Inform

1
Inform Influence

• Advocating for Service-Learning
• February 2005

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Session Overview

• Why We Cannot Wait 2005 Legislative Update
• What You Can and Cant Do
• Effective Strategies to Advocate for
  Service-Learning
• Timing Targets
• Message, Materials Media
• Coalitions Contacts
• Next Steps Mobilizing Service-Learning Advocates

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Learn and Serve AmericaA program of the
Corporation for National and Community Service

• Learn and Serve America supports service-learning
  programs in schools and community organizations
  that help nearly one million students from
  kindergarten through college meet community
  needs, while improving their academic skills and
  learning the habits of good citizenship. Learn
  and Serve grants are used to create new programs
  or replicate existing programs, as well as to
  provide training and development to staff,
  faculty, and volunteers.
• Learn and Serve America is funded by the Labor,
  Health and Human Services appropriations bill.
  This program falls within the jurisdiction of the
  House and Senate Education Committees.

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Recent Policy Developments

• Corporation scheduled to begin formal rulemaking
  process to develop new rules that govern Learn
  and Serve America programs
• President proposes 3 million cut to Learn and
  Serve Americas funding
• Forty-eight (48) education programs some of
  which used to support service-learning in local
  schools and communities are proposed for
  elimination in fiscal year 2006.

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Implications of the Presidents FY06 Budget
RequestEducation Programs Proposed for
Elimination

• All totals in millions
• Civic Education (29.4)
• Close Up Fellowships (1.5)
• Elementary and Secondary School Counseling
  (34.7)
• Even Start (225.1)
• Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for
  Undergraduate Programs (306.5)
• Literacy Programs for Prisoners (5)
• Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities State
  Grants (437.4)
• School Dropout Prevention (4.9)

• State Grants for Incarcerated Youth Offenders
  (21.8)
• Teacher Quality Enhancement Grants (68.3)
• TRIO, Talent Search (144.9)
• TRIO, Upward Bound (312.6)
• Vocational Educational National Programs (11.8)
• Vocational Education State Grants (1,194.3)
• Rationale for the Proposed Eliminations
• consistent with the Administrations policy of
  terminating small programs that have limited
  impact and for which there is little or no
  evidence of effectiveness     
• In another case, Safe and Drug Free Schools The
  program has not demonstrated effectiveness and
  grant funds are spread to thinly to support
  quality interventions.     

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Understand What You CAN Do

• Educate elected officials
• Inform the media
• Publicize results of your work
• Create partnerships with government agencies
• Provide technical assistance to policymakers or
  legislative committees

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Safe Advocacy Strategies

• 1. Direct communications with legislators or
  their staff about a general issue of concern
  where there is either (a) no reference to
  specific legislation or (b) no view expressed on
  such legislation.
• 2. Most grassroots communications to the public
  about a general issue of concern where there is
  either (a) no reference to specific legislation,
  (b) no position taken on the legislation or (c)
  no call to action.
• 3. Communications with executive officials (i.e.,
  president, governors, mayors) or their staff
  about a general concern where there is either
  (a) no reference to specific legislation, (b) no
  position taken on the legislation or (c) the
  official or staff person will not participate in
  forming the legislation.

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Safe Ways to Affect Public Policy

• 4. Actions to affect regulations or other acts
  implementing existing laws that are performed by
  administrative bodies.
• 5. Class action lawsuits or similar public
  interest litigation in attempts to influence
  judicial bodies.
• 6. Self-defense lobbying activities directed at
  legislators or their staff (but not to the
  general public) on matters that might affect the
  organization's existence, powers, duties, exempt
  status, etc.
• 7. Responding to written request from a
  legislative body (not a single legislator) for
  technical assistance on pending legislation.

• 9. Discussion of broad social, economic and
  similar policy issues requiring legislative
  solution so long as the discussion does not
  address the merits of specific legislation.
• 10. Communications to members of an electing
  public charity (not applicable to members of a
  private foundation) that discuss specific
  legislation but do not urge action by the
  members.
• 11. Private lobbying activity taken by foundation
  managers on their own time and at their own
  expense.
•  
• (Reprinted from Foundations and Lobbying Council
  on Foundations)

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Understand What You CANNOT Do

• Prohibited Political Activities
• Lobbying an elected officials on a specific bill
• Engaging in partisan political activity by
  endorsing a candidate for public office
• Asking elected officials to vote a certain way

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Examples of Prohibited Activities

• organizing a letter writing campaign to Congress
  
• printing politically charged articles in a
  Corporation-funded newsletter
• taking part in political demonstrations or
  rallies
• activities related to protests, petitions,
  boycotts, or strikes.
• (excerpted from CNCS/Wofford memo January 29,
  1996)

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Organizing Service-Learning Advocates Around the
CountryThe 2005 Call to Action

• Our Legislative Appeal
• Restore the 3 million cut to Learn and Serve
  America
• Invest an additional 2 million in pre-service
  teacher education to equip the next generation of
  educators
• Invest an additional 1 million to support
  rigorous, scientifically-based service-learning
  research
• TOTAL REQUEST
• 46 million in fiscal year 2006

Snapshot of Service-Learning Advocates Across
the Country
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What Service-Learning Advocates Must Do Right
NowSpecific Advocacy Action Steps

• Share your best stories that illustrate how
  service-learning and Learn and Serve America
  impact the lives of young people, schools and
  communities
• Invite Michigan Representatives to join the House
  National Service Congressional Caucus
• Organize opportunities to showcase
  service-learning at your state capitol or state
  department of education
• Resources
• www.servicelearningunited.org
• www.ysa.org
• www.compact.org
• www.seanetonline.org www.ecs.org

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What Service-Learning Advocates Must Do Right
NowSpecific Advocacy Action Steps

• What You Can Do in Your Own Backyard
• Invite federal, state and local elected officials
  to visit your service-learning site
• Meet with staff from the local offices of your
  Members of Congress or state legislators
• Join online forums of service-learning advocates
  to receive regular news and updates about policy
  that impacts service-learning
• Resource
• www.service-learningpartnership.org

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Effective Strategies to Advocate for
Service-Learning The Ts of Mobilizing

• Targets Be specific about who to influence and
  why.
• Who do you want to reach at the Federal level?
• Who do you want to reach at the State or Local
  level?
• What do we know about what works and doesnt work?

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Effective Strategies to Advocate for
Service-Learning The Ts of Mobilizing

• Timing Be strategic about when to activate your
  allies and supporters.
• Are there key times during the legislative cycle?
• Are there strategic holidays or special events?
• When should you activate your base?
• What have you tried that works or doesnt work?

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Effective Strategies to Advocate for
Service-Learning The Ms of Mobilizing

• Message Position what you want.
• What is your policy agenda?
• What message resonates with Federal policymakers?
• What message resonates with State or Local
  policymakers?
• What have you tried that works or doesnt work?

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Effective Strategies to Advocate for
Service-Learning The Ms of Mobilizing

• Materials Package your message.
• Develop and distribute City/Town, Campus,
  Regional, or State Profiles of Service-Learning
• Develop your Legislative Message and Appeal
  (Talking Points/The Ask) Designed Especially
  for Your Legislators
• Compile Politically-Relevant, Succinct Research
  Summaries
• What have you tried that works or doesnt work?

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Effective Strategies to Advocate for
Service-Learning The Ms of Mobilizing

• Media Get the most out of service-learning in
  the news.
• How can you leverage national print media to
  bring attention to SL in your state or local
  community?
• Leverage Campus Presidents Speeches.
• Consider holidays as opportunities to place op-ed
  pieces or letters to the editor.
• What have you tried that works or doesnt work?

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Effective Strategies to Advocate for
Service-Learning The Cs of Mobilizing

• Coalitions Find strength in numbers.
• With whom in your state (or at the national
  level) should you form coalitions? Who gives you
  added voice or credibility and in what areas?
• How can you leverage student involvement?
• How can they express support through collective
  sign-on letters or promotion through their
  networks?
• What have you tried that works or doesnt work?

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Effective Strategies to Advocate for
Service-Learning The Cs of Mobilizing

• Contact Make contact with key officials and/or
  their staff in effective ways.
• Capitol Hill/Statehouse Days to Showcase Your
  Work.
• Targeted Campaigns to Send Faxed Messages to
  Select Members of Congress and their Staff
• Virtual March on Washington/the Statehouse.
• Collective Sign-On Statements from Michigan
  Supporters
• Individual Appointments and Visits to
  District/State Staff
• What have you tried that works or doesnt work?

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Next Steps

• Think about the T-M-C approach to grassroots
  mobilization.
• What are your policy goals and how and when will
  you mobilize?
• What pieces do you already have in place?
• What could you easily start or implement in your
  state or local community?
• How are you collectively going to organize to
  take action considering recent developments in
  Washington DC?
• What additional information or support to you
  need state or national organizations?

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One Last Word

• Additional Tools Resources
• Campus Compact
• www.compact.org
• Education Commission of the States (Natl Center
  for Learning and Citizenship)
• www.ecs.org
• National Service-Learning Partnership
• www.service-learningpartnership.org
• Service-Learning United
• www.servicelearningunited.org
• SEANet
• www.seanetonline.org
• Youth Service America
• www.ysa.org

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Contact Information

• Nelda Brown
• State Education Agency K-12 Service-Learning
  Network National Service-Learning Partnership
• One Massachusetts Avenue, NW Suite 700
• Washington, DC 20001
• nslp_at_aed.org info_at_servicelearningunited.org
• www.service-learningpartnership.org
• www.servicelearningunited.org