Daily Headlines: January 11, 2012
Democrats, Republicans Find Common Ground During ‘National School Choice Week’
Florida Independent , January 10, 2012
Organizers behind National School Choice Week, held during late January, announced Tuesday it will have the support of political strategists Joe Trippi and Dick Morris.
STATE COVERAGE
W. Sac Charter School Needs To Be Watched
Sacramento Bee, CA, January 11, 2012
So it was with much fanfare that the Washington Unified School District in West Sacramento partnered with the University of California, Davis, a major research university, and Sacramento City College, a community college, to start up West Sac Prep, a grades 6-12 charter school, in 2007.
Clayton Valley High Charter May Win Approval Wednesday
Contra Costa Times, CA, January 10, 2012
After months of debate over the possible conversion of Clayton Valley High to a charter school, the Contra Costa County Board of Education may give it a green light.
Teacher Performance Is Key To Children’s Success
News Journal, DE, January 10, 2012
It’s becoming clear that the evaluation of Delaware’s public school teachers will be a tough issue in 2012. The only question is whether the issue will be technical or political.
D.C. Schools’ New ‘Scorecards’ Go Beyond Testing
Washington Post, DC, January 10, 2012
D.C. officials unveiled newly detailed “scorecards” for public schools Tuesday, designed to give parents a more nuanced look at performance that goes beyond the usual test scores and demographic data.
Flagler May Close Failing Charter School
Daytona Beach News-Journal, FL, January 11, 2012
A struggling Flagler County charter school may be closed for good when classes end this spring.
LHS Charter Talk Just Beginning
The Ledger, FL, January 11, 2012
Lakeland High School is continuing on a fact-finding mission to determine whether teachers, parents and community leaders want to pursue conversion charter status.
CPS Contract Negotiations Unpredictable
Chicago Tribune, IL, January 11, 2012
As Chicago Public Schools and the teachers union sit down to negotiate an expiring contract, a new mayor, new union leadership and new state legislation make it tougher for teachers to strike. With three wild cards in play, the negotiations could be rocky.
Some Wary of Branstad Plan to Reroute School Money for Education Reform
Des Moines Register, IA, January 11, 2012
State money for teacher training and smaller class sizes would be rerouted to education reform efforts under a budget released Tuesday by Gov. Terry Branstad.
TV Ad Campaign Encourages Kentucky Lawmakers To Take Up Charter Schools Legislation
Lexington Herald-Leader, KY, January 11, 2012
A recently formed private group is running television ads across much of the state, touting the need for charter schools legislation in the 2012 Kentucky General Assembly.
Kentucky House Committee Supports Teacher Evaluation Bill
Louisville Courier-Journal, KY, January 10, 2012
The House Education Committee unanimously approved a bill Tuesday to establish a statewide approach for evaluating teachers and school administrators — a key component in Kentucky’s request for a waiver from No Child Left Behind.
Judge Tosses Anti-Charter Suit
Gloucester Times, MA, January 11, 2012
A Superior Court judge Tuesday dismissed the lawsuit filed by 15 Gloucester school parents alleging the state Commissioner of Education and the state Board of Education violated state law when they approved the Gloucester Community Arts Charter School .
Reason to Deny Bid
Boston Herald, MA, January 11, 2012
To claim that our duly elected Somerville School Committee and mayor are the only opposition to this charter school application is false and insulting to hundreds of parents committed to improving the educational opportunity of all of Somerville’s residents.
Group: No Free-For-All In Charter School Expansion
Battle Creek Enquirer, MI, January 10, 2012
A trade group representing public charter schools in Michigan said today that, despite a new law lifting the state’s cap on charters, opening a new school won’t be a free-for-all.
Ridgefield Park School District Upset Over Possible Charter School
Ridgefield Park Patriot, NJ, January 10, 2012
During the fall of 2011, the Ridgefield Park School District learned that an application had been filed by the Northeastern Arts and Science Charter School (NAS) to open a K-5 elementary school in the former St. Francis of Assisi School in the borough.
Driving the Teacher Quality Component for Education Reform
New Jersey Spotlight, NJ, January 11, 2012
The man in charge of New Jersey’s latest effort to improve teacher quality easily uses terms like “human capital continuum,” “skill sets,” and “gap analysis.”
Charter Network Facing Closure
Wall Street Journal, January 11, 2012
For the first time, officials are moving to shut down an entire New York City charter-school network.
New Urgency On Teacher Evaluations
Wall Street Journal, January 11, 2012
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Tuesday blamed the Assembly for the failure of a new statewide teacher-evaluation process, saying lawmakers needed to overhaul the way teachers and principals are assessed.
Losing the Race to the Top
New York Daily News, NY, January 11, 2012
Federal Education Secretary Arne Duncan is on the verge of pulling back $700 million New York State won in the Race to the Top school reform competition two years ago.
State Sets Race to the Top Pace
Columbus Dispatch, OH, January 11, 2012
Despite a change of administration and decisions by some districts to abandon the effort, Ohio is on track to implement sweeping reforms to its public-school system, according to an initial assessment of $4 billion Race to the Top grants.
Northern Lehigh Looks to Stem Charter School Costs
The Morning Call, PA, January 10, 2012
Statewide cuts to education funding have Northern Lehigh School District officials seeking ways to make up a shortfall in reimbursements for the district’s charter school students.
Why Is Educational Choice Not An Option?
Valley Breeze, RI, January 10, 2012
We live in a country where people with financial means have the option of sending their children to private schools in order to receive what is generally accepted to be a more advanced education than many of our public schools offer.
Daugaard Suggests Eliminating Teacher Tenure in Favor of Bonuses
Aberdeen News, SD, January 10, 2012
One year after he successfully proposed 10 percent cuts in much of state government spending to eliminate a budget deficit, Gov. Dennis Daugaard is challenging the Legislature to take on an even thornier thorny topic: Teachers’ performance and pay.
Arizona-Based Charter Group Plans 5 To 10 Nashville Schools Over Several Years
Nashville City Paper, TN, January 10, 2012
An Arizona-based charter school network called Great Hearts Academies announced plans Tuesday to open five to 10 Nashville charter schools over several years, with hopes of locating its first school near Vanderbilt University .
Haslam Targets Teacher Salaries
The Tennessean, TN, January 11, 2012
Tennessee teachers may lose the promise of annual raises based solely on years of service and number of degrees, a system the governor wants to replace with salaries based on student performance, how tough a teaching position is to fill and other measures.
Loss of Federal Start-Up Funding ‘a Significant Strain’ to Tennessee Charter Schools
Commercial Appeal, TN, January 11, 2012
Until now, new charter schools in Tennessee got between $600,000 and $700,000 in federal grants to cover startup costs in their first three years, including big-ticket items such as building leases.
Wash. Lawmakers To Propose Charter Schools Bill
Seattle Times, WA, January 10, 2012
Several Washington lawmakers plan to introduce a bill later this week that would allow for public charter schools in the state.
School Board Considers New Charter School
Sheboygan Press, WI, January 11, 2012
If a group of parents and staff from St. Dominic Catholic School can raise $455,000 in cash and pledges before April 30, they’ve got a shot at creating a new charter school in the Sheboygan Area School District.
VIRTUAL EDUCATION
Troubled Online Charter Schools
New York Times, NY, January 11, 2012
Charter schools, which receive public money but are subject to fewer state regulations, are operating in 40 states. A growing body of research shows that charter schools generally perform no better than traditional schools and are often worse as measured by student test data.
Cabarrus School Board Discusses Reservations About Virtual Charter School
Independent Tribune, NC, January 10, 2012
Members of Cabarrus County Board of Education expressed concerns during their work session on Monday regarding an application submitted by North Carolina Virtual Charter Academy.
Virtual School Program Lacking Applicants
Robertson County Times, TN, January 10, 2012
In an effort to bring virtual schooling to the Robertson County School System, the school board last month agreed to offer a pilot program this year, but so far, no students have applied for it.
Virtual Academy Offers Unique And Individualized Opportunities
WEAU, WI, January 10, 2012
The CAVE program is a virtual charter school that’s grown from six students seven years ago to 78 enrolled students between kindergarten and 12th grade this year. Superintendent of Cameron schools Randy Braun calls it flexible and individualized learning.
Colorado Education Department to Vote on Rules to Raise Standards for Online Schools
Denver Post, CO, January 11, 2012
Online schools in Colorado would have to reveal more about their finances and be subject to the same quality standards as their brick-and-mortar counterparts under a proposed comprehensive change in the rules governing computer-based learning.