Local News | Rigorous college-prep classes skyrocketing in Washington state | Seattle Times Newspaper

Local News | Rigorous college-prep classes skyrocketing in Washington state | Seattle Times Newspaper:

"A decade ago, most Seattle-area high schools offered just a handful of rigorous classes that provided a way to earn college credit while supercharging a transcript. And only students with top grades were allowed to sign up. But in 10 years, the intensive, fast-paced Advanced Placement (AP) classes have skyrocketed in this state."

A decade ago, most Seattle-area high schools offered just a handful of rigorous classes that provided a way to earn college credit while supercharging a transcript. And only students with top grades were allowed to sign up.

But in 10 years, the intensive, fast-paced Advanced Placement (AP) classes have skyrocketed in this state.

In 2008, fully one-quarter of Washington public-school seniors took at least one AP test during their high-school years, compared with 10 percent in 1997. In some schools, almost every student takes an AP class in junior or senior year.

And other schools around the state are moving fast to add AP classes and expand participation, in part because college admissions officials say the demanding classes do a good job of preparing students for higher

Whistle-blower suit filed in charter probe | Philadelphia Inquirer | 02/06/2010

Whistle-blower suit filed in charter probe | Philadelphia Inquirer | 02/06/2010

A former administrator at Community Academy Charter School has filed a whistle-blower suit alleging that she was improperly fired the day after federal agents raided the school in August.
Adorable Harper, a 1999 graduate, charges that officials at the Kensington charter retaliated against her for filing a complaint with federal investigators detailing "a pattern of criminal misuse of local, state, and federal funds."


Dave Frankel, one of Harper's attorneys, said the suit, filed recently in Common Pleas Court, contends that the defendants "illegally retaliated against our client for blowing the whistle."
The suit names Joseph Proietta, the charter founder and chief executive officer; Anna Duvivier, the chief operating officer; and International Education & Community Initiatives, a related nonprofit that does business under the name One Bright Ray Inc.


The officials, the complaint alleges, ran the charter and the nonprofit "like private fiefdoms or family businesses rather than the publicly funded school and nonprofit entities they are."
The Inquirer reported in October that Proietta had five relatives on the charter's payroll and that his wife was a consultant to the school.


In addition to citing the state whistle-blower law, the complaint alleges civil conspiracy, wrongful termination, and defamation. Harper has been unable to find a job since losing her position as assistant chief operating officer at the charter, the suit says.
Proietta denied all the allegations and said Harper was one

Teen: Unity day answers 'hateful' talk - Sacramento News - Local and Breaking Sacramento News | Sacramento Bee

Teen: Unity day answers 'hateful' talk - Sacramento News - Local and Breaking Sacramento News | Sacramento Bee:

"Westboro Baptist Church"

David Schenirer respects the decision by local Jewish leaders – including his father – to ignoreWestboro Baptist Church, the anti-gay and anti-Semitic group scheduled to picket in Sacramentotoday. But Schenirer said that's something he can't do.

Schenirer, a McClatchy High School senior, has organized a tolerance day at the school, one of several locations the controversial religious group – known for picketing the funerals of U.S. soldiers – is scheduled to demonstrate today and Saturday.

"These people say hateful stuff, awful things," said Schenirer. "Instead of ignoring them, I think this is an opportunity to teach people about tolerance."

Schenirer's father, Jay Schenirer, is president ofSacramento's Congregation B'nai Israel. He has urged members not to counterprotest, but supports his son. "I just want to make sure everything is peaceful."

For the past week, local religious and civic leaders have discussed and debated how to respond to the Kansas-based Westboro Baptist Church. Members of the splinter fundamentalist group intend to demonstrate at 10 sites in theSacramento region today and Saturday, according to the church's Web site.

Many local leaders believe the best way to respond to the group is to refuse to give them what they want: attention.

"Their purpose is to be provocative and engage people," said Michal Kohane, executive director of the Jewish Federation of the Sacramentoregion. "We're not participating. We're not engaging them."

Members of Westboro Baptist Church travel the country spreading their message of hate, said Mark Potok spokesman for the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Ala., a civil rights organization that tracks hate groups. "They specialize in public outrage."

Questions for parent-teacher conferences

Questions for parent-teacher conferences:

"Keys to Successful Parent-Teacher Conferences

“Two people working together who have the best interest of the child in mind

lead to better outcomes for students.”

Parent-Teacher Conferences:

February 12, 2010 – March 4-2010

ELEMENTARY SHORTENED DAYS

Check with your school"

Super Bowl Support Our Troops

Super Bowl Support Our Troops

Support the Center for American Progress

Sacramento Press / Councilman Ray Tretheway's goals for 2010

Sacramento Press / Councilman Ray Tretheway's goals for 2010

Councilman Ray Tretheway’s key goals for 2010 are in response to problems caused by the poor economy. He said he plans to concentrate on public safety, jobs and foreclosure.

Tretheway’s priorities are listed here as part of a series of stories on council members’ top three goals for 2010. Links to the stories are at the end of this article.

The Sacramento Press made repeated requests to interview Councilman Rob Fong, but he was unavailable.

Tretheway represents District 1, which includes North and South Natomas and Alkali Flat. He is running for re-election in June against Efren Guttierrez, a real estate broker, and Angelique Ashby, a partner in a consulting firm that contracts with government agencies and businesses.

When he is not working on city matters, Tretheway is the executive director of Sacramento Tree Foundation.

Tretheway said his top priority for the year is public safety. He puts public safety into three categories: police and fire, levees and youth education.

Assemblymember Block - Bill Closes Cayman Island Tax Loopholes | California Progress Report

Assemblymember Block - Bill Closes Cayman Island Tax Loopholes | California Progress Report

One of my top priorities when I came to the Assembly was to eliminate corporate tax loopholes.

With a grim economy and no-win budget choices, it’s clear that making big business pay their fair share of state tax is more important than ever.

To do this I’ve introduced the Cayman Islands Tax Loophole Bill, AB 1178.

You might have heard about a single building in the Cayman Islands that houses almost 19,000 shell corporations.

Corporations transfer their profits to these fake companies so they don’t have to pay taxes.

Meanwhile, the rest of us get stuck paying more for the services our state needs.

Look at college students and their families.

For too long now they’ve struggled to afford higher education in our state – the higher education needed to attract jobs and keep vital industries here at home in California.

Textbook prices are through 

Education Research Report: States' Data Quality Evaluated

Education Research Report

States' Data Quality Evaluated

A new Data Quality Campaign (DQC) report finds that states are making impressive progress toward building longitudinal data systems and are taking the first steps to ensure that new information is used to improve student outcomes and system-wide performance. But the results, which are based on a survey of all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, also show that most states have much work to do around key practices, such as following student progress from pre-school through college and the workforce, sharing student-level progress reports with teachers, and providing adequate training around data use.

Since 2005, the Data Quality Campaign (DQC) has supported state development of longitudinal data systems that provide policymakers with information to create and adjust policies and practices to improve student achievement. The DQC’s annual survey of states’ progress on implementing the 10 Essential Elements of these systems shows that states have made impressive gains, and every state has committed to having a system with all 10 Essential Elements by 2011.

Although creating state longitudinal data systems and collecting vital information to answer key questions about performance are important steps, states also must have policies and practices in place to ensure that all education stakeholders are able to access, understand and use the information for continuous improvement.

The DQC 10 Essential Elements and 10 State Actions provide states a common roadmap to reach this goal. This year, for the first time, the DQC survey also asked questions about the 10 State Actions that are vital to using longitudinal data for continuous improvement. This inaugural overview reveals that states are just beginning to take the necessary steps:

The majority of states (43) have implemented three or fewer of the DQC State Actions.
Only ten states are sharing individual progress reports with educators, and fewer than half of states provide reports to stakeholders using aggregate-level statistics.
The same political will, energy and resources that coalesced to build robust longitudinal data systems over the past three years must now be harnessed to assist states in putting into place practices and policies that will ensure these rich data are used to inform decisionmaking across the P–20/workforce spectrum.

Overview Documents

Inaugural Overview of States’ Actions To Leverage Data To Improve Student Success 

Data are useful only when they are transformed into actionable information that people are able to access, understand and use. Thanks to federal, state and local investments of political will and resources, the education sector is on the cusp of becoming an information-based enterprise. But reaching this goal depends on states taking actions that change the historically entrenched culture of using data for compliance

Bellevue, other school districts, win court case on education funding

Bellevue, other school districts, win court case on education funding

In what plaintiffs in a landmark school funding lawsuit called “a huge victory for Washington school children,” a King County Superior Court judge Thursday ruled the state in violation of its constitutionally mandated “paramount duty” to amply provide for the education of all children.

The court ordered the state to determine the actual costs of providing all children with the knowledge and skills set forth in the state’s high academic standards and to fully fund that actual cost with stable and dependable state sources.

The Bellevue School District, along with a number of others, originated the suit.

“This court is left with no doubt that under the State’s current financing system the state is failing in its constitutional duty,” Judge John Erlick said in his ruling, which followed a six-week trial that concluded in October. The trial included hundreds of documents and testimony from some 60 witnesses.

In the Bellevue School District, figures for the 2007-08 school year showed the district spent about $270 million on everything from school facilities, classroom teacher salaries and teaching materials, libraries, transportation, administration, utilities and money for capital building projects.

The figures show the state contribution was approximately

Curious2: Charter School Management Fees

Curious2: Charter School Management Fees

As the debate over the for-profit management company Victory Schools heats up, we reviewed the fees that some charter schools pay for management services, either to a for-profit Educational Management Organization (EMO) or to a non-profit Charter Management Organization (CMO). Using data available from the 2008-2009 fiscal audits, we found that 46 schools, or 60% percent of all charter schools, had some sort of CMO or EMO. Out of the 35 schools that actually paid for these services, the cost was, on average, $1,291, or 10 percent, per pupil.

Charters with a CMO paid an average of $986, or 7 percent of per pupil funds. EMO schools paid an average of $2,146, or 17 percent of per pupil funds— a $1,160 difference. To be clear, since different services are provided by different management groups and CMOs might subsidize their services with philanthropy, the amounts paid don’t necessarily indicate over-charging for services. A full spreadsheet, with a breakdown of the schools, philanthropy numbers, and explanatory notes, is available here.

While about 40 percent of all NYC charter schools are independent schools, the rest choose to enter into a contract with either an EMO or CMO for management services. Typically, these contracts stipulate the services that the management organization will provide in exchange for a fee, which is calculated as a percentage of the per-pupil funding that a school receives.

A typical arrangement is that of Uncommon Schools Inc, which charges a new charter school 10% of their per-pupil funds. In exchange, they provide charter application and start-up help, as well as accountability, budgeting, back office, legal, fund development, marketing, and educational services once the school is up and running.

Most schools that choose to have a management organization have a CMO. The rest, about 10 percent, use a for-profit company, generally Victory Schools, which dominates the market in New York City—operating 7 of the 9 EMO charters open in 2008-2009. This small number of EMO charters in New York City makes it difficult to make generalizations about the relative difference between EMO and CMO schools.

In 2008-2009, Harbor Sciences and Arts Charter School, a CMO school, and Peninsula

Charter School Management Fees -

At Top City Schools, Lack of Diversity Persists - City Room Blog - NYTimes.com

At Top City Schools, Lack of Diversity Persists - City Room Blog - NYTimes.com

Just seven black students were admitted to Stuyvesant High School’s incoming freshman class, down from a dozen last year, according to numbers released Friday by the city’s Education Department. The number of Hispanics also dropped incrementally, with 17 being admitted this year, compared with 24 last year. A total of 958 students were admitted last week for next year’s freshman class at Stuyvesant, long regarded as the crown jewel of the city’s schools.

For the last several years, education officials have struggled to explain thelack of racial diversity in the city’s elite public high schools. Admissions to the schools, including Stuyvesant, Brooklyn Tech and Bronx Science, are based entirely on the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test, offered each fall. Over the years, several critics have charged that the test is inadequate, and that it is unfair to make it the sole criteria for admission.

Among the 5,261 eighth-grade students who learned this week that they had been admitted to the city’s top eight schools, 7 percent are black, among those whose race was known to the department. Hispanic students make up 8 percent of the students admitted, while 57 percent are Asian and 28 percent are white. Of the nearly 23,000 students who took the test, 23 percent were admitted to one of the schools.

Sacramento Press / A Warm Reception at McClatchy High School for Anti-Gay Protester Fred Phelps

Sacramento Press / A Warm Reception at McClatchy High School for Anti-Gay Protester Fred Phelps

  A small group of people started gathering in front of McClatchy High School today, at 3 o’clock, to show their support for gay rights. Among the group, were protesters who had gathered earlier at the capitol, students from neighboring schools, and the press. 
      It was nearing the scheduled time for the arrival of the notorious anti-gay protester, Fred Phelps and his clan, from the Westboro Baptist Church. They were scheduled to arrive at 3;15pm, according to their website godhatesfags.com. 
      The high school was ready with a dozen staff members standing guard in the front drive way. A number of students chose to dine in restaurants across the street, having a nice vantage point to enthusiastically view the scene.
      At 3:20, the school bell rang and students began to flood through the front doors. As the front of the school filled with students, more supporters joined the group. Some were wearing pro-gay t-shirts and others were wearing rainbow colored ribbons. Several students identified themselves as members of the gay-straight student alliance at high school. Other students made the point that they were straight, but believe in mutual respect for all people.
      The mass of demonstrators became larger. As cars drove by, honking their horns, the crowd would roar with delight. What was planned as a counter-protest became a gathering of people with a love for freedom and equality. The diversity of the crowd was greeted with the smiles on people’s faces.

Elk Grove Citizen : Feature Story

Elk Grove Citizen : Feature Story:

"Good physical health is only a hop, skip and a jump away for Elk Grove students who broke a world record on Feb. 1 for the most students jumping rope at one time.

The Jamba Jump Day Event challenged 80,000 students across California to jump rope for 10 minutes to break the world record held by Australia of 59,000 jumpers, and earn a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records.

California students succeeded and surpassed the goal.

Sponsored by Jamba Juice and California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (CAHPERD), organizers say the event actually brought out 88,000 jumpers."

Folsom Lake College and Community Partners Awarded $389,000 in Career-Based Grant Funding — The Rancho Cordova Post

Folsom Lake College and Community Partners Awarded $389,000 in Career-Based Grant Funding — The Rancho Cordova Post:

"Folsom Lake College, in collaboration with several El Dorado County partners, has been awarded $389,000 in continued funding under the Governor’s Career Technical Education Initiative (SB 70/SB 1133), to raise the awareness of “middle skill” career opportunities among 6th through 12th grade students in El Dorado County schools. Middle skill careers are those that require some post-baccalaureate training, but may not necessarily require a Bachelor’s degree.

In conjunction with several El Dorado County partner businesses, agencies and organizations (including the El Dorado County Office of Education, the El Dorado Union High School District, the Black Oak Mine Unified School District, Lake Tahoe Community College, P.G. & E., SMUD, the El Dorado Irrigation District, Sierra Pacific Industries, the Apple Hill Growers Association, the United States Forest Service, Marshall Hospital, Barton Health, fire fighting agencies, local child care businesses, wineries, hotels, and rafting companies) the Grant will place 6th through 12th grade teachers in paid summer externships at jobs related to the following industry sectors: Natural Resources, Early Childhood Education, Travel, Hospitality and Tourism, and Allied Health."

Schools Matter: Turnaround Millions, Mass Insight, and Scrubbed Websites

Schools Matter: Turnaround Millions, Mass Insight, and Scrubbed Websites

When the corporate tutoring piece (Supplemental Services) was inserted into the NCLB legislation in 2001, Sen. Judd Gregg, who was Bush's chief water carrier, sought to rally the privatizers, who were distraught that school vouchers had finally been banished from the Bill:

Conservatives were angry and disappointed that school vouchers had once more been stripped out, but Gregg and others remained optimistic that in subsequent reauthorization of NCLB in 2007, vouchers would be an easier sell based on the private tutoring precedent and the anticipated failure rates on state assessments. The failure rates would provide the documentation to soften, and eventually eliminate, public resistance to school vouchers and private management companies. [Elizabeth] Debray quotes a Senate aide, who preferred to remain anonymous, on Gregg’s selling of the supplemental services compromise in March 2001:

“[Senator] Gregg was explaining why they [other Republican senators] should vote for the bill . . .and he said, ‘Well, the supplemental 

Education Week: A Midterm Report

Education Week: A Midterm Report:

"A MIDTERM REPORT"

As the first year of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act ends and the second year begins, Education Week takes a close look at the impact education stimulus dollars have had and sheds light on what the next year will bring.

Race to the Top: The Race Is On from Education Week on Vimeo.

The deadline has arrived, and 40 states plus D.C. are hoping to win a share of a $4.35 billion "Race to the Top" pie. Who will get the money? How have they prepared? This video is part of a Learning Matters series covering the Race to the Top. Watch all related videos and listen to more podcasts here. Produced by: Cat McGrath & David Wald. Correspondent: John Merrow. Camera: David Wald, Bruce Liffiton, Carl Filoreto & Rudy Gelenter.

Dueling Objectives Mark Stimulus at Halfway Point

The long-term impact of the huge influx of federal education funding remains uncertain as the flow of $100 billion in aid continues. February 5, 2010 – Education Week

Multiple Stimulus Aid Streams Flow to Ed Tech

States and school districts are tapping into several pots of federal economic-stimulus money to rev up their educational technology. February 5, 2010 – Education Week

Private Sector Competes for Share of Stimulus Pie

Both for-profit and nonprofit organizations are being tapped to play roles as the federal money opens new business opportunities. February 5, 2010 – Education Week

Title I, Spec. Ed. Aid Casts Long Stimulus Shadow

Advocates worry that districts’ choices to use the money to fill budget gaps and avoid layoffs may come back to haunt them later. February 5, 2010 – Education Week

Stimulus Reflects Push for Teacher Effectiveness

The legislation emphasizes on-the-job performance as a gauge of teacher quality more than such criteria as formal credentials. February 5, 2010 – Education Week

Schools Stuck at Bottom Target of $3 Billion Push

The infusion of federal stimulus money is intended to supercharge efforts to overhaul the worst-performing Title I schools. February 5, 2010 – Education Week

Aid Lets Hard-Hit State Keep Programs Aloft

Schools around Las Vegas made quick use of federal stimulus funding as Nevada copes with high unemployment and other problems. February 5, 2010 – Education Week

Fiscal Stability Allows for Long View on Stimulus

The extra funds offer Arkansas a chance for lasting investments, while officials remain aware that caution is the watchword in spending. February 5, 2010 – Education Week

As Education's Funding Cliff Nears, Anxieties Rise

States and school districts are already mapping strategies to maintain their momentum after the federal stimulus aid stops flowing. February 5, 2010 – Education Week

Race to Top Sets Stage for ESEA Reauthorization

The Education Department is expected to keep championing many policies it has prodded states to adopt in the grant competition. February 5, 2010 – Education Week

Coverage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is supported in part by grants from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, at www.hewlett.org, and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, at www.mott.org.

Districts turn to arbitration to settle teacher contracts - JSOnline

Districts turn to arbitration to settle teacher contracts - JSOnline:

"In an action that's likely to be repeated across the state, the West Bend School District is preparing to take contract negotiations with its teachers to arbitration, potentially among the first districts to do so since the Legislature removed teacher salary controls that held sway in Wisconsin for 16 years.

District negotiators and representatives for the West Bend Education Association have their first mediation session scheduled for next week, the first step they need to take before they can proceed to binding arbitration.

Administrators say they would prefer being able to resolve their issues with the teachers union by settling a contract through the mediation process. But they also say they are willing to go to arbitration if needed.

'We're not afraid of it,' said Bill Bracken, labor relations coordinator for Davis & Kuelthau, which is representing the school district."

The science of learning - The Denver Post

The science of learning - The Denver Post

Think of it as a chemistry experiment: Distill a coherent set of standards with a well-prepared teacher, then light a Bunsen burner under students with the latest technology and other hands-on resources.

Performed well, the exercise yields an eighth- grader grounded in science and eager to pursue the discipline into high school and beyond.

But economically strapped districts — and that covers most of Colorado — find it increasingly difficult to secure tools vital to the inquiry-based science model embraced as a "best practice."

Some schools already worry budget cuts will leave them short of materials, particularly the non-reusable sort such as chemicals, and behind the curve on ever-changing technology.

Read more:http://www.denverpost.com/ci_14345651#ixzz0elhdKBXm