Charter School To Open
The Ithacan, NY, January 29, 2009
The school, which will open in fall 2009, will provide an alternative to the Ithaca City School District and will emphasize sustainability. A charter school is a public school which is only accountable to the state, not the school district in which it is located.

An Education Stimulus?
Washington Post, D.C., January 29, 2009
EDUCATION is poised to win big under the economic stimulus plan hurtling through Congress. But it remains to be seen whether America’s schoolchildren really will be helped by the huge investment of public funds that is being planned.

States get D-Plus On Teacher Reviews
Associated Press, January 29, 2009
States are not doing what it takes to keep good teachers and remove bad ones, a national study found.

Local Educators Have Mixed Reactions to Strickland Plan
Dayton Daily New, OH, January 29, 2009
Strickland said charter schools have a place in his plan, too, as long as they "are not run by for-profit management services." Charter school advocate and Strickland critic Ron Adler, executive director of the Ohio Coalition For Quality Education, expected as much.

Governor Ted Strickland’s School Plan Earns Praise
Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH, January 29, 2009
Husted also didn’t like the governor’s criticism of for-profit companies that manage charter schools, saying they lead "some of the best-run, most academically successful, financially responsible schools."

Selection of Huberman Just A Bad Choice
Chicago Defender, IL, January 28, 2009
Make no mistake; Ron Huberman is a terrible choice to head the Chicago Public Schools. He not only has no educational experience, but he brings precious little managerial success with him. His tenure with the Chicago Transit Authority has not earned him kudos.

Officials Decry ‘Dropout Factory’
Times Picayune, LA, January 29, 2009
Designed for students who are not working on a diploma, the Options program has become the program for students with behavior problems, who are low-achievers or who are over-age, Pastorek said.

OEA Calls For Better Testing, Pay Raises
Tulsa World, OK, January 29, 2009
Other items include a survey of teachers to learn more about their working conditions and morale. The association supports allowing teachers and groups that represent teachers to sponsor charter schools.

School Choice Up To Parents
Columbia Missourian, MO, January 28, 2009
Public, private or parochial schools can potentially provide equally excellent outcomes, as can home schooling, apprenticeships, or other forms, as parents might determine fit their children’s needs. I am glad parents have choices, so I don’t understand how this has to be framed as an antagonistic contest.

Real World Ramifications
Las Vegas Review, NV, January 29, 2009
In the third installment of a series reporting results of a poll of nearly 70 Southern Nevada business owners and managers, published in Tuesday’s Review-Journal, 43 percent of respondents said local schools and colleges are "not at all effective" in preparing students for the workplace.

Backers of Mayoral School Control Face Resistance
New York Times, NY, January 29, 2009
When close allies of Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg banded together last summer to create a political organization to push for the renewal of a 2002 state law that gave New York City’s mayor control over its public schools, the initial buzz was that it would become a powerhouse lobbying group, raising as much as $20 million and helping shape the debate over the year.

FY’10 Budget Could Mean More Charters
The Daily Item of Lynn, MA, January 29, 2009
Gov. Deval Patrick has proposed raising the charter school cap in some communities in an effort to target high-risk students and improve state standardized test scores.

Week 3: Schools, Dialysis and Unions
Jackson Free Press, MS, January 28, 2009
With Mississippi’s current charter school law set to expire in July, the Senate moved Monday to authorize more charter schools in the state. The current law allows only six charter schools, but SB 2664, which passed by a vote of 37 to 11, increases that number to 20, or five in each of the state’s four congressional districts.