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Does Signing a Petition Give Parents a Voice in Schools?
Berkley Daily Planet, CA, October 3, 2011
Many teachers believe parent trigger laws are a way for charter schools to gain a bigger share of the education system. For McGinity, that’s not a bad idea. The Broad Foundation promotes the proliferation of charter schools, which he says simply offer parents “a different way for a school to operate.” Teachers, however, are alarmed. They see the expansion of a privatized education system, and view parent trigger laws as a means for rushing the process forward.

An Apple For The Teachers’ Unions
Modesto Bee, CA, October 4, 2011
Some presidents will time major speeches on education to signal the start of the school year. Barack Obama did it to signal the start of his effort to polish the apples of the teachers unions in time for them to donate to his 2012 re-election campaign.

Middle School Improvements Credited For Big Gain In Denver Public Schools Enrollment
Denver Post, CO, October 4, 2011
Preliminary enrollment numbers for Denver Public Schools show that for the first time, the district is educating more than 80,000 students.

New School Flexibility Welcome In No Child Left Behind Reprieve
Sun Sentinel, FL, October 4, 2011
It has long confounded education officials struggling to meet proficiency benchmarks in this era of high-stakes testing: Schools that excel under Florida’s Sunshine State standards can very often fall dangerously short under the federal No Child Left Behind guidelines.

Miami-Dade Recognizes Top Teachers With Big Checks
Miami Herald, FL, October 3, 2011
Superintendent Alberto Carvalho handed out checks to teachers who ranked as top math and reading instructors, according to the district’s performance pay plan for the past school year. Federal money financed the program.

Most Charter Applicants Fail, but KIPP Looks to Expand
Florida Times Union , FL, October 3, 2011
Despite its first school earning the lowest FCAT score in Northeast Florida last year, the charter school organization KIPP Jacksonville is moving forward with plans to open two new schools in the 2012-13 school year.

Dekalb School Board Moves To House Charters
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, GA, October 3, 2011
The DeKalb County School System paved the way late Monday to begin negotiating with a charter school to move into an empty school facility.

Charter School Finances Under The Microscope
Chicago Tribune, IL, October 4, 2011
A two-year study of charter schools in Chicago indicates that many suffer from some of the same funding challenges as traditional public schools but that most charters are on sound financial footing.

Teachers Union Officials Discuss ‘Better School Day’ In Meetings With Aldermen
Chicago Tribune, IL, October 4, 2011
CTU president Lewis says union was ‘blindsided’ by resolution calling for longer day

Superintendents ‘Optimistic’ About New Education Plan
Sioux City Journal, IA, October 3 2011
Sioux City Schools Superintendent Paul Gausman, who played a role in developing Gov. Terry Branstad’s $3 billion education reform plan, said he is excited about most of its provisions and cautiously optimistic that some form of it will emerge from the Legislature.

State Officials’ Education Reforms Aimed At Making Iowa Schools The Nation’s Best
Des Moines Register, IA, October 3, 2011
Teacher preparation programs would be tougher to get into and high school students would have to pass end-of-course exams in order to graduate under wide-ranging education reform proposals unveiled Monday by state leaders.

Two New Charter Proposals Reach Final Review Stage
Boston Globe, MA, October 3, 2011
Proposals for two new in-district charter schools in Boston will advance to the final round of consideration, state education officials announced today.

Privatization of Michigan Public Schools Called ‘Very Real’ Possibility
Kalamazoo Gazette, MI, October 3, 2011
Privatization of Michigan’s public education system is a “very real” threat, and a change that could make education about the bottom line versus what’s best for students, a state lawmaker said Monday at town-hall forum held in Kalamazoo.

Parish Schools To Rate Poorly In New System
Natchez Democrat, MS, October 4, 2011
A new system for scoring schools has the Concordia Parish School Board academic director worried the state is making public schools look bad.

National Program Allows Recent Graduates To Guide At-Risk Students
Las Vegas Review-Journal, NV, October 4, 2011
The best teachers don’t always take the traditional route to the classroom. For some, the idea never crossed their minds until they were almost out of college.

NJ Sets Right Course On Charter Schools With High Standards, Close Review
Star-Ledger, NJ, October 4, 2011
The Christie administration last week rejected 56 of the 60 applications for new charter schools, a welcome sign that its standards are tough despite its ideological support for the choice movement.

NJ Should Identify Charter School Application Reviewers
Star Ledger, NJ, October 3, 2011
It’s true for political donors, and it’s equally true for the volunteers who help review charter school applications for the state Department of Education.

Students Enjoying Fine and Performing Arts Academy Classes
Gloucester County Times , NJ, October 4, 2011
GHS was one of only 56 schools in the state to be selected for the Interdistrict School Choice Program which allows students to attend a public school outside their home district without cost to their parents.

Pride Swells As Hyde Leaders
hip Charter School’s First Graduating Class Sees New Building
New York Daily News, NY, October 4, 2011
Hyde Leadership Charter School, the first college preparatory high school to open in Hunts Point in nearly 30 years, will officially unveil its new building Tuesday.

Expansion of School Vouchers in Ohio Fails on Many Fronts
Youngstown Vindicator, OH, October 4, 2011
Just as many public school districts in the Mahoning Valley and throughout Ohio are vigilantly trying to slay the dollar-slashing demons of stinging cuts in state subsidies, falling local revenue and weakened federal support, along comes a bevy of Republican state lawmakers who want to agitate an already out-of-control fiscal monster.

Tutoring Pacts up for Vote
Columbus Dispatch, OH, October 4, 2011
State and district investigations into problems with private tutoring operations continue, but the Columbus Board of Education today will consider tutoring contracts with 61 operators that could total $6.3 million this school year.

Oklahoma City School Board, Nonprofit Group To Operate Downtown Charter School
The Oklahoman, OK, October 4, 2011
The charter school — to be named John W. Rex Elementary School — will be operated jointly by representatives from the district and the nonprofit group Oklahoma City Quality Schools.

We Have To Find A Way To Keep Good Teachers
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, October 4, 2011
When economic times get tough, businesses sometimes have to make tough choices about whom or what to cut. You’d think that for a job as important as teaching kids, teacher quality would be the deciding important actor, but it’s not even close in the Philadelphia public schools.

NCLB Waiver Step in Right Direction for TN Schools
Daily News Journal, TN, October 3, 2011
It was past time to fix the fix. No Child Left Behind became federal law in 2002, passing through Congress with good intentions and widespread bipartisan support.

Public Divided over Madison Prep Charter School Proposal
Capital Times, WI, October 3, 2011
The Madison School Board faces a starkly divided public as it contemplates approving a new charter school geared toward low-income minority students.

Costs of School Choice Should Be Transparent
Milwaukee Small Business Times, WI, October 3, 2011
Our city’s taxpayers deserve to know which programs are being funded with their tax dollars. This is matter of public accountability, transparency and good government. Again, we respectfully request that you break out and display the tax levy associated with the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program separately from the tax levy for Milwaukee Public Schools on all annual tax documents sent to tax payers.

VIRTUAL LEARNING

Funding For Most Online Schools Based On Unreliable Enrollment
KKCO-TV, CO, October 3, 2011
District 51’s new online school enrolled 150 students this year. With only one official enrollment count in October and funding being based per student, funding can be a little complicated as students drop out randomly throughout the year.

Online Students Losing Ground Academically
Longmont Times Call, CO, October 3, 2011
Students attending Colorado’s full-time online education programs have typically lagged their peers on virtually every academic indicator, from state test scores to student growth measures to high school graduation rates.