Daily Headlines for August 1, 2012
Teacher Union Boss Bends To School Reform Winds
CNBC, July 31, 2012
In the maelstrom of criticism surrounding America’s unionized public teachers, the woman running the second-largest educator union says time has come to collaborate on public school reform rather than resist.
Privatization Is Failing In Schools, Health Care
Opelousas Daily World, LA, August 1, 2012
The notion that the public school system needs to be ‘saved’ by charter schools is not supported by the facts.
Shawn Vestal: Education Fails When Schools Profit
Spokesman Review, WA, August 1, 2012
Our mania for measurement in the schools – for testing, for databases, for assessment – has produced more arguments than answers.
FROM THE STATES
CALIFORNIA
A New Kind of Hebrew School
San Diego Jewish Journal, CA, August 2012
There’s a new kid on the block in the realm of Hebrew language education, and it’s a form never before seen in San Diego . This fall, Clairemont will become home to the city’s first-ever Hebrew language charter school, Kavod Elementary.
CONNECTICUT
Education Reset
Wall Street Journal, August 1, 2012
Bridgeport school superintendent Paul Vallas wowed some in the education community when he passed a sweeping five-year plan to fix Connecticut ‘s worst school district after being on the job for only three months.
FLORIDA
School Board Approves Charter School Agreement
Tallahassee Democrat, FL, August 1, 2012
The Leon County School Board on Tuesday approved a final agreement with Governor’s Charter Academy and ended a legal battle with the group running the school, but not before some members lamented that they felt they had no choice.
Lake School Board Slows Plans For Its Own Charter School
Orlando Sentinel, FL, July 31, 2012
School Board members say they want to go forward with laying the groundwork to open the district’s own charter school targeted at academically challenged students but are likely to take their time doing so after missing today’s deadline.
Mentoring Works For Teachers, Too
Florida Times Union , FL, August 1, 2012
A few of the findings from the United Way study “Empowering Effective Teachers” and an editorial board meeting with study leaders:
Mavericks In Education, Two Of Its Pinellas Charters, Find Themselves At Odds Over Proposed Curriculum Changes
Tampa Bay Times, FL, August 1, 2012
Susan Latvala believes in charter schools. The Pinellas County commissioner and former School Board member has a hand in three of them.
Pro-Voucher Group Raising Big Bucks, Hits The Mailboxes for Plakon
Orlando Sentinel Blog, FL, July 31, 2012
The Florida arm of a school-voucher group raising big bucks from charter schools is sending out some positive mail for Rep. Scott Plakon, a Longwood Republican in one of the highest-profile House contests this year against Democrat Karen Castor Dentel.
GEORGIA
Charter School Forces Come Up Short In Cherokee Chairmanship Race
Atlanta Journal Constitution Blog , GA, July 31, 2012
With 57 percent of the vote, Janet Reed has won the race for chairman of the Cherokee County Board of Education, beating Danny Dukes with 57 percent of the vote.
ILLINOIS
‘Presto Joe’ Makes More Than Just A School-Reform Idea Vanish
Chicago Tribune, IL, August 1, 2012
With one metaphorical, magical swing of his gavel, Ald. Joe Moore, 49th, recently turned 96 hours into 48 hours and — zim zala bim! — made a potential embarrassment for Mayor Rahm Emanuel disappear.
Students Might Be Able To Transfer From Low-Performing Naperville School
Chicago Tribune, IL, August 1, 2012
Families at Mill Street Elementary School in Naperville may have the option to send their children to another school this fall, officials announced this week.
Dist. 203, 204 Offering Choice For Families At Struggling Schools
Chicago Daily Herald, IL, July 31, 2012
Two of Illinois’ largest and best-performing school systems are joining many other districts across the state this fall in offering families the choice to leave schools struggling to meet federal standards.
INDIANA
Project School’s Charter Remains Revoked, Court Says
Indianapolis Star, IN, August 1, 2012
Families apparently will have to scramble after a federal judge Tuesday night denied an injunction challenging Mayor Greg Ballard’s decision to revoke the Project School’s charter.
IOWA
Branstad Backs “School Choice” During Sioux City Stop
KTIV, IA, July 31, 2012
Sending their kids to a public, or private, school is a decision many parents have to make. But, one local foundation can make that choice a little easier for parents wrestling with a way to pay tuition at a private, or parochial, school.
Branstad Will Push Teacher Preparation
Sioux City Journal, IA, July 31, 2012
Gov. Terry Branstad will make teacher preparation a key component of his 2013 education reform package. “I know there’s some fear and trepidation about this,” Branstad told members of the Iowa State Board of Education on Tuesday.
LOUISIANA
Parents’ Question Unanswered
The Advocate, LA, August 1, 2012
Parents with children enrolled at several East Baton Rouge Parish public schools that recently earned F grades from the Louisiana Department of Education have yet to hear whether they will have the option of transferring to other, higher-performing schools in the parish.
Orleans Parish School Board Anticipates Local Control For More Schools
Times Picayune, LA, July 31, 2012
With the seventh anniversary of Hurricane Katrina approaching, it seems possible — just possible — that the public schools in New Orleans that were swept into state hands after the storm may soon begin edging back toward local control. To be sure, once begun, that process will by no means proceed quickly, at least not without a significant revision of state policy.
Bullying Tactics Won’t Inhibit School Reform
The Adviser, LA, July 31, 2012
If teachers unions spent more time focused on ways to improve the deplorable quality of government-run schools, rather than intimidating anyone interested in the improvement of them, then there would be little need for innovative solutions like Louisiana’s recently created Student Scholarship Program.
Union Declines To Identify Schools
The Advocate, LA, August 1, 2012
A teachers’ union is declining to identify two private or parochial schools that it says will refuse state aid for voucher students until the union’s legal challenge is resolved.
MAINE
Proponents of School Choice Celebrate New Charter Schools, Say Fight For Total Choice Not Over
Bangor Daily News, ME, July 31, 2012
While Gov. Paul LePage’s school choice legislation was stopped at the committee level in March, the four proponents of school choice who gathered at Fort Knox State Park on Tuesday said the fight isn’t over.
A Charter School For Students Who Want More Is Not Elitist
Portland Press Herald, ME, August 1, 2012
The argument should be about resources, not whether students have different abilities.
Heartwood Unveils Plan For Charter Arts Middle School
Portland Press Herald, ME, August 1, 2012
The school in Kennebunk would offer traditional classes and fine arts studio time.
MASSACHUSSETTS
Receiver: Individual Schools To Lead Way In Lawrence Turnaround
Eagle Tribune, MA, August 1, 2012
Lawrence Public School Superintendent/Receiver Jeffrey C. Riley told a ballroom full of educators over breakfast yesterday that he doesn’t think that turning around an entire school district has ever been done.
MINNESOTA
State Data: Little Change In Student Test Scores, Achievement Gap Persists
Minnesota Public Radio, MN, August 1, 2012
Reading and test scores among Minnesota students remain relatively flat over previous years, according to data released today by the state Department of Education.
MISSISSIPPI
Rankin, Pearl accord includes school choice
Clarion Ledger, MS, August 1, 2012
An agreement reached Tuesday between Rankin County and Pearl school district leaders will give some residents a choice of where they send their children to school.
NEW MEXICO
Charter School Touts Eval Success
Albuquerque Journal, NM, August 1, 2012
The Albuquerque Institute of Math and Science is embarking on its third year of evaluating teachers – and determining their raises – based on a combination of student test score growth, classroom observations and other measures.
NEW YORK
Cuomo Vetoes Bill on Placement of Special Education Students
New York Times, NY, August 1, 2012
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo vetoed a bill on Tuesday requiring public school officials to take into account the “home life and family background” of special education students when placing them in schools, a measure that would have given religious parents more power to demand that the public pay for private education.
Public Schools Relieved As Cuomo Cites Cost, Vetoes Special-Ed Bill
Poughkeepsie Journal, NY, August 1, 2012
Gov. Andrew Cuomo vetoed a bill Tuesday that required schools to consider the “home environment and family background” of special-needs students when placing them.
OHIO
Charter School Rejected
Toledo Blade, OH, August 1, 2012
Toledo City Council on Tuesday narrowly turned down a national charter-school company’s request to open up shop in the heart of downtown.
PENNSYLVANIA
Camden’s Plan Looks Familiar
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, August 1, 2012
The Camden School District appears to be headed down a trail being blazed by New Orleans , which could lead to an all-charter school system.
Head Of District’s Charter School Office Out
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, August 1, 2012
APPARENTLY, former school-district honcho Thomas Darden committed one flub too many for the School Reform Commission to tolerate.
More Charges Possible In Complex Philadelphia Charter-School Case
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, August 1, 2012
Federal prosecutors unveiled a 62-count indictment against charter school mogul Dorothy June Brown and four codefendants last week, and said in court papers that additional charges could be lodged.
SOUTH CAROLINA
Charter School Will Prepare Students For Health Professions
Times and Democrat, SC, August 1, 2012
Local high school students with dreams of working in health care professions can now explore career options in Orangeburg Consolidated School District Five’s new Health Professions Charter School .
TENNESSEE
Shelby County Suburbs Have Backup Plan If Schools Declared Illegal
Commercial Appeal, TN, August 1, 2012
While suburban leaders continue to campaign for passage of municipal school referendums Thursday, they have a backup plan in the form of charter schools.
Registration Day Offers Variety of School Choices in Memphis, Shelby County
Commercial Appeal, TN , August 1, 2012
Fifteen minutes before registration was scheduled to start, families were waiting outside Cornerstone Preparatory Academy , perhaps the sweetest line executive director Drew Sippel has ever seen.
School Success: Sevier School System Deserves Award For Achievement, But Must Keep Challenging Its Students
Mountain Express, TN, August 1, 2012
For all the criticism and scorn heaped on public schools these days — some of it quite justified — there remain some nuggets among all the debris. And on Monday the Sevier County school system earned some love for its achievements. Sevier County is one of 21 districts across the state that earned exemplary marks for the 2011-2012 school year.
New Day for Metro Schools
The Tennessean, TN, August 1,2012
Summer break is over for Metro Nashville Public Schools, as they open their doors today to students. They are beginning the school year earlier than ever before, thanks to the district’s new “balanced” calendar.
VIRGINIA
School Reform Task Force Wants To Work With New School Board
Richmond Times-Dispatch, VA, July 31, 2012
The co-chairman of Richmond Mayor Dwight C. Jones’ school finance reform task force sent a clear message to the city’s 22 School Board candidates on Tuesday night, but the tone and tenor were quite different from the last time he spoke in such general terms.
WISCONSIN
11th District Race Focuses On School Vouchers
Journal Sentinel, WI, July 31, 2012
The school voucher program has taken center stage in Milwaukee’s 11th Assembly District Democratic primary, where community organizer Mandela Barnes faces former financial consultant and current Rep. Jason Fields.
ONLINE SCHOOLS
Nevada Online School To Host Family Discovery Fair
KVVU Las Vegas, NV, July 31, 2012
Nevada Connections Academy is inviting students and families to become more involved in their communities.