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.
The Flaws In The NRA’s School-Security Proposal
Washington Post, DC, December 30, 2012
Politicians, political commentators and many others greeted with derision the National Rifle Association’s proposal that armed security guards be posted in all U.S. schools.
Charter Schools Now Big Business Nationwide
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA, December 30, 2012
The early charter schools in Pennsylvania were largely the product of passionate parents or community groups, who sometimes planned their dream schools around the kitchen table.
FROM THE STATES
CALIFORNIA
California Misses School Improvement Opportunity
San Francisco Chronicle, CA, December 31, 2012
It is now almost certain that more than half of California’s low-income schools will be labeled “failing” by the U.S. Department of Education. Federal officials have signaled in a conversation that the agency will reject the state’s bid for a waiver from the No Child Left Behind requirements.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
DC School Documents Reveal Expulsion Gap In Charter System
Washington Post, DC, December 29, 2012
An analysis of documents by the Washington Post shows the District’s charter schools expel dramatically more students than its traditional public schools.
FLORIDA
Education in 2013: Merit Pay Outlook Unknown
Tallahassee Democrat, FL, December 30, 2012
Next year could be the year teachers in Leon County Schools get a raise. The district and the Leon County Classroom Teachers Association, the local teachers union, are negotiating the details now, schools superintendent Jackie Pons said.
INDIANA
Charter School Won’t Take Bank Building
Post-Tribune, IN, December 30, 2012
A local charter school operator has turned down the donation of the former Gary State Bank building at 504 Broadway.
During 2012, School Districts Work To Developing Marketing Plans
Evansville Courier Press, IN, December 28, 2012
Something different this year for the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp. was developing a marketing strategy to promote the school district. It was in response to Indiana’s school voucher program, which allows parents to receive tax money to supplement the cost of sending their children to private schools.
MICHIGAN
Unfunded Mandates Could Cripple State
Detroit News, MI, December 31, 2012
State lawmakers are rightfully proud the state enters 2013 relieved of about one-third of an estimated $45 billion in unfunded liability for post-retirement benefits it has promised to teachers and other public school employees.
MISSISSIPPI
Charter School Column Misleading
Clarion Ledger, MS, December 31, 2012
Jackson Public Schools teacher Darien Spann wrote an opinion article recently (“Governor’s plan bold first step, but certain ideas questionable,” Dec. 17) in which he made the vague claim that statistics he had seen “show that only 17 percent of charter schools in the country work.” Mr. Spann went on to insinuate that 83 percent of charter schools nationwide are failing.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
School Choice Tax Credits: Scrap Or Expand?
New Hampshire Public Radio, NH, December 29, 2012
On January 1st businesses can start getting tax breaks for donating to organizations that give public school students money toward going to a private school. But before that law has even taken effect, there are proposals to change it.
NEW YORK
Staten Islanders Concerned As UFT, City At Impasse In Negotiations
Staten Island Advance, NY, December 30, 2012
The so-called fiscal cliff isn’t the only big deadline facing government. If the city’s teachers’ union and the Department of Education don’t come to an agreement on teacher evaluations by Jan. 17, city schools could lose $250 million in state education aid.
Teachers Union Spends Millions From Membership Dues On Parties And Conferences
New York Post, NY, December 31, 2012
At least their union dues are working overtime. While city public-school teachers have gone without a new contract or regular pay raises for three straight years, their union, its staffers and political cronies have been living large off their union dues, a Post review found.
NORTH CAROLINA
Wake Continues To Weigh Role Of Year-Round Schools
News & Observer, NC, December 30, 2012
Year-round schools were the most controversial part of the last Wake County school-construction bond referendum and will likely be just as contentious in the proposal that could go before voters in late 2013.
NORTH DAKOTA
Let Massachusetts Be Model For N.D. School Reforms
Grand Forks Herald, ND, December 30, 2012
North Dakota schools remain very good. But once upon a time, North Dakota schools ranked more often than not as America’s best. They no longer occupy that top spot; in a number of other states, achievement has surged, while in North Dakota, students’ performance has remained relatively flat.
OHIO
A Waiting List? Catholic Schools Shout Hallelujah
Cincinnati Enquirer, OH, December 28, 2012
The revelation struck Sister Anne Schulz last year on a day she had to turn away 90 students who wanted to attend Mother Teresa Catholic Elementary School.
OREGON
Charter Schools Can Be A Welcome Alternative
The Oregonian, OR, December 29, 2012
“More than anything, it’s taking the resources that are already so meager and spreading them to other places,” said Ellen Joslin for a November story in The Oregonian. She’s a critic of Washington’s new charter school law and the president of the Battle Ground Education Association. Initiative 1240 just authorized formation of 40 pilot charter schools in the state.
PENNSYLVANIA
Philadelphia School District Plans to Close Dozens of Schools
New York Times, NY, December 31, 2012
Facing deep financial problems, Philadelphia’s school district proposed an unprecedented downsizing and other changes that would affect 17,000 students.
Catholic School Year Of Transition
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, December 30, 2012
Janet Dollard was a few months into her first year as president of Conwell-Egan High School in Fairless Hills when the Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced in January it planned to close the school as part of a broad restructuring of Catholic education.
Pittsburgh Schools Readying Teacher Evaluation Plan
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA, December 31, 2012
Pittsburgh Public Schools is poised to become the first district to seek state approval for its teacher evaluation plan under a new state law.
SOUTH CAROLINA
Lead Charter Making A Difference
Greenville News, SC, December 28, 2012
Charter schools are one way our government gives parents free educational choices for their children. Unlike a “typical” neighborhood public school, a public charter school is organized around certain key principles, and parents who embrace those values support the school by enrolling their children and volunteering their time, and maybe even donating money.
http://www.greenvilleonline.com/article/20121231/OPINION/312310010/Lead-Charter-making-difference?gcheck=1
TENNESSEE
Education Tops 2012 Newsmaker List As State, Metro Grapple Over Schools
Nashville City Paper, TN, December 30, 2012
Between high-stakes elections, an epic brawl over a charter school and a never-ending battle with state education officials, the Metro Nashville school board at the center of the city’s politics this year.
ONLINE LEARNING
Education Collaborative Exploring Idea For Virtual School
Metro West Daily News, MA, December 29, 2012
With a new law on the way opening the door for more virtual schools in the state, a local education collaborative could be among the first to try to start one.
Info Sessions Planned About Lake Virtual School
Central Florida News 13, FL, December 30, 2012
School leaders in Lake County are reaching out to homeschool families with information about online classes.
More Schools Add Online Courses
Dayton Daily News, OH, December 28, 2012
More Miami Valley school districts are offering blended learning, a combination of traditional classes and online learning.
More Creative Thinking About Oklahoma’s A-F Grading System For Schools
The Oklahoman, OK, December 31, 2012
RELEASE of A through F grades for state schools has led to some creative thinking. Sadly, much of that creativity has been expended explaining away bad grades rather than improving school performance.
Online Academy Classes To Be Tested In ID Schools
KTVB, ID, December 29, 2012
A worldwide online education academy may soon be offering classes in a few select Idaho public schools.