Daily Headlines for October 10, 2012
Op-Ed: Teacher Evaluation — What is the Primary Goal?
New Jersey Spotlight, NJ, October 9, 2012
Any “teacher evaluation system” that does not have as its primary goal “teacher improvement” is a waste of time and money.
STATE COVERAGE
CALIFORNIA
Taxpayers Win With School Choice
Chico Enterprise-Record , CA, October 10, 2012
Everyone wins by allowing parents to use their education taxes for school choice, including charters, parochial, private, home and public schools.
Deasy Gets Authority Over Approving Outside Control Of Schools
Los Angeles Times Blog, CA, October 9, 2012
L.A. schools Supt. John Deasy received broad authority Tuesday to renew or end agreements by which two outside organizations run traditional public schools, including a group of schools under the control of Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
Principals Approve New Evaluations But Object To Workload
Los Angeles Times Blog, CA, October 9, 2012
School officials on Tuesday formally approved a one-year agreement for evaluating principals in the Los Angeles Unified School District, but the head of the administrators union also asserted that principals will be overburdened by a new teacher-evaluation system.
LAUSD Board Member Steve Zimmer Asks Charter Operators To Halt Applications
New York Daily News, NY, October 9, 2012
Under fire for his proposal to freeze charter school growth, LAUSD school board member Steve Zimmer on Tuesday released a scaled-back plan to ask charter operators to voluntarily delay applications until the district tightens its oversight of the mushrooming movement.
CONNECTICUT
New Law Allows For Millions For West Hartford ‘ Diversity School ’ Construction
West Hartford News, CT, October 10, 2012
As legislation was just passed that will make millions available for construction at the Charter Oak International Academy, the West Hartford Board of Education already has a clearly defined schedule that could lead to breaking ground on the yet-defined project by spring 2014.
FLORIDA
School Board Takes Stand On Amendments
The Tampa Tribune, FL, October 10, 2012
Count the Hillsborough County school board among the opponents of highly controversial Amendment 8.
State Seeks To Double Enrollment In Charter Schools
Orlando Sentinel, FL, October 9, 2012
Florida education leaders want to double the number of children enrolled in charter schools in the next six years, while also expanding other school-choice options for students.
Charter Application for Harrison Center Is Denied
The Ledger, FL, October 9, 2012
For the first time since she’s been a student in Polk County schools, Breanne DiCesare said she feels that she finally belongs now that she attends the Harrison Center for the Visual and Performing Arts.
Board Says No To Poinciana Charter School
News Chief, FL, October 10, 2012
If a group of four Poinciana community activists believed they had reason to be optimistic Tuesday, the Polk County School Boar disabused them of that feeling by turning down a proposed K-8 charter school.
Charter School: Enroll Here, Get A Free Nintendo Dsi
WTSP, FL, October 9, 2012
Would you transfer your child to a new school if it meant receiving a portable gaming system in return?
GEORGIA
School Board OKs Marietta’s Second Charter Application
Marietta Daily Journal, GA, October 10, 2012
After months of planning and collecting data, the Marietta City School Board unanimously approved Superintendent Dr. Emily Lembeck’s recommendation to submit the district’s second charter system application to the state by Nov. 1.
Advocates For A Dual School System Trying To Silence The Opposition
Macon Telegraph, GA, October 10, 2012
It’s hard to believe an issue could become more convoluted. What began as an effort to rewrite the state’s constitution to give the state powers that it already enjoys has turned farcical. Monday, charter school advocates filed suit against all 180 school systems — calling them part of the “Education Empire.” The suit says the school systems are part of a conspiracy to defeat Amendment 1. Oh really?
Ginn Says No To Charter Amendment; Quick May, Too
Athens Banner-Herald, GA, October 9, 2012
State Sen. Frank Ginn will vote against a proposed state constitutional amendment to create a new politically appointed commission to authorize charter schools.
Cherokee Mom Suing Ga. School Districts
Cherokee Tribune, GA, October 10, 2012
A parent of two children at Cherokee Charter Academy is one of five charter amendment supporters signing onto the lawsuit against Georgia’s 180 local school districts alleging illegal use of resources to campaign on the issue.
Opponents Of Charter Schools Amendment Raise Their Own Questions About Tactics Of Supporters
Atlanta Journal-Constitution, GA, October 9, 2012
Saying what’s good for the goose is good for the governor, the Democratic Party of Georgia has accused Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens of overlooking what it sees as Gov. Nathan Deal’s illegal use of taxpayer resources to support the charter schools amendment.
Katrina Young: A Perspective On Public Education: The Charter School Amendment
Newton Citizen, GA, October 9, 2012
When local accountability shifts from local voters to a state-appointed body, it matters. When appointees of appointees can decide to place an unlimited number of schools in a school district without regard to the effect on taxpayers, it matters. When the state sets out to intentionally create a separate school system, it matters.
IDAHO
Voters to Decide on Education Laws
Magic Valley Times, ID, October 10, 2012
While Idaho educators and students continue to adjust to education reforms, voters will have their say next month.
Idaho Propositions 1,2,3 Donation Scrutinized
Idaho Statesman, ID, October 10, 2012
The refusal of a new nonprofit group to reveal the source of $200,350 contributed for TV ads backing Propositions 1, 2 and 3 is “under legal review,” the Secretary of State’s Office said.
ILLINOIS
Quest Academic Goals Exceed Assessment Test Projections
Journal Star, IL, October 10, 2012
Quest Charter Academy set academic goals with expectations that 85 percent of students will be proficient in reading and 90 percent will be proficient in math by the end of the school year – higher than their assessment tests project.
Teachers Union Suit Goes After Law Cracking Down On Public Pension Abuse
Chicago Tribune, IL, October 9, 2012
Fearing cuts to the pension benefits of its “ordinary” members, the Chicago Teachers Union filed a lawsuit in Cook County Circuit Court Tuesday that goes after a state law passed in January that was intended to crackdown on public pension abuses.
LOUISIANA
Louisiana Education Reform Shouldn’t Be Strangled In The Crib
Times Picayune, LA, October 9, 2012
Louisiana’s attempt to improve its public education has revved up this school year, the first in which the sweeping reforms approved by the legislature last spring are in force.
Superintendent Says Report Backs Voucher Program
Baton Rouge Advocate, LA, October 10, 2012
State Superintendent of Education John White joined faculty and students at Good Shepherd School in New Orleans on Tuesday, presenting a progress report on the Louisiana Scholarship Program to mark the program’s first quarter.
MARYLAND
School Transition Team Urges Review Of Achievement Gap, Discipline Policies
Baltimore Sun, MD, October 9, 2012
Baltimore County schools should work to more quickly eliminate achievement gaps and ensure that discipline policies are applied consistently to all groups of students, according to recommendations made by the transition team appointed by Superintendent Dallas Dance.
New Prince George’s County Teacher Evaluations Use Student Feedback
Baltimore Sun, MD, October 9, 2012
For the first time, Prince George ‘s County is using student feedback to evaluate teacher performance.
At most public schools in the county, evaluations are based on reviews of classroom instruction, teacher self-assessments and goal-setting conferences between teachers and principals.
MASSACHUSETTS
Teachers’ Contract Approval Paves Way For Cooperative Success
South Coast Today, MA, October 10, 2012
The newly ratified contract between the New Bedford School Committee and the New Bedford Educators Association is an important and needed tool for the city’s formidable education challenges.
MICHIGAN
Highland Park Schools Official Sues District’s EM
Detroit News, MI, October 9, 2012
Highland Park school board secretary Robert Davis filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the district’s emergency financial manager, Joyce Parker, saying she is exceeding her authority.
MINNESOTA
Northfield Closes Achievement Gap
Star Tribune, MN, October 9, 2012
The latest American K-12 school demographic statistics are in, and they contain a milestone: One out of every four children enrolled in the nation’s K-12 public schools is Latino, a record high, the Pew Hispanic Center recently reported.
MISSISSIPPI
Charter School Must Be Accountable
Natchez Democrat, MS, October 10, 2012
The assumed position of the Concordia Parish School Board on a proposed charter school in the area is entirely expected.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Reasons For Charter School Moratorium From NH Attorney General Being Sought
Union Leader, NH, October 9, 2012
The House Education Committee wants members of the Attorney General’s Office to explain their role in a moratorium on new charter schools.
NEW JERSEY
At Charter’s Grand Opening, Schools Chief Expresses ‘Hope’ For The Future
Cherry Hill Courier Post, NJ, October 10, 2012
Breaking every tie should always be done “in the best interest of the students,” Education Commissioner Chris Cerf said during a speech Tuesday, just days after the local board of education deadlocked on a significant vote.
NEW MEXICO
Many Choices For Mid-School Parents
The New Mexican, NM, October 9, 2012
Little sends shudders down parents’ backs than the prospect of deciding which middle school is a fit for their child. With middle school the transition period between cute child and cranky teen, Santa Fe ’s peculiar set up — generally two grades only for middle school — can cause public school parents, in particular, to consider taking out a second home mortgage to find alternatives.
NEW YORK
Making the Grade in New York City
New York Times, NY, October 9, 2012
The latest progress reports for New York City elementary and middle schools came out last week, and many parents are baffled to see some of the city’s top-performing schools getting “C’s” and “B’s.”
Union Defends Charter School
Wall Street Journal, October 10, 2012
New York City teachers union officials on Tuesday defended a charter school founded by the labor union as the school undergoes a crucial review period that will determine whether the struggling institution stays open.
‘Labor’ Pain For School
New York Post, NY, October 10, 2012
It’s no lesson in leadership. The city teacher union’s bid to show it could run a charter school as well as any non-unionized shop has blown up in its face, the latest school results show.
Elmwood Village Charter School’s Waiting List Makes Success Bittersweet
Buffalo News, NY, October 9, 2012
A few years back, Elmwood Village Charter School Principal John W. Sheffield looked forward to lottery night, when the names of new students for the upcoming school year were drawn.
Teachers Are Testing The Evaluation System
Newsday, NY, October 9, 2012
What’s the point? To measure student growth in this new age of evaluating teachers, apparently one must test kids at the beginning of the school year, and then again once they’ve finished the class. The difference in scores will show the growth students have achieved.
NORTH CAROLINA
Charter’s Request To Expand A Strong Move
Mount Airy News, NC, October 10, 2012
Millennium Charter Academy has applied for permission to expand its offerings, from the current kindergarten through eighth-grade service to eventually offering classes through high school graduation.
OHIO
Why Secrecy?
Columbus Dispatch, OH, October 10, 2012
The Dispatch has filed a lawsuit against the Columbus Board of Education for a simple reason: Public meetings should be open to the public. The board has ignored repeated requests by the newspaper to honor that legal requirement.
OKLAHOMA
Delaying A-F grades for Oklahoma Public Schools Impedes Efforts to Address Shortcomings
The Oklahoman, OK, October 10, 2012
THE decision Monday by the state Board of Education to delay the release of A-F grades for public schools needlessly prevents parents from learning how their children’s schools are performing. It also impedes efforts to address shortcomings.
PENNSYLVANIA
Waynesboro Teachers To Be Evaluated According To Upcoming State Requirements
Herald-Mail, PA, October 9, 2012
Student performance on standardized tests will continue to be incorporated into Waynesboro Area School District teacher evaluations as the district eyes changed state requirements.
Education Funding: Charter School Reforms Are A Must
Patriot News, PA, October 10, 2012
Today in Pennsylvania , 105,000 students are getting their education through a charter school.
TENNESSEE
Metro Still Hoping For Change Of Heart Over Money
The Tennessean, TN, October 9, 2012
The Metro Nashville school board is taking a wait and see stance after again asking the state to reconsider withholding $3.4 million from the system this month.
TEXAS
Texas School Vouchers Idea Stinks
Houston Chronicle, TX, October 9, 2012
Regarding “School vouchers battle renewed” (Page A1, Friday), state Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, is way off base in proposing the use of public tax dollars to fund private and religious schools.
VIRGINIA
Charter School Advocates Draw Fire in N.Va.
Washington Examiner, DC, October 9, 2012
Officials backing what would be Northern Virginia’s first public charter school defended their proposal Tuesday amid opposition from parents who fear the venture would take education funding from their children’s schools.
3rd District Candidates On The Role Of The Mayor In School Operations
Richmond Times-Dispatch, VA, October 10, 2012
Mayor Dwight C. Jones inserted himself in the campaign for the nine seats on the Richmond School Board in March, when he created a task force to examine school finances.
WASHINGTON
Charter School Campaign Receives Sizeable Donations
Seattle Times Blog, WA, October 9, 2012
The campaign to bring charter schools to Washington state received two big donations last week — $2 million from Bill Gates and $1.1 million from Alice Walton, daughter of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton.
ONLINE SCHOOLS
Charter Schools Doing Their Job
Lebanon Daily News, PA, October 10, 2012
Joe Zimmerman’s Sept. 28 letter, “Cyber, charter schools failing” was not only factually inaccurate but also misguided. The writer’s statement that only one cyberschool out of 12 made Adequate Yearly Progress according to the 2011-12 Pennsylvania System of School Assessment results is incorrect, a fact easily found by searching on the very website paayp.emetric.net/CharterSchools) the writer cited.
Pinellas School Board Narrowly Approves Online Charter School
Tampa Bay Times, FL, October 10, 2012
The Pinellas County School Board found a lot to dislike Tuesday about a proposed online charter school.
Two New Charter Schools Get OK From Collier Board
Naples News, FL, October 10, 2012
Collier County School Board members on Tuesday signed off on two charter schools that propose vastly different educational approaches — one that would blend online and face-to-face instruction and another that would employ classical teaching methods.
Orange and Seminole Reject Virtual Charter Schools
Orlando Sentinel, FL, October 9, 2012
For the second year in a row, school boards in Orange and Seminole counties have rejected a planned virtual charter school that had hoped to set up operations in the school districts.
DCE Blends Online, Classroom Learning
Wausau Daily Herald, WI, October 10, 2012
Blended learning is one of the hottest trends in education today, and many believe that the mix of traditional in-person teaching and online research and discussion will be an integral part of schools in the not-too-distant future.
Visalia Charter Independent Study’s Online Program Expands
Visalia Times-Delta, CA, October 10, 2012
As online learning continues to be a boon for students looking for alternatives to traditional classroom settings, public schools are quickly familiarizing themselves with the concept of distance learning.