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OpEd
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Letter policy
The Forsyth County News wel- ____
comes your opinions on issues
of public concern. Letters / l~
must be signed and f fAa < |
include full address and a i
daytime and evening J | |ST| t I
phone number for verifi- J I /®| I
cation. Names and home- /
towns of letter writers will \JWkJW /
be included for publication
without exception. \ •
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be published (f~~ \
Letters should be limited to 350 B / \
words and may be edited or con- S\\
densed. The same writer or group
may only submit one letter per
month for consideration. |
Letters must be submitted by • H
noon Wednesday for Sunday pub- JU eiW7
lication. We do not publish
poetry or blanket letters
and generally do not pub- ‘ v
lish letters concerning consumer
complaints. Unsigned or incorrectly identified letters will be
withheld.
Mail letters to the Forsyth County News. P.O. Box 210,
Cumming. GA 30028, hand deliver to 302 Veterans Memorial
Blvd., fax to (770) 889-6017 or email to
editor@forsythnews.com.
Strong arm tactic eyed
WASHINGTON Senate
Majority Leader Bill Frist is
being urged by colleagues to
threaten to close down the
Senate for the rest of the year
unless Senate Democratic
Leader Tom Daschle ends his
disruptive tactics.
In addition to menacing all judicial nomina
tions, Daschle is now preventing legislation from
being sent to Senate-House conferences to
resolve differences in bills passed by both
Houses unless the outcome is guaranteed.
Sen. Jon Kyi of Arizona, chairman of the
Senate Republican Policy Committee, and other
conservatives want Frist to counter Daschle by
bringing the business of the Senate to a halt. This
would mean passing an omnibus appropriations
bill and then awaiting the outcome of the elec
tions. Democrats could not offer their pet amend
ments, but it also would prevent passage of a
budget resolution and, therefore, kill any chance
of making the Bush tax cuts permanent.
Delay indicted?
The word spread through Republican circles
on Capitol Hill is that a runaway Democratic
prosecutor in Texas may indict House Majority
Leader Tom DeLay, creating upheaval in the
GOP leadership.
DeLay is a Republican hero for orchestrating
the off-year congressional redistricting that
promises to produce six additional House seats
for his party. However, District Attorney Ronnie
Earle in Austin may bring an indictment against
DeLay for alleged illegal cash payments in con
nection with the redistricting fight. That would
force DeLay to step aside as majority leader at
least temporarily.
DeLay predicts there will be no indictment,
but concedes the old saw that a grand jury would
indict a ham sandwich if the prosecutor so
desires. Earle indicted Republican Sen. Kay
Bailey Hutchison in 1993 on trumped-up
charges, but he dropped the case after the trial
judge's ruling indicated that, in effect, there was
no case.
’’Stay in Pittsburgh”
Teresa Heinz Kerry, Sen. John Kerry's viva
cious wife, was a major asset on the campaign
trail during the primary elections but has run into
backstage criticism since then - particularly in
Philadelphia last week.
Mrs. Kerry asked Rep. Bob Brady, master of
ceremonies at the event, whether she could intro
duce Gov. Edward Rendell (who in turn would
introduce the prospective Democratic presiden-
—
Robert
Novak yr
time you come to Philadelphia, leave her in
Pittsburgh (Mrs. Kerry’s hometown when she was
married to the late Republican Sen. John Heinz)."
Funding the left
The Department of Health and Human
Services (HHS) and the U.S. Agency for
International Development (AID) dropped spon
sorship of a conference in Washington June 1-4,
"Youth and Health: Generation on the Edge," that
espouses left-wing causes after conservative
Republican congressmen protested.
The Bush-bashing MoveOn.org, funded by
billionaire investor George Soros, is one of the
conference's presenters. Also included are the
International Planned Parenthood Federation
(IPPF), which does not qualify for federal family
planning grants because it advocates abortion,
and the pro-abortion United Nations Population
Fund (UNFPA).
The House Republican Study Committee last
Wednesday drafted a letter to HHS Secretary
Tommy Thompson and AID administrator
Andrew Natsios expressing "great concern and
disappointment" over funding of the conference
by their agencies.
Louisiana logjam
The sudden interest in a political comeback
by Republican former Gov. Buddy Roemer is
threatening to deflate high GOP hopes for win
ning a U.S. Senate seat from Louisiana for the
first time since Reconstruction.
Polls show Republican Rep. David Vitter
leading Democratic Rep. Chris John, retiring
Sen. John Breaux's handpicked successor, and
Democratic State Treasurer John Kennedy.
Roemer, an ex-Democrat who served a contro
versial hitch for governor (1988-1992), could
change all that if he enters the race with better
name identification than any other candidate.
In Louisiana's non-party free-for-all election.
Roemer and Vitter could divide up the
Republican vote and lose to a Democrat. With
Democrats strongly challenging Republican-held
seats in Colorado, Oklahoma, Alaska and Illinois,
Republicans may have to take Louisiana to keep
control of the Senate.
Robert Novak is a nationally syndicated
columnist and a television commentator.
Alternative teacher prep ‘way to go’
By Dr. Holly Robinson and
Eric Wearne
For the Forsyth County News
When Georgia decided in
2001 to expand the teacher
base by accelerating teacher
training to allow professionals
from other fields into class
rooms, the state's Professional
Standards Commission devel
oped the Georgia Teacher
Alternative Preparation
Program, or GATAPP. This
program was created in part to
meet the immediate and spe
cific needs of school systems
and to provide an innovative
and efficient transition to the
profession.
The National Center for
Education Information has
tracked alternative teacher
programs since New Jersey
began the initiative in 1983.
By 1998, 41 states and the
District of Columbia had some
type of alternative certifica
tion. Now all 50 states and the
District have some type of
alternative teacher certifica
tion.
GATAPP is an alternative
option for individuals with a
bachelor's degree to acquire
the knowledge and skills for
successful teaching in a rea
sonable time frame. While still
young, the program promises
to become an effective model
for using a classroom-based
approach to develop individu
als with broad-based work
experiences, skills, content
knowledge and abilities into
excellent teachers.
The two-year program
includes two phases: an inten
sive four- to six-week summer
introduction, and a series of
continuing education classes
and meetings with colleagues,
instructors and administrators.
To be eligible, candidates must
hold a bachelor's degree or
higher from an accredited
institution, a GPA of 2.5 or
higher, passing scores on
teacher certification exams,
recommendation from a
school system as a new hire
and passing the educator
employment background
check.
According to Roy Einrein-
tial nominee). The candidate's
wife then launched into a 10-
minute speech about her early
life in Mozambique and on the
iniquities of George W. Bush,
but forgot to introduce Rendell.
After the event concluded,
Brady told a Kerry aide: "Next
hofer, executive director of the
National Association of State
Directors of Teacher
Education and Certification,
Georgia has set high criteria
for acceptance into the pro
gram. The GATAPP teachers
hail from such diverse back
grounds as accounting, com
puter and information technol
ogy, engineering, forestry,
legal, military, manufacturing,
retail, media and the arts. They
bring maturity, work experi
ences and new excitement to
the classroom.
At Parks Middle School in
Atlanta, second-year GATAPP
teacher Stacey Webb provides
sixth-, seventh- and eighth
grade remedial math instruc
tion. Webb, who has a degree
in mathematics and actuarial
science, worked for four years
in international finance with
American Express. She finds
her corporate experience helps
her create more authentic tasks
for her students. With her
experience in data analysis in
corporate America, she is
comfortable with her ability to
assess student data and inter
pret the results. Parks
Principal Michael Sims prais
es the commitment of his
GATAPP teachers, seeing a
willingness to "go beyond the
call of duty.”
Under the No Child Left
Behind Act, states are respon
sible for reforming teacher
licensure and certification,
alternative certification,
teacher testing for subject mat
ter knowledge and assisting
teachers in becoming "highly
qualified." Os the $2.175 bil
lion allocated nationally to
implement Title 11-A, Georgia
has received more than 575
million. The goal is to raise
student achievement in the
academic subjects.
Fortunately. GATAPP
teachers are considered highly
qualified under Georgia's defi
nition for NCLB: They will
hold bachelor's degrees in sub
jects related to what they
teach; take tests to prove their
subject competence, and be in
an approved program leading
to a renewable certificate.
cam p
4 weeklong summer camp for boys and girls
designed to enhance player skills and promote
salvation, character and self-esteem through
the game of basketball
Camp Winner's Kit
Ev«ry camper in your program rocoivot ffi I *' t, ■ I
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Camp Dates: Thursday, June 3-
Saturday, June 5
Grades 1-3: 8 am - 12 Noon
Grades 4-8:1 pm -5 pm
Cheerleading (grades 1-8) Bam -12 Noon
(Grades are based on the 2003-2004 school year
During camp, boys and girls will be on mixed teams)
Early registration cost is S4O per child
Starting May 26, registration cost is SSO per child
Cumming First United Methodist Church
770 Canton Hwy • Cumming, GA 30040
Questions? Call: (770) 887-2900, ext 219
FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS Wednesday, April 28.2004 I
Not all systems have been
willing to hire these new edu
cators, wanting first to see
their success rate. So far, how
ever, the program has proven
to be a positive initiative for
Georgia schools and students.
Officials expected about 200
potential career-switchers in
2001, the first year the pro
gram was offered, but more
than 4,000 showed up for the
statewide information ses
sions. When school opened
that year, 707 professionals,
including physicians, lawyers
and architects, were teaching
in the classrooms of Georgia.
The average age of the first
GATAPP class was 33 years.
Fifty-one percent were minori
ty and 29 percent were men.
Many had taught or had been
substitute teachers in their
local schools. In the 2002
class, the number of candi
dates grew to 717, of whom 43
percent were minority and 31
percent were men.
Recently released GATAPP
statistics for 2003 continue to
show diversity, growth and
statewide geographic distribu
tion. There were 594 candi
dates, of which 34 percent
were male; in 2003, 18.2 per
cent of Georgia's teachers
overall were male. Only 16
chose not to complete the pro
gram. The ethnic distribution
is noteworthy: 42 percent
black, 53 percent white and
the remaining 5 percent
includes Hispanic, Asian and
American Indian. They were
hired by more than 80 school
systems. In 2003, 77.9 percent
of Georgia teachers overall
were white.
This alternative teacher
preparation model has also
created partnerships between
several school systems and
universities such as Georgia
State. Columbus State and
Armstrong Atlantic, among
others, regional educational
service agencies and the
Professional Standards
Commission.
Charles Cumiskey of
Columbus State's GATAPP is
awaiting his fourth class of
new teachers. As proof of the
program's success, he cites
more than 60 "well-received"
teachers in 10 school systems
in that region.
GATAPP teachers are "not
as fragile as teachers fresh out
of college, and have real matu
rity," says. Cumiskey, a veteran
K-12 educator. People are now
calling him to inquire about
the program and his teachers
include an architect, lawyer
and retired business leaders.
Rosa Shelton teaches math
at Marshall Middle School in
Muscogee County. After grad
uating from college she
worked in the technology field
in Washington. "Teaching is
such a creative field," says
Shelton, now a third-year
GATAPP teacher. She says she
loves interacting with the chil
dren.
GATAPP is proving the
promise of an effective class
room-based option to prepare
new teachers. In a 2002 survey
conducted by the Professional
Standards Comm-ission, 92
percent of respondents "some
what" or "strongly" agreed
that the GATAPP program had
provided them the necessary
skills and training to be effec
tive teachers. As one program
teacher explained, "This is
challenging, but if you know
in your heart that you want to
be a teacher, GATAPP is the
way to go."
Dr. Holly Robinson is sen
ior vice president of the
Georgia Public Policy
Foundation. Eric Wearne, a
research assistant at the
Foundation, is a Ph D. student
in educational studies at
Emory University and a for
mer high school teacher of
English and debate. The
Foundation is an independent
think tank that proposes prac
tical. market-oriented ap
proaches to public policy to
improve the lives of
Georgians. Nothing w ritten
here is to be construed as nec
essarily reflecting the views of
the Georgia Public Policy
Foundation or as an attempt to
aid or hinder the passage of
any bill before the U.S.
Congress or the Georgia
Legislature.
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