NEWSWIRE IS BACK! Click here for the latest weekly report on education news and commentary you won’t find anywhere else, spiced with a dash of irreverence, from the nation’s leading voice in school reform.
NATIONAL COVERAGE
Getting at the Core
Worcester Telegram, June 3, 2013
Perhaps no issue is as important to parents as their children’s education. But too little attention has been paid to the advent of the Common Core State Standards Initiative, an effort to bring education curricula across the nation into alignment with one another by adopting a single set of academic standards.
STATE COVERAGE
CALIFORNIA
Leader of charter school appointed to vacant Pasadena Unified seat
Pasadena Sun, June 2, 2013
Mikala Rahn, the head of Learning Works Charter School in Pasadena, was appointed Saturday to fill a vacant seat on the Pasadena Unified school board.
Charters are jackpot for district
Stockton Record, June 2, 2013
Deep in the southeastern reaches of Tracy, surrounded by spacious plots of rich San Joaquin County farmland, sits a school district that this academic year served a grand total of 16 kindergarten students.
Newton: In a hurry to pull the ‘parent trigger’
Commentary, Los Angeles Times, June 3, 2013
The ouster of a Watts principal is wrenching but hardly surprising. Parents lack patience for incremental improvement.
The ‘parent trigger’ trap
Editorial, Los Angeles Times, June 2, 2013
As the most recent example at Weigand Avenue Elementary School in Watts shows, parents need more information before taking such drastic action.
COLORADO
Disparities in Douglas County schools teacher evaluations draw fire
Denver Post, June 3, 2013
Fourth-grade teacher Cheryl Murphy is among the educators at Trailblazer Elementary School being re-evaluated after the Douglas County School District determined that the high marks she got on her job review may not be valid.
DELAWARE
Charters focus of House legislation
News Journal, May 31, 2013
bill that would toughen oversight of charter schools would also award more money to charters with proven track records and allow them to access capital funding from the state.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Yes to more charters, but let’s head off the unions
Column, Washington Times, June 2, 2013
When you dance to the music, sooner or later you’ve got to pay the piper.
D.C. Mayor Vincent C. Gray announced Sunday that he will send legislation to the D.C. Council to grant the city’s schools chancellor the power to authorize charter schools.
Legislation Would Give DCPS Chancellor Power to Authorize Charters
CBS Local, June 2, 2013
“One of my top priorities as mayor has been ensuring that every child in the District has access to a top-quality public education,” D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray said in his weekly Sunday morning radio address on All-News 99.1.
FLORIDA
Record charter school closings prompt calls for more accountability
Sun Sentinel, June 1, 2013
When Next Generation Charter School in Lauderdale Lakes abruptly closed its doors in April, the Broward School district was left scrambling to find classrooms for the 160 students that suddenly had no place to learn.
Pasco charter school sues district over enrollment cap
Tampa Bay Times, May 31, 2013
A charter school has sued the school district over a refusal to let the school expand its enrollment. Athenian Academy wants to increase its student body from 390 to 472 for the fall. School officials say it needs to grow to remain financially viable and argue their contract with the district allows the added numbers.
IDAHO
Common Core reform only common sense
Editorial, Idaho Statesman, June 2, 2013
Have you ever noticed that education reform initiatives are unrated by actuaries and untouched as sure bets in Las Vegas? They exist in bubble dimensions until they pop on the sharp edges of the classroom and life.
INDIANA
No easy path for charter schools
The Journal Gazette, IN
June 2, 2013
Clearing the hurdle of receiving a charter from the state authorizing board isn’t always enough to actually open a charter school.
IOWA
Education Reform One Step Away in Iowa
KWQC, June 2, 2013
It’s been a bill in the works for several years – but now education reform in Iowa is just the Governor’s signature away from being signed into law.
LOUISIANA
Fifth-grade test scores could hurt Singleton’s academic standing, principal warns
The Lens, May 31, 2013
A drastic decrease in iLEAP state test scores for fifth graders at James Singleton Charter School could have a significant impact on the school’s 2013 school performance score, according to school leaders.
Voucher amendment fails
The Advocate, June 2, 2013
State senators defeated an effort to strip money for school vouchers out of the $25 billion state budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1.
School return bill clears Senate
The Advocate, June 2, 2013
The state Senate unanimously backed a bill Saturday that would set up a “parent trigger” law for poor-performing schools in the Recovery School District, moving the proposal one step from final passage.
MAINE
Bangor charter school’s failed bid sparks moratorium debate
Bangor Daily News, June 2, 2013
Bangor city councilors will consider a citywide moratorium on charter schools, arguing that having one in the city would create unnecessary competition and put a financial strain on an already strong public school system.
MARYLAND
Prince George’s County school reform law takes effect
Washington Post, June 2, 2013
After the Maryland General Assembly approved legislation to overhaul the Prince George’s County public schools two months ago, residents were left wondering what changes would be in store for the 123,000-student system.
MASSACHUSETTS
Charter School Advocates Eye Investment In Mayor’s Race
WBUR, May 31, 2013
Sensing a rare opportunity to shape policy here and beyond, charter school advocates are weighing significant investments in Boston’s first competitive mayoral race in a generation.
MICHIGAN
Snyder’s merit pay idea fails the test
Detroit News Blog, MI
June 2, 2013
Adding to an already impressive list of legislative “solutions” that don’t actually solve any problems, Rick Snyder and the Michigan legislature have decided to consider “merit pay” for public educators.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Charter school kindergarten students show they are ready to serve in Manchester
Union Leader, June 3, 2013
Those are the numbers behind a “service learning” trip to New Hampshire Food Bank on Friday for students from Mill Falls Charter School. But math wasn’t the important lesson of the day.
NEW JERSEY
Christie’s Proposed School Voucher Program At Latest Crossroads
New Jersey Spotlight, June 3, 2013
Democrats claim Opportunity Scholarship Grants will never make it to the final budget, but can they deliver?
NEW YORK
Charter school group pushes forward with ambitious expansion
Democrat & Chronicle, June 1, 2013
Its demographics match those of most city schools, but the performance of students at True North Rochester Prep far outpaces their peers in the district.
Teacher Plan Uncertain
Wall Street Journal, June 3, 2013
A bitterly contested teacher-evaluation system imposed on New York City by state officials could be upended as soon as a new mayor takes office next year.
UFT gets schooled
New York Post, June 3, 2013
The teachers union lost out on nearly all of its key demands during the bitter war over a new evaluation system that makes it easier to oust inept educators, city officials said.
Mayor’s education legacy an issue in NYC race
Wall Street Journal, June 1, 2013
Mayor Michael Bloomberg has sought during his three terms to make the city’s sprawling public school system a showcase for get-tough policies such as closing schools deemed to be failing and using student test scores to measure teacher effectiveness.
NORTH CAROLINA
Charter school will be reviewed, director says
The Dispatch, June 3, 2013
Despite having its application and appeal denied for incomplete information, the proposed Davidson Charter Academy will be reviewed by a state council, state education officials said recently.
OHIO
Schools push merit pay for teachers
Dayton Daily News, June 3, 2013
More districts across the state may soon follow the lead of Oakwood schools and pay teachers based on their performance in the classroom, experts say.
State should provide equally for charters
Letter
Columbus Dispatch, June 1, 2013
I am a parent of a charter-school student. The proposed state budget discriminates against my daughter and creates a separate and unequal funding system for all Ohio charter students.
PENNSYLVANIA
Charter school case moving to court
Montgomery News, June 2, 2013
The petition signed by members of the public in support of North Penn Charter School Collaborative and submitted to the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas is “fatally defective” because it doesn’t include certain pieces of information, according to a brief filed by the North Penn School District’s legal counsel.
Private schools hope Pa. tax-credit program will grow larger
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 3, 2013
After a slow start, money is starting to come in to a tax-credit scholarship program aimed at providing scholarships for students who live within the attendance areas of the state’s lowest-performing schools to transfer to other higher performing schools.
Charter schools advocate accountability
Opinion, Observer-Reporter, June 2, 2013
Clarifications need to be made in response to the misleading and oversimplified statements in the Observer-Reporter’s May 21 editorial, “Wanting public money, but not the accountability.”
TENNESSEE
Knox County superintendent recommends denial of charter school application
Knoxville News Sentinel, June 2, 2013
Knox County Schools Superintendent Jim McIntyre is recommending that the school board deny an application for a charter school that would be located in Northwest Knoxville.
WASHINGTON
Bad teachers shouldn’t be forced on our kids
Column, Seattle Times, June 2, 2013
Editorial staff columnist Jonathan Martin wonders why is it so hard is it to get a poor teacher out of the classroom.
WISCONSIN
Voucher schools should be more open
Opinion, Appleton Post-Crescent , June 3, 2013
Back in 1990, when Milwaukee launched the nation’s first publicly funded voucher program, participating schools could enroll no more than 49 percent voucher students. These schools were considered private, because the majority of their students paid private tuition.
Governor’s voucher plan makes no sense
Letter, Fond du Lac Reporter , June 2, 2013
I am writing to show how illogical Gov. Walker’s voucher school expansion in the state budget is. The governor’s justification for this expansion has been to offer parents “choice” to avoid “failing” schools.
ONLINE LEARNING
Why K-12 online learning isn’t really revolutionizing teaching
Washington Post Blog, June 3, 2013
Online learning is our present and our future, or so many school reformers and entrepreneurs say. Here in the first of a few pieces on the subject is Larry Cuban, a high school social studies teacher for 14 years, a district superintendent (seven years in Arlington, VA), and professor emeritus of education at Stanford University, where he has taught for more than 20 years.
Enrollment growing at Virtual Learning Academy
Fosters Daily Democrat, June 2, 2013
With each year that passes, more and more people across the state are turning to internet-based programs to further their education. This rising trend can be found locally as well, as hundreds of Seacoast residents have enrolled at the Virtual Learning Academy Charter School based in Exeter.
Online learning works for student
Shelbyville Times-Gazette, June 2, 2013
Trace Marshall has enjoyed many of the aspects of a normal high school senior year — having senior pictures made, buying a senior ring, ordering his graduation cap and gown, making plans for college — but he is not your traditional high school graduate.