Regents join charter boost - NYPOST.com

Regents join charter boost - NYPOST.com:

"After months of sitting on the sidelines, the state Board of Regents is expected to vote Monday on a measure that urges lawmakers to lift the charter-school cap.

If approved, it would mark the first formal advocacy from the education-policy board for a legislative change to allow for more charter schools beyond the current limit of 200.

The move comes a month shy of a mid-January deadline for the state to submit an application for hundreds of millions of dollars in federal aid.

Among the vital criteria for earning a share of the $4.35 billion 'Race to the Top' funds is having an environment that doesn't impede on charter-school growth."

Your Editorial: Prisoners need education, too | visaliatimesdelta.com | Visalia Times-Delta and Tulare Advance-Register

Your Editorial: Prisoners need education, too | visaliatimesdelta.com | Visalia Times-Delta and Tulare Advance-Register:

"Inmate S. stood outside my classroom scowling. In fact, he refused to come through the door. This is the first response of many incarcerated individuals when they find they are assigned to education. School is the last place on earth they want to be since most of them failed at it so miserably before."

Four years ago, education became a priority in California's prison system when Arnold Schwarzenegger changed the California Department of Corrections to California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The focus then was on how to reduce recidivism. Research shows that inmates who are released from prison with skills to succeed in society are less likely to return. Now, however, a budget crisis makes cuts necessary. Understandable.

However, with CDCR's budget of $10 billion, and 10 percent needing to be cut, why have 30 percent of personnel cuts fallen on academic and vocational instructors, when their programs represent 2 percent of this budget?

At the end of January, 642 of California's correctional educators are scheduled to be laid off. This will be a huge blow to California's already teetering economy. It should also raise the alarm in our neighborhoods. This decision was made alongside the ongoing dilemma of how to reduce the overcrowded prison population by 40,000. Some of this number will undoubtedly be added to the 18,000 prisoners estimated to be released this year in the Central Valley.

Governor s ties to charter schools driving Race to Top goals? - San Jose Mercury News

Governor s ties to charter schools driving Race to Top goals? - San Jose Mercury News:

"SACRAMENTO — Charter school advocates were livid. The Assembly's 'Race to the Top' legislation was trying to 'change the DNA of charters,' as one charter school leader put it, by clamping down with 'stifling' oversight provisions.

They had little doubt, however, that they'd have a potent weapon to beat back the proposed changes: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Schwarzenegger's deep ties to the charter school movement haven't been a secret. He has taken at least $1 million in contributions from charter school advocates, stacked the State Board of Education with charter school educators, overseen since taking office in 2003 more than a doubling in the number of charter schools and steered hundreds of millions of construction bond money to charter schools."

SAC CHARTERGATE: Numbers Game?

SAC CHARTERGATE: Numbers Game?:

"Numbers Game?
Sac City school district monthly school enrollment figures reveal more important questions about the state of Sac things at St. Hope/Sacramento Charter High School. Either Sac Charter has lost a troubling number of in-district students during the third month of the school year or its enrollment figures have serious discrepancies with important financial implications for both the school and the school district.

All school enrollment--whether traditional public or charters--are provided to the school board and the public every month or so. These figures include enrollment at the end of each month, average attendance percentages and a break out of enrollment by grade level."

Continue reading at SAC CHARTERGATE

Top 25 sacdac.org Post on docstoc.com 12-12-09

Top 25 sacdac.org Post on docstoc.com 12-12-09

Top 25 sacdac.org Post on docstoc.com 12-12-09 -

Go to SAC City DAC

Five reasons to vote GOP, or Dem in 2010

Five reasons to vote GOP, or Dem in 2010:

"Republicans


U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer: A politician Republicans love to hate as one of the most liberal in the U.S. Senate.


"House Speaker Nancy Pelosi: Public Enemy No. 1 to the national GOP as Republicans around the country give money to House races hoping she'll lose the majority and her podium.

Gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown: A target Republicans still love to hate as "Governor Moonbeam" - and they'll aim to soften up his numbers and boost his negatives.
Climate change, health care: With voices like Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck egging them on, Republicans are fired up on two of President Obama's top agenda items.

Taxes and budget: The heart of the Tea Party agenda. State Republicans are pounding the "no new taxes" drum as they call for more cuts to close the budget gap.

Democrats

Keep the U.S. Senate majority: As Democrats work to pass health care reforms, the party faithful can't afford to lose a single seat, and Boxer will be their cause in California.

Do away with the two-thirds majority to pass state budgets: Democrats who control both houses of the Legislature say the high bar blocks progress and the budget.

Win back the governor's office: Brown's backers say he'll get things done after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger struggled to make good on his vow to cut spending.

Fight budget cuts: Democrats say they won't accept more without a fight. Look for them to throw down the gauntlet.

Pass health care reform: Central to Obama's agenda, and a passionate motivator for the grassroots, look for the issue to drive Democrats.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/12/13/MNOJ1B1JR8.DTL&type=politics#ixzz0ZbI7nZOL

Moody's Cuts Calpers' Rating by Three Notches to Aa3 - WSJ.com

Moody's Cuts Calpers' Rating by Three Notches to Aa3 - WSJ.com:

"Calpers may be paying a price for its decision to help financially strapped local California governments.

Moody's Investors Service slashed the triple-A rating of Calpers, formally known as the California Public Employees' Retirement System, by three notches to Aa3.

The downgrade, made Thursday, in part reflected Calpers' recent spike in unfunded liabilities, following the fund's negative 24% return for the year ended in June. Calpers, the nation's largest public fund with about $200 billion in assets, last month delayed its efforts to offset those liabilities by agreeing to defer an increase in local-government contributions to the fund from 2011 until 2012."

Student protests continue and gather momentum on both sides of the Bay

Student protests continue and gather momentum on both sides of the Bay:

"As further evidence of frustration and disgust with the fallout from the California budget crisis, student protests continued and expanded this week as San Francisco State University students protested budget cuts and tuition fee hikes. SFSU protesters were arrested earlier this week after occupying a campus building, causing some classes to be canceled, just as many students were studying for upcoming finals. Protesters then took to surrounding streets, blocking 19th Avenue in an attempt to cut off police vehicles from exiting. Those students were taken into custody, cited and released."

Sacramento Press / Pony Express rides again

Sacramento Press / Pony Express rides again:

"The 12 riders rode along the American River Parkway trail from the Folsom Historical Museum to Old Sacramento's Historical Museum, completing the journey in about five hours.

The riders - Janet Kampf, Cindy Honn, Laura Beeman, Lisa Mahon, Pam Dixon, Kathy Colt, Marton Bross, Jessie Davison, Cary Morre, Pat Fanelli, Jessica Sloat and Susan LaFrance - are from different California towns.

The Pony Express will celebrate its 150th year delivering mail by a 10-day horseback trek from Old Sacramento, CA to St. Joseph, MO."

SAC City DAC Education News & Comment

Education News & Comment SAC City DAC:

"SCUSD DAC Bylaw Revision Subcommittee Reports Out

Hi DAC members,

Attached please find support materials for the bylaws revision process. They will also be posted at http://sacdac.org/bylaws.aspx. Feel free to e-mail or phone Leo of the bylaws committeeat leocauchon (at) netscape.net with questions or comments. These will be answered and shared by a FAQ e-mail and by handout at the January meeting.

Reviewing the important parts of these materials (Dac Bylaws to be certified Articles 4 and 5 and Article II of revision consideration - one page each) with your respective SSCsas we proceed in the work ofrevising the DAC bylaws is appreciated. Please remember that there is a final 2/3rds vote on the entire revision scheduled at the end of the process. It is the intention to provide lots of opportunities for engagement in this effort.

Thanks for your ongoing commitment to our students.

The Fish"

Without parents, schools can't succeed - JSOnline

Without parents, schools can't succeed - JSOnline:

"The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's series on parental involvement in the Milwaukee Public Schools district did an excellent job of highlighting why it is crucial for parents to be actively involved in their children's education. 'Program's success sparks hope' (Nov. 29) highlighted the success of two of COA Youth & Family Centers' programs. Most important, based on the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee's evaluation of these programs, COA is now implementing them in 35 MPS elementary schools.

COA began HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters) 11 years ago, providing weekly in-home instruction for parents and children ages 3 to 5. Evaluation documented that kids in HIPPY start school at a higher proficiency and that parents in HIPPY continue their everyday habit of parental involvement into elementary school."

The Associated Press: Politics dominate Calif education reform effort

The Associated Press: Politics dominate Calif education reform effort:

"SACRAMENTO, Calif. — To education reformers, a $4.3 billion school funding competition from the Obama administration seemed like just the push California needed to start making long overdue changes to restore academic luster to the state's public schools.

But the drive to dramatically turn around a faltering system that serves more than 6 million children has run into political reality in a Legislature dominated by special interests. The result could leave the state with the nation's largest public school system ill-positioned to compete for the so-called Race to the Top funds.

Officials estimate California stands to gain up to $700 million."

THE STATE OF BLACK STUDENTS' EDUCATION

THE STATE OF BLACK STUDENTS' EDUCATION

In the Sacramento City Unified School District

Black Parallel School Board’s “Call to Action”

Research Report

2008-2009  

The State of Black Students’ Education In theSacramento City Unified School District 2009 -

voiceofsandiego.org | News. Investigation. Analysis. Conversation. Intelligence. - 'They're Looking at Impending Doom'

voiceofsandiego.org | News. Investigation. Analysis. Conversation. Intelligence. - 'They're Looking at Impending Doom':

"School district staffers have offered up a long list of possible cuts to fill a budget gap that could range from $147 million to $203 million. Their ideas include cutbacks that must be negotiated with reluctant labor unions as well as politically toxic ideas such as completely eliminating librarians and vice principals, jettisoning the arts and magnet programs and closing five schools. But if California makes the deepest cuts possible, in the worst way possible, the school district could take every one of those dreaded steps and still wouldn't be able to close the gap.

'I don't have any answers right now,' said school board member Richard Barrera, who voiced concern about the situation last week. 'But we've got to stay patient. These numbers can change.'"

Federal complaint expected on school violence | Philadelphia Inquirer | 12/12/2009

Federal complaint expected on school violence | Philadelphia Inquirer | 12/12/2009:

"The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund said yesterday that it would file a federal civil rights complaint accusing the Philadelphia School District of failing to address violence against Asian immigrant students at South Philadelphia High School.

The complaint will claim that the district violated the students' right to equal protection under the 14th Amendment, said Cecilia Chen, a staff attorney with the organization.

Chen said the complaint would be filed with the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division."

Edwatch by Julia Steiny: R.I. could learn a lot from Harlem | Education | projo.com | The Providence Journal

Edwatch by Julia Steiny: R.I. could learn a lot from Harlem | Education | projo.com | The Providence Journal:

"The Harlem Children’s Zone is succeeding where so many have failed – interrupting chronic cycles of family poverty in an inner-city neighborhood. Its students are starting to close the achievement gap with middle-class kids, on a reliable basis. Harlem itself has become so appealing that gentrification threatens the Zone.
 
What’d they do right?"

In the early 1980s, the charismatic community-organizer Geoffrey Canada chose to get intimate with a place and concentrate only on its children. He’d taken over a little social service agency, determined to rescue kids from the brutal, mean-streets childhood he had in the Bronx. Starting with only a few city blocks, his Harlem Children’s Zone (HCZ) began to build, piece by piece, a cradle-to-career “pipeline” of services to help those particular kids succeed. Increasingly, the idea was to give them supports that middle-class kids take for granted — improving the nutrition of young pregnant moms, creating safe places to play, providing good schools.

Its now famous “Baby College” uses Saturday morning classes to teach poor, young parents how to get their kids on track to college. Teachers explain how a baby’s brain develops, so parents understand the consequences of overly harsh discipline and the importance of reading. In other words, HCZ invests heavily in the people who support the kids.

The Zone grew, adding a few blocks at a time, to the 97-block phenomenon that has caught President Obama’s attention. The president wants it replicated.

For students, a right to be mean online? -- latimes.com

For students, a right to be mean online? -- latimes.com:

"One morning in May 2008, an eighth-grader walked into Janice Hart's office at a Beverly Hills school crying.

She was upset and humiliated and couldn't possibly go to class, the girl told the counselor. The night before, a classmate had posted a video on YouTube with a group of other eighth-graders bad-mouthing her, calling her 'spoiled,' a 'brat' and a 'slut.' Text and instant messages had been flying since. Half the class must have seen it by now, she told Hart.

Hart took the problem to the vice principal and principal, who took it to a district administrator, who asked the district's lawyers what they could do about it. In the end, citing 'cyber-bullying' concerns, school officials suspended the girl who posted the video for two days. That student took the case to federal court, saying her free speech rights had been violated."

Performance pay for teachers would quadruple under bill approved by Hill - washingtonpost.com

Performance pay for teachers would quadruple under bill approved by Hill - washingtonpost.com:

"Federal funding for performance pay in public schools would quadruple, to $400 million a year, under a bill moving through Congress that reflects the growing political momentum behind an education reform idea once considered anathema to many Democrats and labor leaders."

The Teacher Incentive Fund, launched during the Bush administration, has become a priority for President Obama. It has awarded more than 30 grants to school systems, states and public charter schools to develop new ways to reward top-performing teachers and principals in high-needs schools, with student test scores a significant factor but not the only one. Classroom evaluations are also considered.

The Prince George's County school system, one of the grant recipients, this month distributed $1.1 million in bonuses to 279 teachers and administrators from a dozen schools who volunteered for a trial program that ties cash awards to classroom performance.
The increase in performance pay funding, now at $97 million a year, is included in anomnibus spending bill approved by the House on Thursday. The Senate is expected to vote on the measure Sunday, and Obama has said he will sign it.

"If we want our students to succeed, we have to begin giving our teachers the respect and resources they deserve," Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, said in a statement. "This will require a seismic shift in the way we talk about and treat teachers and it starts with this important investment in programs that reward teacher excellence."

HISD chief considers in-house program for troubled students | Houston & Texas News | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle

HISD chief considers in-house program for troubled students | Houston & Texas News | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle:

"Some students, no matter where they attend school, are bound to break the rules.

But troublemakers in the Houston Independent School District are treated differently than most. They're outsourced to one of two campuses run by a private company, Community Education Partners, which is tasked with reforming their behavior and catching them up academically.

Most districts in Texas and nationwide run their own alternative schools for students with discipline problems. HISD's new superintendent, Terry Grier, announced this month that he's considering following suit and asking the school board to bring the $20 million-a-year alternative program in-house."

Detroit parents want DPS teachers, officials jailed over low test scores | detnews.com | The Detroit News

Detroit parents want DPS teachers, officials jailed over low test scores | detnews.com | The Detroit News:

"Detroit -- Impassioned parents demanded jail time for educators and district officials Saturday following the release of test scores that showed fourth- and eighth-graders had the worst math scores in the nation.

City students took the National Assessment of Educational Progress test this year, and 69 percent of fourth-graders scored below the basic level in math and 77 percent of eighth-graders scored below basic.

The Detroit scores on the progress test were the lowest in its 40-year history. The sample of students included 900 of Detroit's 6,000 fourth-graders and 1,000 of the district's 6,000 eighth-graders.

Sharlonda Buckman, CEO of the Detroit Parent Network, called for jailing and civil lawsuits against anyone in the city's educational system that is not doing his or her share to help properly educate children.

'Somebody needs to go to jail,' she said in a tearful address to 500 parents gathered Saturday for the organization's annual breakfast forum. 'Somebody needs to pay for this. Somebody needs to go to jail, and it shouldn't be the kids.'"