Daily Headlines for November 9, 2011
NATIONAL
Bipartisan Rewrite of Education Law Sparks Debate
Associated Press, November 9, 2011
In a divided Washington , there’s widespread agreement that the sweeping No Child Left Behind education law needs fixing. But finding a fix hasn’t been easy.
Education Belongs in GOP Debates
Orange County Register, CA, November 8, 2011
School and broader education reform should be one focal point of the debate because it is an issue most Americans consider when voting and because a functional education system is inextricably connected to economic stability and job creation.
Reports On Charter Schools Expose New Problems
Washington Post Blog, DC, November 9, 2011
Two new reports about public charter schools expose serious issues about the way they are run and their effectiveness.
Race to More Ineffective Ed Spending
National Review Online, November 8, 2011
We spend nearly $600 billion each year on education in this country. This is more than the entire national budgets of India, Russia, South Korea, Singapore, and Finland combined, and some of these countries are the leading scorers on international education tests.
STATE COVERAGE
ALABAMA
Bentley Wants Vote On Education Standards
Decatur Daily, AL, November 9, 2011
Gov. Robert Bentley wants the state Board of Education to undo a 2010 decision to adopt core standards for public education.
CALIFORNIA
School Retrofits Make Megawatts Of Good Sense
Sacramento Bee, CA, November 9, 2011
Aging school infrastructure is a challenge, but also a great opportunity. Done right, it could reduce operating costs to school districts, create local jobs and get students, teachers and parents engaged in science learning.
No Charter School, Mt. Diablo District Tells Clayton Valley Organizers
Contra Costa Times, CA, November 8, 2011
After hearing from nearly 40 parents, principals, teachers and others speaking for and against converting Clayton Valley High to a charter school, trustees on Tuesday voted 4-1 to deny the petition.
Charter High School, Housed At Cabrillo, Provides More Opportunities For At-Risk Youth
Santa Cruz Sentinel, CA, November 8, 2011
The student body is made up of students whose educational experiences at their former high schools in Santa Cruz County were, for various reasons, less than positive.
LA Unified And Teachers Union At Odds Over Reforms
KPCC, CA, November 8, 2011
The Los Angeles Unified School District and its teachers union have been unable to find acceptable common ground in a contentious program after a November first negotiating deadline.
COLORADO
Re-Centering The Wayward DPS
Denver Post, CO, November 9, 2011
The ever-turbulent educational environment in Denver Public Schools has encountered even more tumult in recent months. Like most of the nation’s urban school systems, the DPS leadership has mastered the reform theater rather than the mechanics of true educational improvement.
Summit, Colo. Score Ok With ‘Nation’s Report Card’
Summit Daily News, CO, November 9, 2011
Results of the “Nation’s Report Card,” or the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), show Colorado outperforming most of the rest of the nation in fourth- and eighth-grade reading and math, but that’s the silver lining in otherwise dismal scores nationwide.
CONNECTICUT
Conn. Superintendents Propose School Improvements
Record Journal, CT, November 9, 2011
Dozens of Connecticut superintendents are preparing to unveil more than 150 ideas they believe would improve the state’s schools.
IDAHO
Districts Try To Keep Score Of … Something
Idaho Statesman, ID, November 9, 2011
The debate has been around almost as long as the teacher merit pay movement has been around. How should schools identify their top-flight teachers? There isn’t a simple answer. But there are some ideas that simply don’t make sense.
ILLINOIS
Union, UNO Clash Over School
Chicago News Cooperative, IL, November 9, 2011
More than 100 people turned out for a community meeting on a new charter school proposal Tuesday night on the city’s far Northwest Side, with public school teachers pressing freshman Ald. Nicholas Sposato (36th Ward) to block the plan put forward by one of Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s staunch allies.
Dist. 50, Charter School Aiming For Solutions
Chicago Daily Herald, IL, November 9, 2011
Woodland Elementary District 50 officials said Tuesday they are upbeat about receiving help in their quest to find what they say should be a better way to fund Prairie Crossing Charter School in Grayslake.
INDIANA
Shifting Enrollment Blurs Tracking of Voucher Dollars
The Journal Gazette, IN, November 9, 2011
Hoosier students are playing a variation of musical chairs under Indiana’s new voucher program, but this version has financial implications for the state and Indiana schools.
IOWA
The Politics of School Reform
Des Moines Register Blog, IA, November 8, 2011
Governor Terry Branstad and his Education director, Jason Glass, deserve credit for initiating a statewide discussion about education.
MICHIGAN
State Lawmaker Says He Accepts His Recall In Genesee County
Detroit News, MI, November 9, 2011
Republican state Rep. Paul Scott of Grand Blanc conceded Tuesday in a tight recall election over his education and budget-related votes.
Put Former School To Innovative Use
Battle Creek Enquirer, MI, November 9, 2011
I am sure the entire BCPS board is dismayed at the prospect of tearing down this fine building. However, it would be a mistake to turn this building over to a charter school.
Harlem Activist To Charter School Educators: It’s Up To You To Save Kids
The Detroit News, MI, November 8, 2011
No one is coming to save America’s educational system or the children in it, Harlem educator and social activist Geoffrey Canada said Tuesday, encouraging teachers and others in education to stand up and take charge.
MISSOURI
Imagine Schools Pick New Leader Here
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, MO, November 9, 2011
Charter school operator Imagine Schools Inc. on Tuesday named a top executive to oversee its six struggling schools in St. Louis.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Committee Backs Tax Credit That Aids Students
Concord Monitor, NH, November 9, 2011
A committee of legislators is supporting a tax credit program that would give businesses an incentive to donate money to be used exclusively to fund education options for New Hampshire students.
NEW MEXICO
Charters Should Follow APS Transparency Move
Albuquerque Journal, NM, November 9, 2011
Albuquerque Public Schools Superintendent Winston Brooks gets an “A+” for going beyond requirements in the Sunshine Portal Transparency Act.
OHIO
Unions Get Revenge as Issue 2 Fails
Columbus Dispatch, OH, November 9, 2011
A year after Gov. John Kasich and legislative Republicans were swept into office, Ohio voters delivered them a stinging rebuke yesterday, striking down an extensive curtailing of public-union power that Republican leaders had hoped to make a centerpiece accomplishment of 2011.
PENNSYLVANIA
Big Crowd Turns Out For Upland Hearing On Charter School
Delaware County Times, PA, November 8, 2011
Monday night’s zoning hearing board meeting was attended by a standing-room-only crowd at MacQueen Hall, where the details of a proposed public charter grade-school on the corner of 11th and Main streets were discussed.
SOUTH CAROLINA
Greer Middle College Charter High Wins State Appeal on AYP
Greenville News, SC, November 8, 2011
When the 2011 school Report Cards are released Thursday, they will show that Greer Middle College Charter High was among the 14 out of 179 high schools statewide that met the rising standard under the federal No Child Left Behind law, according to state and local education officials.
TENNESSEE
Haslam Weighing Position On School Vouchers Proposal
The Tennessean, TN, November 9, 2011
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam is still weighing the pros and cons of a school vouchers proposal, and doesn’t plan to announce his position on the measure until close to the end of the year.
TEXAS
Not All Parents Sold on Charter IDEA
KXAN, TX, November 8, 2011
What started with 150 kids meeting on the second floor of a church building ten years ago, has grown to a top-rated Texas charter school system with 10,000 college-bound students.
A Model of Academic Success at Graham Elementary
Austin Statesman, TX, November 8, 2011
Kudos to Graham Elementary School in Northeast Austin, which has emerged as among the best public schools in the state.
WEST VIRGINIA
Principals, Teachers Blast State’s Plan To Limit Student Suspensions
Charleston Gazette, WV, November 8, 2011
The subject of charter schools also was discussed at Tuesday’s meeting. Nelson Smith, a former president of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, told board members that it was time for West Virginia to rethink some of its hesitations in starting a charter school program.
WISCONSIN
Lighthouse School to Open on Northwest Side
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, WI, November 8, 2011
North Point Lighthouse Charter School, affiliated with a nonprofit national charter firm that once tangled with Milwaukee Public Schools over locating in a shuttered district school building, says it’s now found a home for its school on the city’s northwest side.
Teacher Evaluation System Praised By Superintendent
Green Bay Press-Gazette, WI, November 9, 2011
Wisconsin school Superintendent Tony Evers praised a new teacher evaluation system Tuesday afternoon during a tour of the east-side Green Bay Boys & Girls Club on University Avenue .
VIRTUAL LEARNING
Vote on Bay Haven Virtual Schools Delayed
News Herald, FL, November 8, 2011
A “breakdown in communications” led to a lengthy debate during Tuesday’s School Board meeting about the course of action to take regarding two virtual charter school applications.
Students Inspired By Online Learning
Niles Daily Star, MI, November 8, 2011
The way Trevor Martz sees it, he would not be on the path to getting a high school diploma if it weren’t for the alternative learning program called the W-A-Y Niles.
“I would probably have gotten kicked out of high school,” Martz said. “I had a lot of problems in school, failed a lot and got in with the wrong people. I needed a fresh start.”
Bluesky Online School, Former Employees Reach Tentative Deal In Whistle-Blower Lawsuit
Pioneer Press, MN, November 9, 2011
BlueSky Online has reached a tentative settlement with two former employees who sued the charter school claiming they were fired for exposing deficiencies with the school’s curriculum and graduation practices.
Online Schools Audit A Chance For Accountability
The Coloradoan, CO, November 8, 2011
When is a call for accountability not a call for accountability? When you are running for elected office – at least, that’s the way some state Republican lawmakers appear to see it.
Virtual High School: District Program Appears to be Working
Las Vegas Journal- Review , NV, November 9, 2011
Some kinds of education reform need not involve political battles between unions and legislators. Some reforms involve rethinking how and where teachers and students interact, and creating new, more efficient learning opportunities through technology.