Daily Headlines For November 27, 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
Arne Duncan schooled in limits of power
Politico, November 27, 2013
Arne Duncan brought the most ambitious reform agenda in years to the Department of Education — and a determination to use every lever of power to accomplish it.
Jindal v. Obama: The new school choice battle; La. voucher fight revives reform led by conservatives
Washington Times, DC, November 26, 2013
Two decades ago, while George H.W. Bush was still president, Republican governors like Tommy Thompson in Wisconsin began in earnest their long-brewing war on underperforming public schools.
Merit Pay For Teachers Is Only Fair
Forbes, November 26, 2013
Business has long been accustomed to rewarding good performance with salary increases, but the birth of merit pay for teachers is proving both protracted and painful.
Pulling a More Diverse Group of Achievers Into the Advanced Placement Pool
New York Times, NY, November 27, 2013
Every year, more than 600,000 academically promising high school students — most of them poor, Latino or black — fail to enroll in Advanced Placement courses, often viewed as head starts for the college-bound.
STATE COVERAGE
CALIFORNIA
Oakland Needs a Moratorium on Charter Schools
Opinion, East Bay Express, CA, November 26, 2013
The proliferation of charters in the city has left traditional public schools without enough money to educate children with special needs.
DELAWARE
Reach Academy suing to stay open
WDDE, DE, November 26, 2013
Reach Academy for Girls charter school is heading to court in an effort to remain open. The school has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Delaware against the state’s Department of Education and Education Secretary Mark Murphy over the decision earlier this month not to renew the school’s charter, forcing it to close at the end of the academic year in June.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
A troubled school improves — without relying on suspensions
Washington Post Blog, DC, November 26, 2013
Four years ago, Stanton Elementary School in Anacostia was the lowest-performing elementary school in the District and in danger of being closed. But partly thanks to an innovative alternative to suspensions, Stanton is now on the rise.
In Fairfax, a lengthy battle over school funding
Washington Post, DC, November 26, 2013
When new Fairfax County Schools Superintendent Karen Garza recently warned that a $140.7 million budget shortfall might lead to layoffs and devastating program cuts, several veteran county officials couldn’t help but think of a classic children’s fable: “The Boy Who Cried Wolf.”
FLORIDA
Southwest Florida parents push teaching over tests
News-Press, FL, November 26, 2013
Southwest Florida parents are fed up with feeling they don’t have a voice in their child’s classroom.
INDIANA
Graysville’s RCA lauded as successful rural charter school
The Tribune-Star, IN, November 25, 2013
As they examined paintings in their school, students in the pre-algebra class of teacher Tracey Drappo were seeking “unintentional geometry” on Monday as they looked for rectangles, rotation and degrees.
ILLINOIS
CPS plans to relocate two schools
Chicago Tribune, IL, November 27, 2013
Chicago Public Schools officials say they won’t be closing any schools this summer, but plan to relocate two schools. Under a 2011 state law, CPS must announce any planned school closings or relocations by Dec. 1. The proposals still need to be voted on by the Board of Education after public hearings are held in January.
School turmoil not on the menu
Editorial, Chicago Sun Times, IL, November 27, 2013
Consider Wednesday’s announcement, then, the first course of a meal that we expect will go down much more easily than last year’s. After the 2012-13 closing earthquake, CPS is in desperate need of this down time to focus on the basics — improved teaching and learning.
KANSAS
District north of Topeka lessens ties to teachers’ union
Topeka Capital-Journal, KS, November 26, 2013
A group of teachers from a district about 70 miles north of Topeka has voted to lessen their ties to the state’s main teachers’ union, becoming the second district to do so in 2013.
LOUISIANA
Organizers say charter school plans on track in Lafayette
The Advocate, LA, November 26, 2013
Two groups approved to start three charter schools in Lafayette Parish say they are on track to open schools as planned in August and one is already starting to look for key staff to run its schools.
MASSACHUSETTS
Milford area teachers making the grade
Milford Daily News, MA, November 27, 2013
Of the teachers in the Milford area rated under the state’s new teacher evaluation system during the 2012-2013 school year, the majority received a passing grade, according to data from the state.
MICHIGAN
Charter offer chafes residents
Daily Press & Argus, MI, November 27, 2013
The Brighton Area Schools Board of Education decided to sell the vacant Lindbom Elementary School to a residential builder for $1.35 million, but it also faced an onslaught of emotional criticism before making its decision.
Michigan leads in number of charter schools operated by for-profit companies
Detroit News, MI, November 26, 2013
Michigan has the highest number of charter schools managed by for-profit companies, according to a report released Tuesday by the National Education Policy Center.
MINNESOTA
New charter school in Willmar will be turning to area businesses for support, assistance
West Central Tribune, MN, November 26, 2013
Collaboration with area businesses will be a key to the success of a charter school planning to open next fall in Willmar, its organizers said last week.
Strongest schools in Minneapolis shouldn’t be sacrificed
Commentary, Star Tribune, MN
November 26, 2013
Yes, there’s an achievement gap and a perception of privilege, but the city needs a foothold.
MISSISSIPPI
Application released for Miss. charter schools
Hattiesburg American, MS, November 27, 2013
Groups seeking to establish a charter school in Mississippi have until March 14 to submit their applications. But the target may move a little for the groups.
MISSOURI
Washington University partnership boosts science performance at Hazelwood
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, MO, November 26, 2013
The enthusiasm for science is up, and so are test scores across Hazelwood schools, where teachers such as Berghoff are crediting a district partnership with Washington University.
NEW JERSEY
Majority of Newark charter schools agree to district’s universal enrollment plan
Star-Ledger, NJ, November 27, 2013
Fifteen charter schools said yes, five have declined and one has yet to decide whether join the effort to create one application for enrollment in Newark’s public and charter schools, officials said yesterday.
NJ’s school-choice program might be too popular for its own good
New Jersey Spotlight, NJ, November 27, 2013
Rising costs and enrollment prompt state to order spending caps, limits on pupil transfers
OREGON
Administration stands by Oregon ‘high risk’ label
Register-Guard, OR, November 27, 2013
The Obama administration is standing by its determination that Oregon is at risk of failing to comply with its waiver from the federal “No Child Left Behind” education law.
PENNSYLVANIA
Pa. senator plans to unveil education-reform bills
WHTM-TV, PA, November 26, 2013
A Pennsylvania lawmaker plans to introduce a package of legislation to address issues involving charter schools, teacher certification, and the need for high-quality prekindergarten.
Pittsburgh schools board votes to sell Moningside, votes against sale of Columbus
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA, November 26, 2013
Pittsburgh Public Schools board tonight voted against selling Columbus on the North Side for use as a charter school but in favor of selling Morningside for purchase by the Urban Redevelopment Authority.
The on-going experiment
Letter, The Daily Review, PA, November 27, 2013
Charter schools are a permanent and permanently controversial part of public education in Pennsylvania.
RHODE ISLAND
A welcome change of climate at Central Falls High
Providence Journal, RI, November 27, 2013
Central Falls High School, once the poster child of failed school reform, has turned a corner. Math scores have improved. Students say teachers treat them with respect and inspire them to do their best work. Teachers say their voices are heard and their input respected. And parents are a daily presence in the hallways.
TENNESSEE
Charter schools must grow wisely
Opinion, The Tennessean, TN, November 27, 2013
By a 7-to-1 vote, the Metro Board of Education has established strategic priorities for approving charter schools in 2014. These priorities offer common-sense guidelines for Metro Nashville Public Schools to consider quality charters while advancing academic achievement in a way that doesn’t undermine the progress we’re making in other schools.
Merit-based teacher pay plan offered for Nashville schools
The Tennessean, TN, November 27, 2013
Nashville teachers could earn more money for performing better in the classroom under a new teacher pay structure put before the Metro school board Tuesday night.
TEXAS
Open enrollment charter serves all who come
Commentary, San Antonio Express News, TX, November 27, 2013
Great Hearts Texas is a sister network to Great Hearts Arizona and its 16 academies in Phoenix. We enjoy a decade long track record of educational excellence on a national level. We were honored to be approved for San Antonio schools by the State Board of Education (SBOE) last year.
State education board limits charter school options
Editorial, Dallas Morning News, TX, November 26, 2013
Call us confused. One year ago, the State Board of Education approved an application for Great Hearts Academies of Arizona to open a charter school in San Antonio. But last week that same panel denied the same charter organization the right to open campuses in North Texas.
WISCONSIN
Hold all ‘public’ schools accountable
Journal Sentinel, WI, November 26, 2013
The Legislature is tiptoeing closer to the idea that all schools in Wisconsin — even private schools that accepted state-funded vouchers — should be subject to a single state report card. It’s a good idea, as long as there are consequences for poor performance.
ONLINE LEARNING
Registration now open for Virtual School at LSMSA
The Daily News, LA, November 26, 2013
Students from across the state can register now through Wednesday, Jan. 15, for the Virtual School at the Louisiana School for Math, Science, and the Arts.