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U.S. Department of Education

U.S. Department of Education

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About EDOVERVIEW
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Promoting Innovative Programs and Informed Parental Choice 

*Magnet Schools Assistance Program*

The Magnet Schools Assistance program (MSAP),  administered by the Department's Office of Innovation and Improvement, provides  financial assistance to school districts seeking to improve educational  programs and to reduce, prevent, or eliminate minority group isolation. The  program provides three-year grants for the enhancement or establishment of  magnet schools. The assistant secretary for civil rights is required to certify  that grant applicant school districts will meet nondiscrimination assurances  specified in the MSAP statute. OCR also assesses whether grant applicants' MSAP  plans are consistent with Title VI of the *Civil Rights Act of 1964*.

| **Americans  can proudly say that we have overcome the institutionalized bigotry that****Dr.  King fought.  Now our challenge is to  make sure that every child has a fair chance to succeed********in life.   That is why education is the great civil rights issue of our time.**

***Remarks by******President  George W. Bush, 2002*** |
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During FY 2005, OCR provided technical  assistance and certified new three-year awards for two school districts.  OCR also reviewed and certified the annual  reports of 50 districts already receiving MSAP assistance.  In addition, OCR provided technical  assistance to several MSAP recipients in complying with civil rights statutes,  as well as program goals. 

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*Information for Parents and Recipients*

Providing  timely, accessible information for parents, students, teachers, and education  decision- makers is another important priority. OCR uses technology to improve  customers’ access to OCR information through its Web site (www.ed.gov/ocr).

OCR's  former biennial Elementary and Secondary Schools Survey has now been merged  with the Department's Educational Data Exchange Network (EDEN), a central  repository of information on K-12 programs, including *No Child Left Behind Act* data. Civil rights data for 2004 was  collected through the Supplemental Survey Tool Civil Rights Data Collection.  The 2004 Data Collection is the first use of the Supplemental Survey Tool,  which will assist EDEN in developing a data system with the capability to  collect district- and school-level data from school districts and integrate  civil rights and other data with the EDEN database, including essential *No Child Left Behind Act* data.  

The Civil Rights Data Collection is primarily Web-based.  For  the 2004 Civil Rights Data Collection, the initial year of the Web-based data  collection, approximately two-thirds of the districts reporting (4,000 out of  6,000) were successful in using the new Web-based tool to report their data  (the other districts opted to use more traditional media, such as CD-ROMs or  paper forms, to report their 2004 data.)   The overall response rate to the 2004 Data Collection, 95  percent of all surveyed districts and 100 percent of large and  intermediate districts, is consistent with the response rate for  previous OCR surveys.  The  information obtained from this Data Collection will help school administrators  and researchers evaluate schools and aid parents in making informed choices.

*Postsecondary  Accessibility Reviews*

OCR  has initiated a number of accessibility reviews focused on eliminating barriers for postsecondary  students who have physical disabilities.   For example, OCR reviewed a college’s on-campus student housing and  science laboratory programs and identified  numerous accessibility concerns in both areas.   In response to OCR’s findings, the college has successfully modified  four apartments to make them accessible and created accessible parking spaces  and an accessible route to the building.   Further building modifications will be initiated to make the science  laboratory facilities accessible.

OCR conducted a compliance review of a college  to determine whether its programs and activities were readily accessible to and  usable by persons with mobility impairments.   Based on OCR’s findings, the college agreed to make structural and  parking modifications at two of its campus centers, implement comprehensive  procedures to ensure that individuals with mobility impairments have physical  access to the college's programs and activities, and train college staff on these procedures. 

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