Daily Headlines for November 2, 2012
Obama’s Second-Term Promises In Education
Washington Post Blog, DC, November 1, 2012
Here’s what a brochure put out by President Obama’s campaign says he will focus on in education during his next term, assuming he has one:
First, Teach The Teachers
Denver Post, CO, November 2, 2012
Every time I read an article about our failing public schools, I think of this very sophisticated, well-educated, well-read woman standing hopelessly before that class wondering what in the world these soon-to-be teachers were going to teach their students. And then I think that most of them might still be teaching.
STATE COVERAGE
ALABAMA
New Data Shows Enterprise Schools Closing Achievement Gap
The Southeast Sun, AL, November 1, 2012
Enterprise City Schools is making giants leaps toward closing the achievement gap between various sub-groups of students.
State Should Control Schools
Prattville Progress, AL, November 2, 2012
Liberals have tried since the 1960s to get government control over what children learn, from kindergarten through 12th grade.
ARKANSAS
With New Rule, State Gains School-Takeover Leeway
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, AR, November 2, 2012
The Arkansas Board of Education approved on Thursday a new rule that will broaden the state’s ability to take control of school districts with large numbers of students who aren’t scoring at grade level on state mandated tests.
State Board Approves 3 New Charter Schools
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, AR, November 2, 2012
The Arkansas Board of Education on Thursday approved the establishment of a charter high school on the Arkansas Baptist College campus in Little Rock, a classical liberal arts charter school in Bentonville and a middle/high school in Pine Bluff – all sponsored by the same Texas charter-school organization.
State Board Rejects PB Charter Over Competition Concerns
KARK, AR, November 1, 2012
Exalt founder Ben Lindquist went before the state board of education Thursday morning, asking permission to build another charter in Pine Bluff.
CALIFORNIA
L.A. Unified Competes For U.S. Funds Without Key Element
Los Angeles Times, CA, November 2, 2012
The district lacks the union cooperation that the program requires but is applying for the money anyway.
FTA, FUSD Close In On $37.3m Federal Grant
The Fresno Bee, CA, November 2, 2012
Fresno Teachers Association leaders met late into the night Thursday discussing revisions that Fresno Unified Superintendent Michael Hanson hoped could lead to their endorsement of a multimillion-dollar federal grant application.
Oakland Teachers Failed Kids Over Grant
San Francisco Chronicle, CA, November 1, 2012
The Oakland Education Association might want to consider changing its name. The teachers union was one of six unions in California that refused last week to support their school district application for millions of dollars worth of federal funding offered by the Race to the Top program.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Council Puts Hold On Charter School Board Member’s Reappointment Over Articles On Multiculturalism
Washington Post Blog, DC, November 1, 2012
The D.C. Council has temporarily halted the reappointment of a member of the D.C. Charter School Board after council members became aware of articles he wrote in which he appeared to challenge how multiculturalism is taught in school.
D.C., Flush With Money, Sends Millions To DCPS And Charter Schools
Washington Post Blog, DC, November 1, 2012
The D.C. Council on Thursday grudgingly approved a proposal from Mayor Vincent Gray to send a pile of unspent cash to D.C. public schools and charter schools.
KIPP DC To Open New Campus At Old Webb Elementary School
Washington Post Blog, DC, November 1, 2012
D.C. officials are recommending that charter school operator KIPP DC be allowed to take over the old Webb Elementary School building under a long-term lease.
FLORIDA
Autism Charter School To Clear Key Hurdle
The Tampa Tribune, FL, November 2, 2012
A charter school that would serve autistic children could be about to take a step toward approval by the Pasco County School Board.
Management Firm Gives Edge To Charter School
South Florida Times, FL, November 1, 2012
The Renaissance School at West Palm Beach is taking a different approach to the charter schools movement.
GEORGIA
Amendment 1 Means Choice
Augusta Chronicle, GA, November 2, 2012
You may have made the same mistake I did this past weekend. I answered an unknown number from Atlanta. It warned me that Amendment 1 would take hundreds of thousands of dollars from education. That is not what Amendment 1 would do.
Charter Vote Lights Up Social Media
Cherokee Tribune, GA, November 2, 2012
With only days left before voters decide on the controversial Amendment 1, both sides of the argument aren’t waiting until Election Day to rally support but rather turning to social media to make their voices heard.
Charter Schools And Weasel-Wording
Macon Telegraph, GA, November 2, 2012
Aside from the presidential contest (which is kind of a moot point for us since Romney is virtually assured of getting all of Georgia’s electoral votes) the hottest topic in our state this election season seems to be the proposed amendment to our state’s constitution which would allow it to establish charter schools.
Success of Georgia ‘Rewards Schools’ Underscores Charter Debate
Marietta Daily Journal, GA, November 1, 2012
Three cheers for the seven schools in Cobb and Marietta recognized as “highest performing” or for “high progress” in graduation rates and state assessment tests.
Charter School Amendment Bad For State, Devastating For Rural Ga.
North Fulton Revue & News , GA, November 1, 2012
Voters living outside metro Atlanta or larger Georgia school districts might mistakenly believe that the proposed constitutional Amendment 1 on the November ballot has little relevance to the their own children’s education. After all, charter schools are virtually non-existent in rural and small-town Georgia , largely because charter operators find it economically impractical to open charter schools in areas without sufficient numbers of “consumers” (that is, students).
HAWAII
Hawaii’s Public Schools Leave Best and Brightest Behind
Hawaii Business Journal, HI
November 2012
Hawaii Business Editor Steve Petranik says state should create elite public schools for top students
IDAHO
Campaign On Idaho Education Laws Sets Fundraising Record
Idaho Statesman, ID, November 2, 2012
Campaigns for and against Propositions 1, 2 and 3 have broken the Idaho record for spending on ballot measures, with opponents having raised $3.6 million and proponents $2.6 million.
LOUISIANA
Officials Should Also Be Held Accountable
The Advertiser, LA, November 2, 2012
Louisiana schools, as a whole, have not performed well, according to the state’s accountability standards. Charter schools and vouchers are the focus of controversy, as some view them as the salvation of education in Louisiana and others, its demise.
St. Tammany School Board Refuses To Take Seniority Out Of The Teacher Layoff Equation
Times-Picayune, LA, November 1, 2012
Despite being publicly called out by state education officials, St. Tammany school board leaders said this week that they will refuse to remove seniority from their policy on teacher layoffs as called for earlier this year under Gov. Bobby Jindal’s sweeping education reforms.
The Louisiana Teacher Union Paradox
The Pelican Post, LA, November 1, 2012
How the LAE and LFT Remain a Barrier to Educational Progress in Spite of Electoral and Legislative Defeats
NEVADA
Union Vendetta Hurts Students
Las Vegas Review- Journal , NV, November 2, 2012
A sure sign that a messy divorce is slipping toward mutually assured destruction: One party, motivated by irrational vindictiveness, blows up the other’s ability to earn money that would benefit both.
State Authority: Much Work Needed To Improve Incline Charter School Application
North Lake Tahoe Bonanza, NV, November 1, 2012
A small group of Incline Village parents and residents spearheading an effort to create a public charter school in Incline Village has some major challenges to overcome should its goal of holding classes for roughly 60 students by next summer be realized, state officials have concluded.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
School Choice Numbers Down Slightly In Nashua
Nashua Telegraph, NH, November 2, 2012
A total of 140 Gate City students took advantage of a school choice provision this year, a number down slightly from last year but still nearly double the rate of just three years ago.
NEW YORK
Reform Group: Senate GOP Likes Charters, Assembly Dems, Not So Much
Albany Time Union Blog, NY, November 1, 2012
The Foundation for Education Reform and Accountability is out with a legislators scorecard where they note, perhaps not surprisingly, that Senate Republicans are more supportive of charter schools than their Democratic counterparts in the Assembly.
NORTH CAROLINA
CMS Wants The Power To Approve Charter Schools
WBTV, NC, November 1, 2012
Charlotte-Mecklenburg school (CMS) board wants more power and control. It is recommending in its legislative agenda to give all NC local school districts the authority to approve charter schools. That idea is already getting a failing grade from some educators who represent charter schools.
OHIO
State Board Of Education: Voters To Fill 7 Seats On Tuesday
Columbus Dispatch, OH, November 2, 2012
Like a game of musical chairs, two members of the Ohio Board of Education are running for a seat representing Franklin, Delaware and Knox counties after new boundaries tossed them into the same district.
Cleveland School District Payroll Shows Range Of Salaries
Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH, November 2, 2012
They’re paid too much already. That’s one objection you’ll hear from some Cleveland residents who say they plan to vote against the school district’s 15-mill levy on Tuesday.
Technical Problems Ironic At Meeting
Columbus Dispatch, OH, November 2, 2012
Charter schools were the other theme of the briefing, and Bill Sims, executive director of the Ohio Charter Schools Association, gave an in-person presentation.
PENNSYLVANIA
Class Acts At Home: More Parents Opt Out, Tackle Teaching On Their Own
Pocono Record, PA, November 2, 2012
As neighborhood schools grapple with pared budgets and pressure-cooker tests, not every family shares the strain. For a hardy few, the living room doubles as classroom, and kids drive the curriculum.
TENNESSEE
Metro Schools’ Achievement Gap Is Tough To Close
The Tennessean, TN, November 2, 2012
The size of traditionally poor-performing subgroups in Metro Nashville schools creates a tougher hurdle than most systems face in closing the achievement gap between those students and their peers, a Metro official said Thursday.
TEXAS
Equity Center: Some Schools Get $65,000 More Per Classroom
San Antonio Express, TX, November 2, 2012
Property-wealthy school districts spend about $65,000 more per classroom than poor districts, Equity Center Executive Director Wayne Pierce testified Thursday in an ongoing school funding lawsuit.
Teachers Union Fails To Endorse School Bonds
My Fox Houston, TX, November 1, 2012
The Houston Independent School District will have to win its $1.9 billion bond issue without the endorsement of the influential union which represents most of the city’s teachers.
WASHINGTON
State Of The District: Seattle Public Schools Falling Short Of Five-Year Targets
Seattle Times, WA, November 1, 2012
With just one year left on its ambitious five-year plan, Seattle Public Schools continues to fall short of its academic targets, but it has made some progress.
Meridian’s Renaissance High School Isn’t For Everyone, And That’s The Point
The Olympian, WA, November 2, 2012
Meridian School District started the four-year college-prep high school four years ago. About 670 kids are enrolled. At the start of their junior year, students choose one of two tracks: an International Baccalaureate diploma or an associate degree in liberal arts.
Otter Appears In Pro-Reform Ad
Spokesman Review, WA, November 2, 2012
The latest campaign ad in Idaho’s school reform fight features Gov. Butch Otter endorsing Propositions 1, 2 and 3 in a positive, feel-good message.
Banda, School Board Say Charters Would Hamper Efforts To Improve Seattle Public Schools
Seattle Times, WA, November 1, 2012
School leaders, educators and parents from 260 of Washington’s 295 school districts have signed a letter opposing I-1240, warning that charter schools would siphon off millions of dollars from other publicly funded schools with no guarantee they’d be any better.