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Monday, December 21, 2015

After-school program funding remains separate under new education law | EdSource

After-school program funding remains separate under new education law | EdSource:

After-school program funding remains separate under new education law

After-school and summer programs will not only retain a separate funding stream, they will also get a slight boost in dollars under the new federal education bill and budget.
At one point during the negotiations that resulted in the Every Student Succeeds Act21st Century Community Learning Centers were going to be part of a block grant with several other programs, pitting the expanded learning programs against popular programs such as Math & Science Partnerships and Advanced Placement courses. The U.S. Senate had also proposed a cut in funds for the learning centers.
Instead, the programs will get almost $1.17 billion in dedicated funds, which includes a $1.5 million increase. About 10 percent of the budgeted funds will likely come to California because of the large size of the state’s student population, said Jessica Gunderson, policy director for the Partnership for Children and Youth, an advocacy group based in Oakland.
But the slight increase will not do much to meet the demand, Gunderson said. Currently, less than 20 percent of programs that apply get funded, she said.
“The fact that the funding stream stayed separate and about the same through ESSA is a bigger statement,” she said.
The funds can be used to provide tutoring, field trips and other enrichment activities after school, in the summer, or as part of an expanded school day for After-school program funding remains separate under new education law | EdSource:

High Stakes Testing and the Black Community: Just Say NO! | Poetic Justice

High Stakes Testing and the Black Community: Just Say NO! | Poetic Justice:

High Stakes Testing and the Black Community: Just Say NO!


Please watch and share this video of Jamaal Bowman, principal of CASA Middle School in the Bronx, talking about the deleterious effects of testing on our children. Opting Out of high stakes testing and testing tied to teacher evaluations is a decision parents can and should be making for their children. As Principal Bowman explains in this video – let us work together to OPT IN to teaching and learning that will benefit the whole child and instill a lifelong love of education.
Here is the narrative from an interview by Your Black Education:
“Standardized tests? Principal Jamaal Bowman says ‘Know your rights’. President Obama recently spoke out against excessive standardized testing. The POTUS claimed that this issue, “takes the joy out of teaching and learning, both for them (teachers) and for the students”. Long before Obama’s declaration, Jamaal Bowman, Founding Principal of CASA (Cornerstone High Stakes Testing and the Black Community: Just Say NO! | Poetic Justice:

Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 12/21/15



CORPORATE ED REFORM





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Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 12/20/15
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