Daily Headlines for January 27, 2012
NATIONAL
Under Education Reform, School Principals Swamped By Teacher Evaluations
Christian Science Monitor, MA, January 26, 2012
School principals, including some who back more rigorous review of teachers, are balking at education reforms required by Race to the Top. New teacher evaluations are all-consuming, they say.
Teacher Tenure
Black Hill Pioneer, SD, January 26, 2012
Teacher tenure is heated topic and one that deserves some clarification.
Tenure is a status granted to an experienced, long-term teacher, giving some protection from summary dismissal. When a teacher is hired in most districts, he or she will typically serve as a probationary employee for several years. During this extended trial period, district administrators may essentially dismiss a teacher at any time for little reason.
STATE COVERAGE
ALABAMA
Charter Schools Proposal Focus of Forum
Montgomery Advertiser, AL, January 27, 2012
Even though the start of the legislative session is more than two weeks away, charter school legislation already is gaining plenty of attention from state lawmakers.
ARIZONA
School-Choice Option for Disabled Students Upheld By Court
Arizona Republic, AZ, January 27, 2012
School-choice advocates won the first round in a court battle that could ultimately lead to a wider school voucher-type program that allows students to attend private schools at state expense.
CALIFORNIA
National Education Reformer Michelle Rhee Brings Fight to Fresno
Fresno Bee, CA, January 26, 2012
Education reformer Michelle Rhee said struggling schools need to rethink how they operate, including who’s at the blackboard — and whether teacher tenure is a good idea.
COLORADO
Colorado AG Weighs in on DPS, Union Fight Over Innovation Schools Act
Denver Post, CO, January 27, 2012
Because the opinion favors the school district — saying the act applies to planned new schools as well as existing schools — DPS is calling for the Denver Classroom Teachers Association to drop its lawsuit over the issue.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
National School Choice Week Comes At Bleak Time For NYC Charter School
Washington Times Blog, DC, January 26, 2012
But School Choice Week comes at a bitter time for the students, parents, and teachers of an elementary charter school in Far Rockaway, Queens: Peninsula Preparatory Academy, founded in 2004, was informed just this month that New York City’s charter school office has denied its charter renewal.
FLORIDA
Coral Gables, Charter School Compromise on Expansion
Miami Herald, FL, January 26, 2012
After two years, Coral Gables and Somerset Grace Academy reach a settlement that will allow the charter school to expand to 260 students from 110.
Ironing out the Kinks in Teacher Evaluations
Hernando Today, FL, January 26, 2012
As it stands, high school teachers won’t know until after the school year begins whether they rate as an effective teacher. By then classes will have already started and schedules will have been set.
GEORGIA
Pass Charter Schools Amendment, Get Back To Fixing Education In Georgia
Atlanta Journal Constitution Blog, GA, January 26, 2012
Ask Georgians about education, and you’ll likely hear two things: It’s important to our future prosperity, and we’re lagging behind. They’re right about its importance. There is one area, however, in which Georgia doesn’t trail most other states when it comes to education: Spending.
Are You Ready to Allow the Legislature Access to Local Education Funds in Pursuit of Greater School Choice?
Atlanta Journal Constitution Blog, GA, January 26, 2012
To mark National School Choice Week, the Center for Education Reform has held daily webinars on choice issues. Today, the center’s director Jeanne Allen speculated on the future of choice in states, only mentioning Georgia in passing for its special education voucher and private school scholarships.
HAWAII
3 Charter School Panel Members Resign In Protest
Honolulu Star-Advertiser, HI, January 27, 2012
Three longtime members of the Charter School Review Panel — Chairman Carl Takamura, former Chairwoman Ruth Tschumy and Pualani Akaka — resigned Thursday to protest the state Board of Education’s reversal of the panel’s decisions on converting Laupahoehoe School to a charter school.
ILLINOIS
Church Groups With City Contracts Back Emanuel’s School Agenda
Chicago Tribune, IL, January 27, 2012
Faith-based groups that have become the face of community support for Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s controversial plans to lengthen the school day and close failing schools also receive millions of dollars in grants from his administration.
INDIANA
Vouchers Get Good Reports
Journal Gazette, IN, January 27, 2012
Gov. Mitch Daniels met privately Thursday with three Concordia Lutheran High School students and their parents to ask their thoughts on the state’s new voucher program.
He liked what he heard.
MASSACHUSETTS
Professor Criticizes Teacher Evaluations
Harvard Crimson, MA, January 27, 2012
Students’ learning does not correlate with the education level or experience of their teachers, Graduate School of Education professor Thomas J. Kane said Thursday in a panel discussion at the School of Education. Nevertheless, current systems of teacher evaluation focus almost exclusively on those two factors, according to Kane.
Elizabeth Warren’s Quiet Support for Public School Vouchers
US News & World Report, January 26, 2012
A public school voucher system would radically reform education while stabilizing the housing market
MINNESOTA
Minnesota Legislature: Charter Schools Would Gain Levy Funding From District Under Bill
Pioneer Press, MN, January 26, 2012
Charter school supporters are backing legislation that could mean a windfall for some of the independent schools, which can’t levy taxpayers on their own.
MISSISSIPPI
Charter Schools, School Choice Explored
Jackson Clarion Ledge, MS, January 27, 2012
Each day, Cynthia Jackson of Canton drives past Madison County schools, where she wants to send her 11-year-old son but can’t.
MISSOURI
Lawmakers Blast Online Teacher Evaluations in Kansas
Kansas City Star, MO, January 26, 2012
The proposal, which is part of the Kansas governor’s plan to overhaul school financing, is only now coming to light. But if its first hearing Thursday was any indication, the idea will be a tough sell.
Dramatic School Plan Offered for Failing Schools
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, MO, January 27, 2012
In exchange for addressing a vexing court ruling that has become a headache for many school districts, an influential state senator wants to fundamentally reshape the urban education landscape in Missouri.
St. Louis Public Schools to Sponsor Charters
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, MO, January 27, 2012
St. Louis schools Superintendent Kelvin Adams announced plans Thursday to sponsor two charter schools, reversing the district’s resistance to a movement that has lured thousands of students away from its schools this past decade.
School Choice Is the Next Revolution in American Education, Panelists Say
St. Louis Beacon, MO, January 26, 2012
After three failed waves of education reform in the past 50 years, a new movement will mark a revolution in how American students learn: school choice.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Tax Credit Plan Would Hurt My School District
Concord Monitor, NH, January 27, 2012
Like many lawmakers in New Hampshire, I wear more than one hat. And that’s a good thing because knowledge and experience in one sphere can help me in the other.
NEW JERSEY
The Charter School Controversy — Much Ado About Nothing
New Jersey Spotlight, NJ, January 27, 2012
It’s time for NJ to catch up with the rest of the country and recognize charters as the natural ally to traditional school districts
NEW MEXICO
Charter School’s Success Proves Letter Grades’ Failure
Albuquerque Journal, NM, January 27, 2012
The focus of this letter is to discuss our concerns about the letter grading system for schools with students who do not fit into any of the areas evaluated by the recently released Public Education Department’s letter grade for schools.
NEW YORK
One More Shot At An Evaluation System?
Amsterdam News, NY, January 27, 2012
It looks like the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) and the city of New York are headed back to the negotiation table to discuss a new system for teacher evaluations, and hopes are high that a deal can be reached this time.
Teacher-Protection Racket
New York Post, NY, January 27, 2012
Abusive, criminal or just plain incompetent teachers can all rest easy: In this city, their jobs are perfectly safe. And too bad for the kids in the schools.
School Improves With Help of U.S. Money It May Lose
New York Times, NY, January 27, 2012
The federal grant had ambitious purpose, few restrictions and a not-so-distant expiration date: three years. With almost $1 million to spend, Brian Rosenbloom, the principal at Chelsea Career and Technical Education High School in SoHo, once one of New York City ’s worst schools, knew he had to be strategic.
Charter School Fights Fat
Buffalo News, NY, January 26, 2012
Instead of using cartoon-size scissors, dozens of enthusiastic students broke through a ceremonial ribbon in full stride Thursday to mark the grand opening of the new fitness center at Charter School for Applied Technologies in the Town of Tonawanda.
NORTH CAROLINA
Partners in N.C.’s K-12 Education
News & Observer, NC, January 27, 2012
I often sense an adversarial tone when listening to discussions of the different educational options available to our children. Whether a child attends a traditional public school, a public charter school, private school or is home-schooled, each learning environment enjoys a symbiotic relationship with the other - where one model is actually interdependent upon the other, especially with our public school system.
Private School Advocates Urge Tax Credits For Parents
Statesville Record & Landmark, NC, January 27, 2012
Statesville Christian School Headmaster Dirk Mroczek believes parents who enroll their children at private schools should receive tuition help from the state.
OHIO
Local Parents Sing Praises of EdChoice Scholarships
Youngstown Vindicator, OH, January 27, 2012
Through the EdChoice scholarship program, Cindi Hilson is able to send her three children to Youngstown Christian School . “Without [the EdChoice scholarship], even though my husband works, we wouldn’t be able to afford to send all three of them,” she said. “Maybe one of them could come here.”
RHODE ISLAND
R.I. Bill Would Make Union Membership Optional For Teachers
Providence Journal, RI, January 26, 2012
Sen. Nicholas D. Kettle, R-Coventry, announced Thursday he has introduced a “right to work” bill that would make union membership optional for Rhode Island teachers.
TENNESSEE
SCORE Lays Out Its Plan For Teacher Evals
The Tennessean, TN, January 27, 2012
The State Collaborative on Reforming Education laid out its plan Thursday to gather feedback on Tennessee’s new teacher evaluation procedures and tenure rules.
Will A Proposed Nashville Charter School Attract Private-School Parents Or Affect Public Schools?
Nashville Scene, TN, January 26, 2012
Inside Sylvan Park’s Cohn Adult Learning Center library, a standing-room-only audience of roughly 150 parents, educators and assorted politicos bear witness to what could be the new, polished future of Nashville charter schools.
VIRGINIA
Evaluation Procedures for Teachers Reviewed
Northern Virginia Daily, VA, January 27, 2012
A presentation at the last Shenandoah County School Board meeting outlined new ways to evaluate teachers in the county.
WISCONSIN
Sen. Ellis Apologizes For Calling Green Bay Preble a ‘Sewer’
Journal Sentinel, WI, January 26, 2012
It’s still not clear who recorded several Republican legislators having dinner Tuesday night in a Madison restaurant and discussing private school vouchers, but the footage uploaded to politiscoop.com resulted in Sen. Mike Ellis (R-Neenah) making a lot of apologies Thursday.
VIRTUAL EDUCATION
Gull Lake Community Schools Sees Its Student Count Pop, Thanks To Several New Programs
Kalamazoo Gazette, MI, January 27, 2012
Full-time-equivalent enrollment in Gull Lake Community Schools increased more than 9 percent in fall 2011 compared to 2010, generating about $1.7 million in additional revenue for the district, based on a Kalamazoo Gazette analysis of the latest enrollment data.
Virtual School Coming to Portage This Fall
Daily Register, WI, January 26, 2012
There are no digital bricks to lay, but the construction of a virtual charter school is under way. The Portage School District will open one this fall geared toward retaining students who enroll out and home school students.
