The last few weeks have seen the subject of education reach front and center across Northeast Ohio. Public school funding, the end of the BBB era and the hyper-politicizing of the selection of her successor, and the realization we need progress educating the region's children are all important drivers for discussion. The NEO Excellence Roundtable has maintained an ongoing dialogue on such key issues impacting economic development in Northeast Ohio, which we will broaden beginning at the August 16th session.

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Lead Awareness Week in Northeast Ohio kicked-off at 11 AM on July 18, 2005, with a press conference at the Zelma George Recreation Center, 3165 Martin Luther King Blvd., in the Mt. Pleasant/Kinsman area of Cleveland. City Department of Health Director Matt Carroll coordinated this informative and valuable insight-sharing session, with great support from area health professionals, community activists, Cleveland and Cuyahoga county staff, foundation workers and volunteers, all working together as the Greater Cleveland Lead Advisory Council (GCLAC). The purpose of the conference and week is to raise public awareness for the risks of lead poisoning, and support preventative action.

Bill Callahan, Director of Digital Vision (a coalition of organizations in Cleveland, Ohio working to eliminate the "digital divide" in our city), has posted to his blog an analysis of the extent of the digital divide in Cleveland, and the findings are disturbing... "the percentage of Cleveland households in the sample with active Internet connections may be as low as 40%". The numbers for many sectors of our society are much lower. There is not a simple solution to this problem - not just a wi-fi mesh, or neighborhood computing centers, or school labs, or libraries - there is a need as a community to say that we are all committed to help each resident who wants to participate in the new economy to cross the digital divide, and help in every way every step of the way. Read on about the current state of the divide in Cleveland, and consider how you may make a difference:

CLEVELAND'S DIGITAL DISCONNECT: The data, provided to Digital Vision by Scarborough Research,
is from interviews with more than 300 Cleveland residents, 18 and
older, conducted in 2004-2005. While it's not a perfect random sample
of the city's adult population, Scarborough says the sample is
"stable", i.e. the margin of error is reasonable. Here are some of the
highlights:

Child Welfare Reformer Dorothy Roberts at The City Club of Cleveland

CLEVELAND, OH—Dorothy Roberts, Kirkland and Ellis professor at Northwestern University Law School, will discuss the glaring racial disparity in the nation’s child welfare system—why it exists, the harm it causes and how it should be addressed—at noon on Friday, July 22, 2005, at The City Club of Cleveland.

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The Greater Cleveland Lead Advisory Council is pleased to announce an important statewide lead awareness week in July, which offers an opportunity to blend awareness of the harm of lead to children with the importance of investing in education. Read on:

Big news and developments to discuss this week at the NEO Excellence Roundtable.

After working in academe innovating the Case Center for Regional Economic Issues, Ed Morrison returns to the private sector to lead Open Source Economic Development (OSED) for this region and the world, his way. Join Ed at the Excellence Roundtable as we explore next steps with him. As so many of us are building our community development plans around Ed's framework, today's Roundtable is where the planning continues.

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Plan to join in the discussions at the Tuesday, June 21, NEO Excellence Roundtable at the City Club of Cleveland as we advance innovative open source pursuits for holistic economic development in Northeast Ohio, including:

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An unexpected gem of an editorial in the Cleveland Plain Dealer observes "more than two-thirds of pre-school students use computers". "Education must evolve along with the rest of society" - "pre-schoolers who use computers at school regularly make greater gains than those without such technology." "The challenge for community leaders is to ensure that the advantages of the digital age reach all young people, including those of modest means." Read on below...

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June 7: "From the Ground Up in Glenville: Neighborhood Planning
& Community Development: Engaging Youth and Building Networks" - Tony Diggs, Glenville Development Corporation

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Bryan Flannery - Author, Chief Advocate and Spokesperson, Educate Ohio Amendment. On December 11, 2002, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled for the fourth time that Ohio’s school funding system is unconstitutional and the General Assembly had failed to meet the mandates of the court to perform “a complete systematic overhaul of the school-funding system.�

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On March 31, 2005, the Greater Cleveland Lead Advisory Council (GCLAC) announced a significant initiative to eradicate lead poisoning in Greater Cleveland by 2010. On April 26th the GCLAC formally launched the initiative with a meeting of the membership held at Burke Lakefront Airport.

NYC provides excellent virtual community capabilities worth accessing here in NEO - consider the following bulletin from their department of health and mental hygiene on choosing a day care provider. Helping residents make smart decisions is one of the greatest values of eGovernment. If you need daycare services in NEO, take some advice from NYC.

How do personal characteristics such as
intelligence, education and wealth contribute to disparate health outcomes?

Linda S. Gottfredson, Ph.D., professor
of education at the University of Delaware, and co-director of the
Delaware-Johns Hopkins Project for the Study of Intelligence and Society, will
discuss this and related issues at the next program in the lecture series,
"Prescriptions for Change: Reducing Health Disparities in Our Community,"
presented by the Roundtable Community Council, a program of the Greater
Cleveland Partnership, and the Center for Health Disparities, a collaboration
between MetroHealth Medical Center and Case Western Reserve University.

The program will be held from 7:30-9:30 a.m., Wed., April 13, at The
City Club of Cleveland, 850 Euclid Avenue. It is sponsored by the St. Luke's and
Mt. Sinai Health Care Foundations. Tickets are $15 for City Club members and
nonmembers.

Register
here.
Dr.
Gottfredson has written extensively on the impact of general intelligence on
personal functioning in different life domains, including in school, on the job
and in health self-care. Among her recent publications is an article in Current Directions in Psychological
Science,
co-written in 2004 with Ian J. Deary of the University of
Edinburgh (Scotland), examining the theory that intelligence (as measured by an
IQ-type test) enhances individuals' care of their own health, because it
represents learning, reasoning and problem-solving skills useful in preventing
chronic disease and accidental injury and in adhering to complex treatment
regimens.

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April 26th, at 2
PM, at Burke Lakefront Airport, will be the first formal meeting of "Greater Cleveland Lead Advisory Council" (GCLAC) - this
meeting will be working sessions... action
oriented - time for talking and planning has passed.

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With Barbara Byrd Bennett's recent "State of the Schools" presentation at the Cleveland City Club it became clear NEO is ramping up for a community-wide activation of all leaders to support Cleveland public schools, now showing significant success rising from the ashes, while facing daunting financial prospects resulting from diminishing state funding and city property tax revenues. Between now and the voting of the public on a levy to increase city taxes for schools, likely in November, 2005, we will be inundated with efforts to raise citizen awareness of the importance of education to the future wherewithal of the regional economy - and it is absolutely essential area schools are successful. As the levy will likely coincide with the Cleveland mayoral election, expect passionate debate on this issue.

All parents should read the following article found on the Organic Consumers Association website. The FDA and the American Cancer Society have largely failed to protect babies and children who are much more vulnerable to carcinogens than adults by pressuring the cosmetics industry to use readily available alternatives to the toxic ingredients they now use. Parents must be vigilant because the FDA and the American Cancer Society have long preferred to protect the interests of the powerful cosmetic industry rather than our children. After a quick survey of the skin and hair care products and makeup that I use regularly – many which I considered high quality, natural and healthy – I found most of them to contain one or more of the toxins listed in the article.

Clearly there is great interest in education in Cleveland, as the Cleveland City Club 03.22.05 State of the Schools presentation by Cleveland Municipal School District CEO Barbara Byrd Bennett was an overflow event with attendance as diverse and inspired as any in memory. In his introduction of Barbara Byrd Bennett, City Club President Kevin J. Donahue praised her renowned career in education and uncanny ability to work collaboratively with all school stakeholders, all in the interest of improving area education. When Barbara Byrd Bennett was named the Cleveland Municipal School District’s first CEO, six years ago, she challenged the community to rally around the schools and our children. Since then, student performance, attendance, graduation, Internet access, immunizations, and bond funding have all increased significantly. Now, the question is, can these successes be sustained as state funding and property taxes have been dramatically reduced.

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The
Economics of Early Childhood Development: Support Workshop

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