Daily Headlines: May 3, 2012
Romney Blasts Obama For Opposing D.C. Voucher Program
Washington Times, DC, May 2, 2012
Mitt Romney said Wednesday that it was “inexcusable” for President Obama to try to shut down the District’s federally backed voucher pilot program that has sent thousands of the city’s students to private schools.
Race-Based Achievement Gap Must End
The Tennessean, TN, May 3, 2012
Simply raising test scores does not make up for the huge disparities that African-Americans and other minority groups face while receiving an education. If we truly want to give each child an equal opportunity to succeed, in both school and in life, we need to acknowledge these problems that exist and eliminate them in any way possible.
Zina’s Story: A Voice of Determination
Huffington Post, May 2, 2012
Every day in this country, scores of children persevere against incredibly negative odds. Their struggles are virtually unnoticed: their accomplishments are unheralded.
FROM THE STATES
Senate Oks Charter Schools Bill
Montgomery Advertiser, AL, May 3, 2012
Senate Republicans pushed through legislation Wednesday that would allow school districts in the state’s largest cities to create charter schools to replace failing schools, while allowing other areas flexibility in addressing their needs.
Chart(Er)Ing A New Course For Academic Independence Without LAUSD
Marina del Rey Argonaut, CA, May 3, 2012
Los Angeles in many ways has become the epicenter for much of the West Coast and throughout the nation for the charter school movement.
Bullis Charter School Begrudgingly Accepts LASD Offer
Los Altos Town Crier, CA, May 2, 2012
Bullis Charter School issued a response accepting the Los Altos School District ’s final facilities offer, but taking the opportunity to also say they were “disappointed” with its “deficiencies.”
Report Card For Delaware’s Charter Schools
Delaware News Journal, DE, May 2, 2012
How are Delaware’s charter schools affecting our public schools? In 2008 Jack Markell said this about Delaware’s charter schools: “We know about some of the successes, but we also know about some of the big problems: resegregation, the skimming of students, the creaming of students…it’s a big issue and for me a matter of major concern.”
Chartering New Territory Part 1
WCTV, FL, May 2, 2012
Charter schools were the focus of a bill in Florida’s 2012 legislative session. And just last month a report from the Department of Education showed charter school students are doing better than than students in traditional public schools. But what exactly makes a charter school a charter? And who creates them?
Gov. Deal To Sign Bill At Charter Academy
Cherokee Tribune, GA, May 3, 2012
Cherokee Charter Academy will be visited by Gov. Nathan Deal this morning, as he plans to have a bill signing ceremony for House Bill 797.
Charter School Bills Up for Final Vote Thursday
Honolulu Civil Beat, HI, May 2, 2012
A pair of bills to overhaul Hawaii ’s charter school system are up for final vote in the Legislature on Thursday, the session’s last day.
State Moves Forward To Remove School Board
Lake County News Sun, IL, May 2, 2012
The state is proceeding with an unprecedented plan to remove an entire Board of Education from North Chicago District 187.
Fall Funding of School Takeover Won’t Drop With Enrollment
Indianapolis Star, IN, May 3, 2012
Teresa Meredith can think of many ways to spend millions in extra money at her school.
Meredith is a vice president of the Indiana State Teachers Association and a teacher in Shelbyville. She would use the money for one-on-one tutoring, or preschool, or maybe even just to restore good programs cut in recent years due to lack of funding.
Starting With An Unfair Advantage Over IPS
Indianapolis Star, IN, May 3, 2012
Gaps and gray areas in state rules regarding takeovers of failing schools have led to demeaning spats among educators and demoralizing uncertainty for many families.
Lawmakers Didn’t Foresee EACS Dilemma
Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, IN, May 3, 2012
The law that eventually passed requires districts to put unused buildings on a list with the state Department of Education so that anyone interested in creating a charter school can find a possible location.
Our Golden Dome Won’t Be The Home of School Transformation
The Gazette, IA, May 3, 2012
We started at the summit. We ended up in a sausage factory. But really, that was education reform’s fate all along. Eventually, inevitably, the high hopes of Gov. Terry Branstad’s education summit last summer would be brought low by the Statehouse grinder.
Law Gives Harris Greater Powers
Monroe News Star, LA, May 3, 2012
A supermajority of the Monroe City School Board is unhappy with Superintendent Kathleen Harris’ job performance, but Gov. Bobby Jindal’s education reform package will increase her authority over the district on July 1.
Grass-Roots Organization Assembles Ed Reform Protest
Shreveport Times, LA, May 3, 2012
Even though Gov. Bobby Jindal has signed sweeping education reforms, parents, teachers and community members say they will not be silenced from expressing their concerns.
Poll: La Mixed On Voucher Support
The Daily Advertiser, LA, May 3, 2012
The vast majority of Louisiana residents believe the state’s public education system is in need of a major overhaul, but that board support for general reform doesn’t always translate into backing specific policy proposals, according to a statewide public policy poll.
Hopedale School Board Oks Calendar, School Choice Seats
Milford Daily News, MA, May 3, 2012
School Committee members Tuesday night approved modifications to the school calendar and set a cap of 88 School Choice seats for the elementary school for the 2013-2014 school year.
New Law Weds Efforts To Help Students Excel
Minneapolis Star Tribune, MN, May 2, 2012
This week, Gov. Mark Dayton signed an omnibus education bill with a provision creating a powerful incentive for school districts and charter schools to work more closely to boost student achievement.
Failed Charter School Bill Highlights State Education Needs
The Commercial Dispatch, MS, May 2, 2012
Charter school legislation is dead, with little chance for resuscitation before the end of the session Sunday, but most supporters and opponents agree it’s only a matter of time before charter schools become a reality in districts across the state.
Time for Courageous Action To Protect Rights of St. Louis Schoolchildren
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, MO, May 2, 2012
Indeed, Judge Vincent’s ruling in the hotly debated Turner et al vs. School District of Clayton case couldn’t have been any worse for children, even if it properly interpreted the state constitution. That question will be a matter for the Missouri Supreme Court to decide.
Imagine Demise In St. Louis May Signal End of Era
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, MO, May 2, 2012
Leaders of Imagine Schools are making a last-ditch bid to keep beleaguered campuses open — but without any involvement from the for-profit corporation that brought the network of charter schools to St. Louis.
Layoffs Looming
Las Vegas Review-Journal, NV, May 3, 2012
Bad faith and a broken collective bargaining system paid off for the Clark County Education Association.
N.J. Supreme Court To Rule On Salary Cap For School Superintendents
Associated Press, May 3, 2012
The New Jersey Supreme Court is about to rule on Gov. Christie’s pay cap for local school superintendents.
NJ Board of Education Scrutinizes Christie’s Blueprint for Schools
New Jersey Spotlight, NJ, May 3, 2012
Chris Cerf may have been away, but his top lieutenants came before the state Board of Education yesterday to present — and sometimes defend — key pieces of the Christie administration’s education reform agenda.
Rescue Proposal For Paterson’s Schools Eliminates Controversial Elements
The Record, NJ, May 2, 2012
A proposal that would rent sections of active public schools to charter schools was pulled from the package before it reached the school board for a vote of support Wednesday night.
Teacher Pay Should Reflect Student Results
Albuquerque Journal, NM, May 3, 2012
Folks who simply focused on dollar amounts when reading this week’s front-page story by Journal education reporter Hailey Heinz on what Albuquerque Public Schools teachers make missed the point.
City to Add Teachers Next Year
Wall Street Journal, May 2, 2012
After years of swelling class sizes, the number of New York City schoolteachers will increase next year for the first time since 2008, city officials said.
Who’s Killing Philly Public Schools?
Philadelphia City Paper, PA, May 3, 2012
He had been delivering the same presentation all day, and doomsday rumors had already leaked: The plan he was about to lay out would dismantle the central office and parcel out school management, at least in part, to private companies.
Julia Steiny: ‘Grand Rounds’ Support Teacher Learning and Quality
GoLocal Worcester, RI, May 3, 2012
UPCS’s 12th-grade teachers have a unique charge to teach their content area – history, science – at the same time as weaning the kids from the intense scaffolding, support and TLC they get from their remarkable school. Fully 95 percent of UPCS’s core-urban students get into college, so the seniors must learn to become completely autonomous readers, writers and thinkers.
Trial Likely For Charter School Suit Against County Schools
Gaston Gazette, NC, May 3, 2012
Area charter schools’ $100,000 lawsuit against the county Board of Education will likely go to trial after a judge denied attorneys’ motions to settle the complaint.
Help for Schools
News & Observer, NC, May 3, 2012
The numbers don’t lie. And the story they tell is depressing. During the past four budget years, the Wake County Board of Commissioners has held funding for the public schools essentially flat. The figure for 2008-09 was $316.2 million. For the current budget year ending June 30, county appropriations to the schools come in at $314.4.
High Point Applies for Charter School Status in Spartanburg County
Spartanburg Herald Journal, SC, May 2, 2012
An application for a new charter school in Spartanburg County was filed Tuesday with the South Carolina Department of Education.
Single-Gender Schools, Athletic Participation Part Of Sweeping Changes In Works For S.C. Charter Schools
Post and Courier, SC, May 3, 2012
Palmetto State charter school supporters are celebrating the passage of a sweeping set of changes they say will benefit their public schools.
Haslam Won’t Sign Charter Limits
Daily News Journal, TN, May 3, 2012
Gov. Bill Haslam will allow a bill that limits the number of foreign workers at charter schools to become law without his signature, the Republican announced Wednesday.
Knox School Board Denies Charter School Extension
WBIR, TN, May 2, 2012
Knox County’s first charter school will not be opening in the fall. Board of Education members voted unanimously Wednesday to deny a six month extension to the Knoxville Charter Academy . The school’s founders sought that time to secure a building.
Texas Association of Business Throws Support Behind Group Of Charter School Supporters In School Finance Litigation
Austin American Statesman, TX, May 3, 2012
The Texas Association of Business has joined the ongoing school finance litigation and thrown its political heft behind a group of charter school supporters involved in the case.
SUCCESS Academy Produces Grads
The Spectrum, UT, May 3, 2012
ST. GEORGE D Making the exceptional look ordinary, 40 graduates donned caps and gowns Wednesday at the graduation for the Southern Utah Center for Computer, Engineering and Science Students, also known as SUCCESS Academy , at Dixie State College.
Seattle School District Officially Selects Banda As New Superintendent
Seattle Times, WA, May 2, 2012
The Seattle School Board made it official Wednesday night: It’s selected José Banda as the next school superintendent.
VIRTUAL EDUCATION
Online Charter School Costs Rising
Reading Eagle, PA, May 3, 2012
It started with 27 students during the 2005-06 school year and, by 2008-09, had grown to 52.
Senate Bill Sent to Gov Would Allow Cyber Schools in Michigan
Detroit News, MI, May 3, 2012
The state Senate on Wednesday sent Gov. Rick Snyder controversial legislation allowing up to 15 cyber schools to operate in Michigan by 2015.
Online Classes Seem To Be Missing Something — Human Contact
Evansville Courier & Press, IN, May 2, 2012
I can hardly believe what I heard while waiting for the NHL Playoffs to come on television the other day. Indiana is now telling people their children could go to school online from K-12. Yes, online. At least licensed teachers will be doing the teaching.