California Teachers Happy over Loss of 'Race To The Top' Money

California Teachers Happy over Loss of 'Race To The Top' Money

California Teachers Happy over Loss of 'Race To The Top' Money

WEDNESDAY, 10 MARCH 2010 21:15

Hardy L. Brown

The state of California was denied federal funding on “Race to the Top” in education and as usual the teachers association and some professional educators are saying that is alright. We have Black students lagging at the bottom of every category of every indicator of a successful education and they say that is alright that we did not get funding. Now when it comes to their salaries they scream that it is the money that counts. In doing a quick survey of Black publishers in California they are fed up with these associations wanting more money with our support with no accountability for educating our kids.

In a front page article by reporter Chris Levister, she quotes the head of the California Federation of Teachers Association Marty Hittelman as saying; “I won’t say that I’m in sorrow of California losing it. There wasn’t a great deal of support. The teachers union had opposed for example, basing teachers evaluations on standardized test they say are flawed”. Now mind you last year when these same teachers got lay off notices and President Barack Obama sent federal stimulus money to save their jobs not one peep came from them about lack of support.

As a matter of fact these teachers were out stirring up the community that our children would be harmed if teachers were impacted.

Let us take a look at who is impacted. The staffing of teachers in California is 70.1%white with only 27.9%ofthe students being white. You can see who gets the money but what about accountability and what is happening in our schools when it comes to African American students.

Black students make up 7.3% of the student population with 4.3%of us as teachers. According to the Department of Education African American students score (674) at the bottom of the Accountability Progress Reporting, Performance Index Report. The California High School Exit Exam places Blacks at 23% passing Math and 33% passing English Language Arts. They list our adjusted dropout rate at 32.9%which is 10%higher than the closest group. In some districts the dropout rate for Blacks is greater than 50 percent. Then when you look at over20,700 are expelled and over 770,000 are suspended each year, the question is who is in school to teach?

State revises low-achieving schools list, bumping four East Bay schools and adding two new ones - San Jose Mercury News

State revises low-achieving schools list, bumping four East Bay schools and adding two new ones - San Jose Mercury News

State revises low-achieving schools list, bumping four East Bay schools and adding two new ones

By Theresa Harrington
Contra Costa Times

Posted: 03/10/2010 09:37:52 PM PST

Updated: 03/10/2010 10:45:42 PM PST

Four East Bay campuses learned Wednesday that they may escape being labeled among the state's persistently lowest-achieving schools, while two others discovered they may be added to the dreaded list.

Mt. Diablo and Pinole high schools were dropped from the list of the lowest-performing schools, while Glenbrook Middle School in Concord and Helms Middle School in San Pablo were added. The change was attributed to the middle schools' lower test scores, according to a revised list released late Wednesday by the California Department of Education. In Alameda County, Hayward and Mt. Eden high schools were taken off the list, replaced by schools in other parts of the state. The updated list, which will not be finalized until the State Board of Education votes on it today, includes 18 schools in Alameda and Contra Costa counties, down from 20 that were listed Monday.

Schools land on the list if they have posted low scores on reading and math tests in the past three years and have shown little improvement, based on the state education department's analysis.

The revised list caught many school officials by surprise. Many said it was too soon to comment, while others said they had not yet heard of the changes.

Steven Lawrence, superintendent of the Concord-based Mt. Diablo district, said the revision did not alter his outlook. He still must figure out how to improve achievement at the six schools that remain on the list, and to decide whether

to apply for federal grants of $50,000 to $2 million annually for three years to help pay for interventions that federal officials said will be needed to bring the schools up to snuff.

16% rise in undergrads on California's state campuses predicted - latimes.com

16% rise in undergrads on California's state campuses predicted - latimes.com

16% rise in undergrads on California's state campuses predicted

Report cites need for funding to cope with the expected enrollment crush. An additional 387,000 undergraduates are expected by 2019.

Students crowd the bike rack area at UC Santa Barbara. By 2019, 387,000 additional undergraduates are expected on state campuses. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times / January 13, 2010)

California's public colleges and universities must prepare to serve 387,000 more undergraduates by 2019 than in 2008 -- a 16% increase -- and will need an additional $1.5 billion in enrollment funding for the task, according to a report released Wednesday by the California Postsecondary Education Commission.

By 2019, demand for slots at California's community colleges is expected to rise by 313,253 students, according to the report. At the California State University and the University of California, demand will peak several years earlier, according to the projections, making the need for funding solutions more immediate.

Called "Ready or Not, Here They Come," the forecast was presented at a commission meeting in Sacramento. It is designed to provide short- and long-term guidance to the governor and Legislature as they assess funding needs for higher education. The commission is responsible for statewide education planning and coordination.

The report also said that if the state does not fully fund enrollment for the three college systems, at least to 2008-09 levels, as many as 277,000 students face being turned away next school year.

The report's release comes as California grapples with a fiscal crisis that has eaten into state support for higher education by more than $1 billion in the last two years, resulting in fee increases, furloughs and elimination of courses, the report says.

UC Lacks Funds, Space For Future Enrollment - The Daily Californian

UC Lacks Funds, Space For Future Enrollment - The Daily Californian

A state report released Monday indicates the University of California lacks the funding and classroom space to accommodate a projected increase of 20,243 students to the system by 2019.

Titled, "Ready or Not, Here They Come," the report, authored by members of the California Postsecondary Education Commission, also projects that by 2019, the demand for undergraduate enrollment across the California public higher education system will increase by 16.4 percent, or 387,386 students.

Based on recent graduation and enrollment trends, the report projects that most UC campuses do not have the physical capacity to accommodate the projected increase, with just one exception.

"(UC) Merced has the physical capacity to handle enrollment growth and we expect it to continue to grow," said UC spokesperson Ricardo Vazquez. "But, like the rest of our campuses, Merced cannot enroll more students if state funding to support them is not forthcoming."

The report projects neither UC Berkeley nor UCLA have the land available to adequately expand their facilities.

"Campuses need to think about intersegmental agreements where facilities can be shared," said Stacy Wilson, senior researcher for the commission. "Perhaps Berkeley could partner with ... community colleges to share facility space."

Wilson added that campuses could also increase capacity by offering more weekend and evening courses or

learning opportunities that do not require physical use of facilities.

UC campuses currently have a total deficiency of 17,424 square feet of lecture and laboratory space, which will increase to 25,660 if the system does not accommodate for the increase in undergraduate enrollment.

According to the report, the projected increase of 387,386 additional students to the state's public higher education system will require an additional $1.5 billion in funding by 2019. If current funding levels are held constant, the system will be unable to accommodate 277,733 of the prospective students.

California Leads the Nation in After-School Investment | FightCrime.org

California Leads the Nation in After-School Investment | FightCrime.org

California Leads the Nation in After-School Investment

Law enforcement report shows nearly 2,000 low-income schools still lack programs, endangering public safety

Contact: Jennifer Ortega, (916) 837-3904, jortega@calfightcrime.org

SAN FRANCISCO — California is leading the nation in its commitment to after-school programs. According to a new report released today by a statewide anti-crime organization, state- and federally-funded after-school programs provide safe and enriching activities for more than 400,000 California students each day, thanks to significant investments over the last dozen years. Yet many more low-income children are left unsupervised because there are still not enough programs to meet demand.

California’s After-School Commitment: Keeping Kids On Track and Out of Trouble, by Fight Crime: Invest in Kids California – a bipartisan, non-profit anti-crime organization led by 400 sheriffs, police chiefs, district attorneys and victims of violence – shows that California invests over three times more in after-school programs than the remaining 49 states combined.

“Quality after-school programs are a crucial weapon against crime,” said San Mateo Police Chief Susan E. Manheimer, President of the California Police Chiefs Association and executive committee member of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids California. “Our public safety depends on California’s continuing, strong leadership on after-school programs.”

Crime-prevention and academic benefits
Research shows that after-school programs can help shut down the “prime time” for juvenile crime, which is 2-6 p.m. in California. It is also the time when kids are more likely to become the victims of crime. After-school programs offer constructive alternatives to gangs, drugs and crime. They also provide academic assistance and can keep students engaged and excited about going to school, and boost school-day attendance, academic achievement and graduation rates. For example, after three charter schools in South Central Los Angeles implemented THINK Together’s after-school program for the majority of their students, twice as many students scored at proficient or above on English and math standardized tests.

State, federal and private funding
The majority of funding for California’s after-school programs came from a 2002 voter-approved measure, which received wide bipartisan support and was championed by the Governor prior to his election. Proposition 49 – the After School Education and Safety (ASES) Act – provides 

Editorial: Sac City is a 'Teach for America' finalist - Sacramento Opinion - Sacramento Editorial | Sacramento Bee

Editorial: Sac City is a 'Teach for America' finalist - Sacramento Opinion - Sacramento Editorial | Sacramento Bee

One year ago, a panel at Sacramento MayorKevin Johnson's education summit focused on teaching, stating what people know intuitively: "Research has shown that teacher quality is the single most important school-based variable that impacts student achievement."

Among the panelists was Eric Scroggins of Teach for America, an organization created in 1990 to recruit top college graduates who teach for at least two years in the nation's hardest-to-staff schools. The premise is that young, energetic, committed teachers can make a difference in the lives of students in lower- income communities.

Now, a year later, Teach for America has announced that Sacramento is among 15 finalists for five new slots across the country. Sacramento would have to commit to 30 teachers and raise $2.7 million in private funds by April. The Bay Area Morgan Family Foundation, known in Sacramentofor funding youth projects, already has pledged $600,000.

Sacramento City Unified Superintendent Jonathan Raymond sees potential for Teach for Americaat a handful of chronically struggling schools – particularly in hard-to-staff math, science and special education positions where Teach for America excels in drawing applicants (more than one in five of this year's 46,000 applicants have majors or minors in mathematics, science, engineering 

More Sacramento area schools offer online view of attendance and grades - Sacramento Business, Housing Market News | Sacramento Bee

More Sacramento area schools offer online view of attendance and grades - Sacramento Business, Housing Market News | Sacramento Bee

Students, beware – if you skip second period, fail a pop quiz or blow off homework, your folks may get an e-mail letting them know.

Increasingly, schools are using sites such as Zangle, School Loop and Power Schools to give parents access to almost real-time, online information about their children's attendance, grades and homework.

"We are finding teachers are feeling pressure from parents," said Trinette Marquis, spokeswoman from Twin Rivers Unified School District. "Our parent community is getting empowered with more information."

In the fall, Twin Rivers, Sacramento City Unified and San Juan Unified all began using computer programs that give parents access to student information.

Twin Rivers uses School Loop, which offers parents a glimpse at class-by-class attendance and can e-mail daily or weekly updates directly to families.

The district of about 27,000 students got 5 million hits within the first 10 weeks and to date has 

Cathy Speck's Blong on Dying As Living

Cathy Speck's Blong on Dying As Living

Cathy speaks at Davis High School

03 10 10'

WRITTEN BY LAURA

0 COMMENTS

LKM Host Sez:

Cathy gave a talk for the Davis High School on ALS, LGBT rights, and gay marriage on 9 March 2010. Everyone loved her (of course!).

Cathy says this: “It was fabulous! Some students are going to do a video documentary about me for a national high school contest called ‘Meda Matters’.”

We will definitely look forward to that!

Cathy on stafe at Davis HS 3/9/10

ALS Awareness Month Info

03 08 10'

WRITTEN BY LAURA

0 COMMENTS

To us via Cathy:

Dear Friends,

ALS Awareness Month is right around the corner and with that comes the opportunity to spread the word about the devastating effects ALS has on families across the nation.  Nearly 30,000 people are living with ALS, right now, in the United States.  Next year, another 5,600 will be diagnosed.

How can you plug in and help spread the word?

There are a lot of ways to help community members and businesses understand the disease, from becoming an ALS Ambassador and doing outreach in your place of employment, civic group or church to hosting an educational event where PALS and CALS have the opportunity to join you and share their personal journey.  These types of grassroots efforts are the foundation to finding a cure.

The key to success is planning!  Start early, look for opportunities to share your wealth of information on ALS. So many of you have lived through the disease and while your lives have been ravaged by it, you are not defined by it.  You are the real deal and your story impacts and engages fellow community members to where they want to become involved in our quest for a cure.

I encourage you to find ways to help our Association build awareness, whether it‚s through the social marketing scene and leveraging your sphere of influence of Facebook, or public speaking, education and outreach opportunities˜it all makes a difference!

We have a number of special events this Spring˜please consider joining us or making a donation of time or money.  Our first Benefit Garage Sale will be held on April 24th, Our Mother‚s Day Tea is Saturday, May 8th and we have a delightful evening of A Capella, raffles, wine and cheese planned on Saturday, May 1st.

All of these opportunities, and so much more are covered in our March E-newsletter of the Greater Sacramento Newsletter.  Go grab a cup of hot tea and enjoy the read.

Warmly,

Amy

The ALS Association Greater Sacramento Chapter

2717 Cottage Way, Suite 8  Sacramento, CA 95825

(916) 979-9265