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
Corrupt Educators Are Threatening School Reform
Washington Post, DC, April 25, 2013
An exploding culture of corruption imperils public education in the United States. Financial misconduct and outright theft are depleting and misdirecting resources critical for the nation’s children to secure the skills and tools they’ll need to become solid citizens and global competitors.
Charter Schools vs. Public: Is One Better Than the Other?
Take Part, April 256, 2013
New data shows just how well kids are doing in many of the nation’s charter schools.
Close Gap In Access To Good Teachers, Curriculum, Schools, Says New Book, Campaign
Washington Post, DC, April 25, 2013
For more than a generation, educators and policymakers have been agonizing about America’s achievement gap, the persistent chasm in academic performance between poor and privileged children.
STATE COVERAGE
CALIFORNIA
A Dangerous Game for UTLA
Los Angeles Times, CA, April 26, 2013
The leadership of the Los Angeles teachers union recently conducted a survey among its members asking if they had confidence in Los Angeles Unified Supt. John Deasy.
DELAWARE
Pencader Charter School Gets $350,000 From Delaware To Help Pay Bills
News Journal, DE, April 26, 2013
The standoff between the state Department of Education and Pencader Charter is over after the state agreed Thursday evening to pitch in $350,000 to brace the troubled school’s budget through the end of the year, school and state officials said.
Five Steps To Continue Improving Delaware’s Education
News Journal, DE, April 26, 2013
“What kind of impact has the $119 million in federal Race to the Top funding had on education in Delaware?” Three years into the state’s top finish in the RTTT competition, a number of people have asked that question.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Surprise! D.C. Admits School Test Tampering At Meridian Public Charter
Washington Post Blog, DC, April 26, 2013
The Meridian Public Charter School is a well-regarded institution serving students in preschool through eighth grade on 13th Street between V and W streets in Northwest Washington. Nearly all of its 531 students are black or Hispanic.
FLORIDA
Could A Compromise Be Coming For The Parent Trigger?
Tampa Bay Times Blog, FL, April 25, 2013
Could a compromise be coming for the parent trigger? It’s anybody’s guess what will happen with the controversial proposal, which would let parents demand sweeping changes at failing public schools.
ILLINOIS
State Turns Off UNO Money Spigot After Charter School Scandal
Chicago Tribune, IL, April 25, 2013
State officials have temporarily halted funding to the United Neighborhood Organization, contending the large charter school operator violated terms of a $98 million grant by hiring contractors who are related to one of the group’s top executives.
At Chicago School Closing Hearings, Crowds Fade
Chicago Tribune, IL, April 26, 2013
After months of jampacked hearings over Chicago’s decision to shut down scores of schools, the final round of public meetings — the ones mandated by state law — has often been sparsely attended and overcast by an air of futility.
MISSOURI
Two House Republicans Pulled From Committee Over Education Reform Clash
St. Louis Post-Dispatch Blog, MO, April 25, 2013
Two House Republicans have been pulled from a committee because of their votes blocking education reform legislation.
NEVADA
Rainbow Dreams School Has Its Charter Renewed
Las Vegas Sun, NV, April 25, 2013
The Clark County School Board renewed its contract with the two star-ranked Rainbow Dreams Academy Charter School on Thursday.
NEW JERSEY
Draft Charter Bill Calls for Local Approval, More Reviewers
New Jersey Spotlight, NJ, April 26, 2013
The outlines of a new charter school bill are taking shape, with a draft being circulated by Assembly Democrats that would add tighter controls on new charters and expand the number of organizations approving and overseeing the schools.
Luongo Seeks To Run N.J. Charter School
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, April 26, 2013
A former high-profile South Jersey politician who spent almost a year in federal prison for misusing campaign and township funds is seeking state approval for a plan to open Gloucester County’s first charter school, even though he is barred from working in the classroom.
NEW YORK
Success Academy Cobble Hill Spied On By Teachers Union, Students Photographed: Officials
New York Daily News, NY, April 26, 2013
The founder of the Success Academy charter school leveled the charges in a letter to education officials and the United Federation of Teachers president Michael Mulgrew.
City Schools Won’t Honor Teacher Evaluation Agreement With BTF
Buffalo News, NY, April 25, 2013
The Buffalo schools will not honor an agreement with the teachers union that promised not to use two years of evaluations as grounds to fire any teacher, Superintendent Pamela C. Brown announced Thursday evening.
Paladino Effect On School Board Races Seen In Mailers
Buffalo News, NY, April 25, 2013
Love him or hate him, outspoken developer and unsuccessful gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino has done more than any other candidate to raise awareness and raise the stakes in city School Board elections that are otherwise widely ignored by voters.
OHIO
Strongsville Group Releases Document It Says Comes From NEA, OEA Says It’s Forged
Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH, April 25, 2013
A group of concerned parents and community members gathered outside of Center Middle School April 25 to say they were “fed up with certain tactics” from the Strongsville teachers union.
Common Core Makes Sense, Says Governor
Marietta Daily Journal, OH, April 26, 2013
Gov. Nathan Deal, who was in Cobb County on Thursday for a bill-signing ceremony, was asked to explain his support for the controversial Common Core school curriculum.
Cleveland Names ‘Investment Schools’ Slated For Turnaround
Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH, April 25, 2013
The Cleveland school district this afternoon named 13 low-performing schools to receive intensive help next school year, a major step in kicking off the Cleveland Plan for Transforming Schools.
PENNSYLVANIA
Phila. Schools’ Cash Crunch May Cut Charter Growth
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, April 26, 2013
Citing a $304 million shortfall, the Philadelphia School District announced Thursday that it would recommend against expanding any charter schools in 2013-14.
TEXAS
School Rankings Highlight Challenges
Houston Chronicle, TX, April 25, 2013
his year’s annual school report card, recently released by Children at Risk (“Houston’s learning curve,” B1, April 21), once again shows the enormous difference between our area’s top public schools and its bottom ones.
UTAH
City Studies Charter School Offer
St. George Daily Spectrum, UT, April 25, 2013
City officials are considering a deal with a nonprofit educational foundation that could revive the St. George Musical Theater and provide a local building for students enrolled in a web-based charter school focused on the arts.
WASHINGTON
Legislature Must Enact Key Education Reforms
Seattle Times, WA, April 25, 2013
Promising education reforms before the state Legislature that once seemed doom are moving forward now. Bills in Olympia are never dead.
WISCONSIN
Walker Attends Rally For School Vouchers
Journal Sentinel, WI, April 25, 2013
School voucher supporters who want to see public funds support kids attending private schools in cities beyond Milwaukee and Racine kicked their efforts into high gear Thursday, gathering at a rally in Waukesha to trumpet the benefits of the program.
ONLINE LEARNING
Will Blended Learning Cost Less? (And Should That Be The Question?)
Jewish Week, April 25, 2013
Among the many challenges faced by schools today are rising costs and shrinking budgets.
Be Careful With Charters
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, April 26, 2013
The Philadelphia School District’s motive to start its own cyber charter school is understandable – recouping some of the $60 million it sends to other cyber charters to serve city students – but that’s not the road to take.
East Lycoming Reviews Cyber School Tuition
Williamsport Sun-Gazette, PA, April 26, 2013
Outreach for behaviorally challenged students and cyber and charter school tuition were topics of discussion at the East Lycoming School Board meeting, held Tuesday evening.
Fla. Online School Target Of Cuts From Legislators
Gainesville Sun, FL, April 25, 2013
Florida’s highly-successful online school is battling proposed cutbacks at a time when state legislators are bragging about boosting money for schools by more than $1 billion.
Learning Anytime, Anywhere
Holland Sentinel, MI, April 25, 2013
“This is their homeroom,” Rebekah Redmer said, as she pointed to a webpage enlarged on a projection screen.