States Setting Pace on School Change; Obama Agenda Stalled in Congress
Washington Post, DC, July 28, 2010
But those breakthroughs have come as election-year divisions have emerged in Washington over federal education policy. Efforts to rewrite the No Child Left Behind law have failed to yield a bipartisan bill.

High Standards vs. Local Control
National Review Online, July 28, 2010
During the past week, conservative educational icons have been sparring over whether the Right ought to embrace the new “Common Core” standards developed by the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers. The debate has gained urgency as more than 25 states have signed on in the past two months.

FROM THE STATES

California

Race to the Top, Not So Much
Orange County Register, CA, July 27, 2010
President Obama’s Education Secretary Arne Duncan announced the 19 finalists for so-called “Race to the Top” funds today but some of the states named are serious about education reform, while some just kowtow to union powers and other special interests. Race to the Top looks to be more of the same politicizing education.

California Clears Hurdle for Federal Funding
Los Angeles Times, CA, July 28, 2010
The state, which lost out on its first try for Race to the Top grants, is a finalist in its second effort. Winners will share $3.4 billion in federal educational funding.

Connecticut

Connecticut Fails To Win Race to the Top Educational Funding
Hartford Courant, CT, July 27, 2010
“It’s obvious if the economy doesn’t turn around and we continue to have dire fiscal straits in Connecticut , we will have to push back various reforms,” said State Rep. Andrew Fleischmann, D-West Hartford, co-chairman of the legislature’s education committee.

District of Columbia

D.C. Charters to Split $10 Million for Teacher Pay
Washington Examiner, DC, July 28, 2010
D.C. charter schools will share nearly $10 million to use during the 2010-11 school year for “innovative compensation strategies” for their teachers, according to an announcement Tuesday by District officials.

The Impact of the D.C. Teacher Firings
Washington Post, DC, July 28, 2010
Regarding the July 24 front-page article “Rhee dismisses 241 teachers in the District”: I can only applaud the leadership and courage that D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee has displayed during her tenure.

Florida

Florida a Finalist for Federal Education Grant
Florida Times Union, FL, July 28, 2010
Florida is one of the 19 finalists for the second round of the Race to the Top education reform grants, officials said Tuesday.

Fla. Finalist for Race to the Top
St. Augustine Record, FL, July 28, 2010
Federal officials named Florida one of the 19 finalists for the second round of Race to the Top funding Tuesday, a critical early bar in the competition for federal education reform grants.

Mississippi

State Misses Out On Education Funding 
Jackson Clarion Ledger, MS, July 28, 2010
Mississippi lost out at a chance to receive $175 million in a national education reform competition, but the changes that money was going to underwrite will go on at a slower pace, said Lynn House, deputy state superintendent of education.

New Jersey

Board of Education Gets First Lesson on Charter Schools
Glen Ridge Voice, NJ, July 27, 2010
The borough has gotten its first taste of what converting the Glen Ridge schools into a charter district might entail.

N.J. is Among 19 Finalists for Federal Race to the Top Education Funding
Star-Ledger, NJ, July 28, 2010
New Jersey learned today it is in the running for up to $400 million in federal Race to the Top funds for education reform, after an 11th hour change to the state’s application and a political scuffle between Gov. Chris Christie and his own education commissioner last month.

N.J. a Finalist for Race to the Top Education Grant 
The Record, NJ, July 28, 2010
New Jersey was tapped as one of 19 finalists in the federal “Race to the Top” competition for school reform grants Tuesday, despite bitter public conflicts between Governor Christie and the state’s biggest teacher’s union.

Oklahoma

Oklahoma Elections: Paddack, Barresi Easily Carry Primaries
The Oklahoman, OK, July 28, 2010
A lifelong classroom teacher will make the race for state superintendent of schools a three party election in November.

South Carolina

Education Reform Prize Could Boost Spending $225 Per Student
Greenville News, SC, July 28, 2010
South Carolina has survived the cut in a second round of judging and has been named a finalist in the federal Race to the Top initiative. A prize of $175 million hangs in the balance.

Texas

Texas Should Help Charter Schools With Facility Costs
Dallas Morning News, TX, July 27, 2010
Social conservatives on the State Board of Education have gotten banged around considerably - justifiably, in our view - in recent years for their questionable decisions about Texas ‘ history standards, science goals and student textbooks.

West Virginia

Thumbs Down: Education Reform Makes No Headway In Special Session
The Herald-Dispatch, WV, July 27, 2010
The burst of interest last spring in West Virginia for education reform has all but dried up now, with little to show for it.

VIRTUAL EDUCATION

Summer School Goes Online
Fortune, July 27, 2010
With education budgets under fire, school districts are turning to e-learning to help little Johnny graduate on time.

Day 11: Put Virtue in Virtual School Regulations
Boston Globe Blog , MA, July 27, 2010
Virtual learning, whether online supplements for traditional learning styles or outright “virtual schools”, is increasingly a way to ensure much more time on task, a flexible schedule, and new capacity without hiring an unsustainable number of teachers.

Conestoga Valley School District May Boost Its Virtual Academy
Lancaster Newspapers, PA, July 28, 2010
Officials cite expense of students attending cyber charter schools outside district

Virtual Schools ‘Clicking’ for Many Students This School Year
Creston News Advertiser, IA, July 27, 2010
A record number of students are heading back to school this year - without ever stepping foot inside a classroom. A growing number of virtual schools (also known as cyber schools or e-schools), combined with booming parent (and student) demand for high-quality virtual education, have more students than ever logging on, instead of boarding a school bus, this back-to-school season.