Daily Headlines for April 10, 2013
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NATIONAL COVERAGE
National Science Standards Likely To Raise ‘Ruckus’
USA Today, April 10, 2013
Academic standards out Tuesday promise to revive simmering debates about how to teach science in the USA’s public schools.
FROM THE STATES
ALABAMA
Teacher Pay Raise Moves Forward In Alabama Legislature
Anniston Star, AL, April 10, 2013
A 2 percent pay raise for Alabama’s teachers moved a step forward Tuesday, with a crucial House committee voting to send the raise to the full House for a vote as early as Wednesday.
CALIFORNIA
Carlsbad Parent Group Asking County Board Of Education To Overturn Decision On Charter School
10News, CA, April 10, 2013
A group of Carlsbad parents refuses to take no for an answer. The Carlsbad Unified School Board voted against the charter school they were trying to start, so the parents appealed the decision to the San Diego County Board of Education, which will take up the matter Wednesday evening.
CONNECTICUT
State Gets Seven Applications For New Charter Schools; Two Proposals Have Teacher Union Support
The Hartford Courant, CT, April 9, 2013
Teachers unions aren’t generally known for support of charter schools, but two of the seven new schools proposed for Connecticut have strong union support.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Neighborhood Preference In D.C. Charter Schools Would Be Allowed Under Bill
Washington Post, DC, April 9, 2013
New D.C. public charter schools would be allowed to give admissions preference to neighborhood children under a bill introduced Tuesday by D.C. Council Member David Grosso (I-At Large).
FLORIDA
Pinellas Wary Of Setting Precedent With Pending Charter School Deal
St. Petersburg Tribune, FL, April 10, 2013
After weeks of discussion, Pinellas County School Board members were set to vote Tuesday on selling the abandoned Southside Fundamental Middle School building to a charter company.
GEORGIA
About 60 Come Out Hear Charter School Plans At Macon Forum
Macon Telegraph, GA, April 10, 2013
When friends Shawn Maanao, Dawn Willis and Anissa Coleman discuss the issues of the day during conversations in the hallway of Martha Bowman Church, the topic usually turns to their displeasure with Bibb County schools.
HAWAII
Private Schools Fill Gap For Hawaii’s Dyslexic Kids — But At High Cost
Honolulu Civil Beat, HI, April 10, 2013
Just as her grandson B.J. was gearing up for high school, Carol Mikasobe decided she was fed up. No more exasperating meetings with B.J.’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) team. No more stonewalling from the schools. No more expensive outside tutoring. No more seeing B.J. suffer.
IDAHO
Charter Schools Look Forward to Facilities Aid
Magic Valley Times-News, ID, April 10, 2013
The charter school has been a boon to its students, the co-founder said, because they are educated in an environment of American patriotism and mutual respect. And the school gives parents an alternative for their children’s education, she said.
INDIANA
Sponsor For Charter Not In EACS Future
The Journal Gazette, IN, April 10, 2013
The East Allen County Schools board announced Tuesday it will not sponsor the charter of Timothy L. Johnson Academy, but board members said the district needs to improve its offerings in the area.
education committee still split on school vouchers
YNN, IN, April 9, 2013
The school voucher debate was once again revived at the State Capitol Tuesday, where the Senate’s Education Committee heard public testimony on the contested issue.
IOWA
Fast Action Promised On Education Bill
Des Moines Register, IA, April 10, 2013
Lawmakers working out a compromise education reform bill promised Tuesday to move quickly as the April 15 deadline looms for school districts around the state to certify their budgets.
LOUISIANA
Community Groups Could Charter Failing Schools
Shreveport Times, LA, April 10, 2013
Caddo’s lowest-performing schools could be converted to charter schools to take them off of the state takeover chopping block.
MAINE
Bowen Presents New Idea For Funding Public Charter Schools
Bangor Daily News, ME, April 9, 2013
Lawmakers reacted warmly Tuesday to a concept presented by Education Commissioner Stephen Bowen that would drastically change how charter schools in Maine are funded, spreading the financial responsibility to every school district in the state.
MICHIGAN
Working To Learn, Learning To Work
Detroit News, MI, April 10, 2013
When Jonathan Hernandez checks in at Detroit’s Cristo Rey High School, he gets both a report card and a time card.
MISSISSIPPI
Analysis: Education Focus Shifts To Implementation
Hattiesburg American, MS, April 10, 2013
If 2013 was the education session for Mississippi’s Legislature, it will be followed by the implementation season.
NEVADA
Legislators Hear Pros, Cons Of Sandoval’s School Choice Bill
Las Vegas Sun, NV, April 9, 2013
Gov. Brian Sandoval’s bill to give tax breaks to companies that donate to private and religious schools was applauded by school choice advocates Tuesday but opposed by the state’s teachers union and school boards.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Senate Panel Votes 3-2 To Keep Education Tax Credit
Union Leader, NH, April 9, 2013
A bill to repeal the state’s newly established education tax credit program did not find favor with the Senate Health, Education and Human Services Committee Tuesday.
NEW YORK
Rally For NY Tax Credit For School Donations
Wall Street Journal, April 10, 2013
Educators, elected officials and schoolchildren are expected to rally in support of a state tax credit they say is needed to encourage private donations to public schools.
Rigorous Schools Put College Dreams Into Practice
New York Times, NY, April 10, 2013
Across the country in communities like Newark, the early college high school model is being lauded as a way to provide low-income students with a road map to and through college.
Here Comes the Common Core
New York Daily News, NY, April 10, 2013
Yes, test scores will fall. That’s necessary as we prepare students for college and career.
School Reform in Syracuse
New York Times, NY, April 10, 2013
Re “Criticism of Cuomo Over Plight of Cities Raises Syracuse Mayor’s Profile” (news article, April 2):
Hundreds Try For Charter School Lottery
WIVB 4, NY, April 9, 2013
Hundreds of parents waited Tuesday night to find out if their child would be one of 29 selected in the Elmwood Village Charter School lottery.
NORTH CAROLINA
Charter School Appeals Committee Formed
News & Observer, NC, April 9, 2013
The Public Charter School Advisory Council voted Tuesday to form a subcommittee to consider potential appeals from 27 applicants who were rejected for opening in the 2014-15 school year.
OHIO
Columbus School Board Halts Superintendent Search
Columbus Dispatch, OH, April 10, 2013
In an about-face, a divided Columbus school board dropped its plan to hire a permanent superintendent by the end of this month, falling into line with Columbus Mayor Michael B. Coleman’s wishes.
School Funding Plan Gets Overhaul From Ohio House
Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH, April 9, 2013
State legislative leaders tossed out a major part of Gov. John Kasich’s school funding plan Tuesday and significantly shifted the dollars that individual districts would receive from the state.
OKLAHOMA
Teacher Quality Is An Issue Oklahoma City School Board Should Delve Into
The Oklahoman, OK, April 10, 2013
A principal stood before the Oklahoma City School Board last week and, under intense questioning, spoke a simple but profoundly important truth: Status quo isn’t good enough.
PENNSYLVANIA
Philly Area’s Teach For America Unit To Celebrate Its 10th Anniversary
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, April 10, 2013
Talk to a Teach For America teacher, and you’ll hear a lot about grit and getting things done.
TENNESSEE
Rich Republicans Stage Faux Media Event for School Vouchers
Nashville Scene, TN, April 9, 2013
Rich Republicans who fund the American Federation for Children staged a media event today at the legislature to try to revive a school voucher bill in Tennessee this session.
Charter Authorizer Bill Hits Slowdown In Senate
The Tennessean, TN, April 10, 2013
Lawmakers questioned a proposal to create a special panel to authorize charter schools in several Tennessee counties during debate Tuesday in the legislature, while a nonprofit group criticized the governor’s decision to withdraw his school voucher program.
Critics Fear TN Bill Tying Welfare To Grades Puts Kids In Harm’s Way
The Tennessean, TN, April 10, 2013
Children in Tennessee could become the first in the nation to determine whether their families receive full welfare benefits — they fail a grade, and the state yanks 30 percent of their cash payouts under a bill the state Senate will take up Thursday.
TEXAS
Tax Incentives For Private Schooling Face Dim Prospects
Austin American-Statesman, TX, April 9, 2013
The prospects are dim for legislative proposals creating tax incentives to help public school students pay for private school, but that did not dampen the fervor of “school choice” supporters at the Texas Capitol on Tuesday.
Does It Take A Katrina-Like Disaster For A Large Charter School Shift?
KERA NPR, TX, April 9, 2013
After Katrina, New Orleans not only needed entire neighborhoods rebuilt. Its schools underwent a complete makeover too.
WASHINGTON
Information Being Gathered On Charter Schools For PSD Board
News Tribune, WA, April 10, 2013
The Peninsula School District is taking it slow as it looks into the possibility of becoming a charter school authorizer, with Superintendent Chuck Cuzzetto gathering information on the subject for the school board.
ONLINE LEARNING
Will Teachers Unions Kill Virtual Learning?
Slate, April 9, 2013
New educational technologies could be great for kids—if regulations and politics don’t get in the way.
http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2013/04/seat_time_requirements_and_other_regulations_could_hurt_the_virtual_learning.html
D-427 Rejects Online Charter School Proposal
DeKalb Daily Chronicle, IL, April 9, 2013
Sycamore School District 427 board members unanimously rejected a proposal to allow an online charter school to operate within its boundaries.
http://www.daily-chronicle.com/2013/04/10/d-427-rejects-online-charter-school-proposal/a1u1nx0/
Eight Fox Valley Districts Unanimously Vote Down Virtual Charter School
Aurora Beacon News, IL, April 9, 2013
West Aurora was one of eight school boards Monday night that unanimously denied the proposal to establish an 18-district virtual charter school in the Fox Valley area this fall.
http://beaconnews.suntimes.com/news/19381027-418/eight-fox-valley-districts-unanimously-vote-down-virtual-charter-school.html