Thursday, August 26, 2010

U.S. officials refute Christie on attempt to fix Race to the Top application during presentation | NJ.com

U.S. officials refute Christie on attempt to fix Race to the Top application during presentation

Published: Thursday, August 26, 2010, 9:45 PM

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Excerpt of N.J.'s Race to the Top interview shows officials with no budget answer

TRENTON — When New Jersey failed to win up to $400 million in federal education money, Gov. Chris Christie blamed Washington bureaucrats, saying they refused to allow the state to fix a simple error in its application.

But today, the U.S. Department of Education released video footage contradicting Christie’s claim. The video shows state officials struggling and failing to provide correct budget information during a 90-minute presentation. In addition, a federal official said the state never provided the required information.

Schools to get $51.9 million in federal funds | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

Schools to get $51.9 million in federal funds

by Erika Owens

Pennsylvania may have lost out on Race to the Top funds, but the state has just doled out another pot of stimulus funds through the School Improvement Grant Fund - to the tune of $51.9 million for some of Philadelphia's troubled schools.

The list of awards from the state totals $101 million, with the School District garnering just over half that, earmarked for 27 of its low-performing schools. For 11 of those schools, the grants exceed $2 million. Schools have three years to use the funds.

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29 local schools are winners - most getting grants in the millions

Parents setting up independent school in northeast Portland | OregonLive.com

Parents setting up independent school in northeast Portland When Sarah Phillips and David Friedman couldn't find a school that suited the needs of their daughter, now 8, they decided to start one. The Portland School Project is set to open in September 2011 in Northeast Portland with 35 students in grades ...

Montessori school at Portland's South Waterfront accepting enrollees Parents interested in Montessori education will have another option this fall. Montessori Children's House, a 4,000-square-foot facility nestled among the condo towers in South Waterfront, will open Sept. 13 at 3626 S.W. Bond Ave. on the ground floor ...

State revenue down again, but corporate kicker may be coming Oregon's latest economic forecast shows revenue from personal income taxes way down and revenue from corporate taxes up, possibly enough to trigger the corporate kicker.

Blog U.: A Formula for Increasing Enrollments Without Significantly Driving Up Costs? - Technology and Learning - Inside Higher Ed

A Formula for Increasing Enrollments Without Significantly Driving Up Costs? Joshua Kim

Students Arrive in One Week Meg Palladino

Math Geek Mom: (Photo) Shopping in Cleveland Rosemarie Emanuele

The Formula for Race to the Top Success – Hire a Winning Grant Writer � The Quick and the Ed

The Formula for Race to the Top Success – Hire a Winning Grant Writer

by Rob Manwaring

Local stories are picking apart why a specific state won or lost the Race to the Top. For example in Colorado, it was not highlighting their most relevant legislation – SB 191 (See Chad Aldeman’s earlier post) – and the lack of union support. In California, it was poor data systems, lack of union support and questions about whether the state could deliver (here). In the case of Ohio winning, it was a clerical error in New Jersey that made a difference. Of course absent that error, perhaps bloggers would be talking about the effectiveness of New Jersey’s presentation team, and the Andy Smarick effect

School Tech Connect: All The President's Friends

All The President's Friends

by effacethefacade@yahoo.com (Tim)

This is the basic attitude of people who think the President's education policies are sound.

We like how you're privatizing the schools, but please, don't waste our kids' time with your socialist

The Rightward Lurch Of Basic Conversations, Redux

by effacethefacade@yahoo.com (Tim)

I've moved around so much in my life, I'm not even sure I have a dog in the fight to save Social Security. I'm vested in pension systems, and with the windfall laws, I have no idea if I'll even ever qualify for Social Security, although they send me a nice statement every once in a while.

Anyway, this was an interesting clip I saw over at C & L. It's Alan Simpson, representing the interests of "the lesser people" on the Catfood Commission. Alan Simpson is a dbag, there's no doubt. It's his right. But to his credit, he stands there and engages rather than dodging the encounter.

Popout

Can you imagine being in a family with this guy? It makes more sense to me that the President would pick Arne Duncan to run education when I look at whom he's picked to chair Catfood.

Massachusetts Invests $204 Million For Education Jobs Fund | Gov Monitor

Massachusetts Invests $204 Million For Education Jobs Fund

Source: Governor of Massachusetts Posted on: 26th August 2010

Governor allocates $204 million in federal Education Jobs Funds to districts across the Commonwealth, Funds will save teacher positions.

Governor Deval Patrick today allocated $204 million from the federal Education Jobs Fund to school districts across the Commonwealth, bringing state support for public schools to its highest level in history.

A combination of state and federal dollars totaling $4.07 billion will ensure all school districts receive more state aid – at least $25 per student – than they did last year.

The new funding, which follows yesterday’s announcement that Massachusetts secured $250 million in federal Race to the Top dollars, will support an estimated 2,700 teaching positions.

“Great schools are the key to our future, and great teachers are the key to great schools,” said Governor Patrick. “With this significant infusion of funds, we are building a better, stronger future for our kids, our communities and our Commonwealth.”

“Governor Patrick and I have consistently said education is a priority of our administration, and today we continue to put those words into action,” said Lieutenant Governor Timothy

First Person Singular: Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education

(KK Ottensen)

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This work for me is very, very personal. It goes back to my mother's work in a church basement starting in 1961, trying to make a huge difference, through education, in the lives of kids that had a very, very tough time. Her after-school program was literally a mile and a half from where we lived -- but it was a different world.

I grew up in Hyde Park, this middle-class, diverse community around the University of Chicago. There was a 47th Street border; no one else crossed over, but we were this crazy family that did. Growing up in a different community, a different world, is life-transforming; it shaped us. And I couldn't begin to do what I'm doing today had I not had that opportunity every day for years.

Literally, from the time we were born, we grew up with children who happened to be African American,

NorthJersey.com: Lautenberg: Feds to release video of N.J. 'Race to the Top' presentation

Lautenberg: Feds to release video of N.J. 'Race to the Top' presentation

Thursday, August 26, 2010

BY LISA FLEISHER

STATE HOUSE BUREAU

The U.S. Department of Education plans to release video Thursday of New Jersey’s Race to the Top presentation earlier this month in Washington, D.C., said Caley Gray, spokesman for U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg.

This is the presentation during which the Christie administration says it learned of a key error that cost the state critical points in the competitive grant process.

Governor Christie said Wednesday the state tried to fix the error in the interview – attended by state Education Commissioner Bret Schundler and four others – but

U.S. officials to release video of N.J. Race to the Top presentation | NJ.com

U.S. officials to release video of N.J. Race to the Top presentation

Published: Thursday, August 26, 2010, 5:57 PM Updated: Thursday, August 26, 2010, 5:57 PM

Lisa Fleisher/Statehouse Bureau
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A video screen grab from New Jersey's interview during the Race to the Top process where the state was hoping to get $400 million. In this clip the panel has just asked for the 2008-09 budget numbers and no one on the panel is able to provide the information. Pictured from left to right are Executive Assistant of Innovation and Change at Newark Public Schools Daniel Gohl, Assistant Commissioner Rochelle Hendricks, Commissioner Bret Schundler, Assistant Commissioner Willa Spicer, and Deputy Commissioner Andrew Smarick.

TRENTON — The U.S. Department of Education plans to release video today of New Jersey’s Race to the Top presentation earlier this month in Washington, D.C., said Caley Gray, spokesman for U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg.

This is the presentation during which the Christie administration says it learned of a key error that cost the state critical points in the competitive grant process.

Gov. Chris Christie said Wednesday the state tried to fix the error in the interview – attended by state Education Commissioner Bret Schundler and four others – but the reviewers would not accept the fix after the June 1 deadline.

“When we went in for the personal interview, two weeks before the decision was made they raised the issue with us,” Christie said Wednesday during a press conference. “Commissioner Schundler gave them, in the interview, the numbers for ’08 – ’09 because the

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Thursday, August 26, 2010