Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Immigrant families leave Arizona and tough new law - Boston.com

Immigrant families leave Arizona and tough new law

By Amanda Lee Myers

Associated Press Writer / June 22, 2010

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PHOENIX—"Cinco dolares," Silvia Arias says when asked the price of car polish at a garage sale that she and two close friends, Minerva Ruiz and Claudia Suriano, are holding. "Five dollars." Another sale is made.

The three women planned the sale to raise money to leave Arizona. Though all are longtime residents, viewed as pillars of parental support at the neighborhood elementary school, they're also illegal immigrants from Mexico. And along with many others, they want to escape a tough new state law whose stated intention is unambiguous: To drive illegal immigrants out of Arizona and to discourage them from coming here.

There is no official data tracking how many are leaving as a result. "It's something that's really tough to get a handle on numerically," said Bill

GLOBE EDUCATION NEWS

17 Boston teachers, staff honored for excellence

Despite cuts in programs and funds at most schools this year, 17 Boston teachers and staff members stood out among their peers and were honored for their work last night at the 2010 annual Educators of the Year and Service Excellence Awards ceremony at the Shubert Theatre. (By John M. Guilfoil, Globe Staff)

Balderas’s immigration reprieve will be indefinite

Eric Balderas, a 19-year-old Harvard biology student granted a reprieve from deportation to his native Mexico last week, will be allowed to stay in the United States indefinitely unless something changes in his case, a federal official said yesterday. (By Maria Sacchetti, Globe Staff)

Nonprofits deliver $27m for schools, with challenges attached

Several major philanthropic organizations in Boston will give $27 million to a new partnership, being announced today, that aims to greatly accelerate student achievement across the city, from “cradle to career.’’ (By James Vaznis, Globe Staff)

Teachers, city reach extra-hour agreement

Boston school officials announced yesterday that they had reached a tentative agreement with the teachers’ union on a plan to overhaul the city’s 12 underperforming schools, in a new state negotiating process that attempted to resolve a divisive battle over compensating teachers for working extra hours. (By James Vaznis, Globe Staff)

NIH to examine payback on research grants

The National Institutes of Health spends more than $21 billion a year on research grants, much of it going to Massachusetts scientists. But it’s unclear how much benefit all this taxpayer spending brings. (By Karen Weintraub, Globe Correspondent)

NorthJersey.com: N.J. school choice bill to be revamped to gain approval

N.J. school choice bill to be revamped to gain approval

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

BY CLAIRE HEININGER

STATE HOUSE BUREAU

A controversial school choice bill will undergo significant changes in an effort to win legislative approval before the end of the month, its sponsor said Tuesday.

RECORD FILE PHOTO

Sen. Raymond Lesniak said he accepted the changes in order to win enough support to get the bill through the state Senate and Assembly,

Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Union) said the Opportunity Scholarship Act will be adjusted by limiting the pilot program to "chronically failing schools in specific municipalities," based on local legislators' support. The proposal had targeted 176 "chronically failing schools" throughout the state, Lesniak said. He declined to say how many schools might be targeted now, but cities still certain to be involved include Newark, Camden and Elizabeth, he said.
The new version of the bill would also eliminate an "innovation fund" and allow districts to keep the difference between the cost of the scholarship and the state aid for that child, Lesniak said. He spoke at a press conference where more than a dozen members of the Black Ministers' Council of New Jersey urged Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver (D-Essex) to support the bill.
The ministers said while Republican Governor Christie and Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester) support the bill, Oliver was standing in the way. Oliver, who is the first African-American woman to hold the Assembly's top job, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Lesniak said he accepted the changes in order to win enough support to get the bill through the state Senate and Assembly, and said they will not undermine the

N.J. school choice bill to be revamped to ...

Bullying: Girls learn strategies to cope

• Judge upholds defeat of North Arlington school budget THE RECORD

• Cedar Grove parents in favor of school uniforms

7 Top Tips for Conference Registration The Women’s Conference 2010

7 Top Tips for Conference Registration

Tomorrow, Wednesday, June 23rd, at 9am PDT, tickets to The Women’s Conference 2010 go on sale at www.womensconference.org. We’re thrilled that registration day is finally here. In an effort to make the process as easy for you as possible, we’ve listed 7 tips:

Be informed. Visit our Welcome to The Women's Conference 2010 page before registration begins. Here, you can learn about the six Conference events – and decide which you want to attend. Choose a few backup events too, in case your first choice of event sells out.
Be prepared. Have your credit card ready. All registrations require a credit card to purchase.
Be patient. Because of the huge demand for tickets, you can expect to be put into a "waiting room" on the registration site, where you will be updated regularly on your status in line, as well as ticket availability.
If you are online waiting to register, DO NOT REFRESH your page, it will be done automatically for you. And do not use the back button – it will cause you to lose your place in line.
Ticket availability for events will be listed – and updated -- at the top of The Women's Conference homepage throughout the morning.
You'll need to sign up for Maria Shriver's March on Alzheimer's separately. There will be a SIGN UP link for this event on The Women's Conference homepage in the upper right-hand corner -- or you can sign up now!
If you don’t get a ticket to the event you want, visit Our Forum, where ticketholders can sell their unwanted tickets for the value of that ticket. And remember that you can enter The Great Giveaway for a chance to win 2 tickets to the Conference.

We look forward to seeing you in October!

As budgets are cut, advocates push for continued free lunch | GothamSchools

As budgets are cut, advocates push for continued free lunch

by Philissa Cramer

City Councilman Brad Lander speaks at a rally today to oppose school lunch cuts. (Courtesy: Lander's office)

Last month, city officials announced a plan to save $3 million by reducing the number of students receiving free lunch next year. Today, elected officials and child advocates struck back from the steps of City Hall.

Web of lies led one student to city’s most coveted arts schools

by Philissa Cramer

The city is cracking down on a New Jersey family that illegally enrolled their daughter at two of the city’s most competitive public schools.
Jill Schifter and Anthony Maulello’s daughter won a spot in the Professional Performing Arts School in 2005 and was accepted to the ultra-competitive drama program at LaGuardia High School two years later. But according toa report released today by Special Commissioner of Investigations Richard Condon, Schifter and Maulello live in North Bergen, N.J., not New York City, meaning their daughter wasn’t eligible to attend the schools.
Investigators responding to an anonymous tip last fall found that the couple had briefly placed utilities accounts

Report: KIPP middle school students outperform district peers

by Anna Phillips

KIPP middle schools across the country enroll more low-income, minority students than their district school peers, yet their students have higher test scores, according to a report out today.
The report, from Mathematica Policy Research and commissioned by the KIPP Foundation, studies 22 middle schools in the KIPP charter network, four of which are in New York City. Its findings show that on average, KIPP middle school students have higher reading and math scores than their peers in district schools. It also suggests that students at these middle schools are outscoring their peers by greater margins than students at other New York City charter schools.
The report finds that, in some ways, students at KIPP middle schools arrive with more disadvantages than the district students the report compares them to. They’re more likely to be low-income and minority and in half of

Eduflack: Father, father, father ...

Father, father, father ...

by Eduflack

In our nation's capital yesterday, President Barack Obama reissued his call to get fathers more involved in their children's lives. Calling for "responsible fatherhood," the President noted that fathers (Eduflack included) need to be part of their kids' lives "not just with words, but with deeds."

USA Today's Greg Toppo has the full story on the event here. What's most interesting are the stats that Toppo offers up from the U.S. Census. About one in three children lived away from their biological fathers last year, and that number leaps to almost two in three (64 percent) for African-American children.

Why is this an issue for Eduflack? Allow me to get on my soapbox for a moment. If we are serious about improving our public schools, particularly for historically disadvantaged students, we need to better engage in the

Around the Edu-Horn, June 22, 2010

by Eduflack

ASU is offering online certificate program in Web-based teaching http://sbne.ws/r/4Z5o (from ASCD)

NBPTS wins Gates $$ to "measure effective teaching" --http://tinyurl.com/2bfahsy

RT @douglevin Huge number of i3 Applications received involve #edtech | data.ed.gov http://ht.ly/21KY0

Is cheerleading a sport (for Title IX purposes)?http://tinyurl.com/23b5z2b

KIPP "isn't gaming system" on student gains --http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7067226.html

Hechinger Report | Q&A: Kate Walsh on improving teacher quality

Q&A: Kate Walsh on improving teacher quality

by Susan Sawyers

Kate Walsh, president of the National Council on Teacher Quality

Teacher quality is now widely recognized as one of the most important factors in whether students succeed. As a result, policymakers have shifted their focus from teacher training and certification to student performance data as the best gauge of teacher effectiveness. Recently, Colorado passed a bill to modify teacher tenure and evaluation, joining other states — including New York and Louisiana — that have already passed or introduced legislation to bring about change.
The Hechinger Report recently spoke with Kate Walsh, president of the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ), a nonprofit advocacy research organization dedicated to increasing the number of effective teachers. A

Local News | Seattle teachers union wants board to delay Goodloe-Johnson's contract | Seattle Times Newspaper

Seattle teachers union wants board to delay Goodloe-Johnson's contract

At a union meeting Monday, Seattle teachers recommended that the Seattle School Board not extend Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson's contract until she shows significant improvement in how she works with parents, teachers and other members of the community.

By Linda Shaw

Seattle Times education reporter

All the educators at the meeting supported the motion, with six abstentions, said Olga Addae, the union's president. There were about 100 people total in attendance, all elected representatives from Seattle schools or other employee groups.

The representatives also want Goodloe-Johnson to foster a positive view of district educators, and to move the district forward in a positive and equitable way, Addae said.

"Our representatives felt the school board can wait until improvement is made before guaranteeing her another year on the job," she said.

Last week, the Seattle School Board gave Goodloe-Johnson a largely favorable review, rating her as "meets expectations" in 15 of 17 areas. The two areas in the

Marysville School Board member asked to resign over e-mail

To the wild cheers of a packed house, four members of the Marysville School board voted Monday night to request the resignation of the fifth member, Michael Kundu.

NEW - 3:03 PM

Seattle teachers union wants board to delay Goodloe-Johnson's contract

Governor orders state agencies to cut budgets by 9 percent | OregonLive.com

Governor orders state agencies to cut budgets by 9 percent

Published: Tuesday, June 22, 2010, 1:30 PM Updated: Tuesday, June 22, 2010, 4:01 PM

Michelle Cole, The Oregonian
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Governor Kulongoski's Final Legislative Session

Michael Lloyd/The OregonianOregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski ordered state agencies to cut their budgets by 9 percent. The reductions are needed to close a $577 million gap in state's 2009-2011 budget.

Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski today ordered state agencies to cut their budgets by 9 percent.

The order was expected, though there was some uncertainty whether the governor would opt for phased in cuts or opt for all 9 percent. The reductions became necessary to close a $577 million gap in state's 2009-2011 budget.

"With limited options to balance the budget, and growing uncertainty about federal assistance, the longer we wait to implement these reductions, the deeper the cuts will have to be to bring the budget into balance," Kulongoski said in a news release.

It means school districts must find $250 million in savings. The Department of Human Services must cut $158 million from programs that help the poor, aged and disabled.

The cuts will bring some state worker layoffs, though the exact number is still unclear.

Some state agencies will get away without making deep cuts.

Earlier this month the Department of Corrections proposed closing three state prisons and freeing nearly 1,000 inmates on its cuts list. It doesn't look like that will happen as state leaders are

Your comments: High school redesign, girls and boys, Lukus Glenn lawsuit

By The Oregonian

June 22, 2010, 11:55AM

Opinions? Readers have them on stories as varied as the future plans for Portland high schools to the science behind girls living longer than boys. Full story »

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Tuesday, June 22, 2010