Section 427 of the General Provisions Act states:
a. The purpose of this section is to assist the Department in
implementing the Department's mission to ensure equal access to
education and to promote educational excellence throughout the nation
by:
1. ensuring equal educational opportunities to participate for all
eligible students, teachers and other program beneficiaries in any
project or activity carried out under an applicable program; and
2. promoting the ability of such students, teachers and beneficiaries
to meet high standards.
b. The Secretary shall require each applicant for assistance under an
applicable program (other than an individual) to develop and describe
in such applicant's application the steps such applicant proposes to
take to ensure equitable access to, and equitable participation in,
the project or activity to be conducted with such assistance, by
addressing the special needs of students, teachers, and other program
beneficiaries in order to overcome barriers to equitable
participation, including barriers based on gender, race, national
origin (includes limited English proficiency), color, disability and
age.
As the equity specialist I am arguing that the the language while not
stating explicitly that we must collect all data by race , sex,
disability etc., implies that we must in order to ensure that
equitable participation is in fact occurring. Others argue that the
language is very weak and really does not require anything more than
an assurance of equal access and participation by our sub-recipients
and ourselves as an SEA.
My current quest is for:
1. any interpretations or guidance from the Dept. of ED that I may
have missed.
2. any advice from what you are doing in your state.
3. any list of arguments you may have developed about what GEPA 427
requires and why .
4. anything I can't think of right now related to GEPA 427.
Thank you in advance for helping me out.
Barbara A. Bitters, Team Leader
Equity Mission Team
WI Dept. of Public Instruction
P.O. Box 7841
Madison, WI 53707-7841
bitteba@mail.state.wi.us
phone 608-266-9609
fax 608-267-1052