Alan Singer: Fight for NYC Schools Is Just Beginning

Alan Singer: Fight for NYC Schools Is Just Beginning

Fight for NYC Schools Is Just Beginning

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Read More: Cathie Black , Charter Schools , Green Party , Hearst Magazines , Michael Bloomberg , New York City , Public Schools , School Reform , New York News

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Now that the waiver has been granted that will allow Cathie Black to be Chancellor of New York City schools, there is a vacancy at the Hearst Corporation for a chairperson of the publishing giant. A group of teachers, retired teachers, and parents affiliated with the New York State Green Party thought it would be a good idea to apply. They did not think their lack of qualifications would be a drawback since the business community had rallied to support Clueless Cathie's appointment as school head.

The five Green Party members staged combined protest with theater at the Hearst headquarters in midtown Manhattan on Tuesday November 30. Gloria Mattera, a public school parent and former Green Party candidate for lieutenant governor told the assembled press "You will see if you review my resume that I am absolutely unqualified to run a publishing company, which is exactly what Cathie Black is to run the NYC Public School system." However, she was willing to work with a deputy chair appointed from within the Hearst Corporation who could assist her with on the job training. I know Mattera personally and I can

ASCD Inservice: Post-Election Analysis: Who's in Charge & What It Means for Ed. Policy

ASCD Inservice: Post-Election Analysis: Who's in Charge & What It Means for Ed. Policy

Post-Election Analysis: Who's in Charge & What It Means for Ed. Policy

Don't have time to view the ASCD public policy webinar on the 2010 midterm election results?

Whether you count yourself among the 38% of Americans who know Rep. John Boehner (R-OH) will be Speaker of the House in the 112th Congress, or are a policy new-comer, we've got the Cliffs Notes version of the recent seismic electoral shifts and the implications for education policy next year.

The House Switches Hands

Republicans picked up 64 seats in the House, giving them 242 total and control of the chamber next year (218 is a majority). The huge Republican win is more than they won in the last big wave election, 1994, when House Republicans won 52 seats, and also took control of the House. John Boehner (R-OH) will replace Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) as Speaker of the House in January. Boehner was the chairman of the House Education Committee at the time of the No Child Left Behind Act.

No Easy Majority in Senate

In the Senate, Republicans also picked up a significant number of seats (6), though not enough to give them control of that chamber. Ironically, Tea Party supported candidates did very well in local congressional races but likely cost Republicans a Senate majority by defeating in the primary more heavily favored general election Republicans. This was the case in Delaware where Christine O’Donnell upset Rep. and former Governor Mike Castle. Democrats will retain a

ASCD Inservice: Call for EL Submissions: More Interventions That Work

ASCD Inservice: Call for EL Submissions: More Interventions That Work

Call for EL Submissions: More Interventions That Work

The response to our October 2010 issue "Interventions That Work" was so strong that we're revisiting the theme in Educational Leadership's summer online-only issue. We are looking for articles about specific programs and strategies that schools have used to catch students up before they fall too far behind, help marginalized students become more connected to school, and prevent behavior problems. How can schools identify individual students' needs and respond with the right supports? Articles about how you are implementing Response to Intervention (RTI) are welcome.

Deadline: February 14, 2011

See our Submission Guidelines for details on the article submission process.

State Education Groups Look to Facebook for Organizing

State Education Groups Look to Facebook for Organizing

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by Felix Perez

Scroll down for a list of state Facebook pages and groups.

The 2010 elections sent a shock wave through Washington, D.C. But the aftershocks for children, public education, teachers and other educators in state after state will be especially harmful and long-lived  unless educators, parents and other supporters of public education join together to keep the pressure on governors and other state elected officials.

Governors are central players in formulating education policy. State and local legislators approve education budgets, and more than 90 cents of every dollar spent on education comes from state and local governments.

The challenges are daunting: School budgets across the country being slashed; shrinking state and local revenues; emergency federal funding coming to an end; and one in five children living in poverty.

Against this troubling backdrop, state lawmakers are expected to take up legislation in the weeks and months ahead that would harm students, teachers and public schools. Under consideration are bills to:

• Fund vouchers, which do nothing to improve public schools.
• Link teacher salaries to student performance on standardized tests, ignoring factors outside a teacher’s control, especially poverty but also medical care, nutrition, exposure to books and other educationally enriching experiences, and school attendance.
• Eliminate or restrict educators’ right to a hearing before being fired, otherwise known as due process.
• Weaken educators’ retirement security by switching to plans tied to the Stock Market’s ups and downs, even though teachers have foregone salary increases for years in exchange for a decent standard of living when they retire.

More than ever, being informed, organized and involved can mean the difference between drastic rollbacks and risky schemes and helping students and teachers avoid becoming budget scapegoats. With that in mind, here are some selected Facebook groups and pages from various states that can keep you up to date and tell you how to help when the time comes to take quick, coordinated action.

Know of a Facebook page or group we missed? Leave a comment on this article and we’ll add it to the list.

This Week In Education: Thompson: Attendance Data Being Left Behind

This Week In Education: Thompson: Attendance Data Being Left Behind

Thompson: Attendance Data Being Left Behind

by john thompson

Before NCLB, I received timely and invaluable information on whether each student's absence was excused due to illness, counseling, legal, or other family matters. Now, a new computer code is created to hide absences whenever there is the need to keep honest information from going up the chain of command. Robert Balfanz' new study "Building a Grad Nation," seeks to use attendance data in early warning systems to help students - as opposed to making accountability numbers look good. But

Do everything — except fixing schools — Joanne Jacobs

Do everything — except fixing schools — Joanne Jacobs

Do everything — except fixing schools

by Joanne

David Kirp’s soon-to-be-published book, Kids First: Five Big Ideas for Transforming Children’s Lives makes the“broader, bolder” case for reforming urban education without changing schools, writes Paul Peterson on Education Next.

According to Kirp, the best way to improve America’s urban schools is to ignore them. Instead, attention should be focused on parents, pre-schooling, reshaping neighborhoods, finding mentors for the kids, and giving kids money to go to college. In other words, do everything except fix the disastrous state of the big city school system, shaped by court decisions, federal regulations, professional bureaucrats, collective bargaining agreements, and a progressive philosophy that

House plans to send child nutrition bill to President Obama

House plans to send child nutrition bill to President Obama

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By Nick Anderson

Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, December 2, 2010; 12:01 PM

Congress is heading toward final action Thursday on legislation that would enable more poor children to receive free meals at school, raise the nutritional quality of cafeteria fare, and reduce the junk food and sugary beverages sold in school vending machines.

The bill, which cleared the Senate in the summer, is set for final House approval Thursday afternoon if Democrats can, as expected, overcome proceduralroadblocks thrown up by Republicans.

The bill, a priority for President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama, would boost spending on child nutrition $4.5 billion over 10 years and raise federal reimbursements for school lunches more than the inflation rate for the first time since 1973. It also would require for the first time that free drinking water be available where meals are served.

The bill accelerates the budding healthy-food movement in public education - think whole wheat pizza, with lowfat cheese and low-sodium sauce - but leaves unanswered key questions about whether schools can afford to give tens of millions of students better meals.

Democrats took steps to offset the bill's costs, including a $2.2 billion cut to food stamp