Archived: Satellite Town Meeting -- New American High Schools: Preparing Youth for College and Careers

A r c h i v e d I n f o r m a t i o n

Family Involvement

New American High Schools:
Preparing Youth for College and Careers"
Tuesday, January 21, 1997
8:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. (ET)

Imagine a high school where students....

learn academic subjects in the context of careers and work
prepare for the "real world" in real time
reach graduation ready for both college and careers in fields such as health care, aerospace science, or computer technology
learn by doing --in class, on the job, or in community service
work with teachers in small schools-within-schools
receive extra support from adult mentors
take advantage of strong links to postsecondary institutions
use advanced technology to enhance their education, and
learn with the support of a caring community.

Such schools exist today. They are "New American High Schools," and they are showing the nation innovative ways to prepare students for promising careers in the next century. January's Satellite Town Meeting will examine how high schools can help students explore the world of work as they learn to identify and solve problems, work in teams, master new technologies, and make effective decisions. Featuring secondary schools known as New American High Schools, U.S. Secretary of Education Richard Riley and others will investigate the ideas and strategies that are helping students learn to high levels of academic and professional skills.

To participate in this pre-recorded program, all you need is to locate a facility with satellite downlink capabilities. Or, call your local cable access station or school board channel and give them the satellite coordinates:


C-Band Galaxy 4 (reference Galaxy C4) Transponder/Channel 11 Horixontal Polarity Downlink frequency 3920 MHz Orbital location 99° West	Ku-Band Telstar 401 (reference Telstar 401K) Transponder/Channel 6 Horizontal Polarity Downlink frequency 11854 MHZ Orbital location 97° West
Audio subcarriers: 6.2 (Spanish) and 6.8 (English)

Register your participation to ensure you will be notified of any changes by calling 1-800 USA-LEARN. For technical assistance during or after the program please call 202-463-5912.

What is the Satellite Town Meeting?

Each month, U.S. Secretary of Education Richard Riley hosts a video teleconference for communities working together towards comprehensive school improvement. National experts, community leaders and educators discuss current issues in education, offer practical advice for community action and interact with participants throughout the nation. Major national television outlets, including The Discovery Network, and Channel One, as well as public access stations and school board channels, carry the Satellite Town Meeting each month. Satellite Town Meetings are also available on many local Public Broadcasting System stations. Past topics have included: school violence, standards, arts in education, school-to-work, and parent involvement.

How can our community benefit from the Satellite Town Meeting?

The Town Meetings are an excellent opportunity to organize your community and involve new partners in your school improvement effort. You can also plan your own local community meeting prior to or after the Satellite Town Meeting to discuss your community's progress and challenges in relation to the month's topic. The Satellite Town Meeting brings together people from across the nation with the same commitment to building community partnerships for learning.

How do we participate?

Find a downlink facility
You can take part in the Town Meeting with a group or at home by contacting your local Public Broadcasting System member station or public access station. Call and give them the show's name and topic, date, time of the broadcast, and coordinates. Also, be sure to ask if the program will be aired live or rebroadcast at a later time. A number of national organizations encourage their local affiliates to serve as downlink sites for the Satellite Town Meeting. Contact your local Public Broadcasting System member station, or local Chamber of Commerce, and ask if your group can use the facility. Your local school system, public library, or community college may also have the satellite equipment necessary to provide the downlink. Other possible sites are local cable television stations, universities and technical schools, local government offices, hospitals, businesses, hotels, or even private residences with backyard satellite dishes.
Make a list of invitees
Invite those who are working on your community's reform effort: parents, members of the business community, educators, members of the local chamber of commerce, and other key community leaders. In short, invite everyone who is interested in learning more about school improvement. Notify participants as early as possible.
Call Us
A 1-800 number is provided during the program for participants to call-in and talk with the Secretary and his guests.

Call 1-800-USA-LEARN to register your participation.

The Satellite Town Meeting is produced in partnership with the National Alliance of Business and the Center for Workforce Preparation with support from The Bayer Foundation, the Procter and Gamble Fund, Microsoft, Inc., and SC Johnson Wax. Broadcast and cable partners include Discovery Communications, the Public Broadcasting System, and Channel One. Use of the Satellite Town Meeting is free and unrestricted.

More detailed information on this other education legislation is available at the Library of Congress's Thomas web site, where you may select from several databases that provide full bill text, bill summaries, and bill status by sponsor, keyword, and bill number. Selecting "hot legislation" provides a list of important legislation in such categories as "educational policy" and "elementary and secondary education."

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