Daily Headlines for June 13, 2011
Duncan Threatens to Alter No Child Left Behind
Wall Street Journal, June 12, 2011
Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is threatening to use the power of his position to alter key elements of No Child Left Behind if Congress doesn’t renew and upgrade the education law before the next school year begins.
Education Secretary May Agree to Waivers on ‘No Child’ Law Requirements
New York Times, NY, June 12, 2011
Unless Congress acts by this fall to overhaul No Child Left Behind, the main federal law on public education, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan signaled that he would use his executive authority to free states from the law’s centerpiece requirement that all students be proficient in reading and math by 2014.
FROM THE STATES
ARIZONA
Arizona Charter Parents Given Opt-Out Right
Tucson Citizen, AZ, June 13, 2011
Charter-school parents now have the same rights as other parents with a new law that allows them to opt their children out of material they consider to be “harmful.”
CALIFORNIA
L.A. Unified: A Report Card
Los Angeles Times, CA, June 13, 2011
A review by the National Council on Teacher Quality highlights some of the district’s wasteful, counterproductive practices.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Hearings to Shine Light On Schools
Washington Times, DC, June 12, 2011
Kwame Brown has made an about-face and announced that the D.C. Council will indeed hear public testimony during confirmation hearings on the schools chancellorship of Kaya Henderson.
FLORIDA
Cash for Pembroke Pines Charter Schools Dwindling Fast
Miami Herald, FL, June 12, 2011
Despite their stellar academic reputation, the city’s charter schools face a funding shortfall that will require budget – and perhaps salary – cuts.
GEORGIA
Charter Academy Parents Plan Rally Tuesday
The Times-Herald, GA, June 13, 2011
The Odyssey School is safe for another five years, but Coweta Charter Academy’s future is still very much in question. Local supporters hope to change that this week.
ILLINOIS
Illinois: The New Leader In Education Reform
Chicago Tribune, IL , June 13, 2011
On Monday, Gov. Pat Quinn signs what might be the most important piece of education legislation ever passed in Illinois. Unlike our neighbors in Wisconsin, Ohio and other states, stakeholders here worked together to craft an aggressive bill that makes our state the leader in education reform. At a time when many teachers understandably feel under attack, this bill celebrates effective teachers, recognizes their accomplishments and helps keep them in classrooms.
INDIANA
A Tug Of War To Control The Turnaround
Indianapolis Star, IN, June 12, 2011
Over the next year, Indiana will see at least some schools, for the first time, taken over by the state with the goal of improving student performance on the standardized ISTEP test. A battle has ensued over who should manage those turnaround efforts in Indianapolis…
LOUISIANA
NASA Software Gives Lusher Charter School Students All The Right Stuff
Times Picayune, LA, June 12, 2011
NASA wants high school students to shoot for the stars, and this spring, a class at Lusher Charter School took the space agency up on the challenge.
MARYLAND
Rolley Urges Vouchers, Mayoral Control of Baltimore Schools
Baltimore Sun, MD, June 12, 2011
Mayoral candidate and former city planning director Otis Rolley III has vowed to offer private school vouchers to students zoned to attend failing middle schools and says he would lobby to restore mayoral control to the city school system.
MASSACCHUSETTS
The High Price Of School Assignment
Boston Globe, MA, June 12, 2011
Like an army of yellow ants, they march across the city: 691 school buses carrying 32,221 students. They will cost the Boston public schools a staggering $80 million next year, approaching 10 percent of the total school budget.
MICHIGAN
Tenure Reform Bills Put Kids’ Education First
Detroit News, MI, June 13, 2011
Bills would tie teacher job security more closely to classroom performance
New DPS Charter School Operators Have Proven Success
The Detroit News, MI, June 13, 2011
Uniforms for students, dress codes for teachers and more math and reading are in store at some of the new charter schools to be opened by Detroit Public Schools this fall.
MINNESOTA
St. Paul Magnet Again At Heart Of District’s Struggle Over Race And Achievement
Minnesota Public Radio, MN, June 13, 2011
A struggling St. Paul elementary school that was once a beacon of racial integration and academic achievement hopes to re-invent itself again, this time taking a page from a successful Afrocentric charter school in north Minneapolis.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Charter School Idea Put To Board
Nashua Telegraph, NH, June 13, 2011
A district-sponsored charter school would serve as a “learning laboratory,” where innovative approaches to education could be used with the goal of taking what works and applying it to other schools in the city.
NEW YORK
Charters: No Kid ‘Stuff’
New York Post, NY, June 13, 2011
The Bloomberg administration’s policy of allowing charter schools to share building space with traditional public schools has not led to a significant spike in class size, according to study released today by a charter-school group.
OHIO
Ohio Senate Tucks Policy Changes Into Massive State Budget
Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH, June 13, 2011
Requires school districts to offer right of first refusal to charter schools to lease unused school buildings and other district property for $1 if the charter school is rated in the top 50 percent of the performance index score. All other charter schools would get first right of refusal at fair market value.
OREGON
Oregon Legislature Should Invest In More Effective Teachers, Higher Student Achievement
Statesman Journal, OR, June 12, 2011
The key to great schools and successful students is simple to define but difficult to achieve: effective teachers. That’s common sense. But that also has been demonstrated by the brilliant work of the Chalkboard Project and its CLASS initiative.
PENNSYLVANIA
Card Check Primer: The Union Label
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, PA, June 13, 2011
Imagine finding out without notice that one’s workplace has been unionized, forcing union dues on all employees — much to the surprise and dismay of those who want no part of it.
Ackerman Takes On A Union-Busting Role
Philadelphia Daily News, PA, June 13, 2011
In the past couple of years, the issue of alleged “union busting” in public schools has taken center stage – and suddenly Philadelphia finds itself a major battleground.
Charter School Finds an Angel in Agassi
Philadelphia Daily News, PA, June 11, 2011
When the 5- and 6-year-olds in Betsy Lawson and Brittany Fix’s kindergarten class read books, learn their numbers or dance and sing to rehearse for a performance next Monday, they stay in one brightly colored room that looks just like any other kindergarten room:
RHODE ISLAND
Portsmouth Asks Court To Clarify Who Controls How Teachers Are Hired And Assigned
Providence Journal, RI, June 13, 2011
The long-looming clash between school districts and teachers’ unions over how teachers get hired and assigned to classrooms is headed to court.
SOUTH CAROLINA
Charter School Candidates Denied: Advisory Committee Rejects Applications of Village Charter And Global Studies
Post and Courier, SC, June 13, 2011
Two of the Charleston groups hoping to open new charter schools failed to receive the necessary approval of a state committee last week and will have to wait another year before reapplying.
TEXAS
Supporting Public Schools Privately
Winona Daily News, TX, June 13, 2011
It says plenty that Ridgeway Community School – a charter school formerly in the Winona Area Public Schools system – is expanding.
VIRTUAL EDUCATION
Golden Valley Charter, Virtual Charter Schools Celebrate Graduates
Ventura County Star, CA, June 11, 2011
The 13 students from Ventura-based Golden Valley Charter School and Golden Valley Virtual Charter School never entered a classroom to work toward their diplomas.
Four Students Take Alternate Paths To Graduation
San Diego Union-Tribune, CA, June 11, 2011
Kevin Groarke was the first student to enroll in iHigh Virtual Academy two years ago and is graduating as the school’s valedictorian with a 4.03 GPA. For Kevin, the online program was a perfect fit, allowing him to accelerate his education and take classes he was interested in.