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"A constant presence in the life of the city, weekly lunches, weekly discussions, panel debates and such, the Manhattan Institute is always doing something and spreading its message." |
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| -Sam Tanenhaus, The New York Times Book Review | |||||||||||||||||||
The Manhattan Institute has been an important force in shaping American political culture. By supporting and publicizing research on our era's most challenging public policy issues: taxes, welfare, crime, the legal system, urban life, race, education, and many other topics, we have won new respect for market-oriented policies and helped make reform a reality. The Manhattan Institute regularly hosts forums in New York City and Washington, DC for policy makers, business people, researchers and journalists. The following is a listing of recent Manhattan Institute conferences and luncheons. Select events are transcribed or video taped and those are available to the general public here on the website. Individuals who support the Institute at the Benefactor level or above receive invitations to most of these events. If you have been thinking about joining the Manhattan Institute or increasing your membership support but are not yet convinced, we would be happy to invite you to be a guest at one of our upcoming events. We're confident that our talent and scope will impress you. To learn more, please contact Jaclyn Kiely, Development Officer, at (212) 599-7000, or via email at jkiely@manhattan-institute.org. December 1999 December 16, 1999 | New York City Mr. Gardner spoke about Milwaukee, Wisconsin’s pioneering school-choice program and his efforts to reform Milwaukee public schools from the inside. Mr. Gardner’s efforts are guided by the philosophy that public education does not imply governmental monopoly. Rather, any school that all children can attend free of charge provides public education. The Milwaukee program, under which 8,400 children receive vouchers worth up to $5,100, is the largest of its kind in the country and allows families to select public, charter, private, or parochial schools. Since Mr. Gardner’s slate of reform-oriented candidates captured seven seats on the nine member school board in April, 1999, the district has secured $173 million in state aid for an ambitious program of school construction and rehabilitation, and several new private and parochial schools have opened to serve special-needs and underprivileged students. December 9, 1999 | New York City December 1, 1999 | Washington, D.C. November 1999 November 30, 1999 | New York City November 18, 1999 | New York City November 16, 1999 | New York City November 16, 1999 | New York City November 9, 1999 | New York City Mr. Finn and Mr. Bennett discussed their newly published book, The Educated Child: A Parent’s Guide from Preschool Through Eighth Grade, which was co-authored with John T.E. Cribb, Jr. The book outlines model curricula for each grade level based in part on E.D. Hirsch’s Core Knowledge program, and explains strategies that parents can use to improve the quality of education that their children receive--in both satisfactory and unsatisfactory schools. Mr. Bennett and Mr. Finn argued that every child can learn, regardless of socio-economic background, and that while it is incumbent upon parents and educators to work cooperatively toward clearly stated academic goals, parents are their children’s most important teachers. November 1, 1999 | Gesu School, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania October 1999 October 26, 1999 | Washington, D.C. The Mayor’s Education Summit addressed several approaches to meaningful education reform with panel discussions of: “Are Vouchers Part of the Answer?”; “The Charter School Movement”; and “Holding Educators Accountable”. The mayors drew on their on their experiences in government to explain why permitting competition in the education marketplace is best way to improve schools and empower parents. Charter schools, vouchers, and institutional reforms to the existing system are all parts of a “menu of options” available to policymakers. Other speakers drew on their backgrounds as educators, philanthropists, and scholars to urge increased parental oversight of the educational process and rigorous testing to accurately measure student achievement. Mayor Anthony Williams of Washington, DC, delivered the keynote address. Thousands of District students have been enrolled in charter schools during his tenure as mayor. October 21, 1999 | New York City October 19, 1999 | New York City October 14, 1999 | New York City October 13, 1999 | New York City October 12, 1999 | New York City This event marked the release of School Finance Reform: A Case for Vouchers, which contains the results of Mr. Nechyba and Mr. Heiss’s study of what the effects of a voucher-based remedy for school finance lawsuits might be. They found that offering a $2,500 voucher would help reduce income segregation by 29% by inducing middle-income families to move back to or remain in lower-income areas. $5,000 vouchers would have an even more favorable effect. Under the worst case scenario, the computer model predicted that some public schools would suffer small declines in quality. A more realistic set of assumptions indicates that school quality might improve across the board, while affording parents the ability to select the best schools to meet their children’s needs. Mr. Nechyba and Mr. Heiss do not advocate litigation to ameliorate school funding inequity, but suggested that judges consider school choice as a remedy. October 7, 1999 | New York City October 5, 1999 | New York City September 1999 September 30, 1999 | New York City Mr. Dare described his experiences in founding a charter school to serve Albany’s Arbor Hill neighborhood. Although they wanted to send their children to good schools, the residents of Arbor Hill felt that the local school board ignored their concerns and offered them no opportunity to play an active role in improving their children’s education. Mr. Dare concluded that only avenue for reform is to establish an alternative to the government school system. The goal is to help children, he said, not attack public school teachers and administrators. The New Covenant School received 850 applications for 550 slots within the first ten days of its operation—demonstrating the strength of community support for change. September 28, 1999 | New York City September 23, 1999 | New York City Dr. Greve described the prospects for a revival of federalism and explained what a return to America’s founding principles might mean in terms of policy. He argued that allowing states to create their own regulatory regimes would diversify the economy and culture, offsetting the homogenizing effects of centralized power in Washington. Presented with a broader selection of approaches to governance, citizens could choose according to their personal priorities which jurisdictions to live and do business in. Dr. Greve also noted the recent encouraging trend in Supreme Court decisions reinforcing state sovereignty. September 15, 1999 | New York City September 8, 1999 | New York City August 1999 August 19, 1999 | New York City This event marked the release of CCI’s latest Civic Report, “Broken Windows” Probation: The Next Step in Fighting Crime. This report, authored by Institute Senior Fellow John DiIulio and thirteen longtime practitioners in the probation field, contends that reforming probation can lead to significant reductions in the crime rate. Among the reforms offered are requiring probation officers to supervise their wards frequently in the community rather than once a month in their offices, enforcing conditions to probation (like staying drug free) by immediately sanctioning violations, and building partnerships with community groups. The breakfast release included speeches of endorsement from American Probation and Parole Association President Mario Paparozzi, past president of the National Association of Probation Executives Ronald Corbett and former New York City Police Commissioner William Bratton. July 1999 Center for Civic Innovation Jeremiah Project Event--TRANSCRIPT ONLINE Co-sponsored by the Manhattan Institute’s Jeremiah Project and Empower America, this event highlighted the work that small, faith-based youth ministries are performing throughout the nation’s capital. Moderated by Manhattan Institute Senior Fellow John DiIulio, the event featured speeches by Rev. Eugene Rivers, Tom Lewis of The Fishing School, Manhattan Institute Adjunct Fellow Amy Sherman and Empower America President Dr. William Bennett. July 6, 1999 | New York City Governor Bush described the Bush/Brogan “A+ Plan for Education,” which effectively establishes the first state-wide school choice program for students in chronically failing schools. The legislation, which was recently signed into law, requires that public schools be graded on an ‘A’ through ‘F’ scale based on the academic progress a child makes each year. Students in schools that receive an ‘F’ rating for two out of four years will receive educational opportunity scholarships to attend the public, private or religious schools of their choice. Educational excellence is also awarded by providing grants to schools who have either improved their rating from one year to the next, or received an ‘A’ rating, in the amount of $100 per student. June 1999 June 22, 1999 | Washington, D.C. June 21, 1999 | New York City June 16, 1999 | New York City Dr. Nunez described the purpose and operation of his new agency to assist the poor, the Neighborhood Guidance Office. Also known as the GO Center, this agency is located in the South Bronx and provides assistance in obtaining private sector employment, housing, day care and education programs for the less fortunate people living in the neighborhood. Over 1,000 people were helped in the Center’s first year, providing many people with what they needed to move toward self-sufficiency. June 8, 1999 | New York City Mayor Schmoke explained why he believes school choice–including school vouchers–is a necessary part of any education reform. He described how his efforts to improve Baltimore’s education system were ultimately unsuccessful because the system is a monopoly and is resistant to change. The Mayor stated that education would improve when accountability is instilled, and that can come only through breaking up the monopoly and injecting competition into the system. June 3, 1999 | New York City Professor Ballou presented the findings of his Manhattan Institute report, The New York City Teachers’ Union Contract: Shackling Principals’ Leadership. His research led him to conclude that the teachers’ contract places many obstacles in the path of principals who truly want to manage their school. Contract provisions make it very difficult for a principal to hire the teachers they want, fire incompetent teachers and even work with teachers to produce a collegial and harmonious workplace. Dr. Ballou cautioned that efforts to make principals more accountable for educational results by removing their tenure would disappoint unless principals are also given more authority to manage their schools. May 1999 May 26, 1999 | New York City May 25, 1999 | New York City May 19, 1999 | New York City Superintendent Keegan explained why parental choice–strapping the money to the kids’ backs, as she put it–is the best model for educational excellence. Schools will respond best when they have to compete for students, and that will happen only if the current district-based model of funding schools is replaced with a child-based model of funding education. Superintendent Keegan also discussed the role that setting challenging academic standards and requiring yearly student testing should play in improving the quality of public education. May 5, 1999 | New York City April 1999 April 28, 1999 | New York City April 21, 1999 | New York City April 14, 1999 | New York City Program administrators, academics, private sector businessmen and public officials joined together to present a wide-ranging discussion of what works in welfare reform and what further issues need to be tackled. Speakers included Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson, Indianapolis Mayor Stephen Goldsmith, Dr. Lawrence Mead, Dr. Charles Murray, Jean Rogers, Jason Turner, Eloise Anderson, Amy Sherman, Peter Cove and Richard Schwartz. April 13, 1999 | Washington, D.C. Co-sponsored with the Progressive Policy Institute, this event featured a wide range of opinions on what, if anything, Congress should change as it debates reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Proposals were offered to give states more freedom in determining how federal aid dollars can be spent in exchange for committing to improving student achievement (“Super Ed Flex”) and to permit states to use Title I money to provide vouchers for low income students. Speakers included Marshall Smith, Jack Jennings, Chester E. Finn, Jr., Will Marshall, Stuart Butler, Diane Ravitch, William Taylor, and Floyd Flake. April 12, 1999 | New York City March 1999 March 30, 1999 | New York City March 24, 1999 | New York City March 18, 1999 | New York City March 10, 1999 | New York City February 1999 February 24, 1999 | New York City February 18, 1999 | New York City February 11, 1999 | New York City Professor Paul Peterson outlined the first year results from the ongoing study of New York City’s privately funded school voucher program. This study is of particular import for the national debate concerning school vouchers because the structure of the voucher program–voucher recipients are selected from applicants by lottery–enables the use of randomly selected study and control groups. Professor Peterson’s research found that fourth and fifth grade children who received the vouchers are scoring higher in tests for reading and math than those children in the control group who are still attending public schools. February 9, 1999 | New York City February 3, 1999 | New York City January 1999 January 29, 1999 | Washington, D.C. January 27, 1999 | New York City Clint Bolick, Vice President and Director of Litigation at the Institute for Justice, talked about the opportunities which await our nation’s poor if public policies are changed to permit more them to exert more choice over their economic and educational futures. He outlined how most cities have erected a host of legal barriers to entrepreneurship by the poor, and how people have enhanced their lives when those barriers are removed. Bolick also explained how school vouchers in Milwaukee and Cleveland are already improving the education received by those fortunate enough to receive the vouchers. January 20, 1999 | New York City January 6, 1999 | New York City |
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