Daily Headlines for October 5, 2012
15 Must-Read Books About K-12 Education in the US
Christian Science Monitor, MA, October 4, 2012
What’s really going on in America ‘s public schools today? Here are 15 must-read books that provide a more nuanced perspective on the current state of US public education.
FROM THE STATES
COLORADO
Virtual School Opens Up To D50 Students
Our Colorado News, CO, October 4, 2012
Online learning is now available to all high school students within District 50. Westminster Virtual Academy opened this fall, and already 80 students have enrolled, choosing a technological route for their education.
CONNECTICUT
New Law Allows For Millions For West Hartford School Construction
West Hartford News, CT, October 5, 2012
Legislation that will make millions of dollars available for construction at the Charter Oak International Academy in West Hartford was recently passed, state officials announced at a West Hartford Board of Education meeting today.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
D.C. Debates New High School Graduation Requirements
Washington Post Blog, DC, October 4, 2012
The D.C. State Board of Education had hoped to finalize new high school graduation requirements by the end of the year, but now may wait until early 2013 to give the public more time to weigh in.
FLORIDA
Health Is The Focus At New Charter School
MyFox Tampa Bay, FL, October 4, 2012
It’s not every day you see kids wearing scrubs to school, but that’s what happens each day at King’s Kids Academy of Health Sciences. It’s a brand new charter school in Tampa .
Choice Schools’ Sibling Rule Up For Vote
Florida Today, FL, October 5, 2012
Families with students in some of Brevard County ’s most coveted public schools will learn Tuesday whether younger brothers and sisters will continue to go to the front of the line at enrollment time.
GEORGIA
Education Officials Vocal On Charter Schools
Reporter Newspaper, GA, October 5, 2012
Local school officials are speaking up about a proposed amendment that would allow the state to approve charter schools.
Olens’ Letter Doesn’t Shock School Board
Marietta Daily Journal, GA, October 5, 2012
Members of both the Cobb and Marietta school boards said they were not surprised by Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens’ letter to Georgia Superintendent Dr. John Barge advising school boards to not use public resources to come out for or against the charter school amendment that will be on the Nov. 6 ballot.
Olens To Offer More Legal Guidance On Charter Advocacy Do’s And Don’t’s
Atlanta Journal-Constitution, GA, October 4, 2012
Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens said Thursday that he will have more to say, in the next couple of weeks, about whether local school boards violated state law when they approved resolutions opposing the charter schools amendment.
PTA Conducting Summit About Charter Schools
Cherokee Tribune, GA, October 5, 2012
The Georgia PTA is conducting an educational summit on the upcoming charter amendment at the new Clark Creek STEM Academy with a featured speaker who has made recent headlines for an incident at the state capitol.
ILLINOIS
Aldermen Want Hearings On School Closings
Chicago Tribune, IL, October 4, 2012
Although Chicago teachers have signed off on their new contract, the lingering anxiety about the future of the city’s public education system surfaced Thursday as aldermen stepped up a call for hearings on potential school closings.
INDIANA
Vouchers For Preschool Are On House Republican’s To-Do List
Indianapolis Star, IN, October 4, 2012
Enacting a fiscally responsible budget and improving job training and education, particularly early childhood efforts, are top priorities for Indiana House Republicans for the 2013 General Assembly.
LOUISIANA
Teachers Claim New Evaluation System Has Flaws
Baton Rouge Advocate, LA, October 5, 2012
Louisiana’s new method for evaluating public school teachers is flawed because some educators are getting failing marks even though their students are among the highest performing in the state, a Republican state lawmaker said.
MARYLAND
P.G. Students Rating Their Teachers In Pilot Program
Washington Examiner, DC, October 4, 2012
Some students in Prince George ‘s County will be rating their teachers this year as part of a Maryland pilot program spreading to all school districts.
Rothschild Proposes School Voucher Program In Carroll
Carroll County Times, MD, October 5, 2012
The ZIP code Carroll County parents live in may no longer be the deciding factor for where their kids go to school after a county commissioner proposed creating a three-year school voucher program for 180 kids.
MICHIGAN
Let Muskegon Heights New Charter Academy Do Its Job
The Muskegon Chronicle, MI, October 5, 2012
School has been in session just over a month and already a whisper of criticism is building about the new Muskegon Heights charter school academy.
MINNESOTA
Prickly Debate Over Contours of Minn. Teacher Evaluations
Minnesota Public Radio, MN, October 5, 2012
At the moment job evaluations are hit or miss for Minnesota teachers. Some school districts offer teachers regular reviews of their work while others do not, said Tom Dooher, the president of the state’s teachers union, Education Minnesota.
MISSOURI
In Closing, Kansas City Charter School Charts New Course
St. Louis Beacon, MO, October 5, 2012
Starting a charter school isn’t easy. But based on the experience of the Renaissance Academy Math & Science Charter in Kansas City, closing one is no picnic either.
NEW JERSEY
Panel Mulls the Landscape of Education in Madison
Madison Eagle, NJ, October 5, 2012
A distinguished panel of New Jersey legislators and educators fielded questions about the future of public education that included charter schools, funding and testing at the Board of Education meeting Tuesday night.
NEW YORK
Strain for Teachers Runs Deeper Than Budget Cuts
New York Times, NY, October 5, 2012
But stories like Ms. Peterson’s point to a deeper strain in Texas public schools, one that has more complex origins than 2011’s reduction in state financing. If the issues are not addressed, they could further frustrate efforts to attract and keep top teachers in public schools.
4 Decades After Clashes, Boston Again Debates School Busing
New York Times, NY, October 5, 2012
Nearly four decades after this city was convulsed by violence over court-ordered busing to desegregate its public schools, Boston is working to reduce its reliance on busing in a school system that is now made up largely of minority students.
NORTH CAROLINA
School Choice For Those In ‘The Middle’
Caroline Daily Journal, NC, October 5, 2012
Few North Carolinians realize that the state has extensive educational options for preschoolers and college students but little for children in the “middle” — the 1.5 million students in traditional K-12 public schools.
State Board Of Education Wants Money To Match Vision
News & Observer, NC, October 4, 2012
The State Board of Education plans to go its own way in crafting a budget request for North Carolina’s public schools for the next two years.
OKLAHOMA
School Leaders Have ‘No Confidence’ In Grade Plan
Tulsa World, OK, October 5, 2012
School administrators from across the state voiced frustration on Thursday with the lack of dialogue they have had with State Superintendent Janet Barresi and her administration – not only about the new grading system but every other policy affecting the state’s schools.
PENNSYLVANIA
New Hope Charter School Fight Draws Strong Words From Officials
York Daily Record, PA, October 4, 2012
The battle over the status of New Hope Academy Charter School drew harsh words from some elected officials Thursday, including York Mayor Kim Bracey, who accused the district of “fiddling while Rome is burning.”
Esperanza Gets $2M Grant To Form Middle School
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, October 5, 2012
A North Philadelphia charter high school is set to add a 635-pupil middle school to its burgeoning population by next year, thanks to a $2 million grant from the Philadelphia School Partnership.
Gillingham Charter School Awarded $360,000 Federal Grant
Republican & Herald, PA, October 5, 2012
Gillingham Charter School announced Tuesday that it has won a $360,000 Federal Charter School Implementation Grant.
SOUTH DAKOTA
S.D. Official Touts Education Proposal
Aberdeen News, SD, October 5, 2012
Gov. Dennis Daugaard’s education reform act has changed substantially since it was first introduced, in collaboration with teachers and administrators, the secretary of the South Dakota Department of Education said Thursday in Aberdeen .
TENNESSEE
Knox Charter School Proposal Would Convert Vine Middle School
Knoxville News Sentinel, TN, October 5, 2012
Knox County officials have begun reviewing an application that if approved would convert the facilities at Vine Middle Performing Arts and Sciences Magnet School to a charter school.
Soulsville Charter School Only School Invited to Vice Presidential Debate
Memphis Daily News, TN, October 4, 2012
The Soulsville Charter School is the only school in the nation invited to the sole vice presidential debate of the election season Thursday, Oct. 11 at Centre College in Danville , Ky.
TEXAS
Education Gets High Priority In New Senate Chair Picks
Austin American-Statesman, TX, October 4, 2012
Shifting as expected to the conservative right, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst on Thursday dethroned a senior Democrat from her higher education leadership post and elevated a conservative voice for charter schools and vouchers to oversee public K-12 education policy in the Texas Senate.
New School Voucher Fight Looms
San Antonio Express-News, TX, October 4, 2012
A dormant battle to push school vouchers through the Legislature was revived Thursday when Lt. Gov. David Dewhurstnamed Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, to head the Senate Education Committee — virtually ensuring a ferocious fight when a new legislative session opens in January.
WASHINGTON
Seattle School Board Considers ‘Answer To Charter Schools’
KUOW NPR, WA, October 4, 2012
The Seattle School Board is scheduled to vote tonight on a way for schools to apply for waivers of district and union policies so they can try new teaching strategies. So–called “Creative Approach Schools” would try to narrow the achievement gap by using special curricula, trying different schedules or focusing on specific themes.
No Need Here For Charter Schools
Sammamish Review, WA, October 4, 2012
Once again, Washington voters are being asked whether charter schools should be allowed here, as they are in 41 other states. From some perspectives, a charter school run by a nonprofit with a goal of better education might make sense. But from the Sammamish perspective, charter schools are not needed. Test scores are among the highest in the state and 18 Sammamish residents from both school districts were recently named National Merit Scholarship semi-finalists.
Reject I-1185’s ‘Tyranny Of Minority,’ Allow Funding For Schools
Bellingham Herald, WA, October 5, 2012
The supermajority rule has directly contributed to making our education funding problem so severe that our state Supreme Court has declared that the state is now in violation of our constitution by underfunding education. That’s because the supermajority rule is really the mini-minority veto rule.
ONLINE SCHOOLS
Study: Virtual Schools Show Poor Performance
Texas Tribune, TX, October 4, 2012
A new study from Raise Your Hand Texas says online classes for K-12 students may lower student performance and success and don’t provide cost savings for Texas .
There Are Online Options For LEUSD Students
Friday Flyer, CA, October 5, 2012
In an age when the average student is technologically savvy by the 3rd grade, schools, whether public, private or chartered, have learned that using computer programs to help students earn their high school diplomas are helping increase the high school graduation rate.