quORTerly briefing:
issues and trends

National Community Action Committee
Lynn Leeb, Chair
Lucille Brotman, quORTerly briefing Writer/Editor

Spring 2001
Winter 2000
Fall 2000
Summer 2000
Spring 2000

1999 issues

Spring 2001

WAO supports reproductive rights legislation

A bipartisan group of representatives and senators is backing a bill recently introduced by Rep. Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) to counteract the first actions of President Bush upon taking office. The Global Democracy Promotion Act of 2001 will stop foreign non-governmental organizations from being forced to relinquish their right to free speech in order to participate in U.S.-supported family planning programs. It will also stop NGOs from being barred from U.S.-supported family planning programs solely because they provide legal health services, including counseling and referral services, with their own, non-U.S. funds.

Women’s American ORT supports this legislation and urges its members to keep abreast of current events and show support for a woman’s right to choose. Such rights are currently under attack. President Bush has expressed his intention to “...promote a culture of life, and that includes steps to make abortion more rare, such as parental notification, promoting adoptions and a ban on partial-birth abortions.”

The president has also directed his secretary of Health and Human Services to review the safety of RU-486, also known as the abortion pill. In addition, two Republican lawmakers introduced a bill, the Patient Health and Safety Protection Act, requiring doctors to be trained in performing abortions before they are allowed to administer the pill. The House bill is HR-482 (Vitter, R-La.), and the Senate bill, S-251 (Hutchinson, R-Ar.).

Clearly, reproductive choice is being threatened on every side, and many younger women who have never known a country without choice will need direction and help in expressing their opinions and concerns.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
-Keep your members informed by inviting a speaker from Planned Parenthood or your local hospital to provide an update. Web sites worth visiting include: www.plannedparenthood.org, www.naral.org (National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League) as well as www.fight4choice.com, an affiliate site of NARAL.
-Contact the National Office at 800.51.WAORT to request copies of WAO’s Public Policy Resolutions brochure, which includes our support of a woman’s right to choose.
-Urge your members to fax, e-mail or snail mail your senators asking them to oppose restrictions on RU-486. Find their addresses at www.senate.gov.


An update on the digital divide

According to a study done by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, which has been tracking Internet usage and habits for a year, more than half of the U.S. adult population used the Internet last year, at home or work, as well as libraries, cybercafés and other public places. The online adult population has increased to 56 percent, totaling 104 million adults.

The study also found continued gains among women, minorities and adults in households earning $30,000 to $50,000 annually. Another strong group was parents with children, aged 12 to 17.

The study found that there are still two key gaps that divide the country: income and age. Only 38 percent of the poorest Americans (earning less than $30,000) had Internet access, compared with 82 percent of Americans in households earning $75,000 or more annually.

Only 15 percent of the 65+ group were online, compared with 75 percent of the 18 to 29 age group.

It is encouraging to know that the Commerce Department helped 82 black colleges and universities, tribal colleges and universities, and institutions serving the Hispanic community by donating $5.4 million worth of nearly new, state-of-the-art technological equipment. The equipment was the surplus from the 520 temporary Census 2000 offices.

The Bush administration, however, wants to slash government programs providing computers and Internet access to poor and under-served areas. The Commerce Department budget suggests cutting the Technology Opportunities Program by about 65 percent. Some experts worry that this cut will reduce philanthropic giving by leading technology companies.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
-Discuss your members’ computer use. How many have computers? How many use the Internet? If you include Internet addresses in your bulletin on a regular basis, will they use them? Do they have e-mail addresses? Do they want to receive e-mail from your Chapter?
-Enroll in a continuing education computer course at your local college, library, senior center, or through your public school district.
-Read the survey results at www.pewinternet.org and discuss how they affect your community.
-Write the Commerce Department or your senators and representatives about the effect of cutting the budget on low-income and minority groups. For addresses of federal representatives, see www.congresshandbook.com and click on “government links.”
-For further reading, check out www.digitaldividenetwork.org and www.digitaldivide.gov.


Campaign for ‘faith-based’ social services

President George W. Bush has launched a major national drive to give broad-based public funding to churches and other religious groups to provide social services. To this end, the president has created a new federal agency, the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. This agency will work from the White House to expand government aid to religious ministries and create church-state partnerships. The executive orders call for five Cabinet departments to establish centers for these initiatives. Under Bush’s plan, churches would receive tax dollars directly and be able to dispense social services along with their own religious messages. Further, some religions could be favored over others.

The President has said, “Private and charitable groups, including religious ones, should have the fullest opportunity permitted by law to compete on a level playing field, so long as they achieve valid public purposes, like curbing crime, conquering addiction, strengthening families, and overcoming poverty.”

The plan is based on legislation called “charitable choice,” included in the 1996 Welfare Reform Act. Although WAO currently does not have a position on this part of the legislation, there are some aspects of faith-based social services that conflict with our belief in separation of church and state. It appears that the president may be establishing a massive new bureaucracy designed to unite religion and government, in direct conflict with the Constitution.

Many organizations have issued statements expressing concerns regarding the need to insure that religious groups be required to obey employment discrimination laws, and the federal government choosing between various religious groups to operate social programs.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
-Go to www.pfaw.org (People for the American Way) or www.au.org (Americans United) for articles on faith-based social service. The American Jewish Committee and National Council of Jewish Women have also taken a stand. (Visit www.ajc.org and www.ncjw.org.) Print out copies of the material to hand out at your meeting, or insert parts in your bulletin.
-Contact President Bush and/or legislators to voice concern that taxpayer dollars not be used to fund social services without necessary constitutional safeguards. You can write to President Bush at: The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D.C. 20500, or send an e-mail to president@whitehouse.gov. Contact information for your representatives and senators is available at www.congresshandbook.com.
-Ask your members for a volunteer to be your Chapter’s "news reporter,” keeping track of all these issues and perhaps giving a short report at each meeting. There are many questions to be answered about religious social programs, and your members should be aware of what happens if the program becomes part of our society.


Can we cut taxes and reform education?

President Bush has proposed an increase in spending on elementary school reading programs of $5 billion over the next five years, and has said that student testing is critical to enabling parents to hold teachers accountable for the education of their children. The plan envisions increasing federal spending on elementary and secondary school education by $47.5 billion over 10 years.

Women’s American ORT believes these plans will improve public education to a great extent. However, the plans also include “other educational opportunities” (i.e., vouchers). These “opportunities” would allow parents to use federal funds for educational alternatives to local schools.

At the same time, the President is seeking to slash individual taxes by $1.6 trillion over the next decade. There are many who fear that such a sweeping tax cut will result in less money budgeted for public education if the economy takes a downturn.

President Bush’s education package includes many needed reforms, but WAO’s Resolution on Education in a Democracy states that we “continue to oppose all school vouchers, both as a church and state issue and as a serious drain of funds needed to maintain and improve our public education system.”

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO:
-Publish bulletin articles on WAO’s support for public education.
-Check out www.pta.org, www.jewishpublicaffairs.org and www.nea.org (National Education Association).
-If your Chapter appoints a news reporter for current events, she can also report on progress in Congress as the budget and education reform bills are discussed and voted on.

-Encourage your members to urge their legislators to oppose the "other educational opportunities" (i.e., vouchers) sections of the bill(s).

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Winter 2000

election results favor public education

Our national elections proved that voters support public education. Ballots across the country were crowded with propositions (more than 24) to improve education.

California voters rejected a heavily financed voucher proposal by a large majority, with citizens
fearing a poorly written proposal would deplete public education funding.

Michigan residents rejected vouchers for children in failing school districts by almost 70%. The proposal would have offered vouchers worth an estimated $3,300 to any child living in a district where less than two-thirds of students graduate, regardless of whether the child was in a public or private school.

While South Carolina approved a state lottery to finance education, Arkansas rejected the idea of a lottery, along with casinos and charity bingo, even though proceeds were earmarked for charity and education. North Carolina approved the state's record $3.1 billion bond issue to improve higher education.

In addition to education propositions, another issue appearing on ballots was gun control. Voters in Colorado and Oregon cracked down on gun shows by approving background checks on all buyers. The measures were prompted by shootings by high school students in the last two years.


voucher update

Education – with a capital "E" was a primary focus and a hot button issue this fall for candidates in national and state campaigns. Regardless of who won the national election, voters knew extensive educational initiatives would be proposed.

President-Elect Bush, who strongly supported vouchers in his campaign, saw a voucher initiative soundly defeated in his own state last year. However, his brother, Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida, successfully guided the passage of a voucher program in his state. Including the referendums defeated in Michigan and California last month, 10 voucher initiatives have been spurned by voters in recent years. Twenty-eight states defeated or delayed voucher-related legislation this year.

In another setback for vouchers, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2 to 1 on Dec. 11 that Cleveland's school voucher program, which principally went to religious institutions, violated the U.S. Constitution's separation of church and state. About 96% of the 3,700 participating students used the state aid of up to $2,500 to attend parochial schools. This case was the second in two years in which federal appellate judges rejected the use of tax money for parochial school tuition. As other states debate and establish controversial voucher programs and the President readies his programs, the Ohio ruling very likely may become the test case that is ultimately reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Voucher proponents are beginning to reexamine their strategies, opting to concentrate on state legislatures, governors and mayors and on more narrowly defined programs (such as for poor children or students in failing schools). New York lawmakers are looking at private school tax credits and New Jersey lawmakers plan to copy an Arizona program that makes donations to scholarship funds tax-deductible.

Clearly vouchers, whether called "school choice" or tied to charter school initiatives, will continue to dominate the educational headlines for the coming year(s). It will be our responsibility in the future to monitor the new initiatives and to keep informed on the three fronts that the voucher battles will be fought – legal, political and educational!

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
–Look up your local newspaper(s) on the Web and get the names of local, state and federal elected officials for the next time voucher proposals come up.
–Prepare your members now for communicating with their legislators on vouchers in the near future. Publish material in your Chapter bulletin that helps your members understand why Women's American ORT opposes vouchers. The Web site of Americans United, www.au.org, is a good source for material. You can also look at the Jewish Council for Public Affairs' (JCPA) site at www.jewishpublicaffairs.org and fill in the search request with "vouchers for public education." On the National Parents and Teachers Association's Web site, www.pta.org, you can find information on vouchers by clicking on "legislative issues."


education funding makes a difference

According to two new reports by the Rand Corporation on the education reforms of the 1980s and 1990s, reforms seem to be making a difference, but some states are doing much better when measuring achievements based on comparisons of students with similar racial and socioeconomic backgrounds.

Indiana is a high performer and California ranks dead last. These rankings can be explained in part by per pupil expenditures and how funds are allocated. States with the best records have lower teacher-student ratios in the lower grades, higher participation in public pre-kindergarten programs and a higher percentage of teachers who are satisfied with the resources they are provided for teaching.

California's $4 billion class-size reduction (CSR) reforms began after the 1996 National Assessment of Educational Progress tests were given. The results of an ongoing evaluation of CSR by a consortium headed by the American Institutes for Research and Rand, including Policy Analysis for California Education, Edsource and West Ed, reveal gains from the push to reduce the size of kindergarten through third grade classes, but also a shortage of qualified teachers in the upper and primary grades. CSR has not changed the content or method of K-3 instruction, but teachers in reduced-size classes spend more time working with individuals, small groups and children with reading problems. They also report less disruptive behavior during lessons.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
–Plan programs to discuss public education funding and class size in your community. Invite speakers from the League of Women Voters, your local school board, or educators from your local university or college to speak on topics including funding in your state, vouchers and what individuals can do to make education reform a priority.
–Check out www.rand.org, www.classize.org (site of the CSR Research Consortium) and The League of Women Voters' site, www.lwv.org, for more information on school reforms.
–Make sure your members know that Women's American ORT has been a long-time supporter of quality public education by publishing articles in your bulletins and presenting programs at meetings.


computers vs. libraries

Is there a dichotomy between those who use the library and those who use the Internet? A national survey of 3,097 adults, "The Impacts of the Internet on Public Library Use," conducted by the Urban Library Council, an association of large public libraries and corporations that serve them, found that 75.2% of Internet users also used the library, and 60.3% of library users also used the Internet. Forty percent of the survey population used both the library and the Internet.

Use of the library and the Internet were positively related to educational attainment and higher annual household income. Both types of users were better educated and reported a higher income than nonusers.

Of significant interest to us as women are the responses affected by gender. The percentage of females who reported using the library was higher than the percentage of males. However, the percentage of males who reported using the Internet was higher than the percentage of females.

The primary reason respondents did not have access to the Internet was cost. To read the report, see www.urbanlibraries.org.

The American Library Association (to which WAO belongs) has made a five-year commitment to speak out about the value of libraries and librarians to our communities, schools and businesses in this digital age.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
–Plan what your members can do to celebrate the American Library Association's National Library Week (April 1-7, 2001). This year's theme is "@ your library." Check out www.ala.org.
–Collect books for our "Adopt-A-Shelf" campaign. Many chapters have presented books to public libraries, school libraries, hospitals, hospices, senior residences, Jewish community centers and shelters for abused women. For more information on "Adopt-A-Shelf," call the National Office, 800.51.WAORT, 263.
–Donate used books to a library book sale. Use your bulletin to make members aware of the needs of your local library.
–Volunteer to read to children as part of a library literacy programs.


grading on employability

The Kent, Wash., school district got a "rude awakening" according to Sandy Schwartz, director of technical and applied programs for the district, when area employers complained about students' sloppy appearance and poor attitudes when applying for jobs. The Kent Chamber of Commerce and the district took a joint survey of how well the schools have prepared students for the workplace, and the answer was: not well.

As a solution, school officials have added "employability" to high school students' report cards to measure work habits and attitudes, cooperation, commitment to quality, quantity of work, attendance and punctuality. They hope the grades, an addition to traditional academic grades, will help students obtain summer jobs and build future careers. The employability grade will not figure into a student's grade-point average, a factor in college acceptance. Students will rate themselves first and then discuss the rating with their teachers who make the final judgement. Students who score high on employability will receive "hire me first" cards which they will use during job interviews with employers. Parents and students will see the first "employability" grades early in the new year.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
–See www.rethinkingschools.org and look at the many articles on school reform. You may want to print and distribute them to your members.
–Look up www.familyplay.com and check out articles on education and what parents can do to help their children. Consider how your Chapter can encourage your community to make education more meaningful to students.


Visit www.netaction.org for consumer's reports for Internet users, to learn about using the Web for outreach and activism, and to sign up to receive NetAction reports via e-mail.

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Fall 2000

back-to-school issues

• The Department of Education in its “America Goes Back to School” campaign declares the following six key issues important to those who support public education:

Recruiting and Preparing Quality Teachers
Over the next decade American schools will need to hire 2.2 million teachers. At least half of these will be first-time teachers. To encourage and better prepare new teachers, start a mentoring program in which experienced teachers help beginning teachers or initiate a teacher recognition program to publicize good teaching.

Expanding After-School Programs
The demand for after-school programs continues to exceed the supply by about two to one. There will be an awareness-raising event on Oct. 12 called “Lights On!,” where after-school programs nationwide will host open house sessions for parents, community leaders, elected officials and the media.

Increasing Pathways to College and Careers
Over the next ten years 80% of the fastest growing jobs will require a college education or long-term training. A “Think College Early” campaign for middle school students and their families could provide information on course requirements, necessary admissions tests and financial planning and assistance.

Getting High Standards into Every Classroom
A national study found that 83% of high school students who took algebra and geometry went on to college within two years of graduation. Only 36% of those who did not take algebra and geometry went on to higher education. To help students improve their math skills, organize a math night with other parents, a math club that meets regularly or recruit volunteers to tutor children in a child care center or after-school program.

Making Schools Safe and Drug Free
Some schools recently have experienced tragic and violent events. A coalition is needed to identify long-term prevention objectives for improving student safety and conflict resolution programs. All of these preventative programs should include law enforcement professionals, mental health providers and youth-serving organizations within schools and the community.

Modernizing and Building Schools
Three-fourths of schools report needing a total of $127 billion for repairs and renovations. What is needed is a group to assess the condition of school buildings and formulate a plan to make schools a center of learning for the whole community, with space for after-school programs, adult education and literacy classes, and community service projects.

The above issues can be found at the Department of Education Web site, www.ed.gov/Family/agbts.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
—The issues can be meaningful to your members in light of what we know and admire about the global ORT network of schools. Ask members who have visited ORT schools to discuss what they have seen in the context of the issues. Speak about the job training and planning provided by our U.S. schools and programs.

—Recognize exceptional teachers in your local area, participate in mentoring programs and donate books through our “Adopt-A-Shelf” campaign.

—Many chapters have initiated career day activities in middle and high schools, and others have speakers who go to elementary and middle schools and talk about their jobs (what they do, the necessary schooling).

—Organize coalitions to address academic standards, student safety and the need for greater funding for schools. WAO members are highly skilled at attracting people to meetings. Qualified members should consider running for their local school board.

—School funding and high standards are the buzzwords of the 2000 election campaigns. Members should discuss the urgency to get out every vote. October bulletins should carry the message. Also, to help people in your community who may have difficulty getting to the polls, your chapter can organize car pools.


Kansas voters reject creationism

• Kansas Board of Education candidates who supported creationism and wanted to de-emphasize evolution were defeated in GOP primaries this past August in what was the most expensive election in the state’s history.

The unsuccessful candidates were the same conservative board members who led the board a year ago and downplayed evolution in the state’s science curriculum. They supported deleted references to the age of the earth, the big bang theory and some aspects of evolutionary theory.

Political scientists commented that conservatives fare much better when the issues are vague and races low-profile. But the fight isn’t really over, conservatives say, and promise to make science curricula an ongoing battle in the state of Kansas.

The results of the Kansas election are encouraging to us as members of Women’s American ORT, but we must be aware that the creationism message is being disseminated to the public and continuing the pressure on the church/state wall of separation.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
— Present programs on “creationism vs. evolution,” inviting speakers from local universities and colleges. Departments of education, anthropology and biology can offer good speakers. Many rabbis and clergymen are also willing to speak on the subject.

—Your chapter could also investigate where your local and state Boards of Education stand on the issue. Many nonprofit organizations have information on the subject. See www.au.org, www.aclu.org and www.pta.org.
— Remind your members how important it is to vote and to encourage others to vote if they support government that opposes church/state infringements, displaying the Ten Commandments in schools, the motto “In God We Trust” on classroom banners or posters and a moment of silence at the start of a school day. Our elected officials do much to safeguard the freedoms we value. To read up on the candidates and your elected officials, take a look at www.vote-smart.org.


literacy facts

• It has been said, “Until third grade, children learn to read; after third grade, they read to learn.” According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, 40% of third-graders read below grade level. (And the percentage is even higher in many of our inner cities.) Forty million adults in the U.S. read and write at or below fifth-grade-level (that’s 1 in 4 adults!), 21 million Americans cannot read at all and 70% of Americans arrested are illiterate.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
—Many chapters have members who volunteer to read to children in schools, libraries and community centers. This involves little or no training and is usually a commitment of one hour a week. Look at the Web site of the National Jewish Coalition for Literacy, www.njcl.net, for ideas and activities.

—Members can contact public and school libraries to see how they can help children and adults. Many libraries offer programs that start at the beginning of the school year, including story hours, puppet plays and promoting the issuance of library cards. See www.reachoutandread.org, www.bpl.kidzone.org and www.bplinfozone.org. The last two are sites of the Brooklyn Public Library for kids and teens.

—Donate new books to a local site of your choice through our “Adopt-A-Shelf” campaign.

recommended web sites

• political:
http://thomas.loc.gov
Find out the status of bills in Congress.

www.dnet.org
Sponsored by the League of Women Voters (www.lwv.org). Has information on local, state and federal elections.

www.grassroots.com
“Your political action network.” Allows you to take action on issues including education, family & youth, women, and health & science.

www.speakout.com
Promotes activism. Allows you to sign a petition, take a survey, send a message and join a debate.
www.jewishpublicaffairs.org Jewish Council for Public Affairs.

www.naral.org
National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League.

Sites of the Democratic, Republican and Green Party presidential candidates:
www.gorelieberman.com, www.bush2000.com, www.votenader.com.

• education:
www.ed.gov
Federal Department of Education. Lists promotions, activities and the federal budget for education.

www.ctredpol.org
Center on Educational Policy. A national, independent advocate for education.


reviewing progress — Beijing+5

• The Beijing Conference held in 1995 saw the birth of the Platform for Action. It specified 12 critical obstacles to women’s advancement which required concrete action by governments and civil society. Included in the lists were women and poverty, education, health, violence, armed conflict, the economy, power and decision-making, institutional mechanisms for advancement, human rights, media, the environment and the girl child. Governments adopting the Platform committed themselves to the effective inclusion of a gender dimension in their governance. The 2000 Conference, Beijing+5, was a review of the progress made in implementation of the specific items.

The Conference got bogged down by the politics of a very small number of nations, according to Ambassador Betty King, representative to UNESCO, U.S. Mission to the U.N. A final document did evolve from the meeting, but she felt that an overhaul of the assessment process is in order both to simplify language and to cut costs. In the review of the Conference by the Jewish Caucus, there was relief at the relative absence of anti-Israel rhetoric. Many of the Jewish women’s groups, including members of the Israeli delegation, showed an interest in selecting one of the issues to work on together. The issue that seemed to gain the most interest was domestic violence.
The Beijing+5 Conference renewed the commitment of NGOs to act on behalf of women. It means continuation of the efforts towards the empowerment of women so that they may be equal partners with men in decision-making on all levels.

Women's American ORT
Election 2000 Guidelines

These guidelines and precautions must be observed in relation to elections. You must review them thoroughly, and keep in mind that these policies apply to any and all elections, local, statewide or national, primary or general.

Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code denies tax exemption to organizations that, directly or indirectly, support or oppose political parties or candidates for any elective office. This prohibition applies to local, state, national, primary and general elections. Any and all activity on behalf of or in opposition to parties and candidates for political office, however insubstantial, is strictly forbidden to Women’s American ORT as a 501(c)(3) organization, as is any activity that could be interpreted as intervening or participating in a political campaign. As a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization, we must maintain a scrupulous neutrality in the campaign and election process. A single infraction could lead to the loss of tax-exempt status.

Prohibited activity includes, among other things, the making of awards or citations to, or the holding of public functions in honor of, or featuring a candidate during or immediately prior to a campaign for public office; the use of the organization’s mailing list, facilities, letterhead, staff or fund-raising machinery, on behalf of a candidate or party.

Noting I.R.S. Regulations concerning candidate questionnaires, the opinion gathering process and the publication thereof, we advise against any echelon of Women’s American ORT involving itself in the publication of the views or voting records of candidates.

In the event that a candidate for public office makes a blatant anti-Semitic statement or remark, or engages in activity that is anti-Semitic in nature, the organization may speak out against such a statement or activity, but should do so in a way that does not refer to the candidacy or to the election. A public conference or forum that focuses on such an individual who is a candidate for office should not be held.

Neither chapters nor any other Women’s American ORT unit of organization should use funds, either directly or indirectly, to set up a 501(c)(4) agency or a political action committee (PAC) for the purpose of supporting or opposing a candidate.

Individuals, even if they hold leadership positions with Women’s American ORT, may be active in coalitions, PACs or other organizations whose purpose is avowedly political, so long as individuals do not engage in such activity in their organizational capacities.

Any WAO member — acting as an individual — can participate in political activities as long as she does not engage in such activity in her organizational capacity.

Remember — with regard to any aspect of elections, no question is insignificant. Erring on the side of caution should be the rule.

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Summer 2000

voucher debate continues

California will again have a voucher initiative on the ballot in November after last year's proposal failed to pass. The new plan would give parents vouchers of $4,000 per student, to be used at private schools of their choice. The money would go to any child, rich or poor, but $4,000 is unlikely to be sufficient to enable a child from a low-income family to attend a private school. The best California private schools cost about $12,000 a year.

As Congress gets ready for vacation and campaign politicking, less legislation is being discussed, so representatives and senators may be more accessible and more willing to listen to voters.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
__ Find out whether vouchers are being considered in your state or county. Discuss WAO's position opposing vouchers (stated in our Public Policy Resolutions available in print from the National Office ) and ask Chapter members to speak to their representatives. Look up the PTA's position at www.pta.org and that of Americans United for Separation of Church and State at www.au.org.

__ Encourage your members to vote in the November elections. Voter registration is still possible in many states. Discuss with WAO members who should be encouraged to register to vote, as well as how to encourage them to register. Young people and seniors usually need encouragement to register and vote.

__ To become more knowledgeable about the issues and the candidates, check out www.vote-smart.org, www.moveon.com and www.grassroots.com which includes information on education, family and children, and women. You can download voter registration forms at www.smartvoter.org, sponsored by the League of Women Voters of California, and at the Democracy Network, www.dnet.org. For links to state and local government sites, see www.piperinfo.com.

__ While WAO cannot state a preference for candidates, we, as members, can and should discuss the issues. Two interactive Web sites are www.speakout.com, which promotes activism, allowing you to sign a petition, take a survey, send a message and join a debate, and www.voxcap.com, billed as The Home of Online Activism, which offers articles on education.


education 2000

Public education has the attention of the entire country. We face issues that are difficult and often frustrating. Safety has become of paramount concern, linked to issues of gun control and the rights of minors. Congress and state legislative bodies are beginning to institute harsh sentencing laws that punish law breakers but seem to offer little hope or chance for rehabilitation.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
__ As members of WAO, our experiences in support of a global educational program give us an understanding of the kinds of resources and long-range planning needed to help children succeed in school. We know there are no easy answers, but we continue to act in support of legislation that will benefit children.

__ Volunteer to tutor children in reading. Ask if any of your members are former or current teachers who would like to discuss reading theories at a Chapter program. Understanding how children learn to read will make our members more eager to volunteer as tutors. Information on how children learn to read can be found at www.nationalreadingpanel.org. To discover how the youngest children enjoy books, see www.zerotothree.org.

__ Donate books through our "Adopt-A-Shelf" campaign.

__ Discuss current education news, from learning theories to the "digital divide" (the growing gap between those who have access to computers and technology and those who don't) as part of a Chapter program. Look up the latest topics in psychology and current research at www.brains.org (practical application of brain research learning in the classroom) and find out how student-centered classrooms help children achieve superior results.

__ Request a speaker from the public library for your next meeting or have a meeting at the library and research the needs of the library. It should be obvious with just a casual look if there are shortages of books, computers and comfortable, fun places for children. Look up the "Library Bill of Rights" at the American Library Association's site, www.ala.org, and ask if your library supports it. If your library is equipped for research on the Internet, use your meeting as an opportunity for members to learn more about using the Internet or take their first steps into cyberspace.

the age gap is bridged

With an estimated net worth of $6 trillion, people who are over 55 represent an attractive market. Financial analysts have said that whoever can capture the online 50-plus market will reap a bonanza.

In the spring issue of quORTerly briefing, we discussed the "digital divide." There has also been a divide in the age groups that Web sites have been targeting. Other than the American Association for Retired People's Web site, www.aarp.org, there have been a limited number of sites targeting men and women over 50 – until recently. Now the Internet has a host of sites appealing to 50-plus women and men: www.inourprime.com, www.generationa.com, www.seniors.com (an online senior community), www.womansage.com (for women over 50) and www.thirdage.com. All offer a variety of articles and information on health, beauty, travel, as well as book reviews and message boards.

The sites mentioned above are geared to the active 50-plus market. There are also sites that provide information for caregivers of the elderly or disabled such as www.caregiverzone.com and www.carethere.com.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
__ Younger Chapters may have members who are presently acting as caregivers. Speakers from Jewish homes for the aged, Jewish centers and welfare organizations can provide vital information and keep members informed of what the local Jewish community is doing for the young and old. Most Web sites can be found using the name Jewish Federation + the local area.

__ Articles found on the Web may spark an idea for a Chapter program or seminar and be distributed at the event.

__ Chapters may want to hold programs on health and medicine and invite speakers from the local medical community or on financial planning for women and include a presentation on WAO's planned giving options.

20 years later and still arguing

The House International Relations Committee held a hearing in May on whether to endorse the 20-year-old U.N. Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. The Treaty, adopted by the U.N. General Assembly in December 1979, requires that women have equal rights in work, pay, benefits and safe working conditions and prohibits discrimination against women in political activities.

WAO has always favored this treaty and urged members to support its passage in Congress. Unfortunately, Sen. Jesse Helms, R-N.C., chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has refused to schedule hearings or submit the treaty to the full Senate for a vote.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO
__ For more information on the treaty, see www.un.org.

__ Discuss the treaty and why we support it (including its proposal to abolish female sexual mutilation) and write to the House Chair of International Relations Benjamin Gilman, R-N.Y., at 2449 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC 20515. Also contact the treaty's most outspoken opponent, Rep. Christopher H. Smith, R-N.J., at 2107 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC 20515.

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Spring 2000

bridging the digital divide

At a forum of world leaders in Florence, Italy, last November, President Clinton called the advantage enjoyed by those who have access to computers and the Internet over those who do not one of the greatest domestic problems facing developed nations.

"I think we should shoot for a goal within the developed countries of having Internet access as complete as telephone access within a fixed number of years," he said. "It will do as much as anything else to reduce income inequality."

A PBS series, Digital Divide, focuses "on the role computers play in widening social gaps throughout our society, particularly among young people." Along with the growing gap between those who have the technological tools and those who do not, it also stands for a divide by gender and race, between the haves and have-nots, and represents the educational inequalities that exist in our schools (both private and public).

The show visited schools at different stages of technological integration. One school is corporately funded and has 220 students and 280 computers – but no library. It also doesn't have arts or sports programs or any extracurricular activities. As one student said, "We don't have library books, but everything is online."

Another school, publicly funded, was designated a technology magnet school and has a few dozen older computers. A corporation donated two state-of-the-art labs. However, given the rapid rate at which technology changes, "sota" only lasts a few months, and of course, there are repair, upgrade, maintenance and additional training costs – none of which is funded by the state, city, county or corporate angels. The teachers are complaining that they don't have enough pencils, books or even working bathrooms. Meanwhile, the income gap between rich and poor widens.

As ORTists, we know how costly furnishing classrooms with computers can be. After all, we have been supplying schools around the world since the advent of computers.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO

• Donate a used computer to a school or organization that's helping schools catch up.
• Contribute books through our "Adopt-A-Shelf" program or tutor a child in reading.
• Call members who visited an ORT school (ideal speakers at events and meetings) to discuss how ORT is dealing with the new technology.
• Learn more about the digital divide by visiting the following Web sites: www.pbs.org/digitaldivide, www.digitaldivide.gov and www.digitaldividenetwork.org (a list of local efforts to combat the digital divide). And www.suite101.com offers material on the use of computers in education.

vote 2000

Wherever we look now – radio, television, the Internet – and for months to come, candidates fill the news. As a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, Women's American ORT may not endorse candidates or parties. These prohibitions apply to local, state and national primary and general elections. But it is permissible to engage in non-partisan voter registration and non-partisan candidates' forums. As WAO members, we know the importance of casting our vote.

The presidential candidates offer proposals on education reforms of every type including prayer in public schools and school vouchers for private schools. (For updates on vouchers, visit www.pta.org.)

WAO has clearly stated policies in our Public Policy Resolutions that affirm:

• Our clear opposition to school vouchers "as a serious drain of funds needed to maintain and improve our public education system."
• Our support of public education reforms that support the achievements of all children.
• Our continuing opposition to the incursion of religion into public schools.
• Our strong support of literacy programs for children and adults in and out of school.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO

Encourage members to vote, whatever their stand. A Web site of interest is www.youthvote2000.org, sponsored by a coalition reaching out to younger voters.

Encourage members to know where the candidates stand on issues. For information on campaign spending and a comparison of the candidates, take a look at www.opensecrets.org.

Possibly sponsor a non-partisan candidates' forum, where all candidates express their opinions – with particular emphasis on the educational issues WAO addresses in its resolutions.

Learn more about school choice and charter schools by visiting the following Web site: www.heritage.org/schools. (The Heritage Foundation is a conservative organization.)

campaigning for literacy

Chapters across the country are continuing to donate books to those who need them, from elementary school children learning how to read to hospital patients, residents of senior citizen communities and nursing homes to abused women and their children living in shelters. The latest success story is from Houston where Young Leadership is not only donating books but also helping paint and furnish an appropriate reading area in an abused women's shelter.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO

Join the growing number of WAO Chapters by participating in "Adopt-A-Shelf" projects. (For more information, contact the National Office at 800.51.WAORT, ext. 263.)

Participate in National Library Week (this year's theme is Read! Learn! Connect! @ the Library), April 9 to 15, sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and the Benton Foundation, by contacting a local library and asking how you can help. Enlist members for library-oriented volunteer activities such as story hours, summer reading programs, book fairs or used book sales.

Learn more about the ALA and the Benton Foundation by visiting the Web sites www.ala.org (includes 2000 Calendar of Promotional Events for Libraries and Literacy) and www.connectforkids.org.


upcoming opportunities for
Pro-Choice activism

The Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice (of which WAO is a member) will sponsor rallies at the national political conventions in July and August. The coalition will convene interfaith convocations in Philadelphia, where the Republican convention will be held, and Los Angeles, site of the Democratic convention.

The Philadelphia event will take place Sunday, July 30, the day before the Republican convention opens. And in Los Angeles, the convocation will be held on Sunday, Aug. 13, the day before the Democratic convention.

Both events will be held in the morning, followed by a procession and a rally. Coalition President, the Rev. Carlton Veazey, announced that the convocation and march are intended to show that "... we will not tolerate the dangerous religious right political agenda that erodes our medical and moral options and threatens the well-being of women and families."

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO

Tell members about the interfaith convocations at the conventions and encourage members in Los Angeles and Philadelphia to attend.

Arrange a public forum on the issue, updating the community on the current status of the debate, perhaps including a lawyer, a cleric and an elected official.

Learn more about the convocations by calling the Washington-based Religious Coalition at 202.628.7700 or visiting the Web site, www.rcrc.org. The National Organization for Women also lists recent developments at www.now.org.


be counted

The 2000 National Jewish Population Survey, sponsored by the United Jewish Communities (the new entity formed by the merger of UJA and the Council of Jewish Federations), will be contacting a sample of some 6,000 households later this year. The summary report will be issued in mid-2001.

The federal government is currently conducting its official census. Some of us will receive the long form, others the short form.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO

Encourage members to fill out both the Jewish and federal census forms.

Learn more about the Jewish census by visiting www.ujc.org and the federal census by visiting the U.S. Census Bureau's site, www.census.gov.

WAO at the UN: preparing for Beijing+5

In the last issue of QuORTerly Briefing, we informed you that Women's American ORT has representation on several of the United Nations Non-Governmental Organizations. One such NGO is the Working Group on Girls, a group of NGOs associated with UNICEF and the NGO Commission on the Status of Women.

At the Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing in 1995, 189 countries committed to the Platform for Action, which included a separate section on girls acknowledging rampant "discrimination against girls from the earliest stages of life, through their childhood and into adulthood." To date, however, only 34 governments have incorporated specific provisions for girls in their National Plans of Action.

Annual meetings of the Commission on the Status of Women have evaluated the progress made in addressing issues including the spread of HIV/AIDS among women and adolescent girls, exploitive labor and violence against women and girls. With an aging population, a topic beginning to receive greater attention is the status of older women around the world.

Education is viewed as the key to overcoming many of the obstacles facing girls. Of particular interest to WAO members are a variety of vocational education programs, ranging from sewing, hairdressing and cooking to carpentry, electronics and motor repair aimed at helping adolescent girls become economically self-sufficient.

The WGGs are preparing an alternative report documenting the disparities between what was committed to in Beijing and what has actually taken place to present at Beijing+5, the Special Session of the U.N. General Assembly that will be held in June.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO

Update members about WAO's role at the U.N.

Learn more about the Working Group on Girls
by visiting the Web site, www.girlsrights.org.

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