Daily Headlines for May 24, 2011
Perpetuating Federal Spending on Education
Town Hall Blog, May 24, 2011
We’ve spent $2 trillion on education since federal aid began in 1965. The specified goals were to improve student achievement, eliminate or narrow the gap between upper-income and low-income students, and increase graduation rates from high school and college.
FROM THE STATES
CALIFORNIA
Imagine School of Imperial Valley Doing Well At The End Of Year One
Imperial Valley Press, CA, May 24, 2011
The public charter school, which opened in August, held a duo of programs during its grand opening Monday. Imagine’s inaugural year has been challenging yet satisfying, said Imagine School Principal Susan Castro.
GEORGIA
Cherokee Calls For Charter School Application
Atlanta Journal-Constitution, GA, May 23, 2011
The Cherokee County School District sent a letter Monday to a foundation trying to get a charter school approved, asking for a revised petition that addresses shortcomings the school board noted when it denied the school’s application last year.
Dashing Student Hopes And Choice
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, GA, May 23, 2011
We are saddened over the Georgia Supreme Court decision striking down the Georgia Charter Schools Commission. This is bad news for thousands of children and parents who hoped for a brighter future with their children.
Try Adoption For Charter Schools
Marietta Daily Journal, GA, May 23, 2011
For years, the charter school movement was thwarted in Georgia by local school districts that turned down application after application. Many of those denials were for cause. Other charter school applications, however, were turned down for myriad other reasons. School boards, already under pressure, felt they were doing all they could do in this test-centric era.
MAINE
Charter School Law Allows Nothing That Can’t Be Done Already
Portland Press-Herald , ME, May 24, 2011
Public schools already have tools to let them be more flexible and innovative. Why not use them?
MASSACHUSSETTS
Charter’s Students, Parents Deserve State’s OK for Second Year
Gloucester Times, MA, May 23, 2011
The Gloucester Community Arts Charter School – born from a botched approval process, opened amid disputes over no-bid contracts and occupancy permits then finally cleared to continue in a state Department of Education probationary hearing in December – faces another key step along the road to its future today.
Charter Schools Have Alternative To Unionizing
Cape Cod Times, MA, May 24, 2011
While uncommon, unionization of charter schools is a very real threat to the innovative, flexible environment charters were intended to cultivate. Teachers and administrators should be aware of their options before committing to union representation.
MISSOURI
Belcher’s Volunteer Army Attacks Achievement Gap In Schools And Beyond
Columbia Missourian, MO, May 24, 2011
Ask Columbia School Superintendent Chris Belcher what it’s like to try to close the achievement gap, and he offers this analogy: It’s like trying to change the tire on a moving car.
NEVADA
Needed Reforms: To Improve Schools, Stop Protecting Bad Teachers
Las Vegas Review-Journal, NV, May 24, 2011
Friday’s meeting of the Senate Education Committee epitomized why student achievement has stagnated in Nevada, and why the meaningful reform legislation that would improve our schools never makes it to the governor’s desk.
NEW JERSEY
Court Decision Could Upend N.J. Schools
Wall Street Journal, May 24, 2011
The New Jersey Supreme Court is expected to deliver its decision on a challenge to Gov. Chris Christie’s school-funding cuts, which left schools under-funded by $1.6 billion, on Tuesday morning.
N.J. Assembly Panel Advances Bills On Charter Schools
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, May 24, 2011
The New Jersey Assembly Education Committee on Monday moved along four bills to change the process of creating and overseeing the state’s charter schools.
For Charter School Bills — an Easy Time in Committee, a Tough Time in the Assembly?
NJ Spotlight, NJ, May 24, 2011
Four bills that would revamp how charter schools are reviewed and approved in New Jersey won easy passage yesterday in a key Assembly committee.
NEW YORK
Tests for Pupils, But the Grades Go to Teachers
New York Times, NY, May 24, 2011
New York City education officials are developing more than a dozen new standardized tests, but in a sign of the times, their main purpose will be to grade teachers, not the students who take them.
Charter School Apps Soar While Waitlists Grow
NY 1, NY, May 23, 2011
A report released Monday by the New York City Charter School Center indicated a record number of students applied to city charter schools this year. Waitlists are now longer than ever.
NORTH CAROLINA
Senate Budget Proposes Merit Pay
Charlotte Observer, NC, May 24, 2011
The $19.4 billion state budget the Senate will make public today will include a proposal to pay state employees and teachers based on their performance. The plan will also include $320 million for raises, effective in the 2012-2013 fiscal year.
TENNESSEE
Charter Schools’ Lofty Balloon Will Burst Sooner Or Later
The Tennessean, TN, May 23, 2011
Two recent opinion columns in The Tennessean, though reflecting different perspectives, contribute to the trum
ped-up mass appeal of charter schools.
TEXAS
Time Dwindling, Another Lost Chance At School Finance
Texas Tribune, TX, May 24, 2011
The death of a key education fiscal matters bill on the House floor tonight ensures that any changes to school finance formulas will happen in a conference committee – and adds fuel to speculation of a special session this summer.
WISCONSIN
Wisconsin Superintendent Tony Evers Calls School Choice Program ‘Morally Wrong’
Appleton Post-Crescent, WI, May 24, 2011
Gov. Scott Walker’s proposal to expand the Milwaukee school choice voucher program to other Wisconsin school districts is “morally wrong,” state Supt. Tony Evers told students and staff Monday at Green Bay Preble High School.
Social Justice And School Choice
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, WI, May 23, 2011
Social justice is about equality and recognizing the dignity of every human being. Equality means parents of all backgrounds should have an equal footing to send their kids to the school of their choice.
VIRTUAL EDUCATION
New Program to Cater to Home-Schooled K-8 Learners
Magic Valley Times News, ID, May 24, 2011
Minidoka County School District is going online next fall with a free virtual academy geared toward K-8 home-schooled children.