Wednesday, March 24, 2010

2nd Banana TUESDAY, MARCH 23, 2010

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Schools Matter: Green Dot Flameout in L.A.

Green Dot Flameout in L.A.

At Green Dot Public Schools, Inc., the only things public are the public dollars that go, without public oversight, to feed the corporate welfare scammers who intend to bleed out public schools. From Howard Blume at the LATimes:

Green Dot Public Schools, a leading charter school operator, is shutting down a campus because of low enrollment, financial pressures and subpar performance, officials confirmed Monday.

The action prompted a daylong student protest Monday atAnimo Justice Charter High School, south of downtown Los Angeles.

The closure marks a first for locally based and nationally

Buffalo United Charter School Staff Rally - WBEN NewsRadio 930 : Buffalo & Niagara Falls, NY

Buffalo United Charter School Staff Rally

Teachers, aides and counselors at the Buffalo United Charter School rallied this afternoon outside the school on Manhattan St., going public with their labor woes.

"We decided to go public with our labor dispute" says Barb Coogan, a librarian at the school. The staff according to Coogan voted unanimously a year ago to unionize but the school to date has not recognized the union opting instead to hire a lawyer and take the issue to court. Coogan says "this law judge in Buffalo found that we were private employees yet the same company that manages our school manages a school in Brooklyn, found them to be public employees."

The staff according to Coogan simply wants a voice. "We don't have a voice here, we are told what to do, we are just employees, we are not respected, we are not supported." Coogan says employees are the trained educators who work with the kids and know what they need.

"Bringing Science to Life for Students, Teachers and the Community" Tri-City Voice Newspaper -

Tri-City Voice Newspaper - Whats Happening - Fremont, Union City, Newark, California

Bringing science to life

By Simon Wong
Photos By Simon Wong

New Haven Unified School District's (NHUSD) "Bringing Science to Life for Students, Teachers and the Community" program, served 128 fifth grade students and four teachers in its first year, 2006-07. Funded primarily by grants from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Bay-Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) Program, this program is gaining strength.

Union Sanitary District, Oikonos Ecosystem Knowledge, Gulf of the Farallones Marine Sanctuary Association, Don Edwards Wildlife Refuge, Lawrence Hall of Science, Berkeley, and Starbucks are now grant partners.

"Prior to 2008, 5th grade students at Alvarado and Cabello Elementary Schools consistently scored in the bottom 20 percent of the California State Standards Test for science. Teachers in the upper grades reported not spending enough time teaching science, due to lack of time, resources or knowledge of science," explained Kim Pratt, Science Specialist at Alvarado Elementary School, Union City.

"The NOAA B-WET grant and funding from our grant partners address these concerns and instill a sense of stewardship in our students. This program engages and energizes students in learning science and the protection of the SF Bay Watershed, provides staff-

Under Senate plan, city schools would lose more than $400M | GothamSchools

Under Senate plan, city schools would lose more than $400M

by Maura Walz

https://gothamschools.org/wp-admin/post.php?action=edit&post=35165

Source: NYS Division of the Budget; NYC DOE

The budget plan that the Senate passed yesterday essentially preserves the $1.1 billion in cuts to school aid statewide that Governor David Paterson proposed in January. That would mean a cut of over $400 million to the New York City schools for the next fiscal year, according to the state’s Division of the Budget. And that figure doesn’t even include cuts from the city that are likely to soar above $300 million.

Under the Senate plan, state funding to the city schools would drop to $7.95 billion,

Local News | Fees to rise after GET enrollment closes next week | Seattle Times Newspaper

Fees to rise after GET enrollment closes next week

The enrollment period for Washington's prepaid tuition program closes next week. And when enrollment reopens again in the fall, fees are expected to be about 14 percent higher.

By The Associated Press

OLYMPIA — The enrollment period for Washington's prepaid tuition program closes next week. And when enrollment reopens again in the fall, fees are expected to be about 14 percent higher. That's how the Guaranteed Education Tuition or GET program keeps in step with rising tuition at Washington's four-year colleges.

Washington families have opened more than 113,000 GET accounts worth over $1.2 billion to send their children to college.

Parents buying GET units until March 31, will pay $101 a unit o

Folsom Lake College Introduces Regional Visual and Performing Arts Center Executive Director — The Rancho Cordova Post

Folsom Lake College Introduces Regional Visual and Performing Arts Center Executive Director

by SCOTT CROW on MARCH 23, 2010 · 0 COMMENTS

in FOLSOM, VIEWPOINTS

Dave Pier has joined Folsom Lake College as Executive Director for the college’s regional Visual and Performing Arts Center, which is currently under construction and set to open in late 2010. Pier brings a rich background in arts administration, including higher education, to his new position.

“Folsom Lake College is thrilled to have Dave Pier on board for our regional Visual and Performing Arts Center,” said Folsom Lake College President Dr. Thelma Scott-Skillman. “Dave is the perfect person to build a solid foundation for the Center, a foundation that will benefit the communities of our region for many years to come.”

Dave brings an incredible wealth of experience and knowledge of the performing arts field. He has a very diverse educational background, has worked for over 25 years with various community arts organizations, and is a very talented and passionate musician. In addition to his leadership and management experience, Dave has an extensive work history in performing arts production – including sound engineering, house managing, and managing/directing. Before entering the arts management field, he worked as a research scientist in the private sector.

Small Schools gain in Reading, Writing and Math

http://www.e3oregon.org/newsletter/September2009.html#HighSchool

Small Schools gain in Reading, Writing and Math

Every year at this time the Oregon Department of Education releases the results of state standardized tests. They are referred to as OAKS (Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and Skills). They are a closely watched indicator of student achievement. In high schools, these math, reading and writing tests are administered to 10th graders.

The newest report released Monday captured results for the ’08-’09 school year. Looking at four-year trends, results for Oregon high schools were disappointingly flat. In math, the percent of students with passing OAKS scores declined from 56% to 54%. Reading results improved slightly, increasing from 65% to 66%. Writing dropped half a percentage point to 55%. The front page story in The Oregonian reflected this flat trend in high schools and similarly in elementary schools. The good news for Oregon is in middle schools, where student scores are “hitting historic highs.”

Despite disappointing statewide trends in high schools, there’s reason to be encouraged by the results for students at schools in the Oregon Small Schools Initiative. For example, the Initiative schools composite shows a four-year gain of ten percentage points in writing, with 55.7% of 10th graders in small schools earning passing scores in the ’08-’09 school year. This exceeded Oregon’s average of 55%. In reading, the Initiative schools’ composite reflects a four-year gain of five percentage points to reach 64.8%. Initiative school composite gains in math were nearly four percentage points..

Most promising of all, though, were results from our Initiative schools that serve disproportionate percentages of students of color and students on free and reduced lunch. These schools experienced double digit gains in all three subjects over five years: 21 percentage points in writing, 13 in reading and 10 in math.

The Oregon Small Schools Initiative has been generously funded by Meyer Memorial Trust and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. With its two-year extension grant, Meyer Memorial Trust recognized the importance of time for the Initiative to capture meaningful comparative data on student performance. The ’08-’09 OAKS report provides another valuable year’s worth of data for analysis. Given the relatively small portfolio of schools and students, fluctuations and swings can be expected from one year to the next. Nevertheless, the OAKS results reflect the strong promise of small schools in creating conditions for improved focus on teaching and learning, and therefore student achievement.

Bite-Size Edits: Bite-Size Edits is a game where players get points for editing.

Bite-Size Edits:

Schools Matter: Jacksonville Principal Takes KIPP's Canned Lies Door to Door

Jacksonville Principal Takes KIPP's Canned Lies Door to Door

The corporate media of Jacksonville is doing its part in perpetuating the KIPP sales pitch aimed at filling KIPP desks this summer at the renovated dog kennel that will serve as KIPP, Inc.'s Store #83. In just a few months now, the summer KIPP-notization will begin, the three-week behavioral breakdown session where students receive alternating shocks of learned helplessness and learned optimism on their way to earning their "Work Hard, Be Nice" tee-shirts and full-fledged acceptance into the total compliance cult of KIPP. By the time school is ready to start then

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

Bright and Early: The Education Newsblitz

A friend whose kid is yet to be born asked me yesterday which high school they should go to. I'm flattered to be considered an expert -- but it might be a little early. Take a deep breath, relax and read the newsblitz:

We blog that San Ysidro schools have warned the state that they're in financial danger in the coming years. Part of the problem? They had to backtrack on some of their planned budget cuts.
North County second graders invented a technological sign language interpreter, the Union-Tribune writes.
Also in the UT: Seven students were arrested at a Scripps Ranch middle school after a student brought unloaded guns and ammunition to school. Nobody was hurt.
The North County Times reports that Escondido fifth graders wrote and shared their personal stories through a literacy program.
The Contra Costa Times lays out the details of a proposed state law that would lower the threshold for passing parcel taxes for schools. The San Diego Unified school board backs this idea.
A leading charter school operator is closing one of its Los Angeles schools because of lagging enrollment and test scores, the Los Angeles Times writes.
Despite budget cuts, the music didn't die in Davis schools. The Sacramento Bee explains

The California Majority Report // Should the FPPC Regulate Tweeters, Facebookers?

Should the FPPC Regulate Tweeters, Facebookers?

March 23, 2010 @ 9:46 AM

In the Age of the Internet, when campaigns, advocates, consultants and engaged citizens are using all forms of social media - Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Gmail Buzz, etc. - to communicate about politics, the Fair Political Practices Commission is struggling to figure out what in all that constitutes political communication that ought to be regulated - like paid advertising - and what is purely a function of free speech.

It's a fair question.

Last week, I testified (and Tweeted) before the FPPC's Subcommittee examining electronic communication in political campaigns as part of a panel of political consultants (also at the table was Julia Rosen, the Courage Campaign's Online Political Directorm and Bryan Merica from ID Media and Fox & Hounds Daily). We were followed by Kim Alexander of the California Voter Foundation, Derek Cressman of Common Cause, Tiffany Mok of the ACLU and Professor Barbara O'Connor, Sacramento State University.

The subcommittee wanted to hear from us if it should develop, in the words of Chairman Ross Johnson, "appropriate responses to new political realities."

My advice was straightforward: do no harm. Don't regulate independent bloggers. Don't do anything that will stunt the growth of the Internet to attract and involve voters. But do provide clear guidelines for disclosure if there's campaign money involved. And while you're

Education Research Report: Review Of Draft Standards

Review Of Draft Standards

The Fordham Institute's expert reviewers have analyzed the draft Common Core K-12 education standards (made public on March 10) according to rigorous criteria. Their analyses lead to a grade of A- for the draft mathematics standards and B for those in English language arts. Read the full review.

In this report, the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, as part of its continuing scrutiny of academic standards across the states, the nation, and the world, offers its own appraisal of the draft Common Core standards. Our purpose is neither to praise nor to bury them. It’s to give constructive feedback during a comment period that is intended to yield later improvements.

As it happens, while there are definitely some changes we’d like to see made, our expert reviewers think these drafts are pretty darned good.

On the math side, our reviewers found clear, rigorous standards that set forth most of the essential content that students in grades K-12 must master. While some tweaks are needed— particularly at the high-school level—this draft “embodies internationally-competitive expectations for students in mathematics” and earns an impressive A-.

On the English language arts (ELA) side, the standards are also strong, though in need of a few more adjustments. While NGA and

Chicago's HS admissions -- model or mess? | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

Chicago's HS admissions -- model or mess? | Philadelphia Public School Notebook:

Chicago's HS admissions -- model or mess?

by Dale Mezzacappa on Mar 23 2010

Those of us interested in exploring what is right and wrong, fair and unfair about Philadelphia's high school admissions process should read this story co-written by Stephanie Banchero, my good friend and colleague on the Education Writers Association board. It was published today in the Chicago Tribune and describes an appeals process for the well-connected created by Arne Duncan when he was superintendent there. In Philadelphia, we all know there is something called "directed admissions," in which some spaces are reserved for students who have influential advocates, but it is secretive and shadowy. Chicago kept a log of all the calls.

Health | A push for healthier school meals | Seattle Times Newspaper

A push for healthier school meals

Charlie Baltimore eyed the pizza in the cafeteria of the High School of the Future with simmering contempt. "In a year," the ...

By Alfred Lubrano

The Philadelphia Inquirer

PHILADELPHIA — Charlie Baltimore eyed the pizza in the cafeteria of the High School of the Future with contempt.

"In a year," the school administrator vowed, "we're going to eliminate pizza."

Unlike most city schools, the technologically specialized West Philadelphia school has a full kitchen where many meals are prepared practically from scratch. Like just four other schools, it gets $5,000 a year in extra funding from the district to buy fresh produce. There's even a vegetable garden.

Future is emblematic both of what healthy school eating can look like and of Philadelphia's place in the forefront of cities seeking to improve school meals.

But Future is a relative anomaly. And, according to Baltimore and others, much work has to be done to get other schools in the city — as well as across America — up to that same standard.

Denigrating most district meal offerings as "slop," Baltimore said: "The more we phase out garbage, the better our students will be."

State schools chief Randy Dorn arrested on suspicion of drunken driving

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn was arrested early Sunday in Orting under suspicion of driving under the influence, his office confirmed Tuesday.

By Melissa Santos The News Tribune, Tacoma

Randy Dorn, state schools superintendent

JOHN LOK / THE SEATTLE TIMES

Randy Dorn, state schools superintendent

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn was arrested early Sunday in Orting under suspicion of driving under the influence, his office confirmed Tuesday.

The traffic stop occurred at about 1:30 a.m. at roughly the 300 block of Washington Avenue North, said Orting Police Chief Bill Drake. That's the same block as Orting High School.

Dorn said in a statement Tuesday that he and his family were attending a community event Saturday night

Fresno tree incident offers a parable of our society - Bill McEwen - fresnobee.com

Fresno tree incident offers a parable of our society- Bill McEwen- fresnobee.com
Fresno tree incident offers a parable of our society

Posted at 09:38 PM on Saturday, Mar. 20, 2010

By Bill McEwen / The Fresno Bee

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Five Central High School seniors thought they were pulling a prank: cutting down two mature trees in the quad to deprive junior classmates of shade.

Actually, they were committing at least $7,000 of vandalism and igniting a story that has become a parable on what's right and wrong with America.

Their act and the responses of their parents and the school district offer several threads for legitimate public debate -- as well as the kind of blind anger that is the trademark of anonymous Internet commentary.

Helicopter parents? Publicity seeking lawyers? Where to draw the line for punishment? Portraying yourself as a victim instead of owning up and accepting consequences?

Every issue has at least two sides, as we have seen in news coverage of the students' suspensions, their attempt to return to school, the hiring of attorneys and the sidewalk shouting outside Central.

ON THE RADIO

Listen to Bill McEwen's talk show daily at noon on KYNO (AM 1300).

Central High tree-cutting case delayed

Some of the outrage is genuine. Some of it

Video: Digging Into the CPSAN Vault This Week In Education

This Week In Education

Video: Digging Into the CPSAN Vault

Past events are going to be an important reality check as the Obama administration attempts to move education legislation. Whether you want to watch last week's hearings on the Duncan education plan or the Senate floor debate on No Child Left Behind from eight years ago, you can now find pretty much everything that's been on CSPAN online for free. Here's a NYT article about it. Here's the search results for "No Child Left