Daily Headlines for January 29, 2013
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NATIONAL COVERAGE
School Choice: Spreading Like A Prairie Fire
Daily Caller, DC, January 28, 2013
The school choice movement is extraordinary because it’s not inspired by any political figure. Instead, it’s an organic, grassroots parent movement inspired by extreme dissatisfaction with the status quo.
FROM THE STATES
ALASKA
Don’t Open The Floodgates: Public Money Belongs In Public Schools
Alaska Dispatch, AK, January 28, 2013
National School Choice Week started Jan. 27 as part of a national campaign to inform the public about the educational choices available to students and families.
ARKANSAS
Bill Adds Poverty To School Choice Debate
Arkansas News, AR, January 28, 2013
A second school choice bill intended to remove race as a factor in student transfers was filed Monday. House Bill 1181 by Rep. Kim Hammer, R-Benton, also takes into account the numbers of students in districts who are eligible for free and reduced-price lunches.
ARIZONA
State Funding Error Could Mean Bonus For Teachers
KVOA Tucson New, AZ, January 28, 2013
A huge error in calculating education funding could mean big money for some Arizona school districts. But it could also cost a number of Arizona public and charter schools.
CALIFORNIA
A Multiple-Choice Test For Parents
San Diego Union Tribune, CA, January 28, 2013
Sending a child to school has never required so many decisions. Will it be a Chinese-language program or one that pushes the performing arts? A high-tech charter school or an intimate private institution? What about a campus with stellar test scores across town, or even the familiar school down the street?
Phillips Charter Told To Upgrade Program
Napa Valley Register, CA, January 28, 2013
School district administrators say they can’t recommend a renewal for Phillips Charter School unless the Napa elementary school changes its “game plan.”
Crenshaw High Group Opposes Reform Plan And School Closings
Los Angeles Times Blog, CA, January 28, 2013
Parents, students and teachers rallied Monday in front of Crenshaw High School to protest a plan to restructure the low-performing campus and require teachers to reapply for their jobs.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Tough-Love Education Reforms Produce Results
Washington Times, DC, January 28, 2013
Last year didn’t hold great news for District of Columbia public schools. Less than 20 percent of eighth-graders were proficient in either math or reading. Only 61 percent of District high school students made it to graduation.
Keeping The Doors Open At D.C. Charters
Washington Examiner, DC, January 28, 2013
Whether a charter school gets to keep its doors open in the District depends on a combination of its finances and its academic performance.
IDAHO
Idaho Senate To Debate 4 New Teacher Union Bills
Idaho Statesman, ID, January 28, 2013
The Senate Education Committee has agreed to debate a series of bills designed to restrict the power teachers unions have in negotiating multi-year contract agreements and fighting salary cuts, setting the stage for another potentially corrosive battle with public school teachers across the state.
INDIANA
Broadway Imagine Cites Higher Test Scores
The Journal Gazette, IN, January 29, 2013
Imagine Schools on Broadway Principal Ra’Chelle Spearman said the school is more motivated than ever to finish out this year strong.
House Approves Plan Speeding Sales Of Vacant School Buildings
Northwest Times, IN, January 28, 2013
School corporations could dispose of their vacant buildings quicker under legislation approved 98-0 by the Indiana House on Monday.
IOWA
Education Reform Plan Details Queried
Des Moines Register, IA, January 29, 2013
Iowa lawmakers took their closest look yet under the hood of Gov. Terry Branstad’s top priority education reform proposal on Monday.
High Pay Gives Districts Flexibility
Des Moines Register, IA, January 29, 2013
Iowa school districts that have previously boosted teacher pay would be better positioned to hire additional staff under a legislative proposal that calls for more veteran educators to take on duties outside the classroom, data released Monday shows.
LOUISIANA
John White Counters Claim That Teacher Evaluation Is Spiking Retirement Rate
Times-Picayune, LA, January 28, 2013
State Education Superintendent John White rebutted charges that new teacher evaluation rules are causing Louisiana teachers to retire at higher rates. He said the data don’t support the claim and that on the whole, it’s the better teachers who are sticking around.
MAINE
Maine Teachers Don’t Want Student Achievement To Play Big Part In Their Evaluations
Bangor Daily News, ME, January 28, 2013
Representatives of public school teachers and administrators told the Maine Department of Education on Monday that they don’t want standardized tests to play too great a role in determining whether they’re doing a good job.
MASSACHUSETTS
School Plans Tweak Status Quo, But Bold Change Is Needed
Boston Globe, MA, January 29, 2013
WHAT BEGAN last January with Mayor Menino’s dramatic call for Boston students to be given seats in schools close to their homes, with meaningful alternatives for those in areas with underperforming schools, has morphed into something more like an effort to improve the current system of wide geographic zones, multiple choices, and luck of the draw.
Foxborough Regional Charter School Earns Charter Renewal
Bellingham County Gazette, MA, January 28, 2013
Dr. Mark Logan, executive director of the Foxborough Regional Charter School, recently announced the school has earned an unconditional renewal of its charge from the state for another five-year term.
MICHIGAN
Charter School Leaders: Stanford Study Shows Michigan Charter Students Closing Achievement Gaps
Grand Rapids Press, MI, January 29, 2013
Michigan’s charter public school students are making larger learning gains than their peers in traditional public schools, according to a new study.
MONTANA
Education Reform – School Choice Would Benefit All Montanans
Helena Independent Record, MT, January 29, 2013
Given the fact that Montana continuously ranks near dead last in the country in average wages and our “low-income neighborhoods” arguably encompass our whole state, it should not go un-noticed that Montana also ranks dead last nationally in educational choice reforms as well.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Public Schools: Vs. Public Education
Union Leader, NH, January 29, 2013
One of the reasons New Hampshire has to continue debating school choice year after year is that self-proclaimed supporters of public education do not support public education. They support public schools.
NEW JERSEY
Schools Call For More Parent Involvement
Asbury Park Press, NJ, January 29, 2013
Ask Ocean Township social worker Debbie Schisler and she’ll tell you bluntly enough: a child’s education begins at home.
Let’s Offer Families School Choice: Opinion
Star-Ledger, NJ, January 29, 2013
As parents, we would do anything for our children in their time of need, no matter what illness, injury, trouble or danger they face.
NEW YORK
Mayor Warns of School Cuts
Wall Street Journal, January 29, 2013
Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Monday called on state lawmakers to restore nearly three-quarters of a billion dollars wiped out by New York City’s failure to launch a new teacher-evaluation system, saying 2,500 teachers would be lost and predicting a host of “calamitous” cuts.
Mike Bares UFT’s $1B Blow To City
New York Post, NY, January 29, 2013
A sham teacher-evaluation process that rewarded union foot-dragging will cost the city more than a billion dollars in school aid and 2,500 teachers, Mayor Bloomberg charged in explosive testimony to state lawmakers yesterday.
School Closures Challenged
Wall Street Journal, January 29, 2013
The U.S. Department of Education will investigate a claim that the Bloomberg administration’s plan to close 26 low-performing public schools this year discriminates against minority and special-education students.
OKLAHOMA
Education Experiment In Wisconsin Worth Watching Here In Oklahoma
Oklahoman, OK, January 29, 2013
WHAT has historically been thought of as education is changing every passing day. Many facets of the classroom haven’t changed much over the years, but the questions of what comprises an education and whether a classroom must be part of that education have never been so present.
PENNSYLVANIA
Nutter To Name Parent Advocate To School Reform Commission
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, January 29, 2013
In a shake-up, Mayor Nutter is appointing a parent advocate and former Philadelphia School District bus aide to the School Reform Commission.
Charters Need Time To Correct Traditional Schools’ Failed Approaches
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA, January 29, 2013
I am writing in response to the Jan. 27 editorial “Sub-Par Options: Charter Schools as a Class Don’t Measure Up.” Parents don’t select charter schools because their children are doing great at their public school district. They send them to charter schools because of special needs or, even more important, because the district is failing them.
City School Closings Target Vulnerable Students, Critics Say
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, January 29, 2013
Ramping up their fight against 37 planned public school closings, a coalition including the city teachers’ union, politicians, a pastor, and the head of the local NAACP chapter said Monday that the Philadelphia School District was targeting the city’s most vulnerable students.
TENNESSEE
Gov. Haslam Touts Limited School Vouchers
Chattanooga Times Free Press, TN, January 29, 2013
Republican Gov. Bill Haslam used his annual State of the State address Monday night to defend his plan to implement a limited school voucher program next fall that would allow impoverished children in 83 low-performing public schools to use tax dollars to attend private institutions.
Giving Parents A Say
Commercial Appeal, TN, January 29, 2013
State Rep. John DeBerry’s proposal to adjust Tennessee’s so-called “parent trigger,” making it easier for parents to force education reforms at their children’s schools, appears to be in step with giving parents a greater voice in their children’s education.
TEXAS
Charter School Denies They Are Cherry Picking Students
Valley Morning Star, TX, January 28, 2013
IDEA Public Schools’ founder on Monday refuted a charge that the charter school recruits the best students from public school districts that lose state funding for each student who transfers.
Charter Schools Say Their Smaller Share Of State Aid Is Unconstitutional
Austin American Statesman, TX, January 28, 2013
For the first time in Texas’ protracted legal wrangling over how to fund public education, charter schools Monday added their voices to the fray.
UTAH
Legislative Bill Proposed To Add Transparency To Charter School Funding
KSL, UT, January 28, 2013
The first day of the Legislative Session on Utah’s Capitol Hill began Monday. One of the bills being introduced would add taxes to support local charter schools.
VIRGINIA
Republican’s Legislation Would Allow State To Place Charter Schools
Richmond Times Dispatch, VA, January 28, 2013
A House subcommittee today backed a proposal by Del. L. Scott Lingamfelter, R-Prince William, that would amend the Virginia Constitution to allow the state Board of Education to establish charter schools in local school divisions.
Virginia Senate Kills Right-To-Work, Charter School Amendments
Washington Examiner, DC, January 28, 2013
The Virginia Senate narrowly killed a pair of constitutional amendments dealing with two perennial Republican favorites: right-to-work and charter schools.
WASHINGTON
Students Come First Back On Agenda
Spokesman-Review, WA, January 29, 2013
Idaho lawmakers on Monday took steps to reinstate parts of the controversial Students Come First school reform laws less than three months after voters overwhelmingly repealed them.
Seattle’s Boycotting Teachers Start Crusade Against Standardized Tests
Washington Times, DC, January 28, 2013
By refusing to administer a district-mandated test to their students, teachers at a Seattle high school have sparked an “anti-testing movement” that is picking up steam by the day.
WISCONSIN
Giving Students Choices: A Look At Charter Schools
WEAU, WI, January 28, 2013
As part of National School Choice week more than 3,000 events will be held this across the country to encourage states to offer more education choices to students.
Achievement Gap Factors Transcend Boundaries
Wisconsin State Journal, WI, January 29, 2013
State Journal columnist Chris Rickert’s Sunday piece was titled “Achievement gap owned by Madison.” The gap refers to the difference in average measured scores of achievement of two groups, A and B for simplicity.
ONLINE LEARNING
Maine Democrats Take Aim At Virtual Charter Schools
Morning Sentinel, ME, January 29, 2013
The push represents a significant challenge to the taxpayer-financed institutions, which Gov. LePage has championed vehemently.
Pennsylvania Withholds OK For 8 Cyber Charter Schools
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA, January 29, 2013
All eight statewide cyber charter school applications have been rejected, a decision that comes as legislators debate charter school funding and existing cyber schools have taken a hit for missing state academic goals.
A Growth Industry Funded By Taxpayers…
Towanda Daily Review, PA, January 29, 2013
Charter schools in Pennsylvania are a growth industry funded by taxpayers. More than 105,000 students attend 157 charter schools at physical locations, and 16 “cyber” charter schools that operate over the Internet.
Bills Chart Fairer Funding
Scranton Times-Tribune, PA, January 29, 2013
Charter schools in Pennsylvania are a growth industry funded by taxpayers. More than 105,000 students attend 157 charter schools at physical locations and 16 “cyber” charter schools that operate over the Internet.
Schools Moving Toward Digital Learning
Central Florida News 13, FL, January 28, 2013
Central Florida education is going high-tech, and bulky backpacks will soon be a thing of the past. We spoke with Pearson, a learning sponsor of a forum held in Orlando on Monday.
Events Celebrate School Options
Monroe News Star, LA, January 29, 2013
This is National School Choice Week, which attempts to shine a spotlight on all the public school options now available to students and their families. Immediately following that week is Digital Learning Day on Feb. 6.