Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Ex-education chief says Christie was focused on battle with NJEA in Race to the Top application | NJ.com

Ex-education chief says Christie was focused on battle with NJEA in Race to the Top application

Published: Wednesday, October 06, 2010, 8:25 PM Updated: Wednesday, October 06, 2010, 9:56 PM

Star-Ledger Staff
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ADENA STEVENS/For The Star-LedgerFormer education chief Bret Schundler at his home in Jersey City, Aug. 27, 2010 .

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TRENTON — So far, the biggest fight in the ongoing controversy over the state’s failed Race to the Top application has been about an accidental clerical error that cost the state $400 million. A deeper look at the state’s application may tell a different story.

Fired education commissioner Bret Schundler said, in interviews as he prepared to testify before the state Senate Thursday morning, the bigger problem was Gov. Chris Christie’s insistence on perpetuating his battle with New Jersey’s leading teachers union. If Christie had permitted Schundler to submit a Race to the Top application endorsed by the New Jersey Education Association, the state would have racked up more than enough

Bullying of gay students faces new scrutiny | EdNewsColorado

Bullying of gay students faces new scrutiny The recent spate of youth suicides linked to anti-gay bullying has educators around the country re-analyzing school policies and strategies for making schools safe for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered students. In Colorado, a coalition of ...

Video: DSST students question Sally Ride Eight students from the Denver School of Science and Technology got to question Sally Ride, America’s first female astronaut, as part of a recent White House initiative to improve math and science education. [image: Sally Ride, America's first female ...

Jones: I’m still on the job [image: Colorado Department of Education] Colorado Department of Education Cautioning that “This is certainly not any kind of goodbye speech,” education Commissioner Dwight Jones Wednesday did talk with the State Board of Education about the ...

NJ senator calls for anti-bully law after suicide - Yahoo! News

NJ senator calls for anti-bully law after suicide

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By BRUCE SHIPKOWSKI and BILL NEWILL, Associated Press Writers – 56 mins ago

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. – U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg said Wednesday he'll introduce legislation requiring colleges to adopt a code of conduct that prohibits bullying and harassment following the suicide of a student whose gay sexual encounter in his dorm room was broadcast online.

Lautenberg, D-N.J., made the announcement at a town meeting on the Rutgers University campus in memory of 18-year-old freshman Tyler Clementi.

Clementi, a promising violinist, jumped off the George Washington Bridge into the Hudson River on Sept. 22 after the intimate images of him with another man were webcast, and his body was

LA schools seek layoffs system opposed by union - Boston.com

LA schools seek layoffs system opposed by union

By Christina Hoag

Associated Press Writer / October 6, 2010

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LOS ANGELES—A proposed agreement that would change how teachers are laid off in the nation's second-largest school district is being hailed as a landmark that could pave the way for changes in urban districts across the nation, but the city's teachers union said Wednesday that it had "serious concerns."

The settlement, which must be approved by a judge, would shield up to 45 underperforming schools from teacher layoffs for budget reasons. It also stipulates that vacancies be filled as quickly as possible, and contains a commitment to explore incentives, such as bonuses, to recruit and retain teachers and principals at poorly performing schools, with additional incentives if the school's academic performance improves.

The agreement stems from a lawsuit by American Civil Liberties Union of

School Tech Connect: Campaigning in Poetry...

Campaigning in Poetry...

by effacethefacade@yahoo.com (Tim)

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...governing in prose. (M. Cuomo)

More poetry.

Queens Teacher: Defend Public Education Thursday Ocober 7, 2010

Defend Public Education Thursday Ocober 7, 2010

by Queens Teacher

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If you are here in New York City, go to 125th and 7th--for a large DEFEND PUBLIC EDUCATION RALLY.

National Actions to Defend Public Education, October 7th 2010

Last fall, California sparked a movement that has grown drastically over the past year. Much energy went toward

The American Dream Deferred - The Bay Citizen

The American Dream Deferred

Francisco has dreams. They are good dreams, but not legal ones. The 24-year-old from Zelaya, Mexico, arrived under the undocumented coattails of his parents when he was just five years old. Today, after the failure of legislation called the “Dream Act,” Francisco’s hopes of becoming a schoolteacher must be put on political hold. Introduced in 2001 by Sen. Orin Hatch(R-Utah), The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act, commonly referred to as the DREAM Act, would allow children of undocumented immigrants the chance to gain citizenship by graduating college or by serving two years in the military. The bill’s logic is simple. Children of undocumented immigrants do not have a say as to where they live, but they can still plan and invest in their future

Perata Tops Half a Million on Mayor's Race

Don Perata has spent more than half a million on his campaign to become Oakland Mayor – far exceeding his rivals and the voluntary limits for what can be spent in the race. Perata has spent a total of $594,000 on the race and raised $663,000 in his bid to beat out a crowded field, according to filings made today. The voluntary spending limit for the Oakland mayor’s race is $379,000. Oakland City Council Member Jean Quan – who has been polling a close second to Perata and attacking Perata for evading campaign finance rules – at first appeared to have exceeded the limit this morning. But the Quan campaign said it had made a computational error, putting the total she’s raised at $320,000. City Council member Rebecca Kaplan, who’s polling third, has raised $138,000. Joe

This Week In Education: Video: Pretending To Care About Education

Video: Pretending To Care About Education

by Alexander Russo

On Tuesday night comedian Lewis Black ripped hard into the quality of American schools, the dearth of ideas for fixing things on a large scale, and the momentary illusion that anyone really cares.

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: PROP 98 TO BE SUSPENDED: “Details of the proposed budget plan are just now surfacing….

PROP 98 TO BE SUSPENDED: “Details of the proposed budget plan are just now surfacing….

BY SMF - FROM A PTA E-MAIL BRIEFING TO MEMBERS

Wed, Oct 6, 2010 1:50 pm - “…..but it would appear that the current proposal provides funding for K-14 education above that which the Governor had proposed in the May Revision. Additional severe cuts to child care and CalWORKs programs appear to have been avoided as well in the current proposal.

At a special briefing at the Capitol yesterday, education advocates were advised that although the current proposal does include a suspension of Proposition 98; it avoids directly cutting Revenue Limit funding and would result in $300 per Average Daily Attendance (ADA) above the Governor's May Revise figure. This is accomplished in part by a $1.7 billion deferral into the 2011-12 school year, which may cause serious cash flow challenges for school districts. The tentative agreemen

Booker And Christie Out Of Facebook School Reform? - Gothamist

Booker And Christie Out Of Facebook School Reform?

Governor Christie, Mayor Booker and Mark Zuckerberg on Oprah

After all that talk and excitement over believing in Newark and taking ideas from the people and Mayor Cory Booker's Twitter status, the plan to reform Newark's school system with $100 million donated from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg may have an issue. Namely, that whole "improper and illegal" thing the Education Law Center previously mentioned. Apparently the state's Quality Single Accountability Continuum doesn't allowmayoral or gubernatorial participation in reform efforts for a district under state control.

Booker spokeswoman Maria Comella said, "Right now, Mayor Booker is in the process of seeking widespread community input and will subsequently develop a reform plan that will be implemented with a superintendent of schools that both the Mayor and the Governor will choose," but it's unclear whether he would even have the authority to do that. Acting Commissioner of Education Rochelle Hendricks said before

DEBORAH MARTINEZ: Special Education students under pressure | special, child, education - Life - TheMonitor.com

DEBORAH MARTINEZ: Special Education students under pressure

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October 06, 2010 3:28 PM

Deborah Martinez

The Monitor

Of all the challenges parents and educators face, raising a child with special needs has to be one of the greatest.

Therefore, there is no question that of all the decisions lawmakers hand down from Austin and Washington, those that shape Special Education initiatives and affect classroom instruction spark some of the hottest debate and anxiety.

After No Child Left Behind passed in 2001 – when Special Education students and groups such as English Language Learners were included in federal accountability ratings – the debate over including Special Education students with even the most severe disabilities in the general classroom intensified. Discussion over whether all Special Education students could perform “at grade level” also arose.