Latest News and Comment from Education

Monday, August 6, 2018

LeBron James Akron school: Why it matters that I Promise is public.

LeBron James Akron school: Why it matters that I Promise is public.

It’s a Big Deal That LeBron James Decided to Fund a Public School
Image result for LeBron’s Education Promise
Image result for LeBron’s Education Promise

The only upside to Donald Trump’s petulant Friday night Twitter swipe at LeBron James was that it gave an extra publicity bump to the basketball star’s big new philanthropic project. Last week, James opened a new elementary school for at-risk students in his native Akron that he’s funding in partnership with the city. Some headlines about the I Promise School have focused on the fact that James has offered to pay college tuition for any of its graduates. But that’s not what’s really intriguing about the effort.

The most interesting thing about I Promise is that it’s a genuine public school, not a charter or a private school. James is shaping the school’s mission, and his family foundation is committed to spending at least $2 million annually to fund it. But Akron Public Schools will run the operation and provide the bulk of its resources. As the Cleveland Plain Dealer explains:
It’s a district-owned building. The district will hire and pay the teachers and administration. Kids will ride district buses to school. And they will all eat the free breakfast and lunch the district gives all students.
I Promise will eventually cost about $8 million a year to run out of the district’s regular budget, covered mostly by shifting students, teachers and money from other schools, the district says.
This is a refreshing departure from most celebrity forays into education, which have tended torevolve around the politically contentious charter school movement. Publicly funded and privately operated, charter schools are seen by their detractors as little more than vehicles for drawing resources away from traditional public schools and undercutting teachers unions. This is not entirely fair; some charters do great work and benefit from having a bit of freedom to try new education models. But many are middling or outright atrocious and have attracted less than savory for-profit management companies—sometimes with disastrous results for children. Michigan, for instance, has watched its rankings in reading and math collapse as the state has become home to more for-profit charters than anywhere else in the nation.

I Promise has a lot of qualities ordinarily associated with the better charters. It will have longer-than-normal school days, running from 9 to 5; a curriculum focused on science and tech; and beefed-up professional training and support programs for teachers. Every kid gets a Chromebook. And, following in the footsteps of charter projects like the Harlem Success Academy, it’s also going to offer wraparound services aimed at helping its students’ families, such as a food pantry, a GED program for parents, and a seven-week summer science and tech camp to help kids keep from sliding back on their academic progress. There are also some bells and whistles: Every kid is getting a bicycle.Continue reading: LeBron James Akron school: Why it matters that I Promise is public.



OMG: Arizona school districts and charters that pay teachers the most, least

Arizona school districts and charters that pay teachers the most, least

Arizona school districts and charters that pay teachers the most, least
Arizona is Building Tiny Homes for Teachers Instead of Paying Them a Living Wage | Diane Ravitch's blog - https://wp.me/p2odLa-ktP via @dianeravitch



The highest-paying Arizona school district will be paying its teachers an average of nearly $71,000 in the 2018-19 school year, while teachers in some schools will be making just over an average of $30,000.
That wide range of average teacher salaries is reflected in financial data district and charter schools have reported to the Arizona Department of Education.
The state budget the Legislature approved and Gov. Doug Ducey signed included $306 million intended for teacher pay as part of the governor's promise to boost teachers' salaries by 20 percent in three years.
Practically every district and charter school gave its teachers raises, but those bumps varied widely.
Districts reported giving average teacher-salary increases between $1,049 and $9,162. Charters' average increases varied between $1,011 and $7,694.
Similarly, the state's financial data show that 15 of the top 20 school systems for average teacher salary are school districts, while all but one of the 20 lowest-paying Arizona school systems were charter holders.
Eight school districts and two charter holders were among the top 10 in the state to give the largest average teacher pay raise increases this year. 
Arizona public schools, for the first time, are required to report to the Arizona Department of Education the increase in average teacher salaries from last school year.
Below are the Arizona district and charter schools with the highest and lowest teacher pay.
Some disclaimers: Not all schools have submitted budgets to the Arizona Department of Education. The department has not yet audited the data the schools submitted.
And the data indicate that some schools incorrectly reported their teacher salary information to the state.
The Republic did not include schools that appeared to include errors in its financial reporting. These lists also do not include schools that listed average salaries below $30,000.

Highest-paying Arizona school districts

1. Chinle Unified School District: $70,720 average 2018-19 teacher salary
2. Baboquivari Unified School District: $66,505
3. Alpine Elementary School District: $65,369
4. Phoenix Union High School District: $64,218
5. Tempe Union High School District: $61,266

Lowest-paying Arizona school districts

1. St. David Unified School District: $36,404 average 2018-19 teacher salary
2. Douglas Unified School District: $37,413
3. Red Rock Elementary School District: $37,602 
4. Duncan Unified School District: $37,660
5. Crown King Elementary School District: $38,000

Highest paying Arizona charter schools

1. Heritage Academy, Inc.: $60,598 average 2018-19 teacher salary
2. Maricopa County Community College District dba Gateway Early College High School: $58,204
3. International Commerce Secondary Schools Inc.: $58,127
4. Heritage Academy Queen Creek Inc.: $57,693
5. Salt River Pima-Maricopa Community Schools: $57,547

Lowest paying Arizona charter schools

1. Pillar Charter School: $30,287 average 2018-19 teacher salary
2. Patagonia Montessori Elementary School: $31,650
3. Painted Pony Ranch Charter School: $32,100
4. Discovery Plus Academy: $32,275
5. Mexicayotl Academy Inc.: $32,364

Largest average pay raise increases

1. Chinle Unified School District: $9,162 increase in average salary (15 percent increase)
2. Casa Grande Union High School District: $9,131 (18 percent)
3. Sahuarita Unified School District: $8,801 (19 percent)
4. Agua Fria Union High School District: $8,085 (16 percent)
5. Destiny School Inc.: $7,694 (21.9 percent)
6. Tempe Union High School District: $7,549 (14 percent)
7. Wellton Elementary School District: $7,407 (19 percent)
8. Antelope Union High School District: $7,296 (18 percent)
9. Heber-Overgaard Unified School District: $7,090 (17 percent)
10. Young Scholars Academy Charter School Corp.: $6,978 (14.4 percent)
READ MORE:
Arizona school districts and charters that pay teachers the most, least