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2000 SESSION

006229908
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 312
Offered January 24, 2000
Encouraging the Secretary of Education to facilitate communication, collaboration, and cooperation among the public and higher education systems, and the Virginia General Assembly to establish a K-16 continuum.
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Patrons-- Rhodes and Christian
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Referred to Committee on Rules
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WHEREAS, the Commission on Access and Diversity in Higher Education, House Joint Resolution 226 (1998), was created to examine the legal obligations imposed by certain federal court decisions on Virginia public colleges and universities, to determine and recommend appropriate strategies to ensure compliance, and to ascertain ways to remove any vestiges of the dual system of higher education; and

WHEREAS, the Commission determined that to address meaningfully issues associated with the low representation of minority students in higher education, it was necessary to identify factors contributing to the problem and to review and assess the continuum of education in Virginia, K-16 and beyond; and

WHEREAS, the Commission has concluded that an effective and efficient system of education in the Commonwealth depends on full communication, collaboration, and cooperation between educators, administrators, and other key persons responsible for the implementation of public policy in public and higher education; and

WHEREAS, it is the consensus of the Commission that public and higher education are invariably interconnected and that it is vital for all persons involved in public and higher education to understand and appreciate the significance of this relationship to the viability of the education system in the Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, the Commission believes also that facilitating dialogue and unity between the leaders in public and higher education, the community, businesses and corporations, and the General Assembly will help to raise the academic performance of students--kindergarten through college--and close the academic achievement gap that separates minority and poor students from their peers; and

WHEREAS, forging such a relationship between public and higher education, the community, and policy makers would enable the articulation and alignment of curricula, promote accountability, facilitate a seamless education system, provide leadership in educational reform, and advance the capacity of the education system to keep pace with and respond to the increasingly complex challenges of a global marketplace; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the Secretary of Education be encouraged to facilitate communication, collaboration, and cooperation among the public and higher education systems, and the Virginia General Assembly to establish a K-16 continuum; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Secretary of Education is requested to apprise the Commission on Access and Diversity in Higher Education regularly regarding progress toward enhancing communication, collaboration, and cooperation among public and higher education agencies, of initiatives that promote the K-16 continuum, of dialogue with the community and business to strengthen support for public and higher education, and of efforts to ensure better articulation and alignment of curricula between public and higher education; and, be it

RESOLVED FINALLY, That the Secretary shall also recommend to the Commission by December 1, 2000, any changes to existing state laws that are necessary to assist public and higher education agencies in accomplishing their individual missions and the objectives of this resolution.