Saturday, September 11, 2010

Field Rep Workload Increased By CTU? - District 299: Chicago Public Schools Blog

Field Rep Workload Increased By CTU?

Alexander Russo on 09.11.10 at 10:13 AM | 1 comment |

I'm told that CTU is implementing several cost-cutting measures, including increasing the workloads of the field reps from having 40-50 schools each to having 70 schools each. Saving money's always a good idea, but not everyone agrees with the approach. "This is not the time to be increasing the amount of schools that they have. New field reps aren't experienced enough and even the experienced reps have got to be going insane. There are so many problems right now and so many displaced tenured teachers. There are buildings with no delegates to make sure things are going properly...how can the field reps do the job

VIDEO: Gov. Chris Christie Schools New Jersey Teachers Unions | The Foundry: Conservative Policy News.

VIDEO: Gov. Chris Christie Schools New Jersey Teachers Unions

It's Time To Listen To Teachers On Issues Of Education

FRIDAY, 10 SEPTEMBER 2010 21:21 JOHN OSTENBURG COMMENTARY

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Commentary
By John A. Ostenburg
The Outpost Observer

Why is it that the last people listened to regarding problems in public education are the ones who deal with it on the front line day after day?

Chicago's Renaissance 2010 education plan came onto the charts back in 2004. Immediately, classroom teachers pointed out its many flaws. Were they listened to? Of course not. Instead, Mayor Richard M. Daley and now U.S. Secretary of Education -- then Chicago Public Schools Chief Executive Officer -- Arne Duncan pushed ahead with a program that had come not from the educational community, but rather from the business community.

Lest anyone forget, that's the same business community that has demonstrated questionable wisdom in the world of finance, ultimately leading the United States into its current economic crisis.

When teachers voiced their outrage over some of the proposals contained in the Ren 2010 plan, they were accused by both politicians and the media of being concerned only with selfish interests. Newspaper editorials declared that teachers only were protecting their jobs, only were complaining because they wanted to duck accountability. CPS administrators said "bad" teachers were the problem in Chicago, and so they used Ren 2010 as a way to get rid of seasoned teachers, claiming that the

State budget delays affecting local schools - Lodi News-Sentinel: News

State budget delays affecting local schools

Posted: Saturday, September 11, 2010 12:00 am | Updated: 6:09 am, Sat Sep 11, 2010.

By Jennifer Bonnett
News-Sentinel Staff Writer | 0 comments

The Galt elementary school district has taken out a loan to make payroll, while Lodi Unified approved freely moving funds among accounts.

The measures were taken to help with local cash flow issues until the state adopts its annual budget. It was due June 30, the same day school districts were required to file their annual financial plan.

"No state budget passed means more uncertainty in making important decisions affecting our children's education," Galt elementary district superintendent Karen Schauer said.

"The delay causes districts to have more difficulty in working together with unions, communicating clearly with stakeholders, and bottom-line, paying the bills from payroll and vendors on time."

Now that school has started, the problem is that some districts may already have large bills to pay in September, but without state funding, many districts will have to start tapping into

Suit alleges Calif. schools charging illegal fees - BusinessWeek

Suit alleges Calif. schools charging illegal fees

By JACOB ADELMAN

STORY TOOLS

LOS ANGELES

The American Civil Liberties Union said in a lawsuit filed Friday that California's cash-strapped school districts have been charging student fees that violate the state constitutional guarantee to a free public education.

The civil liberties organization is seeking class-action status for the suit, which accuses dozens of school districts statewide of charging for textbooks, uniforms and extracurricular activities.

Mark Rosenbaum, chief council of the ACLU of Southern California, said at a press conference announcing the lawsuit that an investigation by his group found some 50 districts that mention allegedly illegal fees on their websites, but that there are likely more that do so.

Michelle Rhee: The Focal Point of DC's Primary - Associated Content - associatedcontent.com

Michelle Rhee: The Focal Point of DC's Primary

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Published September 09, 2010 by:

Thomas Lane

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As all of us who live in the area know, and most other people can figure out, the Washington, DC Democratic Primary is the de facto general election for that jurisdiction's elected officials. Even the

predominantly-white Ward 3 is heavily Democratic.

That said, I wonder if the predominantly-white residents of that ward have learned their lesson from Marion Barry's surprising 1994 DC Primary win, after he had served time for drug possession. I discussed the Ward 3 voter apathy extensively in a recent article about the former mayor's recent misadventures.

Let me make clear that this article is in no way an exhortation for the Caucasian voters of Washington, DC to get off their duffs and vote. I no longer live in the

Web's #1 Source for K12 and Higher Education News and Commentary - EducationNews.org - Ed leaders want kindergarten program extended

Ed leaders want kindergarten program extended State education leaders want to see Utah’s optional, extended-day kindergarten program continue next school year, saying it’s been a major success. Kids in extended-day kindergarten who started the year behind their peers in traditional kindergarten …

Increased gas drilling has impact on schools 9.11.10 - Pennsylvania school leaders want to make sure school districts get a share of the money that may be generated by a severance tax on Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling. "We've seen population increases, enrollment increases and other kinds ...

Half-Billion Dollar Schools Can’t Fix American Education 9.11.10 - At $578 million, the Robert F. Kennedy School in Los Angeles is the most expensive public school ever built in America. It features a high-tech swimming pool, a chic auditorium, vaulted ceilings, luxury amenities and a design aesthetic worthy ...

Wealth Matters - Preparing Children to Be Safe at College - NYTimes.com

Wealth Matters: Preparing Children to Be Safe at College

by By PAUL SULLIVAN

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Crime is a fact, even at the most expensive Ivy League school, and many children from wealthy families are ill prepared to protect themselves from becoming a victim.

Obama to give back-to-school speech Tuesday at Masterman | Philadelphia Inquirer | 09/10/2010

Obama to give back-to-school speech Tuesday at Masterman

By Kristen A. Graham

Inquirer Staff Writer

President Obama will give his back-to-school speech at Philadelphia's prestigious Masterman School on Tuesday.

Superintendent Arlene Ackerman got a call Thursday telling her that the public magnet school, which educates 1,200 fifth through 12th graders from around the city, would host the president.

"This is really exciting," Ackerman said. "We're thrilled and honored."

The superintendent said she didn't know why the White House had chosen Philadelphia, but she had a theory.

"We made some pretty fantastic gains this year," Ackerman said of the district's state test scores. "We've had eight straight years of gains."

For the first time, more than half the district's students are performing at grade level in reading and math and more than half the 265 city schools met state standards.

Ackerman said she also believed Philadelphia had been chosen because of her Renaissance schools initiative.

This month, 13 failing schools were reconstituted - either as charters or district-run schools with longer school days and years and more supports. Obama has called for 5,000 struggling schools around the country to be

New Jersey applies for federal school funds on deadline eve

By Rita Giordano

Inquirer Staff Writer

New Jersey applied for $268 million in federal funds for education jobs and benefits on Wednesday, the eve of the federal deadline, state officials announced Thursday.

The state is all but assured of receiving the aid, which Congress approved last month.

The money is part of $10 billion for education offered to all states and territories. To receive it, a governor or other official had to submit an application and specify whether the money would be distributed according to the state's funding formula or a federal formula, said Sandra Abrevaya, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Education.

The Christie administration elected to go with the state formula.

The $268 million will not reverse the effects of the nearly $820 million in state aid reductions imposed by Gov. Christie this year. But using the state formula will allow the federal money to be distributed among school districts fairly, relative to the cuts, said Frank Belluscio, spokesman for the New Jersey School Boards Association. "This is

ACLU sues over high schools’ course fees | Thoughts on Public Education

ACLU sues over high schools’ course fees

Charges for labs, materials violate right to a free education

Posted by John Fensterwald - Educated Guess on 9/11/10 • Categorized as Advocacy organizations, Equity issues, Student spending

American Civil Liberties Union affiliates in California have sued Gov. Schwarzenegger and the state over class fees, from textbooks to AP exams to gym uniforms, that dozens of school districts routinely charge students.

The class-action lawsuit, filed Friday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, charges that mandatory course-related fees violate the state constitution’s guarantee of a free public education and a state court decision, Hartzell vs. Connell, in 1984, also banning fees for other school activities, which districts appear to be ignoring.

The suit asks for an immediate injunction against charging students for any costs for credit courses and for the state to create regulations and an enforcement system to ensure districts comply. ACLU attorneys for

Saturday, September 11, 2010