tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7186797.post8694023974143375562..comments2023-12-29T05:24:43.830-06:00Comments on Kay Brooks: More agenda itemsKay Brookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06073075957511329333noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7186797.post-24650492126018802002008-07-17T20:21:00.000-05:002008-07-17T20:21:00.000-05:00Yeah, not sure if you're confused or spinning. "Es...Yeah, not sure if you're confused or spinning. "Establishing a program with a goal of..." is not the same as mandating every student to do that. For example, some federal money is given for establishing equity in girls athletics (Title IX). That doesn't mean they yank the money if there are fewer female athletes. It certainly doesn't mean a girl is a slave to the athletic program. It just means the programs should be there and the district should strive for equity. If the district doesn't set up any athletic opportunities for girls, it can lose federal funding.<BR/><BR/>BTW, guess which Presidential candidate said this:<BR/><BR/><I>If we are to have a resurgence of patriotic service in this country, then programs like AmeriCorps must be expanded and changed in ways that inspire the nation. There should be more focus on meeting national goals and on <B>making</B> short-term service, both civilian and military, a rite of passage for young Americans. </I>Buckleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04087082956705159705noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7186797.post-71269497937472941212008-07-17T13:49:00.000-05:002008-07-17T13:49:00.000-05:00I really don't understand why I keep seeing those ...I really don't understand why I keep seeing those quotes about high school and college service programs referenced as if they were anything but voluntary.<BR/><BR/>Obviously, tying public school funding to the creation of service programs does pretty much guarantee that the programs will have to be created. But I've heard no talk of making participation in them mandatory, which, considering the widely varying situations of public school students, would be politically and functionally impossible. <BR/><BR/>(And I would wager that the programs created would actually focus <I>primarily</I> on funneling student interest towards existing service opportunities - the vast majority of in-school service groups I saw during my high school days were just that.)<BR/><BR/>As for the tax credit for college kids, it's pretty hard to claim that offering an incentive for a voluntary activity constitutes "servitude." I suppose one could argue that aspiring college students in need of money shouldn't be helped out in exchange for doing good works in the community, but that still doesn't make the program itself "servitude."<BR/><BR/>So, yeah, I can understand policy disagreement - having only heard the bare bones, I'm not sure I like the sound of the high school program, myself - but the servitude bit just sounds like hyperbole to me.N.S. Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00594978546540226304noreply@blogger.com