New York Legislature Passes Bills on Budget and Pensions - NYTimes.com

New York Legislature Passes Bills on Budget and Pensions - NYTimes.com:

"ALBANY — Lawmakers took baby steps toward bringing spending restraint and more-rigorous government oversight to the capital on Wednesday by closing most of a $3.2 billion state budget deficit, scaling back pension benefits for new government employees and overhauling the public authority system."

But the measures were greeted coolly by financial watchdogs, who said that lawmakers had made so many concessions that they had done little to change the fundamental problems that state government has faced.

Still, the developments were largely good news for Gov. David A. Paterson on a day when legalizing same-sex marriage, arguably his signature issue, was handily defeated in the Senate. And they were also a rare sign of functionality from the narrowly divided Senate, which has often struggled to vote on any subject.

For several months, the governor has pushed lawmakers to pass the pension legislation. The agreement offers new employees less-generous pension benefits, raising the retirement age of many new government workers to 62 from 55 and increasing their required contributions into the pension system, the first such scaling back of benefits in more than 25 years.

Education Week: U.S. Solicits Input for New Ed-Tech Plan

Education Week: U.S. Solicits Input for New Ed-Tech Plan:

"Federal education officials are soliciting input for a new plan for educational technology that would put student learning at the center of the nation’s strategy for transforming schooling in the digital age.

But even though today’s Web 2.0 tools can spread information broadly and quickly and foster collaboration on such projects, the effort has apparently been slow in attracting recommendations from educators and ed-tech experts that could help guide its development, some people in the field say."

“The new plan is a critical component to moving education forward in the digital age,” said Donald G. Knezek, the executive director of the International Society for Technology in Education, or ISTE, based in Washington. “The draft is shaping up to have all the right placeholders focused on learning and effective and competent teaching.
“But the important thing now is to put the meat on those placeholders,” he said, “so they have got to have educators and sophisticated education leadership to get their ideas in there.”
So far, those voices are scarce among the comments highlighted on the Web site set up to collect input on the plan.

Education Week: Broader Role Outlined for District Ed-Tech Leaders

Education Week: Broader Role Outlined for District Ed-Tech Leaders:

"Reflecting the expanding responsibilities of technology directors and heightened demand for schools to build students’ 21st-century skills, the Consortium for School Networking has updated its framework detailing how chief technology officers can become educational leaders in their districts.

The revised “Framework of Essential Skills of the K-12 Chief Technology Officer,” to be released today, comes as education leaders are increasingly looking to digital tools to improve teaching and learning. The new document by the Washington-based consortium, known as CoSN, outlines recommendations for professional development for chief technology officers and could eventually provide the basis for certification for those in the field, consortium officials write in the introduction to the framework."

Teacher Magazine: Women Underrepresented in School Leadership Roles?

Teacher Magazine: Women Underrepresented in School Leadership Roles?:

"While women hold nearly eight out of 10 teaching positions in North Carolina, far fewer are found as principals or administrators.

The Asheville Citizen Times reports that slightly more than half of all principals and top district administrators in North Carolina last year were women. That's despite the fact that women hold almost 80 percent of all teaching jobs.

Of all school district superintendents, 84 percent are men. However, the state's top job belongs to a woman. June Atkinson was elected North Carolina's first female state superintendent of public instruction in 2004, although she recently went to court after Gov. Beverly Perdue appointed Bill Harrison to the State Board of Education and made him her choice to run the schools"

Bookshare - Accessible Books for Individuals with Print Disabilities

Bookshare - Accessible Books for Individuals with Print Disabilities

Accessible Books and Periodicals for Readers with Print Disabilities

Bookshare™ is free for all U.S. students with qualifying disabilities. Student memberships are currently funded by an award from the U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP).

Bookshare dramatically increases the accessibility of books. Bookshare believes that people with disabilities deserve the same ease of access to books and periodicals that people without disabilities enjoy.

A searchable online library. Bookshare offers more than 60,000 digital books, textbooks, teacher-recommended reading, periodicals and assistive technology tools.
Readers of all ages. Bookshare offers affordable membership, unlimited library privileges and a community of Members, Volunteers, parents, publishers and authors.
Latest Bookshare News and Events:

U.S. Dept of Education Grants Funding to Bookshare to Convert Open Content Textbooks to Accessible Formats

Encyclopaedia Britannica Grants Digital Rights to Bookshare

K-12 Publications, Parent Magazines and Educational Organizations Talk About the Benefits of Bookshare

This project is supported by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (Cooperative Agreement #H325U040001). Opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the position of the U.S. Department of Education.

Betraying students - SignOnSanDiego Newsletter - SignOnSanDiego.com

Betraying students - SignOnSanDiego Newsletter - SignOnSanDiego.com:

"California is in an enormous financial bind. The deep recession has sent state revenue plunging.

Our leaders have addressed this fiscal migraine in two ways. In February, the Legislature adopted the largest single tax hike of any state in U.S. history, raising income and sales taxes and the annual vehicle registration fee and reducing the tax credit for dependents. It also forced cuts in virtually every area of government – including for public schools, which depend on state funding.

But in a May special election, state voters signaled loudly and clearly that they were against further tax hikes. Among the measures they decisively rejected was one guaranteeing billions of dollars would be sent to public schools in the future when state revenue rebounded.

The election results led to renewed wrangling over the budget – and an acceptance by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Republican lawmakers and a surprising number of their Democratic colleagues that spending cuts were how the public wanted to deal with red ink. In July, this understanding – along with a few of the usual gimmicks – led to a revised budget with a new round of cuts for schools."

Time Magazine Declares Yudof a Top University President | City on a Hill Press

Time Magazine Declares Yudof a Top University President City on a Hill Press:

"A week before the UC Regents voted to increase fees by 32.5 percent, the Nov. 23 issue of Time Magazine named UC President Mark Yudof as one of the 10 best college presidents in the United States. Yudof was acknowledged for repairing the nearly bankrupt UC system and was chosen because he “tools around dilapidated campuses and fixes them.”

The University Office of the President (UCOP) said it is very proud of the recognition.
“He is being recognized for his lifetime achievement of dedication to higher education,” said UC Spokesman Pete Kanes. “He has a way of making universities better places when he leaves than when he got there, like he did at Texas and Minnesota … he makes decisions based on what he thinks is right for the university, even if it makes him unpopular.”"

Black Voice News Online

Black Voice News Online:

"The Obama Administration has allocated $4.35 billion dollars in education grants for states to support innovative programs that will lift those districts with students at the bottom on par with our successful students.

States will have to alter the way they have tried to solve this problem by changing policies, allocating resources, measuring results, and involving staff, parents, community and private industry. They will also have to remove the cap on charter schools as well as challenge the well established traditional professional system of educating kids in urban schools as we seek “Race to the Top” funds. Here is the problem in California for African American students:

There are 454,780 or 7.3% Black students in California public schools. We only have 13,115 or 4.3% Black teachers in our classrooms. We have the highest drop-out rate of any group at 32.9%, which is 10% higher than the next group. Out of the 26,026 Black students that graduated in 2007/08 only 6,060 had the required courses to enter our UC/CSU campuses of higher learning. This is 23.3% of those that graduated. Our Academic Performance Index rating is at 659 which is far below the target score of 800 we would like for it to be. The sad thing about our failing or low performing schools is the longer Black students stay in school the worse things get for them. For example in our 2nd through 6th grades Black students scored at 705; in 7th through 8th grade they scored 649 and 612 in 9th through 12th grades."

Alameda Sun - Ed Board Mulls Over New Curriculum

Alameda Sun - Ed Board Mulls Over New Curriculum:

"Alameda Unified School District board of education members were presented with a recommendation for an anti-bullying and harassment curriculum to be taught in Alameda's schools at its Nov. 24 meeting. The new curriculum, if passed, would replace the controversial Lesson 9, the lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender (LGBT) anti-bullying and harassment curriculum that the school board approved earlier this year.

Though board discussion on the possible new curriculum lasted for nearly two and a half hours, board members still seemed unsure of how exactly the curriculum, if approved, would be implemented. Last August, AUSD Superintendant Kristin Vital asked Interim Assistant Superintendant Ruben Zepeda to investigate a new curriculum. The new program would help teachers educate students on why they should not bully or harass people in the six protected classes mentioned in California's Education Code 200: disability, gender, nationality, race, ethnicity and sexual orientation. The new curriculum would have to explicitly address how not to bully or harass these six groups."

UC Education Programs Should Serve as a National Model | City on a Hill Press

UC Education Programs Should Serve as a National Model City on a Hill Press:

"While it’s common for the nation to engage in lengthy debates about the state of our nation’s schools, teacher preparation is rarely mentioned inside that discussion. Arne Duncan, the U.S. Secretary of Education, recently put a laser focus on teacher education in a speech in which he detailed a long history of attacks on the low quality of teacher education. Based on his assessment, teacher education must make comprehensive reforms so that student achievement is at the core of its work. There is no counter-argument to this proposal. The job of a teacher is to create opportunities for students to grow academically and teacher education must prepare teachers to be successful in achieving that goal.

We are pleased to report that the teacher education programs within the University of California have already put student achievement at the forefront and are now counted as among the best in the nation, providing research-based, proven practices combined with extensive experience in schools. In fact, we would recommend to Mr. Duncan that our model could serve to improve teacher education nationwide. Here are some of the reasons why:"

News: New Wave of Student Activism - Inside Higher Ed

http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/12/03/activism:

"WASHINGTON -- Students at California public universities have been staging protests against budget cuts and fee hikes all fall, capturing local and national attention with administration building sit-ins, 24-hour library occupations and large outdoor rallies.

Though they’ve been the loudest this fall -- and in particular, over the last few weeks, as the University of California Board of Regents voted to raise tuition by 32 percent -- California’s students aren’t the only ones organizing to protect their financial and educational interests. As institutions and states take red ink to their budgets and green ink to their tuition bills, students in Maryland, Pennsylvania and New York have begun speaking out. Students in Canada, Germany and Austria are also agitating against tuition hikes."

“A new era in student activism has … emerged out of California,” said Victor Sanchez, president of the University of California Student Association (USCA) and a senior at UC Santa Cruz, at the start of a panel discussion here Wednesday hosted by the Campus Progress branch of the left-leaning Center for American Progress. “It’s the beginning of a student movement. It’s a movement against the privatization of our public institutions here in the United States.”

Angus Johnston, a historian who completed his doctorate at the City University of New York earlier this year and studies American student activism, said he sees “a lot more going on beyond California than most people recognize.” When students go to a state capitol or to Congress to lobby for their interests “that’s not something that makes The New York Times, that’s not something you get on NPR for doing.” Smaller campus protests, he added, aren’t getting much coverage beyond campus and local media.

Stress soars in applying for California colleges | PressDemocrat.com | The Press Democrat | Santa Rosa, CA

Stress soars in applying for California colleges PressDemocrat.com The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, CA:

"With record-shattering numbers of applicants vying for a shrinking number of places at California universities, stress is the word of the day for area seniors."

More than 609,000 students submitted undergraduate applications to the California State University system between Oct. 1 and the Nov. 30 deadline, according to CSU officials. On the final day alone, more than 73,680 applications were received.

The deadline for students applying to the UC system was extended from Monday to 11:59 p.m. Wednesday after the online application system crashed in the final hours.

That breakdown — largely symbolic locally because only 1,500 students statewide were online when it crashed — summed up the worry felt by seniors facing one of the bleakest-ever college application seasons.

Capitol Weekly: Could California face a “brain drain” of college students?

Capitol Weekly: Could California face a “brain drain” of college students?:

"In the 2007-2008 academic year, California did something it had not done since the 1980s: sent more college students out of state than it received from elsewhere.

For years, the Golden State’s public universities were a draw, offering a low-cost, high-quality education to its high school graduates and drawing talented people from other states and countries. With fees rising and student slots shrinking in the midst of the state budget crisis, some worry that a process that has helped boost California’s economy will reverse itself -- and do so at a time when the state’s economy needs more educated workers than ever.

“Absolutely the state is moving in the wrong direction in terms of closing the education skills gap,” said Hans Johnson, a demographer with the Public Policy Institute of California."

Last month, the University of California (UC) regents voted to raise fees by 32 percent, to $10,302 a year for in-state students, in the wake of a $1.2 billion cut in state support to the system. The California State University system saw a $564 million cut, forcing widespread layoffs and reduction of 40,000 students for the coming year.

These changes, in turn, have caused a logjam in the California Community Colleges system — both in terms of new admissions, and students trying to transfer a two-year degree to a four-year school.

“As the other two segments also are stressed, people who would otherwise go to UC or CSU also turn to community colleges,” said Assemblyman Ira Ruskin, D-Redwood City. On Monday, Ruskin is convening a joint panel that will review the master plan for California’s higher education systems.

Four-year schools have been making it harder to transfer, including recent changes to give preference to students from community colleges closer to their home campuses. The UC and CSU systems have been raising the GPA needed to get into certain programs and campuses--especially crowded CSUs like San Diego, Pomona, Long Beach and Fullerton--according to Rita Mize, director of state policy and research with Community College League.

Meanwhile, other higher education systems are pursuing California students.

UC dorm aids 'first gen' students | cincinnati.com | Cincinnati.Com

UC dorm aids 'first gen' students cincinnati.com Cincinnati.Com:

"If 18-year-old Demarcus Jones doesn't get up promptly for his 10 o'clock math class at the University of Cincinnati, he'll first get a text message from Judy Mause and then she'll arrive in person, banging on his dormitory door."

Mause calls it "intrusive advising."

Jones is one of 24 UC freshmen living in Gen-1 House, an off-campus residence designated for low-income, first-generation college students. Mause is the program's coordinator and she will do everything from wake-up calls to checking in with professors to make sure Gen-1 students keep their grades up and fit into campus life.

That's because if left to the odds, only three of the 24 Gen-1 House freshmen would graduate.

Nationally, 89 percent of low-income "first-gens" leave college within six years without a degree. More than a quarter leave after their first year - four times the dropout rate of higher income second-generation students.

Sick Schools 2009: Congress Urged to Help Kids at Risk- Embargoed for Dec 3

Sick Schools 2009: Congress Urged to Help Kids at Risk:

"PR Log (Press Release) – Dec 03, 2009 – Releasing “Sick Schools 2009', national and state advocates for environment and children’s health thanked Senators Boxer, Lautenberg, and Klobuchar, and other members of the Environment Committee for advancing the EPA priorities on children and schools and urged more support for EPA. The report, with contributions from policy advocates in 20 states and the District, offers peer-reviewed studies and compelling evidence of how polluted air inside and outside schools escalate health care costs, increase absenteeism, and reduce test scores."

Vernice Miller-Travis, Vice-Chair, Maryland State Commission on Environmental Justice and Sustainable Communities said, “The fact that the poorest, highest risk children have the schools in the worst condition has been a civil rights issue going back to Brown v. Education of Topeka in 1954. Today, we know even more: that the impacts from toxic school siting to lead in drinking water to mold infestations and to chemical spills are damaging millions of children every year, taking away their health and their chance for a productive future.” Georges Benjamin, MD, FACP said "Unhealthy conditions in our schools lead to failing grades and failing health." Benjamin is executive director of the American Public Health Association. He added, "Environmental concerns such as asbestos, mold, poor air quality and other hazards affect children's ability to learn and their health, and schools in low-income communities are often disproportionately affected. We must close this gap and ensure that all of our kids are given an opportunity to learn, grow and play in safe, healthy schools."

Healthy Schools Network, Inc. - Who We Are

Healthy Schools Network, Inc. - Who We Are:

"Healthy Schools Network, Inc.

About Us

Healthy Schools Network, Inc. is a 501 c3 national environmental health organization that does research, information, education, coalition-building, and advocacy to ensure that every child has a healthy learning environment that is clean and in good repair.

Founded in 1995,we have documented and publicized school environmental problems; shaped and won new education, health, and environmental policies; fostered dozens of local and state policy groups; won systemic federal and state reforms; and helped thousands of parents and schools make classrooms and buildings healthier through our EPA award-winning Healthy Schools/Healthy Kids Clearinghouse (Information and Referral Services).

Major efforts include: building the platform and the forum for school environments through the collaborative Coalition for Healthier Schools which we founded and convene with more than 400 local, state, and national partners; leading National Healthy Schools Day; offering steady assistance through the Clearinghouse's publications and referrals; and refining our model New York Program. Throughout, we are focused on: 1) High Performance School Design/Construction consistent with children's needs for healthy environments; 2) Greening Existing Schools; and 3) Environmental Public Health for Children who are disproportionately affected by environmental exposures.

Attorney General Holder, Secretary Duncan Meet With Youth Leaders, Parents

Attorney General Holder, Secretary Duncan Meet With Youth Leaders, Parents:

"WASHINGTON, Dec. 3 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As part of the Justice Department's year-long commemoration of the 15th anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan met today with teen leaders, their parents and program directors from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Start Strong: Building Healthy Teen Relationships (Start Strong). The discussion around teen dating violence was held in conjunction with nationwide events as part of the 6th It's Time to Talk Day, organized annually by Liz Claiborne Inc. to draw national attention to the importance of talking about domestic violence, teen dating violence and intimate partner abuse.

'We must engage the broadest spectrum of community partners in order to stem youth violence, and a cornerstone of that partnership is young people themselves,' said Attorney General Holder. 'The Department of Justice is committed to working with young people to develop innovative solutions to help prevent teen dating abuse.'"

A 'New Normal' for Higher Education in the 21st Century Announced at the

A 'New Normal' for Higher Education in the 21st Century Announced at the:

"NEW YORK, Dec. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- 'The most successful institutions will not be those that ride out the economic downturn by returning to the status quo,' said Madeleine d'Ambrosio, vice president and executive director of the TIAA-CREF Institute, in opening this year's TIAA-CREF Institute conference, 'Smart Leadership in Difficult Times.' More than 150 higher education leaders from around the country were gathered for this timely forum.

Colleges and universities will be forced to 'focus on enrollment, affordability and fund-raising' added d'Ambrosio, who also cited a Moody's report predicting the harshest effects of the economic downturn are likely still ahead for higher education."

The result: a "new normal" for colleges and universities, said keynote speaker David Gergen, professor of public service at Harvard's JFK School of Government and a director of its Center for Public Leadership. Gergen is also editor at large for US News & World Report, and a senior political analyst for CNN.

"For universities the new normal means the budget crunch is not going away," Gergen said. Seventy percent of all U.S. college and university students go to public institutions using state funding from budgets so stressed that "more than half of the states anticipate deficits for fiscal year 2011," added Muriel Howard, president, AASCU. "We're not going to spend our way out of this budget crunch," Gergen said. "We're not going to tax our way out of it. We're going to have to innovate our way out of it as a country."

Creating opportunities for parent involvement | delmarvanow.com | The Daily Times

Creating opportunities for parent involvement delmarvanow.com The Daily Times:

"In Worcester County Public Schools, we understand the connection between parental involvement and student achievement. Research shows that children who receive educational encouragement and support from their parents and guardians are likely to achieve at their highest potential."

At Buckingham Elementary School, we celebrate parent involvement. In fact, one of our parents, Gary Williams, won the inaugural Comcast Parent Involvement Matters award for Worcester County. As a member of our School Improvement Advisory Committee, Williams saw a need; he wanted our students to have access to digital cameras. Using his expertise in the area of electronics, he purchased cameras on eBay, refurbished them and created a camera lab for us. Because of his caring and creativity, our students have been further enriched.

Parents, however, do not need a specific set of skills in order to be involved in their child's education. Indeed, a parent is their child's first teacher. Throughout a child's education, as the child moves from grade level to grade level and from teacher to teacher, parents are the one constant. Parents act as an advocate, coach, and source of inspiration for their child.

As a Title I school having 59 percent of our students coming from households of poverty, Buckingham Elementary has a plan for parent involvement. We establish our goals and identify our resources for achieving them. For example, we partner with the Berlin Head Start in order to ensure that each student has a great beginning to their education.

South Bend Tribune: Michigan mother camps out for more schools cash

South Bend Tribune: Michigan mother camps out for more schools cash:

"LANSING (AP) — Michigan parents, teachers and school officials have held rallies and even bake sales at the state Capitol in efforts to persuade lawmakers to raise more money for education.

Dee Lindeman is taking it to another level.

The mother of three Center Line schools students has set up a tent and is camping in front of the Capitol from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. She leaves at night only because security guards tell her she has to go.

Lindeman is planning her third day of camping at the Capitol on Thursday. She plans to camp out through Dec. 10 unless lawmakers restore recent funding cuts to schools before then."

Mayor's First Year Nets Mixed Record - Politics News Story - KCRA Sacramento

Mayor's First Year Nets Mixed Record - Politics News Story - KCRA Sacramento:

"SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Sacramento's mayor, Kevin Johnson, is completing his first year as mayor with a mixed record.

In many ways, says communications expert and Sacramento State professor Barbara O'Connor, it's been a missed opportunity.

'It's always a trade-off of, you have all this enthusiasm and new ideas, and you don't know how to manage,' O'Connor said. 'And that's really what can be said of the mayor's first year.'
Johnson has been linked to investigations of alleged misconduct with girls, and money questions have surfaced about his nonprofit foundation, St. HOPE."

CPR: Feature News Story | Johnson's First Year: Struggle to Build Consensus Slows Agenda

CPR: Feature News Story Johnson's First Year: Struggle to Build Consensus Slows Agenda:

"This week marks one year since Kevin Johnson became mayor of Sacramento. It’s Johnson’s first elected office, so he’s had to learn on the job. Over the last year, Johnson has made progress on several fronts: He addressed Sacramento’s highly publicized homelessness problem and helped the city avoid police and fire layoffs. But Johnson’s struggle to build consensus at City Hall is slowing his agenda.

One Year Through the Lens of a Single Week

If you want to know what Kevin Johnson’s first year as mayor has been like, check out two starkly different events from the first week of November, 2009."

Sacramento Press / Johnson reviews his first year as mayor

Sacramento Press / Johnson reviews his first year as mayor:

"Mayor Kevin Johnson has been at the helm of the city for one full year.

Johnson made remarks to reporters Tuesday about his past year in office, saying that his volunteer program and a drop in crime are among his accomplishments, and that the city’s business climate and City Council disagreements are some of his shortfalls. His one-year anniversary as mayor was Dec. 2.

“I’ve been in office 365 days,” Johnson said at his Tuesday meeting with reporters. “And I’m just as excited today as when I got elected.”"

SN&R > Columns > Bites > Lies, damn lies and the mayor’s blog > 12.03.09

SN&R > Columns > Bites > Lies, damn lies and the mayor’s blog > 12.03.09:

"“Numbers can be made to say almost anything,” warns Mayor Kevin Johnson, opening a recent entry on his always informative and entertaining blog (www.kevinjohnsonformayor.com/kjfm). And then he proves it.

“But here’s a number we should celebrate. By one measure, Sacramento is becoming a safer city. We moved seven positions—in the right direction—in a national safety survey that looks at hundreds of U.S. cities.”

That survey is the annual City Crime Rankings put out by CQ Press. This year, Sacramento moved from the 51st most dangerous city in America to being the 57th most dangerous city in America."

LaJollaLight.com | Board of Education calls on state to solve its budget woes

LaJollaLight.com Board of Education calls on state to solve its budget woes:

"The San Diego Unified School District's Board of Education Tuesday night unanimously passed a resolution calling for the state government to solve its budget woes without placing further financial burdens on education.

The resolution, sponsored by board member Richard Barrera, calls for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Legislature to take 'a balanced approach' to solving fiscal problems 'that includes both new revenues and budget cuts to reduce the negative impacts of excessive cuts to education.'

The resolution promises the district will advocate 'progressive tax policies,' and for simple majorities for the Legislature to raise taxes and pass an annual budget. The Assembly and Senate require two-thirds majorities to do both."

Houston sixth-graders' heart screenings shock researchers | Houston & Texas News | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle

Houston sixth-graders' heart screenings shock researchers Houston & Texas News Chron.com - Houston Chronicle:

"Heart screenings offered to sixth-graders at a Houston middle school revealed seven with undiagnosed heart conditions — two of which required surgery — and the results shocked researchers who want to see such tests offered at every campus.

Those 94 students at Key Middle School were the first tested in a study led by Houston cardiologist Dr. John Higgins. On Wednesday, his group began screening 150 students at Houston's Fleming Middle School.

Higgins is hoping the findings will win support for his crusade to make heart exams routine for all U.S. sixth-graders.

“Usually, the first time these kids have symptoms is during cardiac arrest,” said Higgins. “We had at least two cases in Houston last year where it was the first episode and they died.”
While other studies have focused on athletes, this project includes all students."

Sticking with magnet schools to strengthen poor kids' scores - washingtonpost.com

Sticking with magnet schools to strengthen poor kids' scores - washingtonpost.com:

"Aleader in the national effort to raise the achievement of low-income children once told me how she became, to her amused surprise, one of those rare suburban Washington parents who pay tuition to send their children to D.C. public schools.

She grew up in a white, blue-collar family far from Washington. Her children attended economically diverse schools, but when she got a big job in the District, the people at her new office, despite their shared commitment to improving urban education, told her she would be nuts to put her kids in the D.C. system. Uncertain what to do in a strange new city, she bowed to this unanimous view and bought a house in Montgomery County, never anticipating what would happen next."

Texas students struggle on early versions of end-of-course tests | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News | Latest News

Texas students struggle on early versions of end-of-course tests News for Dallas, Texas Dallas Morning News Latest News:

"AUSTIN – As hundreds of Texas school districts get a jump on the end-of-course tests that will debut statewide in two years, preliminary results indicate a large number of students will have trouble passing the exams."

High school students will be required to pass the battery of 12 end-of-course tests beginning with freshmen entering high school in the 2011-12 school year. But many districts are already giving early versions of the tests to their students, and some are even using them as final exams in Algebra I and four other courses.

The Algebra I test was administered to nearly 79,000 students earlier this year, and just 57 percent of those students passed the 50-question exam. About 11 percent achieved "commended performance" for answering most of the items correctly.

Results were similar on four other tests measuring knowledge and skills in biology, chemistry, geometry and U.S. history. In biology, the 58,000 who took the exam answered about 60 percent of the questions correctly.

Harvard Law School Suspends Program Giving Students Free Tuition - NYTimes.com

Harvard Law School Suspends Program Giving Students Free Tuition - NYTimes.com:

"Less than two years after announcing that it would waive tuition for third-year students who pledge to spend five years working for nonprofit organizations or for the government, Harvard Law School is suspending the program — in part because almost twice as many students as expected signed up."

“This was always an experiment and just one of many ways we were trying to encourage students to explore public interest careers,” said Martha Minow, the dean of the law school, adding, “What we found is that we had less trouble than we thought encouraging that.”

But the recession was also a factor. “It’s really a function of the endowment going down drastically,” said Robb London, the law school’s assistant dean for communications.

Harvard’s endowment declined 27 percent between June 2008 and June 2009, falling to $26 billion, and the university has adopted a number of cost-cutting moves. In fact, on Tuesday, Harvard’s largest division, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, announced a voluntary retirement plan for professors. Other schools will offer similar packages in the near future.

The Answer Sheet - A teachable moment for and about the Secret Service

The Answer Sheet - A teachable moment for and about the Secret Service:

"Every second of every day its agents put their lives on the line to protect our federal officials and, out of nowhere, up comes a super tall, super thin, super blond woman to a White House state dinner and is allowed in by Secret Service agents even though she and her husband aren’t on the official guest list.

Scandal ensues. Michaele and Tareq Salahi become household names (actually I had to look them up; I know them only as “the gate crashers”). The reputation of the Secret Service is sullied."

Teaching mildly autistic kids the ABC's of key social skills - washingtonpost.com

Teaching mildly autistic kids the ABC's of key social skills - washingtonpost.com:

"The middle school years, when nothing seems more important or more impossible than fitting in, are rough for nearly everyone. But they are particularly brutal for preteens such as Will Gilbertsen, whose mild autism makes him stand out."

Less than two months into sixth grade at Arlington County's Kenmore Middle School this fall, the freckle-faced 11-year-old with a passion for skateboarding had gained a reputation for racewalking through the halls between classes. "That's so I can't hear the teasing," he told his mother.

As the number of children with autism has ballooned nationwide, so has the population of children who, like Will, are capable of grade-level academics but bewildered by the social code that governs every interaction from the classroom to the cafeteria. Not so profoundly disabled that they belong in a self-contained classroom but lacking the social and emotional skills they need to negotiate school on their own, they often spend the bulk of their day in mainstream classes supported with a suite of special education services including life-skills groups and one-on-one aides.

District urging state to rethink ed funding - Education - SignOnSanDiego.com

District urging state to rethink ed funding - Education - SignOnSanDiego.com:

"SAN DIEGO — Rather than cut $200 million from its $1.2 billion operating budget to offset massive funding reductions that are anticipated from the state, the San Diego school board wants the Legislature to rethink how it funds education.

Otherwise, trustees might just take drastic measures of their own.

The San Diego school board passed a resolution last night that calls on the state to avoid making “draconian cuts … that will decimate the quality of education for all students.” Proposed by trustee Richard Barrera, the resolution goes on to state that the cuts could be avoided, “if the governor and state legislators make decisions to reform tax benefits for corporations or consider other new revenue options … .”"

Survey: Oakland principals like to control their own budgets | The Education Report

Survey: Oakland principals like to control their own budgets The Education Report:

"A survey of Oakland principals by a local advocacy group found support for the district’s unorthodox, largely decentralized school budgeting system, known as RBB; it also found that one-third of the principals surveyed didn’t feel prepared or equipped to run their entire school budget, as they’re expected to do."

Here is a summary of the findings, straight from the memo:

• 93.3% of principals surveyed value having decision-making authority over their school site’s budget

• 93.1% of principals surveyed responded that if budget cuts have to be made, the principal with the school community should have the primary responsibility for making these decisions

• 86.4% of principals surveyed prefer to have control over the number and type of positions at their schools (principal with community decides staffing instead of according to central office formulas)

• 82% of principals surveyed believe that changes to OUSD’s budgeting system are necessary

• 77.8% of principals surveyed believe that General Purpose dollars should be equitably distributed among all OUSD students

• 67.3% of principals surveyed feel that they have the ability, or are prepared, to completely run their entire site budget, including personnel decisions

Invisible: 1.4 Percent Coverage for Education is Not Enough - Brookings Institution

Invisible: 1.4 Percent Coverage for Education is Not Enough - Brookings Institution:

"News coverage is important to every policy area. While some people have personal knowledge of certain topics, many rely on mass media for direct, up-to-date, and in-depth reporting. This is especially the case with education because only a third of American adults currently have a child in elementary or secondary school. What most people know about schools comes from newspapers, radio, television, the Internet, or blogs – or from memories of their own experiences, often from long ago."

Yet despite the importance of media coverage for public understanding of education, news reporting on schools is scant. As we note in this report, there is virtually no national coverage of education. During the first nine months of 2009, only 1.4 percent of national news coverage from television, newspapers, news Web sites, and radio dealt with education.1 This paucity of coverage is not unique to 2009. In 2008, only 0.7 percent of national news coverage involved education, while 1.0 percent did so in 2007. This makes it difficult for the public to follow the issues at stake in our education debates and to understand how to improve school performance. Community colleges fare especially poorly in the constellation of news coverage. Of all the education reporting, only 2.9 percent is devoted to two-year institutions of higher learning, compared to 12.5 percent for colleges and 14.5 percent for universities (the rest goes to elementary and secondary schools). The lack of attention devoted to community colleges is noteworthy because even though they enroll 6.7 million students compared to 11.2 million for colleges and universities, two-year schools attract only one-tenth the news coverage of four-year institutions. From the standpoint of national media coverage, community colleges barely exist.

Restructuring the CSU or Wrecking it? What Proposed Changes mean and What We Can Do About Them | California Progress Report

Restructuring the CSU or Wrecking it? What Proposed Changes mean and What We Can Do About Them California Progress Report:

"Like so many other public institutions these days, the California State University is under attack. Not just from the deep and persistent budget cuts, but also from a radical change in the way university administrators want to deliver higher education.

Today, the California faculty Association has released a white paper detailing this disturbing trend entitled, “Restructuring” the CSU or Wrecking It?”

To view the white paper, go to: http://restructuringcsu.wordpress.com/

This authoritative report seeks to address the top down call for “restructuring” occurring throughout the CSU and UC systems and offers insight into the political agendas that may be driving the trend."

Budget Blogs Keep Tabs on UC Meltdown | California Progress Report

Budget Blogs Keep Tabs on UC Meltdown California Progress Report:

"Mainstream media have covered protests in response to the massive budget cuts at the University of California, including the confrontation at UCLA when tuition was raised Nov. 19, but few reporters have the time or resources to delve deeply into the crisis of public higher education.

But where newspaper coverage is dying, blogs are blooming, helping fill the reporting gap on what the cuts mean for students, faculty, workers and administrators.

One notable blog is http://www.utotherescue.blogspot.com, a comprehensive blog maintained by UC Santa Barbara professor Christopher Newfield, author of Unmaking the Public University, Harvard University Press. Newfield’s theory, as captured in his book description is the following:"

SCUSD Observer: Short for "status quo ante bellum"

SCUSD Observer: Short for "status quo ante bellum"

Short for "status quo ante bellum"

Baby Barack Mayor Kevin Johnson sent out a mailer touting his strong mayor initiative this week, challenging Sacramentans to question business-as-usual politics.

Status quo is short for "status quo ante bellum" meaning "the state before the war." And that's what this local argument is turning in to...KJ uses Obama references whenever he can make a sophomoric connection that is meant to fire our synapses, because we (the unwashed electorate) are apparently not going to grasp the nuance that we are being played.

So the comparison of Kevin Johnson's fight to change the city's charter is equal to Obama's fight to convince an entire world on how to execute a war?

Right.

The News and Review claims that.... continue reading at SCUSD Observer

SDUSD Calls For State To Fix Budget - San Diego News Story - KGTV San Diego

SDUSD Calls For State To Fix Budget - San Diego News Story - KGTV San Diego:

"SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego Unified School District's Board of Education Tuesday night unanimously passed a resolution calling for the state government to solve its budget woes without placing further financial burdens on education.

The resolution, sponsored by board member Richard Barrera, calls for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Legislature to take 'a balanced approach' to solving fiscal problems 'that includes both new revenues and budget cuts to reduce the negative impacts of excessive cuts to education.'"

Mayor to host forum on entertainment complex

Mayor to host forum on entertainment complex - Sacramento News - Local and Breaking Sacramento News | Sacramento Bee

Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson will host a community meeting at the downtown library Thursday evening to solicit questions and comments about a sports and entertainment complex for Sacramento.

The forum is scheduled from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the library, 828 I St.

Johnson is in the process of soliciting developer proposals for entertainment complex, centered on an arena to house the Sacramento Kings basketball team. Kings and NBA officials have said Arco Arena is outdated.

Johnson set Dec. 24 as the deadline for development teams to submit arena proposals, including where to build it and how to finance it. A 12-person citizens' task force, picked by Johnson, will review proposals for consideration next spring by the mayor and possibly the City Council.

Johnson will introduce his task force at the Thursday forum.

Sacramento Press / Union leaders back lawsuit against strong mayor

Sacramento Press / Union leaders back lawsuit against strong mayor:

"In a sign that the opposing camp to the “strong mayor” initiative has significant union support, three local union leaders turned out for a Tuesday press conference to support a new lawsuit against the initiative.

The group SAVE Sacramento, which is chaired by local union leader Matt Kelly, is publicizing a lawsuit that aims to take the strong mayor initiative off the June 2010 ballot.

The plaintiff in the lawsuit is Bill Camp, the executive secretary of the Sacramento Central Labor Council. Camp filed the lawsuit as a private citizen — he is not representing the labor council in the legal battle. The defendants named in the lawsuit are the city of Sacramento, the Sacramento City Council and Thomas Hiltachk, the attorney who wrote the strong mayor initiative."

SAC CHARTERGATE

SAC CHARTERGATE

Michelle Rhee and St. Hope: What Didn't She Do?
Washington DC blogger lodesterre has been reading the Inspector General's referral to the U.S. Attorney; he/she's been asking many good questions--some of the same ones on our mind too.

Such as the issue of Michelle Rhee holding "conflicting positions" at St. Hope.According to the IG interview with former St. Hope employee Jacqueline Wong-Hernandez, the same time Rhee was listed as a St. Hope board member, she was identified as the consultant for the New Teacher Project (which recruited teachers for St. Hope schools), the consultant for the reconstruction bridge span and the consultant for the reconstruction of the HR department.

On a memo she was listed she as the Chief Operating Officer for St. Hope Academy. On an organization chart she was identified as president. As lodesterre writes:

Patrick Kennedy Picks Up Key Endorsement

Patrick Kennedy Picks Up Key Endorsement

I am proud to announce the endorsement of former Sacramento Mayor Anne Rudin for my campaign for City Council. Mayor Rudin is one of our city's longest serving leaders, having served on the City Council and as Mayor for 21 years.


Among many notable accomplishments during her tenure, Mayor Rudin set the stage for Sacramento to successfully move forward economically after three area military bases closed and privatized. She also played a leadership role in seeing that Sacramento was one of the first cities in the nation to recognize same-sex couples.

On the Council and as Mayor, she led with uncommon balance of grace and resolve. It is an honor to have her support and confidence.

Sincerely,

Patrick Kennedy
Kennedy for Sacramento’s 5th City Council District Web Site

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UC extends application deadline after computer glitch -- latimes.com

UC extends application deadline after computer glitch -- latimes.com: "University of California officials have extended the application period for undergraduate admissions after a computer slowdown kept some students from filing their online applications in time for Monday night's deadline. The new deadline is 11:59 p.m. tonight.

Susan Wilbur, UC's director of undergraduate admissions, said her office is investigating the cause of the computerized malfunction that at least temporarily blocked some panicked last-minute filers from submitting applications on Sunday and Monday nights. She said she did not know how many students were affected but said that about two-thirds of applicants wait to file until a week or less before the deadline. Many others delay until the day the application is due."