A Conference on the District Role in High School Reform
High schools were once America’s great pride. Today, however, high schools often fail to meet the challenge of preparing young people to succeed in the increasingly complex, knowledge-based world. How can we change that?

Acting on a shared interest in the education and advancement of America’s young people, Carnegie Corporation of New York and Education Week joined forces for a one-day conference focusing on The district role in high school reform. More than 100 education leaders participated in the symposium, held in Spring of 2006 at Carnegie Corporation headquarters in New York City, which aimed to help set the agenda for creating systems of exemplary high schools across the nation.

A series of three panel discussions addressed the need for systematic change involving parents, teachers, business, cultural and community leaders as well as elected officials and school administrators. Important educational experiments already underway around the country were highlighted, including models of success and failure that have much to teach today’s reformers. The panel topics were: “Beyond One-Size-Fits-All High Schools;” “Teaching and Learning in Redesigned High Schools;” and “Lessons from Research and Experience.” Panelists included representatives from Carnegie Corporation and Education Week as well as from several of the nation’s largest school districts and foundations active in education reform.

Results of a community-based survey of the American public’s views on urban school reform were also presented at the conference. Americans want all high schools to be as good as the best ones in the community, the nationally representative survey concluded, and they believe yesterday’s reforms will not solve today’s problems. Political and community leaders need to step up to the plate to ensure that schools provide quality education to all students, not just a privileged few.

A Report on Hispanics and the American Future is Launched
How are Hispanics transforming the United States as they enter the second and third generation and disperse throughout the country? And how will this transformation affect the allocation of resources benefiting not only the Hispanic population, but the nation as a whole? In Spring 2006, Carnegie Corporation hosted a meeting to launch Multiple Origins, Uncertain Destinies: Hispanics and the American Future, a report and companion volume of analyses from the Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education of the National Academies, which provide in-depth answers to these questions.

Geri Mannion, chair of Carnegie Corporation’s Strengthening U.S. Democracy Program, introduced the distinguished panel of presenters: Faith Mitchell, Institute of Medicine, the National Academies; Marta Tienda, Maurice P. During Professor in demographic studies and professor of sociology and public affairs at Princeton University; Louis Desipio, Department of Political Science and Chicano/Latino Studies Program, University of California, Irvine; Cordelia W. Reimers, Department of Economics, Hunter College and the Graduate School, City University of New York and Maria Echaveste, Principal, Nueva Vista Group.

“The first decade of the 21st century is a defining moment—an Hispanic moment,” said Marta Tienda, chair of the NRC panel. “Hispanics are a potential demographic dividend for the labor force, expected to represent nearly one in four U.S. residents by the year 2030….It will take major educational investments to accomplish the economic and social integration necessary to harness the power of the Hispanic population for the benefit of the nation.”

Maria Echaveste, who was assistant to the president and deputy chief of staff during the Clinton administration, believes a key to the solution is for greater numbers of Hispanics to become citizens. “Citizenship is in their interest for a stake in society,” she said.

Carnegie Scholars Colloquium: Violence, Terrorism and Social Upheaval
To many Western eyes, much of the Muslim world seems on the brink of chaos. Do we understand why? Do some in the Arab world share our perceptions? How do those with opposing views see the current state of affairs in Islamic societies? Such questions were tackled at a June, 2006 Carnegie Scholars Colloquium: Violence, Terrorism and Social Upheaval, hosted by Patricia Rosenfield, Carnegie Scholars program chair, which drew together distinguished scholars and grantees working on issues related to Islam and the modern world.

Shibley Telhami, Sadat chair for Peace and Development, University of Maryland, opened the session with a report on the results of a series of public opinion polls he has conducted in Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and United Arab Emirates. Intense frustration with the existing political order was highly evident in 2004, Telhami found. Recently, however, opinions have shifted in a trend he calls “the return of the state.” The ensuing discussion touched on shifts in Arab attitudes along with such issues as identity, nationalism, determinants of violent behavior and the significance of jihad.

“It has become essential for us to understand Islam as a religion, its unity, diversity and culture, ” Carnegie Corporation president Vartan Gregorian has written, “along with the roles of Muslim nations, the challenges they face, and their future place in the world. Of course, this is much easier said than done.”

Recognizing the American Council of Learned Societies
Funded by Carnegie Corporation of New York, the American Council of Learned Societies has provided support to the humanities in Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine since 1998. Working closely with scholars in disciplines ranging from history and archeology to literature, linguistics and religious studies, the Council strives to sustain individuals doing exemplary work and to assure continued future leadership in the humanities in the post-Soviet world. In Spring of 2006, an exhibition was mounted in the Slavic and Baltic Collection of the New York Public Library to celebrate the success of this distinguished program, which has to date awarded over 500 research grants and more than 80 grants for publication of completed projects. The event concluded with a roundtable discussion on the challenges facing Russian institutions during this time of transition.

Campus-Based Communications Seminars in East Africa
In July 2006 Carnegie Corporation sponsored campus-based training programs at the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania and Makerere University, Uganda as part of an ongoing strategy of investing in the communication staff and outreach capacity of select African Universities. South African communications firm APCO Africa conducted the intensive two-day seminars at both locations, which were designed to help university vice chancellors and their leadership teams develop the necessary skills for dealing with key stakeholders such as the press, public and policymakers. In addition, a strategic communications plan for the next few years was developed for each institution, to facilitate their following up on lessons learned. Ambika Kapur, program associate, Dissemination Program, represented the Corporation at the training sessions and Karen Theroux, editor/writer, went along to gather story ideas.

Library Dedication, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
Civic and library leaders in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa invited Carnegie Corporation president Vartan Gregorian to preside at the dedication of the new city library on July 3, 2006. With Corporation support, the library was able to build a modern extension to serve as the children’s library and to become a catalyst for major development of the city’s center. Corporation board members Helene Kaplan, chair; Admiral William Owens, trustee and Vincent Mai, former trustee along with Susan King, vice president, Public Affairs; program chair Narciso Matos and program officer Rookaya Bawa from the International Development Program, joined this journey through the Corporation’s long history with South Africa—traveling to universities and historic sites from Durban to Cape Town to Johannesburg. Bawa, who runs the library program and was the trip organizer, is a South African who has witnessed first hand the transition from apartheid government to new South Africa. With the participation of many Corporation grantees, she created a colorful, informative, and emotionally charged experience reflecting the changes underway throughout the country.