Report entered by: -- TimDaly - 28 Oct 2005

2003 GR Committee Report

• 2003 NCSS Governmental Relations Committee Report
• Chicago Hyatt Regency
• November 15, 2003
• 1:00-3:00 PM

Present: Anastasia Martin (Chair), Christine Kadonsky (Vice Chair), Al Frascella (NCSS), Dennis Banks (Board Liaison), Todd Kenreich (Public Relations Committee), Carol Bryant, and Allen Guidry

• Chair: Anastasia Martin
• Board Liaison: Dennis Banks

I. Introduction and Old Business

The committee reviewed previous meeting notes and discussed purpose, recommendations, and activities of the committee as reflected in the 2002 Governmental Relations Committee Report. In particular, the committee discussed how to communicate legislative issues to NCSS members, including updates on establishing state legislative liaisons and the legislative updates listserv. Todd Kenreich of the Public Relations Committee relayed the work of that committee and encouraged the Public Relations and Governmental Relations Committees to work together. Dennis Banks, Board Liaison, offered welcome and thanks for the committee's efforts.

II. New Business

Al Frascella provided a detailed summary of legislative issues of the recent past and upcoming session of Congress, particularly the American History and Civics Education Act of 2003 (S. 504) and "No Child Left Behind" 2004 education funding. There were also lengthy discussions about how to engage NCSS members in legislative affairs, focusing on increased communication and improved technology methods.

III. Recommendations for 2003

The Governmental Relations Committee recommends the following:

1. Request that each state appoint a "Legislative Liaison." The liaison will serve as a link between the NCSS (particularly the Director of Communications and Government Relations) and the state-level organizations. The liaison will review important information about national legislative issues in a timely manner to state councils and the liaison will report back to NCSS with any significant state legislative issues. The appointment of a State Legislative Liaison should be awarded extra merit in determining Gold and Silver Star state council awards.

2. The Governmental Relations Committee website will have an informative public page. This page will include the description of the Governmental Relations Committee in the NCSS Committee Manual. Al Frascella will provide "how to" guides for writing letters to members of Congress and for making a lobby visit. Links will be provided to the NCSS legislative page; NCSS Media page; Committee for Educational Funding (CEF) website; Thomas; and the National Council of State Legislatures (NCSL) website. The committee website will also include a page that is password-protected for committee members only. This page will include a message board for committee members and a posting of the Governmental Relations Committee Meeting Minutes.

3. Committee members will organize and propose a presentation for the 2004 NCSS Conference. The presentation will focus on educating NCSS members about how they can affect the legislative process, particularly the "No Child Left Behind" legislation. Education lobbyists and education congressional staffers could provide an inside perspective on Capitol Hill. Participants would learn helpful hints for writing letter to members of Congress and letters to the editor.

4. The Governmental Relations Committee recommends the establishment of a collegiate internship to work with the Director of Communications and Government Relations on pressing public relations and legislative issues.

IV. Committee Officers for 2004-2005

1. Chair Anastasia Martin
2. Vice Chair Christine Kadonsky

Committee Minutes

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2003 NCSS Governmental Relations Committee Meeting Minutes Chicago Hyatt Regency November 15, 2003 1:00-3:00 PM

Present: Anastasia Martin (Chair), Christine Kadonsky (Vice Chair), Al Frascella (NCSS), Dennis Banks (Board Liaison), Todd Kenreich (Public Relations Committee), Carol Bryant, and Allen Guidry

I. Introduction and Old Business

A. All committee members present introduced themselves. Chair Anastasia Martin presented the 2002 Governmental Relations Committee Report. The report was accepted as submitted.

B. Todd Kenreich from the Public Relations Committee came to discuss the work of this committee and to propose joint efforts between the two committees. The Public Relations Committee hopes to make a broader appeal, reaching the wider audience present at the 2004 National Council for the Social Studies Conference. They proposed making a presentation at the conference, including helpful suggestions such as how to write to a legislator. The Public Relations Committee also suggested that NCSS pursue establishing an internship. This collegiate intern, preferably a Mass Communications or Political Science major, would work with Al Frascella on public relations and governmental relations issues.

C. Dennis Banks, Board Liaison, welcomed our committee on behalf of the NCSS leadership team and thanked us for our efforts.

D. From the 2002 recommendations, the Governmental Relations Committee proposed that each state identify a legislative contact, serving as a liaison between NCSS (Al Frascella) and state social studies organizations. These contacts have yet to be identified. At the Summer Leadership Institute, only one person volunteered to serve as a legislative contact when all present were asked.

E. The legislative update listserv continues to be coordinated by Al Frascella. The committee discussed ways in which to promote this listserv to those members interested in more frequent updates. The new committee web pages were briefly discussed at this point as another way to update NCSS members.

F. Al Frascella informed the committee that funding cuts at NCSS has caused the elimination of several positions. The Director of Communications and Government Relations position has been cut to two-thirds time. The director's time is divided between public relations communication efforts and legislative issues.

---++++II. New Business

A. Legislative Issues (Information provided by Al Frascella.)

i. American History and Civics Education Act of 2003 (S. 504)

Lamar Alexander sponsored a bill to increase professional development and student educational programming about American history and civics. The NCSS wrote a position paper, supporting increased professional development while stating many of the disadvantages of the specific structure of the bill. With the support of Summer Institute participants, more members of Congress became concerned about the bill. Al Frascella has been told that the bill will go no further in Congress.

ii. FY 2004 Funding ("No Child Left Behind")

NCSS is a member of the Committee for Educational Funding (CEF), a large group of educational organizations united to lobby Congress about education issues. CEF urges increased spending to implement "No Child Left Behind." This legislation is a political reality that is here to stay; however, the legislation can be changed. NCSS composed "talking points" for Summer Institute participants when lobbying on Capitol Hill. The NCSS advocates: the legislation should be fully funded; social studies must be recognized as a core subject; mandates should be more realistic; mandates should be more flexible to accommodate exceptions (especially for students with special needs); and more authentic assessment testing is needed. Al Frascella called for a grass roots effort, which would have the greatest impact on Congress members. Letters to constituents' representatives, letters to the editor of publications, and encouragement of news stories and editorials about "No Child Left Behind" can help to shape the legislation and funding for the upcoming year.

iii. NCSS is looking for ways to increase its influence on Capitol Hill and working on more joint efforts like CEF. To increase communication between NCSS and Congress, NCSS notifies members of Congress when an NCSS award winner resides in their states.

iv. NCSS has printed 108th Congressional Directories to help members when contacting their elected officers. In the back of the directory, there is a listing of all of the Senior Education L.A. for each member of Congress. The committee discussed how to best distribute the directories.

v. Al Frascella handed out the following materials concerning NCSS and legislative efforts: "Cooking the Books: Right-wingers Divine New Education Standards" by Britt Robson; "A Heads Up On Tomorrow's Report on the First NAEP Involving Fifty States" e-mail by Jerry Bracey; "NCSS Response to the Weekly Standard Article;" "Issues and Talking Points (NCSS);" "It's Not About the Money" Wall Street Journal commentary by Rod Paige; "Education Funding: FY 2004" Power Point presentation; NEA "Education Funding: The Facts;" NCSS Public Relations Tool Kit; and NCSS 108th Congressional Directory.

B. Communication

i. We discussed how to create a network of volunteers interested in being legislative liaisons. We decided to pursue a state level coordinator instead of creating separate regional contacts (based on geographic region). These liaisons will disseminate national legislative issues to state-level organizations and they will report back to NCSS on state legislative issues.

ii. It was suggested at legislative liaisons receive infrequent "Call for Action" e-mail updates of the most pressing legislative issues. These updates would provide brief, concise descriptions of pending legislation. It would include "talking points" about the specific bill and direct readers to the Governmental Relations Committee web site for more information. The updates could include suggested ways to have your voice heard, including letters to members of Congress and letters to the editor of newspapers.

iii. Al Frascella discussed the differences between print, television, and radio media outlets. He focuses some of his attention on education publications and education reporters of major newspapers. However, a greater impact is felt when "ordinary teachers" contact the media as compared to NCSS staff members.

C. Technology

i. Committee members discussed the components that the committee would like to see on the public portions and the password-protected committee-only portion of the Governmental Relations Committee web site.

III. Recommendations

A. Appoint State Legislative Liaisons.

B. Establish Governmental Relations Committee web page.

C. Present a workshop presentation at the 2004 NCSS Conference about how members can get involved in legislative affairs.

D. Establish a Communication and Government Relations collegiate internship.

IV. Committee Officers for 2004-2005

The committee recommended the following committee officers for 2004-2005: Chair ? Anastasia Martin Vice Chair ? Christine Kadonsky.

Respectfully submitted by Christine Kadonsky, Vice Chair.

Committee Actions or Recommendations

Committee Work Still In Progress