Deliberate Dumbing Down of America Public Education

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The Noxious Nineties : c. 1997

Faith-based Institutions. Faith-based institutions should take full advantage of new opportunities under federal law to receive public support for activities such as job search programs, “second chance” homes for unmarried teen parents, child care, and drug treatment, while maintaining their religious character. The federal government should broaden this new partnership with faith-based institutions to cover the maximum feasible range of social services.… The federal government should revise the tax code to increase incentives for charitable contributions and to recognize the charitable efforts of all Americans, including poor and low-income families.… Individual faith-based institutions should band together into community-wide coalitions to achieve important civic objectives.… …We call for the mobilization of public, foundation, and corporate support for new ventures, such as John Dilulio’s Jeremiah Project, which will help gather credible data about the effectiveness of faith-based activities, mobilize resources, and direct them to promising faith-based programs. [Ed. Note: This is the most frightening “partnership” proposal of all. When the government “partners” with another entity, it is always the government who sets the standard—and en forces it. While there may be worthwhile efforts that many churches in a community can agree upon and work together to accomplish, again, this should be decided on the local level by the churches involved without any coordination by any other entity to satisfy its goals and aims. Gathering “credible data” about “faith-based activities” so that resources can be directed to “promising faith-based programs” is exactly what the writer was referring to earlier when she cautioned the reader about partnering churches or “faith-based institutions” with the govern ment.] The following high profile individuals are involved in the National Commission on Civic Re newal project: • Co-Chairman William Bennett , former U.S. Secretary of Education, and co-director of Empower America, an organization dedicated to promoting “conservative” principles and ideas. Secretary of Education Bennett funded the American Institute for Character Education/Thomas Jefferson Research Center’s very controversial, no right/no wrong answers character education program based on Abraham Mazlow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Self-Actualization. When confronted with information concerning the U.S.-Soviet education agreements signed during his tenure, Bennett said, “I’m not in that loop.” • Co-Chairman Sam Nunn , former U.S. Senator from Georgia, was deeply involved in the passage of National Service legislation to lay the groundwork for a nationwide “civilian service corps” by offering generous higher education benefits in exchange for one or two years of public volunteer service. Though Nunn served as chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, the “volunteer service” legislation he sponsored was in no way involved with military service to this country. • Executive Director William A. Galston , professor of government in the School of Public Affairs, University of Maryland at College Park and director of the University’s Institute for Philosophy and Public Policy. From January 1993 through May 1995, Galston served as deputy assistant for domestic policy to President Clinton. Galston was also deeply involved in the drafting of Goals 2000 . Prior political experience includes: chief