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County Board Approves Three Rocketship Charter Schools
Mercury News, CA, November 16, 2011
Rocketship Education, whose innovative charter schools have scored remarkable success in teaching poor and Latino children, won approval Wednesday to open three more K-5 schools in San Jose next year.

/11/17/4060614/dont-mess-with-success-at-sacramento.html
“>Don’t Mess With Success At Sacramento City High Schools
Sacramento Bee, CA, November 17, 2011
Rather than disrupt successful schools, board members and the community should reject the West Campus/Sac High ideas for a swap or co-location. Better to explore the constructive Borg and Cuneo ideas.

Next Charter Steps Could Create Model
Reporter Herald, CO, November 17, 2011
The next steps for Berthoud’s proposed charter school could set the tone for future charter proposals but, more important, they are key for the community of Berthoud.

Pryor Comes Home, Promises Charter Boost
New Haven Independent, CT, November 16, 2011
In a visit to the hometown charter school he founded 13 years ago, Stefan Pryor applauded the school’s expansion—and vowed to support more Amistad Academies in

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11 States Seek Relief From ‘No Child’ Provisions, in Return for Raising Standards
New York Times, NY, November 16, 2011
Eleven states applied for waivers exempting them from key provisions of the No Child Left Behind law by the federal government’s first deadline, promising in return to adopt higher standards and carry out other elements of the Obama administration’s school improvement agenda, the Department of Education said on Tuesday.

With Hispanic Students on The Rise, Hispanic Teachers in Short Supply
Washington Post, DC, November 16, 2011
The surge in Hispanic students across the nation is forcing schools to reckon with a deep shortage of teachers who share their cultural heritage.

Public School Teachers Aren’t Underpaid
USA Today, November 15, 2011
Based on these findings and other supporting data, our best estimate is that teacher salaries are about equal with similarly skilled private employees.

Walton Family Foundation Gives $25 Million to KIPP Foundation
Denver Post, CO, November 15, 2011
The Walton Family Foundation has announced a $25 million grant to the KIPP Foundation to support the nationwide network of KIPP public charter schools.

STATE COVERAGE

Mayor Invites State Takeover of Lawrence Schools
Eagle Tribune, NH, November 15, 2011
Mayor William Lantigua today said he has asked the state to take over the city’s public schools.

State Bonds Boost Schools’ Expansion Plans
Cape Cod Times, MA, November 16, 2011
Two public Cape charter schools — Sturgis Charter Public School in Hyannis and Cape Cod Lighthouse Charter School soon to be in East Harwich — are getting public financing to build new schools.

School Choice Lottery Poorly Managed, Critics Say
Hartford Courant , CT, November 16, 2011
Diana Turner’s son, Travis, is thriving at Two Rivers Magnet Middle School in East Hartford , but her daughter, Arianna, has missed out on a chance for a magnet school four

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Congress Backslides on School Reform
Wall Street Journal, November 15, 2011
A funny thing happened on the way to reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the sweeping school-reform law better known as No Child Left Behind (NCLB): The debate over reauthorization has spawned a political alliance between the tea party and the teachers unions.

No Cuts Left Behind As Schools Squeeze Most Out Of Budgets
Washington Times, DC, November 14, 2011
For cash-strapped states and school districts, everything is on the table. Budget items that once seemed immune to cuts — including bus service and American flags — have become fair game for officials forced to count every penny.

STATE COVERAGE

Mesa Public Schools Bolsters Communication, Marketing
Arizona Republic, AZ, November 14, 2011
With its declining enrollment and increasing competition for students from charter and private schools, Mesa Public Schools has plans to fortify its image with an expanded marketing and community relations department.

State Board of Education Rejects Bilingual Charter School
Arkansas News, AR, November 14, 2011
The board delayed action on an application for a charter school in Marianna that would target troubled youths.

Taxes Pay for Wealthy Kids at Charter School
Bloomberg, November 15, 2011
Bullis isn’t a high-end private school. It’s a taxpayer- funded, privately run public school, part of the charter-school movement that educates 1.8 million U.S. children. While charters are heralded for offering underprivileged kids an alternative to failing U.S. districts, Bullis gives an admissions edge to residents of parts of Los Altos Hills, where the median home is worth $1 million and household income is $219,000, four times the state average.

College Compact Excludes Charters
San Diego Union-Tribune, CA, November 14, 2011
The rules leave out any students who attend seventh and eighth grade at charter schools in nearby elementary school districts. Previously, those students could

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GOP Hopefuls Would Limit Federal Role In Education
Associated Press, November 14, 2011
When it comes to education, the Republican field of presidential candidates has a unified stance: Get the federal government out of schools. How they’d do that varies.

/11/10_things_to_think_about_as_mi.html”>10 Things To Think About As Michigan And Other States Overhaul Teacher Evaluations
Kalamazoo Gazette, MI, November 13, 2011
Now 33 states — including Michigan — are overhauling their teacher evaluation systems, one of the most significant shakeups in U.S. education in recent years.

Time Running Out On School Finance Overhaul
Arizona Daily Sun, AZ, November 13, 2011
The results from Tuesday’s school elections in Arizona show again just how broken the school funding system is. And without an overhaul that will involve a new vision for the role of public education in Arizona , it’s likely to get worse.

1113,0,3570128.story”>Parents Organize to Push for Better

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Subtraction by Distraction

Center for Education Progress, November 10, 2011
As value-added measures become an accepted component of teacher evaluations, states and school districts will increasingly have to grapple with the question of how much information should be made available to the public and how much should remain private because of the nature of the information about individual teachers.

STATE COVERAGE

School Board Questioned About Charter School
Press Enterprise, CA, November 10, 2011
Community members questioned the Nuview Union school board’s decision to approve a charter school during a tense meeting Thursday.

Names of Race to the Top Review Panel for Colorado’s Application to Stay Anonymous
Denver Post, CO, November 11, 2011
Colorado officials felt at least one reviewer unfairly treated the state’s failed application for federal Race to the Top grant money, but they’ll never know who it was.

Jefferson County Public Schools and Education Reform
Denver Post, CO, November 11, 2011
Colorado is reforming schools, and how we evaluate educators’ effectiveness and improve their skills are in the spotlight. In Jeffco Public Schools, the state’s largest school district, we are proud of our many teachers who inspire students every day — and we know all teachers can get even better with the right support.

CO Teachers to Face Tougher Evaluations
KKCO, CO, November 10, 2011
Colorado teachers will be facing tougher assessments that can affect whether or not they’ll keep their jobs. Last year’s Senate Bill 10-191 called for a state-wide teacher assessment system. This week, a slew of recommendations have been approved by the Colorado the Board of Education.

Grading System Is Mixed Bag
Highlands Today, FL, November 11, 2011
As administrators and peer evaluators observe teachers in the classroom using the new evaluation system, concerns persist about whether student test data will be able to fairly and equitably gauge teacher effectiveness.

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Are Teachers Overpaid?
US News & World Report, November 9, 2011
Teacher pay has long been blamed for the diminishing quality of education in the United States . Education activists from former first lady Laura Bush to U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan argue that salaries for teachers should be increased both to properly compensate teachers for their difficult occupation and to lure more competent young people into the profession.

STATE COVERAGE

A Chance To Improve: Charter Schools, If Done Properly, Could Help Anniston Education
Anniston Star, AL, November 10, 2011
With a year as the majority party under their belts, Alabama’s Republican legislative leaders this week announced in broad strokes their aims for Montgomery’s 2012 session.

Relief from No Child Left Behind Too Expensive, State Officials Say
Los Angeles Times, CA, November 9, 2011
It would cost cash-strapped California at least $2 billion to meet the requirements for relief from the federal No Child Left Behind law, state officials reported Wednesday to the California Board of Education.

Barnidge: A Little Late To Worry About Charter Dividing The School District
Contra Costa Times, CA, November 9, 2011
As opponents of Clayton Valley High School’s charter petition took turns at the microphone at Tuesday’s Mt. Diablo school board meeting — students, parents, teachers and administrators from other district schools all piped up — the words varied, but the message was unmistakable: If we have to be stuck with this school district, so do you.

Charter Schools Do-Over
LA Weekly, CA, November 10, 2011
Los Angeles Unified School District officials have moved to close a loophole in the charter school admissions process in the wake of an Oct. 13 L.A. Weekly story — and a school featured in our story also has changed its policies.

Kindergarten Fair Markets To Parents
Enterprise-Record, CA, November 10, 2011
The Chico

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