IKE Problems

President Clinton's proposed budget for the Eisenhower Professional Development Program is $335 million, the same amount appropriated by Congress for FY 1998.

The Eisenhower program is the largest federal effort to fund professional development activities for K-12 teachers. School districts receive about 71 percent of the total Eisenhower budget to run programs for local teachers or support teacher participation in outside activities.

Another 14 percent of Eisenhower funds support grants to colleges and universities to run professional development activities for teachers. About 10% is used for projects of national significance.

Of the amount appropriated in any year, the first $250 million must be used for elementary and/or secondary science and math teachers.

Eisenhower professional development funds are very important to the Science Olympiad and to the teachers and schools that participate in the program.

The Olympiad, as part of the reform in science education, requires renewal of teachers. To lead an effective Olympiad Team requires that teachers broaden their understanding of science, math and engineering topics. Many coaches take professional development courses at local community colleges and universities. Additionally, many teachers attend local regional and state science conferences filling the seats at these sessions.

It is estimated that over 2,000 teachers annually attend 1-8 hour sessions on the Science Olympiad at various programs and projects. The Olympiad has sessions at nearly all regional and state science conferences led by local teachers that believe in the Olympiad movement. In addition, national conferences of such groups as American Chemical Society(ACS), National Association of Biology Teachers (NABT), American Association of Physics Teachers(AAPT), and of course, National Science Teachers Association(NSTA), feature Olympiad Workshops.

In 1998-99, Jack Cairns, Dr. Gerard Putz and Sharon Putz will lead full day staff development activities at the Birmingham, Seattle, and Albuquerque regional NSTA conventions as well as the National NSTA Convention in Boston.

Eisenhower professional development programs in science and mathematics are critically important to teachers attending summer Olympiad projects in Phoenix, Stockton (CA) and Leelau (MI) as well as the Hammond, Indiana workshop next fall.

Support the continuation of Eisenhower Professional Development and urge your senators and representatives in Washington to defeat any legislation to reduce the support of the program by lumping it into a block grant and sending the money directly to the school districts without strings.

Without strings, federal money ends up in the "black hole" of reading instruction from which it never again is to return, and history tells us when that happens, nothing changes.

Join the Olympiad in urging Congress to keep Eisenhower Professional Development as a program that is separately funded.