Press
July 1, 2009
Brooks Suggests Education Course Of Action
(From The Huffington Post, June 30, 2009)By TOM VANDER ARK
David Brooks is, at least for me, the great explainer of our times. Fareed Zakaria helps me understand the world. Brooks helps me understand America.
For someone particularly interested in education and its role in our society and economy, I'm trying to figure out whether the stimulus bill and a hard charging Secretary of Education will produce any real progress.
Having grown increasingly concerned about our diminishing civic problem solving ability, I'm also trying to figure out what kind of dance we'll see between White House and the 111th Congress. Brooks draws some conclusions from the recently passed House climate change bill:
"All of this has produced a ruthlessly pragmatic victory machine. Last week Democrats were able to pass a politically treacherous cap-and-trade bill out of the House. The Democratic leaders were able to let 44 members vote no and still bribe/bully/cajole enough of their colleagues to get a win. This was an impressive achievement, and a harbinger for health care and other battles to come."
Continue reading "Brooks Suggests Education Course Of Action"....
June 26, 2009
Polis: I Will Attend The DNC Fundraiser
(From The Advocate, June 24, 2009)By KERRY ELEVELD
Democratic representative Jared Polis of Colorado was the only gay congressional member who didn't attend President Barack Obama's signing ceremony last week of a presidential memorandum extending some benefits to gay federal employees' same-sex partners, but he says many observers have read too much into his absence. Polis took time out to speak with The Advocate about his Oval Office no-show, why he will attend the LGBT Democratic National Committee fund-raiser this Thursday, and his frustration with the slow pace of ending "don't ask, don't tell."
The Advocate: Why
didn't you attend the Oval Office signing of the presidential memo extending
certain benefits to same-sex partners of federal workers?
Rep. Jared
Polis: We just found out about it the day of and we let the White House know
at that time that we wouldn't be able to make it. There was a congressional
baseball game that I had been practicing for for many months. It was at National
Stadium that night and we won 15 to 10. I got a sacrifice fly [run batted in]
and a single.
Continue reading "Polis: I Will Attend The DNC Fundraiser"....
The Schoolhouse Flunks
(From The Washington Post, June 23, 2009)By MARIA GLOD
Seven years ago, a rally at the Department of Education promoted one of
then-President George W. Bush's most significant domestic achievements -- the No
Child Left Behind law. The backdrop: a red schoolhouse.
"We serve the ideal of the little red schoolhouse," then-Education Secretary Rod Paige said of the structure attached to the agency's main entrance on Maryland Avenue SW. "It is one of the greatest symbols of America -- a symbol that every child must be taught and every child must learn."
But now that symbol has been ripped down.
The Obama administration has made clear that it is putting its own stamp on education reform. That will mean a new name and image for a law that has grown unpopular with many teachers and suburban parents, even though it was enacted with bipartisan support in Congress.
"It's like the new Coke. This is a rebranding effort," said Joe Williams,
executive director of Democrats for Education Reform. "The feng shui people
believe you need to take the roof off buildings to allow bad chi to escape.
Let's hope this helps."
Continue reading "The Schoolhouse Flunks"....
June 15, 2009
Assembly Gets A Bill Extending Bloomberg's Control Of Schools
(From The New York Times, June 15, 2009)By ELISSA GOOTMAN
The New York State Assembly is expected to approve a bill extending mayoral
control of the New York City public school system as soon as Wednesday,
lawmakers said Sunday night.
The bill, which the Assembly speaker, Sheldon Silver, introduced late Sunday, would add some checks on the mayor's power, by increasing oversight of certain contracts and requiring hearings before individual schools are closed. But it is widely seen as a victory for Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who had vigorously fought other curbs on the powers he enjoys under the current mayoral control law, which was passed in 2002 and expires June 30.
The extension must still be approved by the governor and the State Senate, which is currently mired in chaos, with uncertainty over which party has control. Nonetheless, critics and supporters of mayoral control are looking at Mr. Silver's bill as a significant step toward cementing the policy.
"It's going to carry a lot of momentum," said Joe Williams, executive director of Democrats for Education Reform, a group that supports Mr. Silver's bill. "The Senate could go in a direction that does call for more parental input, but ultimately I don't think they could pull the Assembly very far from where the speaker is."
Continue reading "Assembly Gets A Bill Extending Bloomberg's Control Of Schools"....
June 11, 2009
It's Time To Take Shackles Off Charter Schools In Tennessee
(From The Tennessean, June 11, 2009)By JOE WILLIAMS
The threat of losing $100 million in federal stimulus money because Tennessee has a bad charter-school law is one reason to think twice about killing a pending law change that would have improved the law -- and public education -- considerably.
But there is an even better reason for Tennessee Democrats to support expanding innovative charter school options: It is the right thing to do. As Democrats, we have historically been proud supporters of public education. Unfortunately, we have sometimes backed ourselves into a corner by defending schools that aren't working for the children we champion. When we are the ones standing between the families we claim to represent and the public school options for which they clamor, we have to re-examine our priorities.
In places like California, New York and Boston, public charter schools have shown they aren't killing public education. In fact, as some of the brightest stars in the modern day education reform constellation, public charter schools are now leading the charge to save public education.
Continue reading "It's Time To Take Shackles Off Charter Schools In Tennessee"....
June 9, 2009
Dual Aims In Stimulus Stir Tension
(From Education Week, June 9, 2009)By ALYSON KLEIN
The education aid of up to $100 billion in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has always had two purposes: to help cash-strapped states weather the current economic storm, and to prod states to pursue broad-based improvements to education.
Now that the federal economic-stimulus money is beginning to flow to states, it's clear that the still-bleak economy is heightening the tension between those goals.
In a number of states, including several with ambitious school reform plans on the shelf, massive deficits threaten to swallow a hefty portion of the stimulus aid, leaving less money for sweeping improvement efforts.
Even in states where the fiscal outlook is brighter, districts are reluctant to create new programs or hire new staff members because most of the stimulus funding is for one time only.
Now, at least one key author of the legislation is asking U.S. Secretary of
Education Arne Duncan--a strong advocate of using the stimulus aid as a policy
lever in such areas as academic standards and teacher distribution--to dial back
his expectations for how much fundamental change can be bought with the money.
Continue reading "Dual Aims In Stimulus Stir Tension"....
Feds: State Charter Cap Isn't Smart
(From The New York Post, June 9, 2009)By YOAV GONEN
The state cap on charter schools may hurt its chances of getting hundreds of millions in federal stimulus dollars, the nation's top education official revealed yesterday.
New York has applied for a slice of the $5 billion pot, but Education Secretary Arne Duncan said the state, despite receiving high marks in other areas, has two strikes against it:
* It limits itself to 200 charter schools.
* It prohibits evaluating teachers based on their students' test scores.
New York has authorized 140 of its 200 charter schools to date, according to state officials, which suggests the cap may be reached within the next two years.
"If you're bumping up against caps, that's a problem," Duncan said.
But New York is not alone in this. Only 40 states even allow charter schools to operate, and 26 of them have capped their number.
"There's still a little bit of wiggle room," said
Joe Williams, of the political-action committee Democrats for Education Reform.
"But it's something New York is going to have to figure out quickly."
Continue reading "Feds: State Charter Cap Isn't Smart"....
