Daily Headlines for January 29, 2013
Click here for Newswire, 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
Minnesota Clings Onto Top Spot in NAPCS Charter Law Rankings; Ind., Miss. Rise
Education Week, January 28, 2014
The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools has released its rankings and evaluations of state charter-school laws for 2014, and the top-10 list looks very much like the rankings the group released last year—only one jurisdiction on that list, the District of Columbia, is new (D.C. moved up from 17 to 10 this year).
Stop the feds’ Common Core for schools
Letter, Washington Times, DC, January 28, 2014
If the central planners and progressive bureaucrats get their way, teaching the Constitution to American schoolchildren will be a thing of the past.
The hype and reality of ‘school choice’
Washington Post Blog, DC, January 28, 2014
In case you missed any of the endless streams of announcements, it’s National School Choice Week, and advocates are staging thousands of events across the country to talk it up. There is even a school choice train making a whistle-stop tour across the country for rallies and other such goings-on to draw attention to a movement that has been hailed as “the” or “an” answer to what ails public education today. The only problem is this: It isn’t. Not by a long shot.
STATE COVERAGE
CALIFORNIA
California Kids Go to Court to Demand a Good Education
Opinion, Wall Street Journal, January 29, 2014
The trial began this week in a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court aimed at bringing meaningful and badly needed change to California’s public schools. The suit could have far-reaching effects in American education—in particular on teacher-tenure policies that too often work to the detriment of students.
LASD: Talks over charter school facilities hit a snag
Los Altos Town Crier, CA, January 29, 2014
After meeting twice in the past seven weeks with a professional mediator behind closed doors, Los Altos School District officials said their negotiations with Bullis Charter School have hit an impasse.
Vergara v. California: Do state laws protect teacher jobs over students?
Christian Science Monitor, MA, January 28, 2014
The case of Vergara v. California takes up whether five state laws make it too hard to fire poor teachers. Students say their education is suffering. Teachers unions say the need is more resources.
COLORADO
Bill seeks to bridge data gap in district, school ratings
Denver Post Blog, CO, January 28, 2014
A bill expected to be introduced this week would allow school and district performance ratings earned in the 2014-15 school year to be carried over into the following year.
Colorado Education Association lawsuit seeks to undo reforms
Colorado Springs Gazette, CO, January 28, 2014
The Colorado Education Association is announcing a highly anticipated lawsuit Wednesday that will challenge parts of education reforms put into place by lawmakers in 2010.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
What happens to Options’s students when the school shuts down?
Editorial, Washington Post, DC, January 28, 2014
THE STUDENTS who ended up at the Options Public Charter School are the ones no other school wanted. That probably explains why the shortcomings of the school, the city’s oldest public charter, were so long overlooked.
IDAHO
School choice growin in relevance
Idaho Press Tribune, ID, January 29, 2014
School choice has become a given for an increasing number of Idaho families and children. This is good. It means families in the Gem State have the freedom to choose the best educational environments and options for their children.
ILLINOIS
Emanuel defends new charter schools
Chicago Tribune, IL, January 28, 2014
Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Tuesday dismissed criticism aimed at his hand-picked school board’s decision to approve seven new charter schools after it shuttered 47 neighborhood schools last year, saying they’re two separate issues.
INDIANA
Voucher schools invite public scrutiny in accepting public dollars
Editorial, Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, IN, January 29, 2014
What does school choice mean in Indiana? It means taxpayer-supported schools that can choose:
MARYLAND
Don’t leave charter schools behind
Op-Ed, Baltimore Sun, MD, January 29, 2014
The people of Baltimore care about inequity. We think about what is fair and right, and together, we have come up with some great solutions to some of the disparities we see in our city.
MICHIGAN
Charting success
Grand Haven Tribune, MI, January 28, 2014
The Michigan charter school law celebrates its 20th anniversary this month, and local charter schools are thriving under it.
Melody Manwell: Charters provoke competition
Opinion, Battle Creek Enquirer, MI, January 29, 2014
Education should be about one thing only: what’s best for the kids. Every child, no matter their income level, language, or race should not have an inferior education that may hinder their options for life.
Some Unintended Effects For Indiana’s School Voucher Program.
WIBQ, MI, January 29, 2014
In an Indiana Department of Education report released this week; four in 10 students using vouchers never attended an Indiana public school, even though the original 2011 law that authorized the program required it.
West Michigan charter school ranked worst in state in new report
Grand Rapids Press, MI, January 29, 2014
Grattan Academy, a West Michigan K-12 charter school, is the state’s worst school in raising student achievement above expected scores for its student body’s income level, according to a new report released today.
MINNESOTA
Duluth charter schools now enroll 14% of district’s students
Duluth News Tribune, MN, January 29, 2014
The share of Duluth school district students attending charter schools in the city has grown from 9 percent to 14 percent in seven years, according to a recent report.
MISSISSIPPI
Committee OKs teacher pay bill
Jackson Clarion Ledger, MS, January 29, 2014
The Senate Education Committee has approved a House bill to ensure teachers get a full pay check for August.
MISSOURI
Parents should have say in where kids go to school in Missouri, expert says
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, MO, January 28, 2014
Rich or poor, parents should have a choice in where their child goes to school. At least, that’s what James Shuls, the Show-Me Institute’s Education Policy director, believes.
NEVADA
Home schooling ultimate education choice
Editorial, Las Vegas Review-Journal, NV, January 29, 2014
It’s National School Choice Week, and while magnet and charter schools and vouchers get a lot of attention from proponents of expanded educational opportunities, another popular option gets fewer headlines: home schooling. The ability to remove a child from public schooling altogether is the ultimate choice for parents — and it’s under attack, despite its strong record of success.
NEW JERSEY
Camden protesters oppose superintendent’s plan
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, January 29, 2014
About 60 teachers, parents, and community members protested proposed changes in the Camden School District in freezing temperatures before a school board meeting Tuesday night.
National teachers union leader joins protest of Newark school makeover
Star-Ledger, NJ, January 28, 2014
American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten returns to Newark tonight to join community members, parents and teachers to protest Superintendent Cami Anderson’s reorganization plan for the city’s schools.
NJ School Reports feature arts enrollment, advanced course work
Star-Ledger, NJ, January 29, 2014
The latest version of the state’s annual school report card continues efforts begun last year to measure student performance by looking beyond test scores.
NEW YORK
No reason for de Blasio to give more cash into failing schools
New York Post, NY, January 29, 2014
It also happens to be Mayor de Blasio’s formula for city education: It’s not very good, so let’s pay more for it.
What now for Eva Moskowitz?
Capital New York, NY, January 29, 2014
In his short time as mayor, Bill de Blasio made it abundantly clear that he thinks charter-school operators like Eva Moskowitz got a sweetheart deal under Michael Bloomberg.
NORTH CAROLINA
PACE expects ‘tough fight’ for charter renewal
Herald Sun, NC, January 29, 2014
PACE Academy officials are acknowledging that the troubled charter school faces a “tough fight” to keep its doors open.
OHIO
Columbus, Ohio, School District Hit By Cheating Allegations
Wall Street Journal, January 29, 2014
A state investigation of Columbus, Ohio, public schools found a “top-down culture of data manipulation and employee intimidation” in connection with changes to test scores and student grades, officials said Tuesday, in the latest testing scandal to engulf a school district.
OKLAHOMA
Statewide online school testing system tryout mostly successful
Tulsa World, OK, January 29, 2014
The statewide test of public schools’ online testing capabilities Tuesday saw a few hiccups but generally went smoothly, according to state officials and area school districts.
PENNSYLVANIA
Gillingham students celebrate their choice of school
Republican Herald, PA, January 29, 2014
Students at Gillingham Charter School celebrated their choice to attend the county’s first brick-and-mortar charter school during a pep rally Tuesday in honor of National School Choice Week.
Phila. parents make deal over enrollment in suburban school
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, January 29, 2014
A case that became a national cause célèbre for public school choice ended Tuesday in Montgomery County Court with lesser charges, dismissed charges, and a restitution agreement. But there was no jail time for the mother and father of a child who attended a Lower Moreland school even though they lived in Philadelphia.
Senate Bill Would Give Colleges Authority To Approve Charter Schools In Pennsylvania
KYW-TV, PA, January 29, 2014
Part of a bill pending in the Pennsylvania senate would give universities the authority to approve new charter schools. But one non-profit says there’s no evidence that would improvestudent performance.
SOUTH CAROLINA
Teachers raise concerns about pay-for-performance at Charleston school board meeting
Post & Courier, SC, January 28, 2014
Lindsay Egloff was one of a handful of teachers who cautioned the Charleston County School Board Monday against adopting a pay-for-performance system, which would tie teachers’ evaluations and pay to how well their students perform on standardized tests.
TENNESSEE
Haslam, Ramsey strike different chord on vouchers at ‘school choice’ event
The Tennessean, TN, January 29, 2014
Gov. Bill Haslam took the podium in front of Tennessee’s most ardent “school choice” supporters but barely alluded to the item they covet most — a state voucher system that would allow public dollars to go toward private schooling.
On charters, Shelby Schools board looks at tighter rules
Memphis Commercial Appeal, TN, January 29, 2014
It’s possible the Shelby County Schools board will be bearing down on low-performing charter schools, including closing them or imposing sanctions. It’s also possible that by next year all board-authorized charters will no longer pay rent to the school board but instead would pay an administrative fee to cover overhead of services such as school buses, lunch, even special education services.
TEXAS
Studying school choice
Letters, Houston Chronicle, TX, January 29, 2014
As I read Robert Enslow’s essay “Better education options can help stem income inequality,” (Page B7, Saturday), I could not help wondering how he proposed to pay for “tax credit scholarships” or vouchers.
ONLINE LEARNING
Arbitrary cuts to cyber charters will undermine school choice
Letter, Patriot News, PA, January 28, 2014
As a teacher for a virtual public school, Commonwealth Connections Academy, I see firsthand every day the benefits of choice and technology in learning.
Area students thrive in online school environment
Las Vegas Review-Journal, NV, January 28, 2014
Each of the fourth- and fifth-graders attending the virtual charter school’s annual fair also seemed more than happy to explain — at length, without prompting — how pink dolphins get their hue or how planes disappear in the Bermuda Triangle.
Arkansas Virtual Academy Gives Kids New Way to Learn
KARK, AR, January 28, 2014
There is a new way for students to get an education by way of virtual learning. The Arkansas Virtual Academy or ARVA gives kids in grades K – 8 a chance to learn in a way that’s convenient for them.
Baton Rouge school brings classes to the kitchen table
The Advocate, LA, January 29, 2014
The classrooms at St. Joseph Academy in Baton Rouge were empty Tuesday morning, but a mile west in the dining room of a home in Capital Heights, sisters Elizabeth and Lauren Foshee were still in school, virtually speaking.
Cyber Day Test a Success for Students on Snow Day
WTRF, WV, January 28, 2014
With students out of school for such a long period of time, one local high school has successfully found a way to get school work to their students on a snow day.
Hilliard Schools To Use ‘Blizzard Bag’ Method To Make Up Calamity Days
WBNS-TV, OH, January 28, 2014
Hilliard City Schools will use the “blizzard bag” method for making up calamity days if necessary. That means lessons will be posted online and students will have up to two weeks to complete the work.
Pa. denies all applications for cyber-charter schools in 2014
Philadelphia Notebook Blog, PA, January 29, 2014
There will be no new cyber-charter schools opening this year in Pennsylvania.
The state Department of Education rejected proposals from each of the six operators that applied last November.
Stamford High Students Join Others Worldwide In Virtual School
Stamford Daily Voice, CT, January 29, 2014
Students at the high school’s computer lab are taking courses online together with kids in other parts of the world on Jan. 29 as part of a partnership with The Virtual High School.