly 780,000 children to benefit from the valuable
future of so many of children and replace it with
medical, dental, educational, nutrition, and mental
the cycle of health, hope, and new beginnings.
2
Clinton/Gore Campaign
of the health care system beginning with sweeping
guarantees for basic maternal and child health to
Message by Governor Bill
get children into this world on time, in good shape,
Clinton
and to get them into school healthy and mentally
and physically prepared to learn.
No issue in the campaign is more important
Secondly, I support full funding of the Head
to me and to my wife, Hillary, than our children
Start Program. Although Mr. Bush pledged that,
and their future. For many years Hillary was the
presently only 36 percent of the eligible children are
board chair of the Children's Defense Fund and
being served in the Head Start Program. And all
several years ago founded an organization in our
children in this country who need a preschool
state called the Arkansas Advocates for Families
program should have access to it.
and Children. She has said in every place in this
Thirdly, I support restoring the federal
country that she wants to be a voice for children in
government's contribution to public education to
the White House, and I do, too. I spent more time
its 1980 level as a percentage of the national budget,
and more effort working on the education of our
with a special emphasis on smaller classes in the
children and providing better opportunities for
early grades and elementary counselors for those
them than any other cause in my tenure as gover-
children who bring problems to school that can't
nor.
be solved in their homes. I want high standards for
More than just being the joy in our lives,
our schools and real incentives to achieve, more
children are our future. We have to value them and
choice for students in the public schools they
we have to support policies that value them as well.
attend, more access to modern technology and
My economic plan, called "Putting People First,"
meaningful exams to tell us whether they're learn-
demonstrates the commitment that I have to our
ing what they need to know as compared with the
children. The plan emphasizes the importance of
international standards to which they'll be held.
investing in our children now, as opposed to
I want every high school graduate to be
paying for their problems later. Unless we improve
guaranteed access either to a two-year education and
the economic conditions under which our children
apprenticeship program or to a four-year college,
are currently living, all of us are going to suffer.
which can be financed by borrowing from the
We all know that parents are spending less
National Service Trust Fund, the money to be paid
time with their kids because they're working more
back either as a percentage of the student's income
hours for less money. That puts strains on the
after he or she goes to work, or-even better-by
family. We know the number of children living
giving a couple years of service to our country here
below the poverty line has increased 8 percent
at home, as police officers or teachers, or working
under Mr. Bush, and that now one in five Ameri-
with children in trouble, or doing other needed
can children is living in poverty. Just this month a
public service work. These are the kinds of changes
new report showed that some 900,000 additional
that will give our kids a better chance.
children became poor last year. That is intolerable.
I also think we need to strengthen our fami-
Like the overall number of poor people, the num-
lies. And I would begin by signing the Family and
ber of poor children last year was greater than in
Medical Leave Act that Mr. Bush has vetoed once
any other year in the past two decades. I want to
and will veto again. Parents shouldn't be forced to
work to reverse these catastrophic trends. We can
choose between the jobs they need and the families
do much better.
they love. I'll sign the Family and Medical Leave
I will pledge to support education, economic
Act. Over 70 countries have this kind of policy.
and family policies, which will help our children
Only the United States of all advanced countries
and their families. Let me just give you some
has said we can't afford it. I believe we can. I also
examples. First, I support a comprehensive reform
want to strengthen the welfare reform laws of the
3
country to support poor people in their efforts to
in Head Start. In fact, if the $600 million request is
earn more and to support their children better;
fully appropriated by Congress this year, by next
invest more money in education and child care and
year we'll be able to serve in excess of 80 percent of
medical coverage for children, then require people
all the income-eligible kids for at least one year
to work to move toward independence. For the
before they arrive at the elementary school.
working poor, I think the tax system should give
Now, the $600 million increase that we're
them a refund, if necessary, so that everybody who
requesting for 1993 is on top of an already $1
works 40 hours a week with a child in the house
billion in additional funds that we have requested
could be lifted above poverty. We need better
and Congress has appropriated for the Head Start
child-care facilities, and that means more tax credits
Program. So I think we have a record to be quite
for the working people under the Child Care Tax
proud of in terms of Head Start. And, in fact, by
Credit Law.
the end of next year, and by the end of the first
And, finally, let me say, we need to do some-
term of the Bush Administration, we will be able to
thing special for the kids who are so much at risk
ensure that every income-eligible child whose
of abuse and neglect in the home. There are so
parents are interested in having them enrolled in
many homes today where abuse and neglect is a real
Head Start will have a place in Head Start for at
threat. We need to pursue proven policies that
least one year.
keep those families together, that help people
Ms. Bunyan: Congresswoman Schroeder,
overcome their problems, and when necessary,
Mr. Horn said that we don't have only 36 percent
facilitate good foster homes and good, quick, and
of children being served, that there are more chil-
substantial adoption services for the children who
dren than that being served. Has Governor Clinton
have to be taken out of the homes. These are the
made a mistake in that figure?
kinds of priorities I will pursue, to fulfill the
Ms. Schroeder: No, he hasn't made a
commitment that I have to put children first in the
mistake. I think that the words you want to put in
Clinton Administration.
capital letters are "for one year."
When Head Start was originally conceived in
Debate Between Commissioner
the 60s, the idea was it would be more prescriptive
for children, and some children would need two or
Horn and Representative
three years. You could have three year olds, four
Schroeder
year olds and five year olds who weren't in kinder-
garten eligible for Head Start. And there have been
Ms. Bunyan: We appreciate your being here
all sorts of new studies showing that the earlier you
to represent your candidates and their campaigns.
start, and the more intensive the intervention, the
One of the children's programs in this coun-
better the chance the child has to overcome what-
try that both of your candidates agree has worked
ever it is.
very well is Head Start. However, both of you have
So, I think what we're seeing is the environ-
differences in the way you want to approach Head
ment of poverty is much more severe than it was
Start. For example, Secretary Sullivan cited in his
even in the 60s. So, young people need more than
videotape his request for $600 million more for
one year. And, I must say, I think, if we're going to
Head Start; but Governor Clinton asked why only
deliver children to the public schools ready to
36 percent of eligible children are actually being
learn, we're going to have to invest heavily in
served by Head Start.
making sure they truly are ready to learn and on a
We know it works. Why can't we get more
level playing field when we deliver them to the
children involved in this excellent program?
public school house door. And that's what it's
Mr. Horn: Well, first of all, it's not true
about. The debate is about those terms.
that only 36 percent of the kids are being enrolled
Ms. Bunyan: Mr. Horn, Secretary Sullivan
4
mentioned several programs as priorities for the
very effectively with their economic program. And
president; but many of the programs don't reach all
if the family's income comes up, then I think you
the children who are currently eligible. With all the
bring the child along with them, and that's very
budget pressures and the demand to cut back rather
important.
than expand, what's the outlook for expanding
Mr. Horn: Well, I think that you're abso-
programs like Medicaid, WIC, and other programs
lutely correct, that there are far too many children
in the next four years of the Bush Administration?
today who are living and growing up in poverty,
Mr. Horn: Well, first of all, it's not true
and that is something we do have to address. We
that we haven't expanded those programs in the last
need to make sure, particularly, that those people
four years. In fact, we have seen a 66 percent in-
who are working-the working poor, keep more of
crease in total funding for children's programs over
the money that they earn in the family budget,
the last four years. In 1989, when George Bush was
rather than putting it into the federal budget.
first elected president, the total expenditure for
children's programs was about $60 billion a year; in
Family and Medical Leave
1993 it will be in excess of $100 billion a year. So,
that's simply not true that we haven't expanded
Ms. Bunyan: One of the very hot issues has
those programs. We have seen major expansions in
been the president's veto, for the second time, of
Medicaid. We have seen the largest expansions in
the Family and Medical Leave Act. The president
WIC and Head Start in their history. We've seen
would like, instead, to offer an alternative of tax
major expansions in immunization.
credits to businesses who grant leave to their
employees to care for a sick child, after the birth of
The Economy
a baby, or to care for a relative who is sick or
disabled.
Mr. Keeshan: Well, the issue that's overrid-
Governor Clinton has said that he would sign
ing the campaign this year is the question of the
the current legislation, and would do so if he
economic concern for the nation. And, of course,
becomes president.
that strikes at the heart of so many of our problems
Ms. Schroeder: It's terribly important for
that we have with youth and children-the eco-
children, because we know that children and their
nomic security of the American family.
parents don't bond in the delivery room, or don't
What plans would your administration-either
bond in the reception room of an adoption agency.
Bush or Clinton Administration-have for assuring
Every researcher in the world has shown how
the strengthening of the economic security of the
critical it is to get that family unit off to a very
American family?
good start. And it's very hard to do that if you
Ms. Schroeder: First of all, the number of
have to go right back to work or lose your job. We
children falling into poverty is rising much faster
also know that many more parents have to be in
than we've been increasing those amounts. I will
the workplace because of the economy and where
agree with Wade that we've been increasing differ-
they are.
ent amounts; but we still have many more children
I must say, this is my legislation, so you've hit
not being served.
a real hot spot with me. For seven years we've had
Obviously, families need jobs. There's no
this legislation. Ever since President Bush was
question. And we've seen many jobs moving off-
elected we've been trying to meet with him to
shore. That's a whole problem. We don't have an
negotiate on this legislation. We even offered to go
industrial base to transfer our military base to, on
to any foreign capital. We wanted to meet him,
the civilian side. We have to rebuild that industrial
and he wouldn't show up.
base. I think all of those are very essential issues
The idea of a tax credit is fine, but it's comple-
that the Clinton/Gore team have been addressing
mentary. What we want is job-protected, unpaid
5
leave, just like a jury duty or whatever, because we
were covered by Medicaid. And it phases in, I
think getting your family off to a good start is as
think, up to shortly after the turn of the century, so
important as jury duty or national guard duty or
that by about 2004 all children, under the age of
some other thing.
19, and living below the poverty line, will be cov-
Mr. Horn: Well, first of all, it is very
ered by Medicaid. So, we have a record of commit-
important to recognize that the Bush Administra-
ment and understanding about the needs of health
tion is fully in favor of family and medical leave
care and the fact that the government has a role to
policies in the workplace. As a child psychologist, I
play to ensure that those who are most in need, and
recognize how important it is for kids to spend
particularly the young, are covered by adequate
time with their parents, not just for 12 weeks, but
health insurance.
for 18 years. And the issue with that particular
Ms. Schroeder: My question is, if it's so
legislation is it's a yuppie bill. What it says is that
terrific and so wonderful, why don't we do it now?
we're going to allow people to take 12 weeks off
Why are we waiting for the year 2000 or 2004 or
without pay. Now, who can afford that? Can the
whatever it is, which is what we're waiting for on
single mother who is working at a $15,000 a year
everything? Again, we've been doing this stuff
job afford 12 weeks of loss of income? Absolutely
incrementally.
not.
The thing I'm so distressed about is the
This bill is simply poorly targeted. It will
country that doesn't care about its children doesn't
benefit the upper middle-class and yuppie class, and
care about its future. And no matter what you say,
it will do very little for the hard-working, middle
the children haven't been involved in the policies
Americans and low-income Americans in this
that have gotten the economy where it is on any-
country.
thing else, and they should be held harmless from
this economy. And, therefore, we should be fully
Health Reform
funding this stuff. To think that we're leaving
them out there without immunizations, without
Mr. Keeshan: Let me jump in with a
Head Start, without feeding.
question that affects, I think, the yuppie class and
Ms. Bunyan: Where is the money going to
just about everybody else in this country. You have
come from? How would Bill Clinton pay for these
to be a resident of the South Pole not to know that
programs?
health care is a very hot issue in this campaign.
Ms. Schroeder: Well, I tell you, I could
And for us, as advocates of children, that's a
find a lot of places you could pay for it. First of
particularly important question. Of the 35 million
all, I would put in one form for everything-all
people without health insurance in this country, 16
means-tested programs have one federal form, and
million are children.
then you put it on a computer. And, let me tell
What would each of your administrations do
you, my state tells me that would give them 30
for children for health reform? Who would they
percent more money to hand out in services. I do
serve? When would they serve them?
exactly the same with insurance-put Medicaid and
Well, first of all, it's important to keep in
Medicare, CHAMPUS, and all private things on
mind that, back in 1988 when George Bush was
one form. I would also give people lower rates, if
campaigning for his first term, he pledged that he
they would agree to arbitrate their malpractice. I
would oversee a major expansion in the Medicaid
would give them lower rates if they had living wills
Program, to ensure that low-income children are
on the different forms. I can find all sorts of ways-
covered. He did that in the very first year of his
you can get a whole lot more services and a whole
administration, he expanded Medicaid coverage to
lot less paperwork in this area. But I think it hasn't
ensure that all pregnant women and children up to
been a priority of a president.
age six, living below 133 percent of the poverty line,
And I think Bill Clinton is going to come in
6
and he's going to change it.
Mr. Horn: Well, certainly, we believe that
Mr. Horn: Well, you don't have to look
we need to start to look at fundamental educational
very far to find those ideas, because they're part of
reform in this country. And that's why the presi-
the president's package that's already been transmit-
dent has proposed a GI Bill for children-the
ted to the Hill. And it's sitting there languishing-a
notion that we would start with a demonstration
victim of partisan politics.
project to determine how effective a scholarship
Ms. Bunyan: Thousands of people are
program is in allowing parents to choose the
watching us today, and they're gathered around the
schools that they attend. It's based upon the GI
country. They have a lot of questions of their own.
Bill. After World War II when the returning veter-
We want to give them a chance to talk with us and
ans, those who sacrificed for their country, who
to ask the questions.
served their country and sacrificed and saw many
The first place we're going to go is Chicago.
of their friends die, when they came back this
Question: Hello, my name is Robert
country owed them something. And they gave
Banyon. I'm 14 years old and I'm from Chicago.
them that-part of the repayment of that debt was
My question to each campaign is of all the
giving them scholarships to attend the schools of
problems facing children today, what do President
their choice. It built the premiere college and
Bush and Governor Clinton think is the single
university system in the world through the GI Bill.
most important problem confronting kids?
And we think we can do the same thing through
Mr. Horn: I think we have to find a way in
our GI Bill for children.
this country to strengthen the American family.
Ms. Schr oeder: Well, I think Governor
The family is the most important vessel for bring-
Clinton would say something very different, and
ing up children and bringing up children healthy.
that is, we can't forget our commitment to public
I think that the most critical challenge for us, as a
schools. Choice sounds wonderful; but the problem
nation, is finding a way to strengthen the American
is the most you can come up with is a thousand or
family.
two thousand dollars a head, and there are very few
Ms. Schroeder: I'm sure that Governor
places where you can get a full year's tuition for
Clinton agrees totally that the most important
that. So, I think you're going to fall very short.
thing is strengthening the family; and he's willing
Secondly, where do you fund it? The best
to do it. He's just not saying it. He's willing to do
place you can fund it, I suppose, is right out of the
it by signing family leave, by helping us with child
money that is going into the public school systems,
support enforcement, which is very important and
which leaves them even more strapped.
has been neglected, and by helping us with stream-
One of the disappointing things of the Bush
lining programs and finding more funding and
Administration record has been that while they
moving.
have increased a bit for Head Start, they've been
cutting back in Chapter I (of the Elementary and
Education Spending
Secondary Education Act). And Chapter I is one of
the things the federal government does to try and
Question: My name is David Avrin and
balance out schools that come from poor neighbor-
I'm with the Children's Hospital in Denver.
hoods, to give them the Head Start, and to follow-
The use of property taxes to pay for school has
through with the Head Start progress.
created vast inequities in education resources in
I know Bill Clinton is very serious about
different communities. Many among us here in
Chapter I and would not do that.
Denver are educators, and would like to know if
Mr. Horn: I am not a professional politi-
your candidate believes the federal government
cian, I'm simply a child psychologist. I maybe
should play a greater role in financing elementary
have this naive belief that we should tell the truth.
and secondary education?
The truth is that Chapter I funding has grown in
7
the last four years by 55 percent. It's gone up from
painful and difficult that transition can be. We
$4 billion in 1989 to $6.2 billion in 1993.
have to, as a nation and as a society, struggle with
Ms. Schr oeder: We're talking about the
making opportunities broader for our adolescents,
Bush budget. Because I look at the budget.
and where they have hope for their future, as
Mr. Horn: It's just simply not true.
adults. We need to do that through an enhanced
Ms.
Schroeder:
that you guys send over.
education system, and we need to do that by
And you can't even get 30 votes on your side.
improving opportunities within their communities.
Question: Yes. This is Pam Myercord,
President of the Dallas Council of PTA.
"Weed and Seed"
Like the rest of the country, the juvenile
custody rate here in Texas is very high and it's not
The major initiative of the Bush Administra-
improving. Detention and correction centers are
tion has been something we call the weed and seed
overflowing. I would like to know the president's
proposal. The idea is to go into the neighborhoods
and the governor's views on the federal role in
that are high crime and high drug neighborhoods,
dealing with juvenile crime-what local initiatives
take out, weed out the criminals, if you will, and
would they suggest as alternatives to incarceration?
then seed in support programs for those kids, so
Ms. Schr oeder: Well, I think Governor
that they can generate that sort of hope.
Clinton has spoken very clearly on where some of
Ms. Bunyan: What kind of support pro-
the shortfalls have been. Because of shortfalls in
grams?
federal funding, we have done two things that have
Mr. Horn: Things like recreation programs,
really increased the number of juvenile delinquents.
community centers, health centers, and a whole
Number one, we've made poorer children second-
range of activities. In fact, in the 1993 budget
class citizens in the schools. Because the funding
request for the president that was submitted to
cutbacks have shut them out of sports and shut
Congress, there's about $480 million worth of seed
them out of extracurricular activities that schools
programs that would go with the $500 million weed
and seed initiative.
feel they now must charge for. So, if your parents
don't have the money and you can't pay a thou-
Ms. Schroeder: Most communities though
sand dollars to pay football, you're a second-class
basically got the weed and very little seed. At least
student at the high school that you go to, and
that's what we found. And you need the seed, when
that's tragic.
you talk to the parents of the kids who are in
trouble with the law.
Then the second thing that's happened be-
cause of funding cutbacks is cities have had to close
Mr. Horn: Actually, the fact is that what
down the community centers and things where
happened is that you can't seed in communities
young people could go after school, unless you
until you take out the bad guys. And what's
belong to that, you pay for a membership, and you
happened is this is a very new program. And what
pay every time you go. Again, people can't do it.
we have had to focus on initially, is getting out the
Ms. Bunyan: Congresswoman Schroeder,
bad guys, if you will, so we can put the seed money
what is Governor Clinton going to do about this?
in. In fact, as I said, out of the $500 million for
Ms. Schroeder: You have got to get back to
weed and seed in the 93 budget, about $480 million
increasing the help to schools, so those programs
of that or so is for seed programs. That's hardly an
imbalance.
are open to all people of all incomes, and you can
be a first-class participant, and also help cities keep
Question: Hi. This is Jeralyn O'Neill. I'm
their community centers open, free-of-charge, to the
calling from the Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital
kids in the communities that need them.
in Hollywood, Florida. And my question is, in the
Mr. Horn: I have two young daughters who
continuing debate over welfare reform, some people
are about to enter adolescence, and I know how
have suggested punishing recipients if a parent
8
refuses to participate in job training. One sanction
are increasingly appalled at the escalating numbers
might be to deny AFDC payments. Does either
of children physically and emotionally damaged by
candidate favor this approach? And, if so, what
societal and family violence. What remedies has
responsibilities should state and federal govern-
your candidate considered to decrease violence
ments have to the children involved?
against children?
Ms. Schroeder: Well, I think Bill Clinton
Welfare
has spoken on this many times, as has Hillary
(Clinton). She has a phenomenal record, and she's
Mr. Horn: Welfare can be a terrible situation
been pilloried for her record. But, clearly, states and
in this country, particularly intergenerational
government officials have to be able to do every-
welfare. And we have to discover ways to break that
thing they can to preserve children, when we have
cycle, there's no question about that.
any evidence that they are being abused, and we
Now, there's two approaches one can take.
have to do a better job of a central recordkeeping,
One is to say we have the infinite wisdom here in
so you can trace abusers over the state lines.
Washington or perhaps in Arkansas, and that they
We would also like to do what the Downey
will develop all of the notions about how to reform
Bill does. And the Downey Bill allows (states) to use
welfare. We take a different approach in the Bush
some of the money that now puts children in foster
Administration. What we have encouraged is states
care to try and hold families together and to
coming in for welfare waivers, in order to experi-
counsel them and to try and break that cycle of
ment with different types of programs that can
violence that is so incredible and continues to
break this sort of intergenerational welfare that
repeat itself.
we're seeing. And, tragically, it is really impacting
Mr. Horn: We have a child welfare system
negatively on far too many of our nation's chil-
that's in crisis in this country. In fact, Arkansas
dren.
was sued just two years ago because of abuses in its
Ms. Schroeder: My favorite line in Bill
child welfare system. We have to fundamentally
Clinton's acceptance speech was we were also going
reform a broken system in this country. It's not a
to deal with child support enforcement-that this
matter of just pouring more money down a broken
has been a country that has allowed fathers to walk.
system; we have to fix it.
Ms. Bunyan: What would Mr. Clinton do?
The Bush Administration has submitted
Ms. Schr oeder: Well, there are all sorts of
legislation to do just that-to take the incentives
proposals. Number one is to start collecting child
away from placing kids in out-of-home care, and to
support enforcement federally, and to put in strong
take the incentives away from doing paperwork and
laws so that you don't run over the border and
endless sort of jumping through hoops to access
escape your payments. That's number one, and that
administrative cost money, and rather to shift the
brings a lot more dignity.
incentives toward doing prevention work and
I know he's also very committed to allowing
family preservation work.
flexibility of different states to experiment with
things and to try and do a better job in funding the
Violence
Welfare Reform Act (Family Support Act of 1988)
that we've put into effect, but many states have
Mr. Keeshan: I'm sure our pediatrician in
ducked because it's just so costly to put it into
Boston sees a lot of violence as a result of guns.
effect.
How would both administrations address the issue
Question: I am Dr. Eileen Ouellette. I am
of guns as it affects children?
the President of the Massachusetts Chapter of the
Mr. Horn: Well, as we talked about earlier,
American Academy of Pediatrics.
the weed and seed proposal that President Bush has
Pediatricians and others who care for children
in front of Congress now, would I think go a long
9
way toward trying to get out some of those violent
What our plan would do-our educational
offenders in those neighborhoods. It is just uncon-
plan would do, is allow access to the same kinds of
scionable that we have a society and a culture that
choices for low-income families that higher-income
accepts the fact that children go to sleep at night in
families have.
bathtubs to avoid bullets from hitting them. It is
Ms. Schroeder: Are they going to give
just unacceptable.
them $25,000 a year? I want to know how they do
Mr. Keeshan: But, it's not just the bad guys
that and how they fund it. But, let me say this is
in the neighborhood, it's the guns that they have in
where I am very proud of Governor Clinton. He
their hands. Would the Clinton Administration
has made it very clear that every decision in his
address that in any way?
administration would be based on whether we're
Ms. Schroeder: Absolutely. They've been
getting ready to compete with the industrialized
very strong supporters of the Brady Bill. And I
world for the highly educated, highly skilled, highly
think they've made it very clear that, look we don't
paid jobs, or the developing world, for the un-
give children under 16 automobiles, it's amazing
skilled, low-paid. We want to be on the other side.
they've been given guns. And it's astounding. It's
We want to be on [the first].
the first generation of children killing children.
And to do that he's put together a very inno-
And I think that we, as a society, have to crack
vative program that says to every young person, you
down very hard on that.
can go on to college. And he would do that, as he's
Question: My name is Gail Nauit, and I'm
pointed out over and over again, keep the Pell
the Executive Director of Citizens Committee for
grants and add this new, innovative funding to go
Children of New York, the voice for New York
on. I think that keeps kids in school. A very high
City's children.
reason they drop out of high school is because they
Both Governor Clinton and President Bush
know they can't go on; they know the price tag is
have pledged to increase the percentage of high
too high.
school graduates. Currently, about one student in
four does not graduate. But, kids at risk to quit
School Drop-outs
school are not all the same. The rate among Latino
students in New York City is much higher than for
Ms. Bunyan: A lot of kids drop out of
other students. As educational reforms move
high school also because they have to go to work to
forward, what initiatives would your candidates
help pay for family expenses or because they're not
support to meet the special needs of Latino and
interested in school. It's fine that they might have
other minority students?
the possibility to go to college, college is fascinating
Mr. Horn: Well, our educational system
to a lot of kids; but if you can't keep the kids'
cannot afford to leave even one person behind. We
fascination while they're in high school, how will
have just extraordinary demands for an educated
they ever get to college or to alternative forms of
and well-skilled labor force, and that includes all of
education, like vocational education? How do we
our nation's children. What we have right now is a
target minority children, in particular, to keep
system that favors the rich. We have choice in
them in school?
America today. The rich have choice. I can send
Ms. Schroeder: Well, we know, number
my kids to a private school. I'm sure the Congress-
one, that young women lose their self-esteem at a
woman can send her children to a private school.
much younger age, and so we have to have pro-
The problem is that low-income, and particularly
grams targeted toward the age of 10 and 11, that's
low-income minority families don't have the access
very important. We know that if they think they
to the means to make the same choices that the
can go on to college, it makes a big difference. We
more well-heeled among us do.
know the tutoring programs that have been put in
10
in schools have worked very well with the one-on-
as using Crazy Horse to target certain segments of
one, and seeing opportunities with role models in
our population and lure them in is really wrong.
the area.
And I think he has spoken to that. And I think,
Mr. Horn: Well, clearly, what we think is
clearly, we have to get responsibility cranked into
that families should have the ability to make the
this.
choices about what are the best educational courses
Question: Hello. This is Pat Wildman. And
for them to take, and that would include the types
the Atlanta Teleconference today is sponsored by
of schools and the types of vocations that they may
the Georgia Children's Campaign.
want to aspire to. Governor Clinton does not have
Amid all the talk about strengthening families,
a sterling record on this in Arkansas. Arkansas
we tend to forget that parents need to have jobs
ranks 48th in the nation, in terms of the percent-
with decent wages. In Georgia, for example, one out
ages of adults who have a high school diploma.
of every five children is living in poverty. A parent
And three out of four high school graduates in
working full-time, year-round at minimum wage in
Arkansas when they go to college have to take
a family of three, earns less than 76 percent of the
remedial courses. That's twice the national average.
poverty threshold.
So, I'm not quite sure-I know you've taken a
I would like to ask Congresswoman Schroeder
lot of pot shots at the George Bush record-Bill
and Mr. Horn, what would your candidate do to
Clinton has a record that he has to defend as well,
ensure enough jobs and decent wages for those who
and that's not so wonderful a record.
need them?
Ms. Schroeder: That's one of the poorest
Ms. Schroeder: Well, we're in a global
states in the country. And, I must say, I visited
marketplace that Bill Clinton has talked about a
some of the schools. They have worked very hard to
lot. And to be there, you've got to have highly
get child care in, to get young women with babies
educated, well-skilled people, and you've got to also
back in. He has really put some innovative pro-
be able to figure out how we convert our economy,
grams in.
from the military/industrial economy, to a civil-
ian/industrial economy, and rebuild that manufac-
"Jobs and Decent Wages"
turing base, which has much higher-paid jobs than
the unskilled burger-flipping jobs that people said,
Question: This is Dr. Jerome Paulson, a
oh, isn't this great, we created so many of them?
pediatrician from the George Washington Univer-
Yes. But you can't raise a family on them. And not
sity Medical Center.
only that, it undercuts national security. What do
Three out of four voters agree that alcohol
we do if we ever do have a war? Throw burgers at
advertising is a major contributor to underage
people?
drinking. Would the president or the governor do
Ms. Bunyan: Mr. Horn, how do we make
anything to stop alcohol advertisers from targeting
sure that parents have jobs so that they can keep
children and teenagers?
their children and themselves out of poverty?
Mr. Horn: Oh, I think we have a record of
Mr. Horn: Well, the president has released
doing that. Both Dr. Sullivan and Dr. Novello
his economic plan for revitalizing America. There's
have been very aggressive about making the alcohol
no question that children do best when they're
industry more responsible in the messages it gives
living in families where their parents have a decent
to our nation. And I think we have a record to be
job. And we need to do better about that.
quite proud of in that regard.
You know, Governor Clinton, again, here
Ms. Schroeder: Governor Clinton has very
doesn't have a sterling record. Arkansas ranks 47th
strong views on this. We all know that binge
in the country in the percent of children living in
drinking among teens is terrible. And such things
poverty-47th. This is after 12 years of Bill Clinton
11
being governor of Arkansas. It seems he can't do it
is the fact that we're filling up all our hospitals
in Arkansas. What makes us think he can do it for
with crack and fetal alcohol syndrome babies, and
the United States?
it's very critical. And one of the things we should
Ms. Schroeder: Well, except you don't have
be doing is saying to the moms who are drug-
such a good record here. We've brought more kids
addicted or alcohol-addicted, that they'd be much
down to the poverty level than we've had in years.
better off to have a Norplant or whatever until they
Question: I am Dr. George Comerci, a
get their lives cleaned up, rather than having more
member of the Board of Directors of the American
children.
Academy of Pediatrics. We, here in Arizona, like
So, you've got a very critical thing, there's a
caring people all over the country, are concerned
way to solve it; but because of the obsession with
about the growing problem of mental illness in this
the Bush Administration about family planning, we
country and in Arizona. We are especially con-
can't get there.
cerned about the problems being manifested in
The second part is, of course then, for all sorts
infants, toddlers, and preschoolers, who are the
of other people, we need many more mental health
children of substance-abusing mothers.
services, and we need to make them relaxed, make
What would each candidate do in the area of
them acceptable, make them user-friendly, start as
prevention and treatment, especially for the prob-
young as possible. And I think that Governor
lems of mental health disorders in young children
Clinton has spoken very clearly that he would try
and adolescents?
to do that every way he could.
Mr. Horn: Well, certainly the system of tax
Ms. Bunyan: That's all the time that we
credits and tax deductions that the president has
have for questions. We've appreciated the intensity
proposed for reforming health care and increasing
of the concern voiced by the questioners. I know
access would allow for individuals to purchase
the two of you felt that. It reflects what the polls
insurance that would cover those kinds of services.
have shown-Americans do place children among
As a child psychologist, I could not agree with
their top priorities for action by the government
the caller more. I know how important it is for us
today. We thank you both, Mr. Horn, and Con-
to have good programs for at-risk children early on
gresswoman Schroeder, for participating in today's
in infancy and in early childhood. That's one of
National Satellite Summit on Children's Issues.
the reasons this president has been so aggressive
about expanding the Head Start Program.
Conclusion
And one of the things that we did in the last
four years, is form a partnership with organizations
Bob Keeshan: Over the course of American
like the American Psychological Association, the
political history, children have been often seen and
American Association of High School Counselors,
seldom heard. Witness the window dressing at the
and so forth, to provide mental health services
latest conventions with their blatant use of the
through Head Start, not only for the kids enrolled
nominees' children as stage props and photo ops.
in Head Start, but to all the family members. That's
The message that we're here to convey to
a partnership that I feel very proud of, and the
candidates at all levels is this: Don't kid us! The
Bush Administration feels very proud of.
days of kiss the baby for the cameras and run from
Ms. Schroeder: One thing I can say about
the real issues are finally over. In this election, kids
Governor Clinton is he's not afraid to say the
are serious business.
words family planning. And I think you've got two
From this day forward, public officials will
pieces here. If you're talking about the high inci-
ignore children at their own peril.
dence of crack babies and fetal alcohol syndrome
babies, one of the things that we have found that
works very well, and we're not afraid to talk about,
12
A Child Can't See Through
Campaign Promises.
But You Can.
Our children deserve a higher priority on the agenda for America's future. This
election year, we need to tell politicians: Kissing babies is not enough.
We need specific, realistic plans for the health, education, safety
and security of all American children.
Q.
What is your plan for ensuring that all
Join the
American children have health care?
Coalition for
America's
Q.
How will you assure that all children enter
Children
school ready to succeed, and that college is
within reach for all American families?
in asking
every
candidate
Q.
How will you make our communities, homes
and schools safe for children?
for public
office:
Q.
How will you guarantee that every American
child has food to eat and a place to sleep?
Coalition for America's Children
Join us in asking every candidate the question:
Who's for Kids
And Who's Just Kidding
TM
i 1991 Coalition for America's Children (a project of the M.B. Fund)
Coalition for America's Children
Who's
for
Kids
and Who's
Just
Kidding
TM
What They're Saying on Kids' Issues
On Sept. 24, 1992 the Coalition for America's Children hosted the first-
Coalition for
America's Children
ever National Satellite Summit on Children's Issues, linking 48 cities for
a debate on the children's platforms of President GeorgeBush and
1710 Rhode Island Avenue NW
Governor Bill Clinton. What follows, by topic, are excerpts from taped
4th Floor
messages by Governor Clinton and HHS Secretary Louis Sullivan, and
Washington DC 20036
a debate between Bush representative Wade Horn, commissioner of
Tel (202) 857-7829
the HHS Administration for Children, Youth, and Families, and Clinton
Fax (202) 857-7841
representative Rep. Patricia Schroeder (D-Colo.).
A project of the M. B. Fund
Family and Medical Leave
Steering Committee
American Academy
Clinton: I would sign the Family and Medical Leave Act which Mr.
of Pediatrics
Bush has vetoed. Parents shouldn't be forced to choose between the
jobs they need and the families they love.
American Association
of Retired Persons
Schroeder. Every researcher in the world has shown how critical it is
American Association
to get that family unit off to a very good start. And it's very hard to do
of School Administrators
that if you have to go right back to work or lose your job. Ever since
American Federation
President Bush was elected we've been trying to meet with him to
of Teachers
negotiate on this legislation. We even offered to go to any foreign
capital. We wanted to meet him, and he wouldn't show up.
Association
of Child Advocates
Horn: The Bush Administration is fully in favor of family and medical
Association of Junior Leagues
leave policies in the workplace. The issue with that particular legislation
International
is it's a yuppie bill. What it says is that we're going to allow people to
Benton Foundation
take 12 weeks off without pay. Now, who can afford that? Can the
Child Welfare League
single mother who is working at a $15,000 a year job afford 12 weeks
of America
of loss of income? Absolutely not. This bill is simply poorly-targeted. It
will benefit the upper middle-class and yuppie class, and it will do very
Children Now
little for the hard-working, middle Americans and low-income
Florida Center for
Americans in this country.
Children and Youth
Food Research
and Action Center
Head Start
For the Children
Sullivan: This early childhood development program for low income
National Association
children has witnessed the largest expansion in its 25 year history
of Children's Hospitals
and Related Institutions
under the Bush Administration. The president has asked Congress for
a $600 million increase in funding for Head Start next year. If
National Association of
Congress approves that request, and I believe they will, it will be the
Elementary School Principals
largest increase in Head Start funding ever, bringing total head start
National Association
funding to $2.8 billion. This will enable nearly 780,000 children to
of Secondary School Principals
benefit from the valuable medical, dental, educational, nutrition, and
National Black Child
mental health services it provides.
Development Institute
National Education Association
Save the Children
Clinton: I support full funding of the Head Start Program. Although presently only 36 percent of
the eligible children are being served in the Head Start Program.
Horn: Well, first of all, it's not true that only 36 percent of the kids are being enrolled in Head
Start. In fact, if the $600 million request is fully appropriated by Congress this year, by next year
we'll be able to serve in excess of 80 percent of all the income-eligible kids for at least one year
before they arrive at the elementary school. So the 36 percent figure is just simply inaccurate.
Schroeder: The words you want to put in capital letters are "for one year." When Head Start
was originally conceived in the '60s, the idea was it would be more prescriptive for children, and
some children would need two or three years. And there have been all sorts of new studies
showing that the earlier you start, and the more intensive the intervention, the better the chance
the child has.
Funding for children's programs
Sullivan: Since President Bush took office, funding for children's programs has nearly doubled.
Horn: We have seen a 66 percent increase in total funding for children's programs over the last
four years. In 1989, when George Bush was first elected President, the total expenditures for
children's programs was about $60 billion a year; in 1993 it will be in excess of $100 billion a
year. So, that's simply not true that we haven't expanded those programs. We have seen major
expansions in Medicaid. We have seen the largest expansions in WIC and Head Start in their
history. We've seen major expansions in immunization.
Schroeder: The number of children falling into poverty is rising much faster than those amounts.
Expanding Medicaid
Horn: In 1988 when George Bush was campaigning for his first term, he pledged that he would
oversee a major expansion in the Medicaid program, to ensure that low-income children are
covered. He did that in the very first year of his Administration he expanded Medicaid
coverage to ensure that all pregnant women and children up to age six, living below 133 percent
of the poverty line were covered by Medicaid. And it phases in, I think, up to shortly after the turn
of the century, so that by about 2004 all children, under the age of 19, and living below the
poverty line, will be covered by Medicaid.
Schroeder: If it's so terrific and so wonderful, why don't we do it now? Why are we waiting for
the year 2000 or 2004 or whatever it is, which is what we're waiting for on everything?
Neighborhood Safety
Horn: The idea [of President Bush's "weed and seed" program] is to go into the neighborhoods
which are high crime and high drug neighborhoods, weed out the criminals, if you will, and then
seed in support programs for those kids, so that they can generate that sort of hope.
Recreation programs, community centers, health centers, and a whole range of activities. In fact,
in the 1993 budget request for the President that was submitted to Congress, there's about $480
million worth of seed programs that would go with the $500 million "weed and seed" initiative.
Schroeder. Most communities, though, basically got the weed and very little seed. At least
that's what we found. And you need the seed, when you talk to the parents of the kids who are in
trouble with the law.
Welfare reform
Clinton: I want to strengthen the welfare reform laws of the country to support poor people in
their efforts to earn more and to support their children better; invest more money in education
and child care and medical coverage for children, then require people to work to move toward
independence.
Schroeder: My favorite line in Bill Clinton's acceptance speech was we were also going to deal
with child support enforcement that this has been a country that has allowed fathers to walk.
Number one is to start collecting child support enforcement Federally, and to put in strong laws
so that you don't run over the border and escape your payments. I know he's also very
committed to allowing flexibility of different states to experiment with things and to try and do a
better job in funding the [Family Support Act] that we've put into effect, but many states have
ducked because it's just so costly to put it into effect.
Horn: Welfare can be a terrible situation in this country, particularly inter-generational welfare.
And we have to discover ways to break that cycle. Now, there's two approaches one can take.
One is to say we have the infinite wisdom here in Washington or perhaps in Arkansas, and that
they will develop all of the notions about how to reform welfare. We take a different approach in
the Bush Administration. What we have encouraged is states coming in for welfare waivers, in
order to experiment with different types of programs that can break this sort of inter-generational
welfare that we're seeing. And, tragically, it is really impacting negatively in far too many of our
nation's children.
Child welfare
Schroeder: We would also like to do what the Downey Bill does--allows [states to use some of
the money] that now puts children in foster care to try and hold families together and to counsel
them and to try and break that cycle of violence that is so incredible and continues to repeat
itself.
Horn: We have a child welfare system that's in crisis in this country. In fact, Arkansas was sued
just two years ago because of abuses in its child welfare system. We have to fundamentally
reform a broken system in this country. It's not a matter of just pouring more money down a
broken system; we have to fix it.
The Bush Administration has submitted legislation to do just that -- to take the incentives away
from placing kids in out-of-home care, and to take the incentives away from doing paperwork and
shift the incentives toward doing prevention work and family preservation work.
School funding and "choice"
Horn: What we have right now is a system that favors the rich. We have choice in America
today. The rich have choice. I can send my kids to a private school. I'm sure the
Congresswoman can send her children to a private school. The problem is that low-income, and
particularly low-income minority families don't have the access to the means to make the same
choices that the more well-heeled among us do. What our plan would do our educational plan
would do, is allow access to the same kinds of choices for low-income families that
higher-income families have.
Schroeder: Are they going to give them $25,000 a year? I want to know how they do that and
how they fund it. [Clinton] has put together a very innovative program that says to every young
person: "you can go on to college."
Horn: Governor Clinton does not have a sterling record on this in Arkansas. Arkansas ranks
48th in the nation in terms of the percentage of adults who have a high school diploma. And
three out of four high school graduates in Arkansas, when they go to college, have to take
remedial courses. That's twice the national average.
Schroeder: That's one of the poorest states in the country. And, I must say, I visited some of
the schools. They have worked very hard to get child care in, to get young women with babies
back in. He has really put some innovative programs in.
Jobs for American families
Schroeder. We're in a global marketplace that Bill Clinton has talked about a lot. You've got to
also be able to figure out how we convert our economy, from the military/industrial economy, to a
civilian/industrial economy, and rebuild that manufacturing base, which have the much
higher-paid jobs than the unskilled burger-flipping jobs that people said, oh, isn't this great, we
created so many of them? Yes. But you can't raise a family on them. And not only that, it
undercuts national security. What do we do if we ever do have a war? Throw burgers at people?
Horn: The President has released his economic plan for revitalizing America. There's no
question that the -- you know, that children do best when they're living in families where their
parents have a decent job. And we need to do better about that. Governor Clinton doesn't have
a sterling record. Arkansas ranks 47th in the country in the percent of children living in poverty --
47th. This is after 12 years of Bill Clinton being Governor of Arkansas. It seems he can't do it in
Arkansas. What makes us think he can do it for the United States?
For further information on where the candidates stand on children's issues, write or call:
The Bush-Quayle Campaign
The Clinton-Gore Campaign
1030 15th St. N.W.
P.O. Box 615
Washington D.C. 20005
Little Rock, Arkansas 72203
(202) 336-7080
(501) 372-1992
Coalition for America's Children
Who's
for
Kids
and Who's
Just
Kidding
TM
Coalition for
America's Children
HOLD FOR RELEASE
1710 Rhode Island Avenue NW
4th Floor
3:30 p.m. Sept. 24, 1992
Washington DC 20036
Contact: Lisa Tate 202/662-7460
Tel (202) 857-7829
Susan Bales 703/684-1355
Fax (202) 857-7841
Julie Goetz 310/399-7444
A project of the M. B. Fund
Steering Committee
Children's Advocates Press Candidates
American Academy
on Issues
of Pediatrics
National Summit Airs in 48 Cities
American Association
of Retired Persons
American Association
Washington D.C.-Sept. 24, 1992--Children's advocates in 48
of School Administrators
cities today delivered the first major policy debate of the 1992
American Federation
presidential campaign. Governor Bill Clinton and HHS
of Teachers
Secretary Louis Sullivan presented the two campaign
Association
platforms before 7,500 community leaders in the first-ever
of Child Advocates
National Satellite Summit on Children's Issues.
Association of Junior Leagues
International
"This year there are millions of us creating a constituency for
Benton Foundation
kids, and we're not just kidding," said Bob Keeshan (Captain
Child Welfare League
Kangaroo) at the conclusion of the event that featured taped
of America
messages from Clinton and Sullivan, plus a studio debate
Children Now
between Wade Horn, commissioner of the Administration on
Florida Center for
Children, Youth, and Families for the Bush campaign, and
Children and Youth
U.S. Rep. Patricia Schroeder (Colo.) for Clinton/Gore.
Food Research
and Action Center
"For the first time in the history of American politics both
For the Children
candidates for the highest office in the land have had to deliver
National Association
a children's platform to the electorate. In the future every
of Children's Hospitals
candidate for public office will be required to do so," said
and Related Institutions
Keeshan, the Coalition's spokerperson, who hosted the
National Association of
broadcast with journalist Maureen Bunyan.
Elementary School Principals
National Association
"This president has consistently backed his convictions with
of Secondary School Principals
effective action on behalf of the most vulnerable citizens,
National Black Child
children in need," said Secretary Sullivan who singled out the
Development Institute
National Education Association
Save the Children
Bush/Quayle record on Head Start, the infant mortality initiative known as
Healthy Start, and immunization effort spearheaded by the administration. But,
Sullivan cautioned in his video summary of President Bush's children's platform,
"all the soup lines and shelters won't do as much for children as enlightened
public policy This administration is forging such policy on behalf of children and
families."
In his Satellite Summit message Clinton said, "I support a comprehensive reform
of the health care system with sweeping guarantees for basic maternal and child
health to get children into this world on time and in good shape and to get them
into school healthy and mentally and physically prepared to learn." He
emphasized his welfare reform proposals and expanded funding for education
and child care. He criticized Bush for his earlier veto of the Family and Medical
Leave Act and said he supports the bill.
In response to a question posed by a 14-year-old in Chicago, both campaign
representatives appearing on the program said their top priority for children is
strengthening American families. Congresswoman Schroeder said Bill Clinton
would sign the family leave bill. "Getting families off to a healthy start is just as
important as jury duty or military leave," she said.
Commissioner Horn said Bush "is fully in favor of family leave policies in the
workplace" but not as an employer mandate. He termed the legislation "a yuppy
bill" catering to higher-earner parents and questioned whether "a single mother
working at a $15,000 a year job can afford 12 weeks of unpaid leave."
The Clinton and Bush representatives differed sharply on the administration's
record on Head Start funding and urban initiatives and disagreed on school
choice and its impact on public schools. They fielded questions from Keeshan
and Bunyan, and from a dozen cities around the country. The questions ranged
from violence against children to services for mental illness and those posing the
questions ranged from teenagers to hospital administrators.
Broadcast from AARP studios in Washington, the program was downlinked to 48
cities across the country where local coalitions held rallies and panel discussions
and highlighted upcoming local campaign activities. "Hollywood would be proud
of the production we've put together on behalf of children," reported Helen
Bernstein at the Los Angeles site. "We're registering new voters every day and
we're ready to rock the vote for kids in LA."
"You can't land or take off from Houston without getting our message," Jim
Mickelson reported from Texas. "We have both airports covered with huge
advertisements using the coalition's 'kids can't see through campaign promises
but you can.''
The report from Seattle: "After this satellite summit we'll be going into a news
conference here to challenge our candidates to make good on their promises,"
said Deborah Bowler. From the midwest: "Madison, Wisconsin, is really turning
up the volume for children this year," said Anne Arneson. "The Satellite Summit
is being carried live on our local cable station and we're also simulcasting into
the local high schools."
And finally from Florida, "While Hurricane Andrew left all Floridians feeling numb
and powerless, we're taking control of one aspect of our lives we can affect --
politics," reported Jack Levine. "More than 10,000 Children's Campaign
volunteers are registering voters, canvassing neighborhoods, and meeting face-
to-face with candidates to ask their specific plans to help children."
In closing the teleconference Keeshan said, "The message we're here to convey
to candidates at all levels is this; don't kid us! The day of kiss the baby and run
from the issues are finally over. In this election kids are serious business our
fight for the children has just begun. Let's roll up our sleeves and get to work."
Armed with thousands of "Questions for Candidates" brochures, block walks for
kids packs, and a massive army of community leaders and citizen groups,
children's advocates are vowing to keep up their voter education effort long past
November. One Wisconsin coalition is preparing ads for the day after the
eleciton that read, "Now that they're in office, what are they going to do for the
children?"
The Coalition, using the theme "Who's for kids and who's just kidding"--i a
nonpartisan alliance of 200 national, state, and community-based nonprofit
organizations working to raise concerns for children to the top of the public policy
agenda. For the National Satellite Summit, the Aetna Corporation donated its
national satellite network and corporate sites across the country. The Prudential
Foundation, the Benton Foundation, Debate America, Washington International
Teleport, and PBS stations also contributed to the program.
Hillary Clinton
State Capital
Rights
Little Rock Arkansas 72201
William J. Edmondson Sr.
1505 Park Avenue
reicht's
Baltimore, Md. 21217
specif
Dear Mrs. Clinton:
Right
08/26/92
Posterior 1855 Josiah Warren said,
"Children are principally the creatures of
example-whatever surrounding adult do, they
will do. If we strike them, they will strike
each other. If they see us attempting to govern
each other they will imitate the same barbarism.
If we habitually admit the right of sovereignty
in each other and in them they will become equally
respectful of our right and each other's. All these
propositions are probably self-evident, yet not one
of them is practicable under the present mixture of
the interest and responsibilities between adults
and between parents and children. To solve the
problem of education, children must be equitably
treated, and each and every one, parent or child,
must be understood to be an individual, and must
have his or her rights equitably respected".
That quotation of Warren speaks of children having
rights' in education and rights between parents and
children. Moreover, he states that children "must have his or
her rights equitably respected". That quote, brings me to you
why I am writing you this letter, plus the article this
morning from the Baltimore Sun's Paper this August 24, 1992,
called, Children's Defense Fund by Hillary Rodham.
This letter is an honest attempt to reinforce your views
and my approval of your writings from your book on Children's
Defense Fund.
If 1 compare what you wrote in your book. It reveals
that children have no constitutional rights against divorces
from Dependency Relationships, Helotry, Indian Reservations,
Institutional Centers operated by States and Federal
Governments. Moreover, home of natural parents, adoption
agencies, foster care, day care canters and the poor children
when abuses and violent attacks threaten their lives
continuously. Therefore, you are stating that there are no
know known legal laws, legal recourses, legal codes and
disallowance rules governing regulations to partition the
courts for separations and divorces from Dependency
relationships, where violent afflictions are transversely
repeatedly. Thus children's constitutional rights are
violated. I join with acceptation of your writings that
children should have the legal rights to sue or ask for a
divorce from violent habitations. When a child or children
lives through intercomparable nightmares of corporeal,
psychological, choleric, cerebral and such violent behaviors.
Such pernicious violences sustains for life in the inner
sanctions of consternations within the Id. The commiseration
of violent audacities at children is, it destroys their lives
perpetually and in particular cases, some never recover from
violent experiences nor can some conduct dependable or
conventional life styles.
Again, if I follow your thinking from your book.
Children that are in dependency relationships such as
marriage, slavery, and the Indian reservation systems are
deprived of legal rights from separations, divorces' rights
from such dependencies when violent audacities accrues. Is
this correct? Please advise me if I comprehend your book
appropriately. I wish I could have had you in my childhood's
days as my legal guardian. The public made calculate your
views on children's rights is very extreme to the far right
in this society. Obviously our society is inaccurate on this
issue, when children have no divorce rights from violent
families. Its only when people are caught in identical
situations as you have endeavor to outlined, does one really
get the messages from where you are coming from. Your message
evidently goes against the elements that don't advocate your
personal views nor your legal philosophies because, of
valiant support of family-bonds and family-privacies.
Moreover, your ideas does institutes a separation-bond
between the parents and children to the disinclination from
the opposition conservative wring of the Republican Party.
Therefore, feminist conservatives who opposes your
contemplations legalizing children's rights to endeavor a
divorce from the violent families, are themselves, out of
contiguity with realities from this unfortunate situation. So
who prevails? and who abundances? The winners are the
children who can sue for divorce from (Dependency
Relationships). The looser are the children who are a chattel
and remain silent to the oppressive violent's families
without any authoritative protection under the laws of this
Nation.
Mrs. Clinton, don't discontinue your public support,
efforts and debates for children's rights if you reach the
White House! At the White House you will be become the
Nation's Incipient Lady and this is an asset both for your
agenda for Children's rights and public consciousnesses of
children's rights and issues.
One of Mrs. Bush books, she spoke highly of you and
your efforts to help helpless children. Why then didn't Mrs.
Bush speak of you and your efforts at the National Republican
Convention? I know and SO do you!
If you feel you would like to use this material in any
manner that is comfortable for your purpose feel free to do
SO.
Thanks you for taking your kindest time and attention in
the above matter. I am