As a result, it is necessary to secure funding the Senate to keep the program alive in 2006.

The next steps in the 2006 appropriations process are as follows: (1) The Senate appropriations subcommittee that handles education is scheduled to meet on July 12 to adopt a 2006 spending bill. It is vital that the Javits program be included in the subcommittee's bill because Senators generally defer to subcommittee decisions. (2) The subcommittee-passed bill goes to the full Senate appropriations committee for a vote, which could happen in July. (3) The full Senate will consider the bill, which most likely won't occur until late August at the earliest. (4) A conference committee (made up of appropriations committee members from both the House and Senate) will work out the differences between the two bills. Assuming that there is funding for the Javits program, we will have to re-contact everyone on the conference committee urging them to retain the funding from the Senate. (5) A final Labor/HHS/Education appropriations bill for 2006 must be approved by both the House and Senate before it can go to the White House for the President's signature. This will likely happen in September or early October.

As you can tell, the Senate Labor/HHS/Education subcommittee is the most critical step.

Below are the steps we need to take before July 11 to generate support for the Javits program in the appropriations subcommittee. The message depends on whether your Senator is a member of the subcommittee and whether he/she has co-signed Senator Grassley's letter earlier this year requesting $12 million for the Javits program.

For everyone: if you have examples of how your state / district / school is benefiting from a Javits grant (or has benefited in the past), or how you utilize information from the National Research Center on the Gifted & Talented, please be sure to include them in your communication with the Senate.

The best way to reach your Senators is by faxing a letter to the DC office. The next best means is via email. Fax numbers and email addresses can be found at www.senate.gov. In both cases, include "Education Appropriations" as the subject line so that the message can be routed to the correct staff person.

• If your Senator is a member of the appropriations subcommittee on Labor/HHS/Education, he/she is in the most critical position to support the Javits program. The message to these Senators is:
  
  Please support gifted and talented learners in this country by providing $12 million for the Javits gifted education program in 2006. [Insert examples on how your school / district / state have benefited from the Javits program. Your state or university may be involved in one of the Javits grants, or your child may have benefited because his/her school improved their gifted education services with the support of research from the National Research Center.]
  
  
• If your Senator co-signed Senator Grassley's letter to the appropriations subcommittee requesting $12 million for the Javits program, the message is:
  
  

  Thank you for co-signing Senator Grassley's letter requesting $12 million for the Javits gifted and talented program in 2006. With limited funding available for education programs, I urge you to speak with the subcommittee leaders, reminding them of the importance of this program.

• For all other Senators, the goal is to get Senators to speak with the subcommittee Chairman (Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania) in support of Javits funding. The message is:
  
  

  This country relies on a single federal program, the Javits program, to conduct research on how to identify and serve the educational needs of gifted and talented learners. The program funds the National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented and makes awards to states. These federal grants are especially important as state education funds are stretched to the limit.
  
  [If your state received a grant, be sure to include that fact in the message. Also include any other story of how your school / district / university participated in a grant, or how you benefited from the Nat'l Research Center].
  
  Please show your support for high-ability learners by asking the appropriations subcommittee chairman to include $12 million for the Javits program in 2006.

Thank you for your efforts to gather support for the Javits program. Your Senators need to hear from you, so please send your emails, and fax letters before July 11.