NATIONAL

Making ‘No Child’ Better
New York Times, NY, February 5, 2010
Like most ambitious federal reforms, the No Child Left Behind Education Act of 2002 will need to be revised, perhaps several times, before it reaches maximum effectiveness.

Sorry for What?
Wall Street Journal, February 4, 2010
A day earlier, Education Secretary Arne Duncan expressed regret for saying that Hurricane Katrina “was the best thing that happened to the education system in New Orleans.” … Both men may be guilty of inartful phrasing, but that doesn’t make their statements untrue.

Washington vs. ‘Common Sense’
Wall Street Journal, February 4, 2010
The solution is not to tweak the bureaucracy, but to abandon it. Charter schools succeed because the people in them are free to use their common sense all day long-to maintain order and to instill values of cooperation and respect needed for life as well as academic success. Public schools need the same freedom and accountability.

Build on this Foundation
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, February 5, 2010
Eight years after President George W. Bush signed the No Child Left Behind law, the Obama administration seems poised to leave much of the law behind. President Obama this week set the stage for a sweeping overhaul as part of his proposed $3.8 trillion fiscal 2011 budget.

FROM THE STATES

Arizona

Charter Schools Are Not Frivolous
Arizona Republic, AZ, February 5, 2010
I read with dismay the comments of John Wright, president of the Arizona Education Association, in the Jan. 24 article, “Planned cuts to Arizona schools stir fears.” His suggestion to suspend school tax-credit donations to address the state’s flagging revenue is both uninformed and disingenuous.

Indiana

Charting New Course for IPS?
Indianapolis Star, IN, February 5, 2010
Indianapolis Public Schools Superintendent Eugene White argues that charter schools have an unfair edge over the traditional schools he manages.

Louisiana

BESE’s Rejection of Charter School In Opelousas Rapped
The Advocate, LA, February 5, 2010
The state’s rejection of an Opelousas charter school proposal has triggered charges that some key education leaders are looking for reasons to oppose charter schools.

Race to the Top Grant Competition Has ‘A Very High Bar,’ Education Secretary Arne Duncan Says
The Times-Picayune, LA, February 4, 2010
Education Secretary Arne Duncan lavished praise Thursday on the Louisiana system that enables the state to tie student test scores to the teachers who taught them and to the education schools that taught those teachers.

Maryland

In Montgomery County, the Teachers Union And Its Toxic Influence
Washington Post, DC, February 5, 2010
MOST CANDIDATES for local office in Montgomery County covet the endorsement of the county teachers union more than any other, and all of them know the drill: Appear at union events, fill out the union questionnaire, submit to the union interview.

Missouri

KIPP Seeking To Expand In St. Louis, Looking For Leaders
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, MO, February 4, 2010
The charter school network KIPP sent its national recruitment manager to St. Louis this week, shaking the trees for principal candidates.

Nevada

Districts, Facing Unique Local Challenges, Seek Greater Autonomy On Belt-Tightening
Las Vegas Sun, NV, February 5, 2010
Teachers, long a popular and protected political constituency, face increasing pressure to accept pay cuts as lawmakers try to decide how to trim $881 million from the state’s budget.

New Hampshire

Time Has Come To End Tenure For Teachers
Nashua Telegraph, NH, February 4, 2010
It is time to eliminate tenure for the teachers. It’s obvious that it is not in the best interest of our children, nor the taxpayers of this city. Tenure has shown its ugly head time after time when it comes to budget issues and children’s performance.

New York

Everyone has an Opinion On Charter Schools
Albany Times Union, NY, February 5, 2010
The Albany Common Council got a four-hour lesson in the political divisiveness of charter schools this week.

North Carolina

Charter-School Fumble
Winston-Salem Journal, NC, February 5, 2010
North Carolina’s stubborn refusal to add charter schools could sting the very people who have supported the 100-school limit. If that happens, it should be enough to get some state leaders thinking clearly about charter schools.

Bear Grass Supporters Take Charter School Request To State
The Daily Reflector, NC, February 4, 2010
About 75 people attended Thursday’s state Board of Education meeting in Raleigh to show support for a charter school in Bear Grass.

Oklahoma

For Oklahoma: Less Can Really Mean More
The Edmond Sun, OK, February 4, 2010
The governor in his state message vowed to protect education and Oklahoma’s most vulnerable. This is an immediate challenge, but solutions must go beyond protection to implementation of long-term reforms for Oklahoma’s future.

Rhode Island

Nardelli Pushes Charter School Legislation Forward
Warwick Beacon, RI, February 4, 2010
With a pile of folders mounting on his desk, Stephen Nardelli says his workload has increased significantly since he took over as the executive director of the Rhode Island League of Charter Schools five years ago.

Texas

Perry: Rejecting Race to the Top Funds Was An Easy Call
Austin American-Statesman, TX, February 4, 2010
Based upon the reaction out of Washington, I must have touched a nerve when I announced that Texas won’t be pursuing the strings-attached federal stimulus funds known as Race to the Top (RTTT).

Washington

School Funding Gets An F; Judge Calls For Action
Seattle Times, WA, February 4, 2010
In a victory for the parents, teachers, superintendents and community leaders who’d argued that the state isn’t adequately funding its public schools, a King County judge has ordered the state Legislature to establish the cost of providing a basic education for all students in Washington state, then pay for it.