"Children's Issues and the Conditions that Put them at Risk"
at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

The Child Policy Speaker Series continues with "Children's Issues and the Conditions that Put them at Risk" on April 20, 2005, from 3 to 4:30 p.m. in the Smart Seminar Room, 7th floor of the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies building, located at 14 Marietta Street, NW. For more information, please contact Erdal Tekin at 404-651-3968 or tekin@gsu.edu.

Georgia State University and the University of Georgia will launch this month a new partnership to improve the well-being of Georgia's children.

Through the Child Policy Partnership, Georgia State's Andrew Young School of Policy Studies and UGA's Carl Vinson Institute of Government aim to introduce a new way of looking at children's issues by linking research and practice, and facilitating discussions to strengthen both throughout the state.

The Child Policy Partnership will kick off April 20 and 21 when Richard Rothstein (above right) and Taifa Butler (above left) present an overview of factors influencing child well-being at the national and state levels. (pdf)

Richard Rothstein, a visiting professor at Columbia University's Teachers College, research associate at the Economic Policy Institute, and former New York Times education columnist, will present a national view of child well-being. Taifa Butler, public affairs director at Family Connection Partnership, will demonstrate how Georgia ranks in key indicator areas of child well-being, such as communities, families, schools and health.

Rothstein's persuasive analysis of how social class shapes learning outcomes forces us to look at the differences in learning styles and readiness across students as they enter school for the first time. He causes us to consider the influence of income, health, safety and other gaps affecting students as they proceed through school.

Butler's analysis of KIDS COUNT, a national assessment of child issues conducted by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, paints a picture of the status of Georgia's children. According to KIDS COUNT, Georgia ranks 40th in the nation in child health and well-being and 32th in 16-19 year olds, who are neither employed nor in school.

Rothstein and Butler will speak at Georgia State on Wednesday, April 20, from 3:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. in the Andrew Young School building at 14 Marietta Street and at UGA on Thursday, April 21, from 9 a.m. -11:30 a.m. in the Seney-Stovall Chapel on North Milledge Ave.

The Child Policy Partnership aims to create synergy throughout the state about child well being, amplify the resources Georgia already offers in terns of research, policy, and practice, and identify areas where more or different information is needed. In this endeavor, the partnership welcomes the support and interest of public officials and invites inquiries from communities and organizations working to promote better well-being for Georgia's children.

Biography

Richard Rothstein is a research associate of the Economic Policy Institute and a visiting lecturer at Teachers College, Columbia University. From 1999 to 2002 he was the national education columnist for The New York Times; he is now a senior correspondent for The American Prospect.

Mr. Rothstein is the author of Class and Schools: Using Social, Economic, and Educational Reform to Close the Black-White Achievement Gap (Teachers College Press, 2004). His other publications include: The Charter School Dust-Up: Examining the Evidence on Enrollment and Achievement (with Martin Carnoy, Rebecca Jacobsen, and Lawrence Mishel) (Teachers College Press, 2005); The Way We Were? Myths and Realities of America’s Student Achievement (Century Foundation Press, 1998); All Else Equal: Are Public and Private Schools Different? (with Luis Benveniste and Martin Carnoy) (RoutledgeFalmer, 2003); and Where’s the Money Going? Changes in the Level and Composition of Education Spending (EPI, 1995 and 1997).

Taifa Butler is the Director of Public Affairs and Policy for Family Connection Partnership. Her primary responsibilities include managing the Partnership’s efforts to promote the work of Family Connection collaboratives throughout the state to increase support and investment; managing the Partnership’s information technology plan and Web site development; managing the Georgia KIDS COUNT project; and managing the Partnership’s efforts to monitor public policy and its impacts on communities, families and children.

Prior to taking on this role, Butler was a community outreach consultant providing technical assistance to various community organizations. She joined the staff at Georgia Academy for Children and Youth Professionals in 1999, bringing research expertise from various positions with private, government and nonprofit agencies. Her research experience includes identifying best practices in improving child well-being, welfare reform, and state and local tax policy and data analysis. Butler is a native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She received a bachelor’s degree in politics and economics from Mount Holyoke College and a master’s degree in public management and policy from the Heinz School of Public Policy and Management at Carnegie Mellon University, with a concentration in economic development and financial management.