School sense? | Editorials | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California

School sense? | Editorials | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California

School sense?

		Download story podcast

10:00 PM PDT on Friday, April 23, 2010

The Press-Enterprise

State law should not obstruct school districts from retaining the best teachers, or from ousting the worst. New legislation proposes more sensible and effective teacher layoff and dismissal policies. Making such changes is vital to improving California public education.

The Senate Education Committee on Wednesday approved SB 955, by Sen. Bob Huff, R-Diamond Bar. The legislation takes direct aim at one of the central issues raised in a 2007 series of academic studies led by Stanford University: California teacher policies do not let districts make the best use of teachers. Current rules, for example, hinder the dismissal of weak instructors, while layoff procedures protect the longest-serving teachers and not the most capable.

But ignoring teacher quality in hiring and firing choices is a foolish tack for boosting educational achievement. State policy should aim at attracting and retaining the best teachers, not at removing performance considerations from employment decisions.

The bill takes a more rational approach toward layoffs. SB 955 would scrap the arbitrary March 15 deadline for teacher layoff notices, a date that forces districts to make staffing plans far in advance of the final state budget. Waiting until after the governor's May budget revision would give districts a more realistic financial basis for setting staffing levels.

The legislation would also end layoffs based on seniority. Current rules, with some exceptions for particular specialties, require districts to release the newest teachers first. That approach elevates longevity above classroom performance. Districts should be free to keep the most effective teachers, not just the longest-serving.

Teachers say that change would invite districts to target older, more highly paid instructors in favor of newer, cheaper staff. But the most experienced teachers

Calif. universities consider 3-year degrees - 4/23/10 - Los Angeles-Southern California-LA Breaking News, Weather, Traffic, Sports - abc7.com

Calif. universities consider 3-year degrees - 4/23/10 - Los Angeles-Southern California-LA Breaking News, Weather, Traffic, Sports - abc7.com

Calif. universities consider 3-year degrees

Jovana Lara
More: Bio, E-mail, Recent Stories, News Team

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A college degree in three years: That idea is being considered by California universities to get more graduates through the system faster, saving money for schools and students.

California is falling behind in higher education. According to a new study by thePublic Policy Institute of California (PPIC), by the year 2025 the state will have 1 million fewer college-educated workers than the economy will require. PPIC researchers say the only solution is to increase the number of high-school graduates eligible for both University of California and California State University admissions.
"This is a good report. The big problem is funding," said Cal State Long Beach Vice Provost Dr. David Dowell. "This year on our campus alone, we were forced to turn away about 30,000 college-ready applicants to our campus for lack of funding."
Dowell is among the many higher-education experts who agree California needs more college grads but say that without more government funding, the goal is impossible to reach. In response to the budget cuts, some colleges and

Letter: Don't do what California did, vote for classrooms

Letter: Don't do what California did, vote for classrooms

Letter: Don't do what California did, vote for classrooms

Over the years, Hermiston has supported the development of its educational system. Our good schools help to encourage a strong, growing community. Studies have shown over and over that a good educational system is an essential component for community economic and cultural development.

Hermiston now has the opportunity to assist the effort to provide university level education for our community. We live in an age in which advanced levels of education are a crucial need. And yet, in this time of highly competitive international markets, we find many states, including Oregon, falling behind in their support of higher education. California at one time had the best education system in the world. Not surprisingly, they also were one of the most powerful economic engines in the world. However, for a number of years their educational system has been in serious decline, and now they are experiencing a collapse of their economic vitality.

Hermiston has positioned itself to move in the opposite direction with an opportunity to increase our economic strength through education. The construction of a building to allow students to attain higher education in our community will greatly enhance the ability to attract businesses and professionals to the area. This growing, vibrant economy will provide jobs for people in all educational levels.

I urge all to vote for this small bond issue for higher education.

The people of California neglected their education system and they will regret it for years to come. Be smarter than a Californian. Vote yes in May for college classrooms.

John Spomer

Schools Matter: "For Charter School Company, Issues of Money and Control"

Schools Matter: "For Charter School Company, Issues of Money and Control"

"For Charter School Company, Issues of Money and Control"

by Kenneth Libby

Excerpt from the New York Times:

For Charter School Company, Issues of Money and Control

By STEPHANIE STROM

When the energy executive Dennis Bakke retired with a fortune from the AES Corporation, the company he co-founded, he and his wife, Eileen, decided to direct their attention and money to education.

Mrs. Bakke, a former teacher, said she had been interested in education since the summer she was a 12-year-old and, together with a friend, opened the Humpty Dumpty Day School, charging $2 a week in “tuition” to parents of the children attending. Mr. Bakke was eager to experiment with applying business strategies and discipline to public schools.

The Bakkes became part of the nation’s new crop of education entrepreneurs, founding a commercial charter school company called Imagine Schools. Beginning with one failed charter school company they acquired in 2004, they have built an organization that has contracts with 71

Is Charlie Crist Turning His Back on Teachers? � Tangerine, Florida

Is Charlie Crist Turning His Back on Teachers? � Tangerine, Florida

Is Charlie Crist Turning His Back on Teachers?

by tangerineflorida

According recent article posted on Jacksonville.com, tensions continue to run high on teacher merit bills this season.

A key committee sent one of the most controversial bills of the legislative session to the House floor on a party-line vote Monday evening after an often emotional meeting that stretched on for nearly eight hours.

The GOP-dominated House Education Policy Council voted 12-5 to approve the measure overhauling teacher contracts after hearing from dozens of witnesses, many of them teachers or administrators opposed to the bill.

If the bill clears the House without amendment, it will go directly to Gov. Charlie Crist for his signature or veto. An amendment would require another trip to the Senate, which narrowly approved the bill 21-17 last month.

Crist suggested again Monday that he will sign the bill.
The measure, originally sponsored by Sen. John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine, would do away with several teacher employment protections for new teachers and base future pay increases on

California State University caps units at 14 a semester | News10.net | Sacramento, California | Education

California State University caps units at 14 a semester | News10.net | Sacramento, California | Education

California State University caps units at 14 a semester

Karen Massie Last updated 21 mins ago

• Comments (2)
• Recommend
• Print
• Email
• 

SACRAMENTO, CA - They're coping with higher fees and fewer classes. Now California State University students face another hurdle: a cap on the number of classes they can take.

"I love Sac State. It's close to home and convenient and it was one of the cheaper state universities in California," said sophomore Andrew Brown as he explained what attracted him to the university.

CSU tuition fees jumped 32 percent last year. "Just in the two years I've been here, it's actually gone up about $1,500," Brown said. "I worked in high school and saved money for college. But that's gone and I'm looking for a job."

He recently learned he and his classmates won't be able enroll in as many classes as they have before. They're being limited to 14 units. For most Sac State students that's only four classes.

"It's definitely going to add on a couple of years for me. That means an extra $2,000 going to my state

After opting in, KIPP staff vote themselves out of teachers union | GothamSchools

After opting in, KIPP staff vote themselves out of teachers union | GothamSchools

After opting in, KIPP staff vote themselves out of teachers union

by Elizabeth Green

KIPP New York City's logo, from its web site.

Middle school teachers at a KIPP charter school in Brooklyn asked the state this week to let them split from the city teachers union, more than a year after teachers at the same school voted to unionize. The union plans to fight the decision, saying that a group of teachers remain committed to becoming United Federation of Teachers members.

Sixteen staff members signed the petition to break from the UFT. The petition was spearheaded by a guidance counselor named Dameon Clay, his attorney said. Staff who signed the petition include classroom teachers as well as social workers, the dean of teaching and learning, an operations manager, and the office manager.

I couldn’t reach any of the teachers for comment, but Lyle Zuckerman, the attorney representing Clay, said the decision was a judgment about how the teachers could best help themselves and their students. “I think they’ve come to the conclusion that their goals and the educational mission of the school is just going to best be served by them having a direct relationship with the school’s administration,” Zuckerman said.

A school day in East New York: bright students, bored restless

by Anna Phillips

Where can you find the most bored children in New York?
Last week I visited P.S. 13 in the East New York neighborhood of Brooklyn, a school where you would expect to see some anxiety before the high-stakes English exam that will be given next Monday. Instead, I met a cast of bright and precocious students plodding through test prep worksheets with little supervision.
P.S. 13 has been a troubled school for years though its last city-issued progress report calls it a “B” school. In 2004, it managed to remove itself from the state’s list of school at risk of being closed, but it’s now in danger of landing back on that list. Students know a lot is riding on their test scores. During my visit, many could rattle off the dates of the upcoming tests from memory.
Morning announcements over the loud speaker included test tips like encouraging students to get a good night’s rest and eat a full breakfast (84 percent of P.S. 13 qualify for free or reduced lunch). In advance of the test, the regular schedule had been altered so that on Thursdays students only focused on reading and writing and Fridays were math-only days.
I visited on a Thursday. In classroom after classroom, students in yellow shirts and blue bottoms sat hunched over “Comprehensive Assessment of Reading Strategy” and “Strategies to Achieve Reading Success” workbooks, which are published by Curriculum Associates. Some read the questions aloud to themselves and

Remainders: At Brooklyn’s P.S. 13, boredom, restlessness rule

by Maura Walz

• Anna Phillips inaugurates a new series of school portraits with a trip to East New York’s P.S. 13.
• More unions are pulling the plug on support for their states’ round-two Race to the Top applications.
• Arne Duncan recently seems to have dropped out of the public RttT conversations, Politics K-12 notes.
• Mayor Michael Bloomberg blasted State Sen. Bill Perkins over his charter school stance.
• Leonie Haimson points out that Perkins is one of many Harlem politicians critical of charter schools.
• Peter Murphy of NYSCA: comptroller audits would be too infrequent to make charter schools accountable.
• A federal grant will mean 20,000 new computers for low-income city sixth-graders next year.
• One school’s test prep: an ELA pep rally featuring superheroes and the Beyonce hit, “All the 3’s and 4’s.”
• Jay Mathews: the story that Garfield HS went downhill after teacher Jaime Escalante left is myth.
• A new law will force schools to report how much time their students are required to spend in gym.
• Colorado charter school teachers won a free speech case against the school’s principal.
• Andy Rotherham says Aspire Public Schools should be brought in to run the closing Stanford charter.
• And Kim Gittleson is building an interactive map of NYC schools and wants your help.

voiceofsandiego.org | News. Investigation. Analysis. Conversation. Intelligence.

voiceofsandiego.org | News. Investigation. Analysis. Conversation. Intelligence.

San Diego Explained: Why Black Students Are Scarce at UCSD

You might remember that last month we delved into why there are so few black students at the University of California San Diego, which had recently suffered a string of racially offensive incidents.

Now we've taken our reporting live with our friends at NBC through San Diego Explained:

Schools Matter: KIPP Delta's Student Loss Rate 3 to 4 Times Higher Than Helana Public Schools

Schools Matter: KIPP Delta's Student Loss Rate 3 to 4 Times Higher Than Helana Public Schools

KIPP Delta's Student Loss Rate 3 to 4 Times Higher Than Helana Public Schools

by Jim Horn

Bill Gates is winding up a quick PR swing through five exclusive campuses to drum up support for the total compliance segregated KIPP cults and the permanent stream of teacher temps provided by TFA to staff them. And even though Gates like to talk about the scandalous 50 percent rate of minority high school completion

Sandy Kress: Lobbyist

by Kenneth Libby

Here's a list of companies that pay NCLB architect Sandy Kress to push their interests.

From the Texas Ethics Commission:

Citizen Schools Inc.

$10,000 - $24,999

Client Start Date: 03/10/2010

Client Term Date: 12/31/2010

Bakke Backs Bozo; Whittle's Wacky Waxings

by Kenneth Libby

Imagine Schools CEO Dennis Bakke sure know how to pick 'em. He recently gave $10,000 to support John Kasich, the former FOX host (Heartland with John Kasich) who pulled in over $500k as a Lehman Brothers employee while the pension fund for Ohio took a $480 million hit from their investment in the financial services firm. Not that it'd make him blush, but Kasich's online ads wound up on a Michigan militia's website (thanks to 

Ending the rubber room backlog by December looks impossible | GothamSchools

Ending the rubber room backlog by December looks impossible | GothamSchools

Ending the rubber room backlog by December looks impossible

by Maura Walz

Mayor Bloomberg and UFT President Michael Mulgrew got a lot of applause when they vowed to shut down the city’s infamous “rubber rooms” by December. But that might be an impossible goal.
The trouble hinges on the fact that the city has not ended the practice of granting a trial to all teachers accused of incompetence or misconduct. It has simply decided to speed up those trials, which take place in a lower Manhattan office building across from Tweed Courthouse, presided over by paid attorneys called arbitrators who act as judge and jury.
To speed up the trials, the city has promised to nearly double the number of arbitrators starting in September, and also to increase the number of days they work on teacher cases each month to seven from five. By doing this, the city and the union claim, all of the nearly 650 teachers still waiting for a verdict will get one by December.
But a GothamSchools analysis shows that, to meet this goal, the city will have to force arbitrators to cram multiple hearings into each working day — a rate that is now unprecedented.
Even this scenario requires the city to somehow use the summer months to clear all the cases of the nearly 300

A school day in East New York: bright students, bored restless

by Anna Phillips

Where can you find the most bored children in New York?

Last week I visited P.S. 13 in the East New York neighborhood of Brooklyn, a school where you would expect to see some anxiety before the high-stakes English exam that will be given next Monday. Instead, I met a cast of bright and precocious students plodding through test prep worksheets with little supervision.

P.S. 13 has been a troubled school for years though its last city-issued progress report calls it a “B” school. In 2004, it managed to remove itself from the state’s list of school at risk of being closed, but it’s now in danger

‘Save Cordova Lane’ Effort Issues Final Tally, Thanks to Supporters — The Rancho Cordova Post

‘Save Cordova Lane’ Effort Issues Final Tally, Thanks to Supporters — The Rancho Cordova Post

‘Save Cordova Lane’ Effort Issues Final Tally, Thanks to Supporters

by ANNE LOWE on APRIL 23, 2010 · 0 COMMENTS

in SCHOOLS

When the Folsom Cordova school boardissued the news in Novemberthat Cordova Lane and Riverview Elementaries would be closing at the school year, a group of parents were given the unusual opportunity to try to raise money and save their school.

Save Cordova Lane was an effort headed by parents Kristy Elder and Kathryn Dettner to raise $300,000 by March 1 to keep Cordova Lane open for the 2010-2011 school year. Though the group was not able to raise the staggering amount, they did raise just under $10,000 through discount cards, fundraisers and donations though March. The group is also continuing to receive donations through Raley’s and Bel Air’s Quality of Life program, and they are expecting to receive a check for those donations in July.

Since the group will not be able to keep their school open, they are planning on donating at least $2,500 to Cordova Gardens, Rancho Cordova and Williamson Elementaries once all funds come in.

“Kathryn and Kristy would like to thank everyone who lent a helping hand or expressed concern on behalf of Cordova Lane to keep our school open,” the group said in an email to supporter. ”They will be working with the principals of the new schools where the Cougars