Our View
Charter schools reach for the stars?
This sounds pretty cool:Imagine a math and science high school with lab classes conducted by staff from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Or a high school of the arts with access to the stages of the Pasadena Playhouse and the exhibits of the Huntington Library.These and other innovative ideas are included in a new report set…
Katrina voucher program extended
Yes, we're happy, and no, we're not the least bit ashamed of it. Put yourself in the shoes of one of these children for a minute. Your home having been wiped out by Katrina, you're in an entirely different home in an entirely different city. You likely live in a cramped hotel or apartment, probably…
LAUSD takeover plan run aground?
California state lawmakers have told Antonio Villaraigosa that it's now or never:Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's attempt to take over the Los Angeles public schools is in serious jeopardy in the Legislature, according to one leading Democrat who urged the mayor Thursday to intervene in hopes of salvaging his plan.Democrats and Republicans alike voiced doubt about Villaraigosa's…
Union jumping overboard in New Orleans
As the Crescent City looks to make a full transition into charters, the union is refusing to play ball:With a little more than two weeks left on its contract with the United Teachers of New Orleans and no negotiations under way, the Orleans Parish School Board refused Wednesday to extend the current contract, suggesting collective…
Vamos a Cuba is gone
The controversial book is out the door:A controversial children's book about Cuba -- and similar books from the same series about other countries -- will be removed from all Miami-Dade school libraries after a School Board vote Wednesday that split Hispanic and non-Hispanic members in an incendiary political atmosphere.Some are suggesting the board overreached: Legal…
Rudy comes out swinging
Dean Esmay sees this from a Rudy Giuliani speaking event... The red meat for conservatives, however, came in the Q&A: An audience member asked Giuliani what he would do on education as president. Without deflecting the loaded premise of the question (no announcement yet, folks), the former mayor launched into an impassioned brief for school…
The union is a fickle friend
Some Maryland county council members running for reelection have discovered the hard way that you cross the unions at your peril:An endorsement on the Montgomery County teachers union’s coveted apple ballot has always carried considerable weight in the minds of county voters. This year, in a wide-open election season, the biggest surprise of the union’s…
New Orleans district goes all-charter?
On the heels of massive charter school funding, this seems like the logical next step:The nation's first charter-only school district is taking shape in New Orleans - an unprecedented opportunity to reinvent an urban district that was in an academic and financial sinkhole long before Hurricane Katrina.As education officials scramble to prepare for an estimated…
NYC New York teachers' union probe put to rest
From the LA Times, where it all started. New York's largest teachers union agreed Tuesday to change the way it markets individual retirement plans to its members, ending what authorities called a "silent partnership" with insurer ING Group that saddled teachers with high-cost investments that provided scant benefits.New York State United Teachers received $3 million…
Former teacher endorses merit pay
Jerry P. Lightner, former teacher and head of the National Association of Biology Teachers, says this:Providing a modest salary boost to teachers who outperform their colleagues seems like a reasonable move. Throughout most of society, employees who do outstanding work are generally rewarded with salary raises and job advancement more rapidly than mediocre workers. However,…