Colo. hardly alone in budget troubles - The Denver Post

Colo. hardly alone in budget troubles - The Denver Post:

"With one of the highest foreclosure rates in the U.S., it's no secret that Arizona has been awash in financial woes. But in Arizona, even the state government buildings are in hock.

That's one of the ways the state's Republican governor and GOP-controlled legislature have tried to deal with an unprecedented budget crisis. To help balance the budget, the state has borrowed against the very buildings where the legislature and governor work.

Budget nightmares are playing out across the country, where 43 states have cut services since the start of the recession, according to the Center on Budget Policy and Priorities, a Washington, D.C.- based organization that advocates greater spending on programs for the poor.

That includes Colorado, which will have bridged a $2.2 billion shortfall in the current budget year and faces a deficit of at least $1.3 billion next year."

EDITORIAL: Applauding success of honored Valley schools - Opinion - fresnobee.com

EDITORIAL: Applauding success of honored Valley schools- Opinion- fresnobee.com: "

In the San Joaquin Valley, teachers have a difficult challenge educating children because of the region's demographics. Their students often reside in economically depressed neighborhoods, and many come from homes in which English isn't the primary language that's spoken.

While Valley educators understand that student performance generally follows the poverty line, they are committed to strategies that give every child opportunities to learn. Demographics are a factor, but they can't be an excuse.

We were reminded of this commitment to education last week when the state Department of Education recognized 27 Valley elementary schools for their academic achievement.

These are schools that use federal No Child Left Behind funding. To be honored, schools must show that all students are making progress toward proficiency on California's academic standards and that disadvantaged students doubled the achievement targets set for them in two consecutive years."

New paradigm on education: focus on infants – NBBJ Insider - Archive

New paradigm on education: focus on infants – NBBJ Insider - Archive

Business leaders across the North Bay and California have invested countless dollars and hours in education.

But with many important exceptions, the efforts have not moved the needle in a substantive way.

The state’s K-12 system is one of the poorest performing in the nation. More than 30 percent of Latino boys drop out of high school. The number of college entrants is falling behind an ever-expanding need. Trade and other career educational programs are under attack. The state’s school bureaucracy is broken and non-responsive.

The consequence: California’s status as a world-class economy, built on its educational achievement, diverse population and leading companies, is under serious and immediate threat.

Now a growing number of business and academic leaders, among them the president of AT&T California, Ken McNeely, believe the solution is to reach back to the years before children even enter school.

Mr. McNeely, speaking to a recent early childhood education forum organized by the North Bay Leadership Council and First 5 programs from Sonoma and Marin counties, said he, too, was skeptical at first. Could investing in preschoolers really have that great an impact, or was it just another program destined to fail?

Other business leaders’ skepticism is equally reasonable, as they are being asked to invest dollars for a return they would not see in their work force for up to 20 years. And it is hard 

Get public involved in education

Get public involved in education:

"Some folks tend to take our schools for granted, a few people might even see them as glorified baby sitters or day-care centers.

But consider, for just a moment, the realities of a typical school district in today’s economy. We ask schools — demand, really — to give our kids a decent education, preparing young people for the real world of adults and careers, while at the same time coping with deep budget cuts.

Wedged in between the myth and reality of public education are the day-to-day issues. Taxpayers want better results, at the same time many classrooms are packed with kids who are just in the early stages of learning the English language

Parents demand the best for children, at the same time many teachers are torn between the idealism of planting useful knowledge in young minds, and the practicality of finding a job that actually pays enough to support a family.

At the same time, school district officials struggle to find a way to keep kids from dropping out and declining enrollment in certain regions — problems that only exacerbate the funding reductions caused by California’s long and persistently intractable recession."

City Brights: Delaine Eastin : Stand Up for California's Children and America's Future

City Brights: Delaine Eastin : Stand Up for California's Children and America's Future

Delaine Eastin

Former Cal State Superintendent of Public Instruction

 | Read Bio

Stand Up for California's Children and America's Future

I am a native Californian. I was brought up by generations who had survived the Great Depression and World War II. They were people of modest means who dreamed of a better future for their children and grandchildren, and they knew that education was the key to that future. I attended public schools in California and then was privileged to attend the University of California at Davis and the University of California at Santa Barbara. I have had a wonderful life and my education was the key.


Later, as the state grew richer, and more school financial responsibility for education went to Sacramento, our great educational system from kindergarten to higher education began to slip. The state cut back a little, then a little more, then a lot more. The vaunted education system that was 5th of the 50 states in per pupil spending in 1965 has dropped to 47th, and the decline continues. This is nothing short of tragic. Just as the global economy and the information age made education more important than ever, the California dream of a great education for all, became a tragic nightmare of diminished expectations. Quite frankly, the grown-ups of my generation are letting our children down.


We have an opportunity to begin reversing that trend. We are one of only four states that requires a two-thirds vote to raise money locally for schools. If we reduce that to 55%, still a super majority, but not so dramatic and difficult to achieve, we could allow communities to raise additional funds to help their local schools meet local needs. There is a constitutional initiative to do just that, the Local Control of Local Classrooms Funding Act, currently being qualified to go before voters this November.


The authors have set a limit on how quickly additional local support can grow -- $250 per election, adjusted for inflation -- and have allowed senior citizens who choose to do so, to opt out. They have also required strict disclosure and accountability as to how the funds will be used, and are spent. This is a reasonable, realistic opportunity to raise our level of local support for K-12 education, even as we protect homeowners and seniors. I hope you will join the California Parent Teachers Association and lots of good people across our state in rising to the challenge of helping our children to compete in the global economy. As California goes, so goes the nation. Think about and act to support this initiative act. Please raise

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/deastin/detail??blogid=178&entry_id=57197#ixzz0fWPJeWnH

Problem Solved Chalkdust101

Problem Solved Chalkdust101:

"After you’ve done a thing the same way for two years, look it over carefully. After five years, look at it with suspicion. And after ten years, throw it away and start all over.

The above is from Alfred E. Perlman, a railroad visionary in the 20th Century. Much as we take inflation rates into consideration when comparing dollar amounts from past eras, I think we should do the same with time figures. When Perlman made this quote in 1958 in the midst of turning around the New York Railroad, time and change moved at a much different rate. Let’s look at this quote and remove them time factors that Perlman used.

How often do we need to review what we do as educators when it comes to our classroom or leadership practices?"

Local News | Bellevue, Issaquah school districts seek legal advice on texts after court decisions | Seattle Times Newspaper

Local News | Bellevue, Issaquah school districts seek legal advice on texts after court decisions | Seattle Times Newspaper:

"That's what worries area school districts which say a pair of recent state court decisions on high-school math textbooks have them seeking legal advice before they make their choice.

The two decisions appear to be big wins for parents who support traditional math instruction. But educators say the Seattle case, in particular, raises questions about a district's ability to pick its own curriculum materials without fearing legal action.

'The courts ought not to be making decisions about curriculum,' said Doug Stolier, senior assistant attorney general for the state of Washington. The state Supreme Court has ruled in previous decisions that 'it's not the role of courts to be micromanaging education,' he said.

The math wars have heated up in other ways. Earlier this month, Bellevue PTSA organizers scrapped a parent math night, fearing it had been taken over by parents on only one side of the issue — those who want the district to adopt a traditional math approach."

Sacramento Press / Girl Scout Mega Cookie Drop

Sacramento Press / Girl Scout Mega Cookie Drop:

Girl Scout Mega Cookie Drop

"The money earned from Girl Scout Cookie sales fund the Girl Scout programs that build girls of courage, confidence and character.
For more info, check out: www.girlscoutshcc.org "

Mr. Cortines leave LAUSD now!

Mr. Cortines leave LAUSD now!

February 12, 6:01 AMLA Public Education ExaminerStuart Goldurs

According to the Los Angeles Times on February 12, 2010, you earned more than $150,000 last year for serving on the board of one of the nation's leading publshers. "Since Cortines' arrival, L.A. Unified has paid Scholastic more than $5.2 million for services and products, district records show."

Recently it was revealed that 1,700 temporary employees stayed on and their positions were funded after their jobs expired. The $200 million dollars that they received was a total loss and a waste for LAUSD. You are the man in charge, the person totally responsible for everything! 

The unions are extremely unhappy with you. Dropout rates are high. Layoffs are threatened. Furloughs are taking place. The out of the school bureaucrarcy remains intact. LAUSD does not know what to do with the poor performing schools, so they blame the teachers and are selling the schools to the highest bidders.

We Are The World 25 For Haiti(WORLD PREMIERE OFFICIAL VIDEO HD)

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http://twitter.com/D4Prod WORLD PREMIERE OFFICIAL VIDEO We Are The World 25 2010 2 MJ Michael Jackson for haiti 4 PREMIER vancouver 2010 LIL WAYNE AUTOTUNE auto tune weezy FAIL

You Call This Transparency? :: Frederick M. Hess

You Call This Transparency? :: Frederick M. Hess

Yesterday, on a press conference call, Education Secretary Arne Duncan made the following statement about the $4.35 billion Race to the Top (RTT) program and transparency: "Our new competitive grant programs like Race to the Top and the Investing in Innovation fund include greater transparency than ever before including publishing winning and losing applications, reviewer comments, and applicant's presentations." (Thanks to Eliza Krigman of the National Journal for the quotation.) I've been asked, in light of the questions I've raised earlier this week (here, here, and here), about the department's process, and whether this means I'm satisfied and/or abashed. The answer is "neither."

First, the Duncan claim of "greater transparency than ever before" is just hyperbole. For instance, when contacted by Education Week and asked to share the names of the RTT judges or even the location as to where they were being trained, the department refused. More to the point, none of the stuff Duncan alluded to in yesterday's call has actually happened yet. At this point, it's all prospective transparency. When the department does follow through on these promises, in April or so, that will be terrific and will start to provide crucial protection against political arm-twisting, aggrieved members of Congress, and public skepticism.

Beyond that, however, it's critical to recall that the promised measures will all be after the fact and that none of them actually entails any transparency regarding the RTT process. As far as the actual real-time process, the Department of Education never announced that judges had been selected (until Education Week's Michele McNeil broke that news), hasn't explained how judges were selected or who did the selection, never explained where the 19 priorities themselves came from, hasn't explained how judges are to weigh seemingly conflicting criteria or apply the point system, hasn't explained how conflicts of interest were determined, and hasn't explained how much the secretary will choose to be bound by the review process (important because this is a discretionary program, so the reviews are purely advisory). Even the Bush administration, which I used to slam for appalling insularity and lack of transparency, did better on some of this. And those programs were only a tiny fraction the size of the historic RTT fund.

Borderland In Case You Missed It

Borderland

In Case You Missed It

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Earlier today, Marc Dean Millot at TWIE, published a report, Three Data Points. Unconected Dots or a Warning? which seems to have been deleted. Millot reported:

I have now heard the same thing from three independent credible sources – the fix is in on the U.S. Department of Education’s competitive grants, in particular Race to the Top (RTTT) and Investing in Innovation (I3). Secretary Duncan needs to head this off now, by admitting that he and his team have potential conflicts of interests with regard to their roles in grant making, recognizing that those conflicts are widely perceived by potential grantees, and explaining how grant decisions will be insulated from interference by the department’s political appointees.

I saw the post in my news reader earlier in the day, and I figured Millot’s warning was yet one more reason to treat money cloaked as school reform with suspicion and cynicism. This evening I saw Kenneth Libby’s 

Eduwonk � Blog Archive � Hogwarts On The Hudson?

Eduwonk � Blog Archive � Hogwarts On The Hudson?

Hogwarts On The Hudson?

Wow.  Jaw meet floor.  Scholastic, a serious publisher in the education space (that produces some good products, for instance Read 180) is now allowing its bloggers to call out senior government officials as corrupt on the basis of anonymous third party hearsay and no evidence.   We’ve crossed into a strange new - and unfortunate - world if this is the new norm or somehow even remotely acceptable.
Update:  As you can tell from the now broken link it’s to Scholastic’s credit that they’ve removed the post.

This entry was posted on Friday, February 5th, 2010 at 4:00 pm. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

1. steve f. Says:
   February 5th, 2010 at 4:38 pm
   seems like a reasonable blog post to me – he’s just asking for a bit more transparency to clear up any perception of favoritism.
   as he said, it’s not like it hasn’t happened before 
2. Ed Pol Says:
   February 5th, 2010 at 5:00 pm
   Steve F.-
   The first sentence is:
   “I have now heard the same thing from three independent credible sources – the fix is in on the U.S. Department of Education’s competitive grants, in particular Race to the Top (RTTT) and Investing in Innovation (I3). ”
   Not implying anything but just asking?
3. steve f. Says:
   February 5th, 2010 at 5:04 pm
   it’s a blog, i’m not sure of the ethics of blog publishing.
   but the post is asking whether there is favoritism at the dept of ed? that’s reasonable in my book and could be cleared up easily through a transparent process.
   the ny times uses anonymous sources all the time.

Oakland Teachers Reject District Offer, Authorize Strike! Oakland Education Association

Oakland Education Association  About OEA

Attract/Support/Keep Quality Teachers!

It is About Priorities!

February Neighborhood Meetings

Sponsored by the

Oakland Education Association

 Monday, February 22, 6:30-7:30 pm

Montclair Women’s Club • 1650 Mountain Blvd

Join teachers, parents, students and community organizations to help Create Success in Oakland classrooms. Let’s help set OUSD priorities: keep reduced class sizes; give teachers enough planning time; provide enough materials for students and teachers; make all schools clean, healthy and safe teaching and learning environments! 

Join the discussion to Create Success! Your teachers’ working conditions are your children’s learning conditions! It is about priorities.

Oakland Education Association 272 East 12^th Street Oakland, CA 94606; 510-763-4020

California Progress Report Evans, Torres Say Governor Throwing Women Out of the Lifeboat First

California Progress Report:

Evans, Torres Say Governor Throwing Women Out of the Lifeboat First

"By Assemblymembers Noreen Evans and Norma Torres

SACRAMENTO – In this Democratic weekly address, Assembly Budget Chair Noreen Evans (D-Santa Rosa) and Assemblymember Norma Torres (D-Pamona) discuss the impact of the Governor’s actions that made 100,000 women ineligible for breast cancer screening under the Every Woman Counts program. They discuss findings that this will lead to a substantial increase in later-stage breast cancer cases in low and middle-income women and drive up costs to the state.

Click onto the following link for the English language MP3 file. The running time is 2:24.

http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/Newsline/Audio/20100212RadioAddressEngl...

Click onto the following link for the Spanish language MP3 file. The running time is 3:27.

http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/Newsline/Audio/20100212RadioAddressSpan...

Website of Assemblymember Noreen Evans: www.asm.ca.gov/evans

Website of Assemblymember Norma Torres: www.asm.ca.gov/torres

Transcript:

Los Rios Community College District Receives $5 Million Grant — The Rancho Cordova Post

Los Rios Community College District Receives $5 Million Grant — The Rancho Cordova Post

Congresswoman Doris O. Matsui will join members of the Sacramento health care and the education communities to officially announce and celebrate the release of a $5 million grant for the Los Rios Community College District. A competitive grant administered by the U.S. Department of Labor, this funding will provide Los Rios the opportunity to expand medical training programs through the establishment of a HealthForce Institute. The grant was authorized by the Recovery Act, which Rep. Matsui supported, and the Congresswoman further helped steer the money to Sacramento with a written letter of support to the Department last year on the District’s behalf.

“The Los Rios Community College District continues to shine as a resource for Sacramentans to engage in and accelerate emerging industries in our region,” said Matsui. “From health care to clean energy, Recovery Act grants continue to reinforce Sacramento’s strength in cutting-edge industries while supporting our region’s hard-working men and women. With the creation of a high-quality institute here in Sacramento to train registered nurses and health care workers, our community will benefit in two ways as we address the critical shortage of well-trained health professionals and simultaneously bolster regional job growth. I look forward to meeting the men and women who will make-up this new part of our local workforce.”

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