Press
How NY can win the 'race'
(From The New York Post, July 28, 2010)
By CHARLES BARONE
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Newark and Glen Ridge: Different Routes, Same Road
(From The New Jersey Spotlight, July 28, 2010)
By JOHN MOONEY
It was an illustrative pairing in the charter school debate in New Jersey: two local forums held two days and just five miles apart -- but in settings that couldn't be more different.
The first took place in Newark on a sweltering Saturday morning, inside a community center in a city at odds with itself over whether charter schools -- with all their innovation and intimacy -- are the answer to its embattled public schools.
The other was Monday night in Glen Ridge, a leafy suburb at the breaking point in paying for public education it boasts as among the best in the state. Its leaders now wonder whether its schools would be better off as charters, freed from costly controls -- including maybe their own.
Neither came to firm conclusions, but the juxtaposition reflected the ever-growing luster -- and controversy -- of charter schools as a potential player in urban and suburban districts alike.
It's a discussion that Gov. Chris Christie and his education commissioner, Bret Schundler, would surely say they encourage as strong supporters of charter schools, having made big pushes in the opening months of their tenures.
Continue reading "Newark and Glen Ridge: Different Routes, Same Road"....
Colorado a finalist again in "Race to the Top"
(From The Denver Post, July 28, 2010)
By COLLEEN O'CONNOR
Colorado is one of 19 finalists in the second phase of the federal "Race to the Top" competition, and independent observers say the state has a good chance of being among the 10 to 15 winners, who will be announced in September.
"It's not unrealistic to be enthusiastic," said Joe Williams, executive director of the New York-based Democrats for Education Reform, who noted that U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan praised Colorado when he announced the finalists Tuesday.
"In dozens of other cities, from Tampa to Pittsburgh to Denver to right here in D.C., union leaders and administrators are moving beyond the battles of the past and finding new ways to work together," Duncan said in a speech at the National Press Club in Washington. "And I urge union leaders, administrators and school boards all across America to follow the example of their reform-minded colleagues and have a much more open mind towards common-sense reforms."
Continue reading "Colorado a finalist again in "Race to the Top""....
Colorado a finalist again in "Race to the Top"
Continue reading "Colorado a finalist again in "Race to the Top""....
Newark and Glen Ridge: Different Routes, Same Road
Continue reading "Newark and Glen Ridge: Different Routes, Same Road"....
July 27, 2010
State makes cut in national race for school cash
(From Crain's NY, July 27, 2010)
By DANIEL MASSEY
New York is among 19 finalists in the second round of the federal Race to the Top competition, U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan announced Tuesday, keeping alive the state's chances to win nearly $700 million to fund two dozen initiatives aimed at improving public schools.
The Empire State came in next-to-last among 16 finalists in the first round, but legislators vastly improved the state's chances at winning this time around by more than doubling the cap on charter schools at 460 and approving a new evaluation system that takes test scores into consideration when rewarding successful teachers or removing ineffective ones.
In its 450-page application, state education officials outlined 27 different programs they would implement if awarded the $696.6 million sought through the national competition. Any award, which can't be used to plug budget holes, is intended to fund new programs that would help the most troubled schools, reward teachers of hard-to-staff subjects with bonuses, and implement a principal leadership academy, among other initiatives. Though officials applied for nearly $700 million, the state could receive less than that amount.
Continue reading "State makes cut in national race for school cash"....
New York, New Jersey Named Race to the Top Finalists
(From The Wall Street Journal, July 27, 2010)
By BARBARA MARTINEZ
New York has been named a finalist in the second round of the federal Race to the Top competition, allowing the state to inch a bit closer to a potential $700 million windfall for badly ailing education budgets.
That New York made the finalist list, announced Tuesday morning, is not surprising given that it was a finalist in the first round and has since made legislative changes that strengthened its original application. Only two states won funding in the first round of Race to the Top earlier this year; New York was deemed to have lost in part because it had a low charter-school cap and a weak teacher-evaluation system.
In May, the New York Legislature passed a law that more than doubled the charter-school cap and opened the way for a teacher-evaluation system that takes into account student test scores. Those two elements were negotiated with the teachers' union, giving the state the added benefit of showing that its application for Race to the Top money had buy-in from several important constituencies.
New Jersey was also a finalist. The state, however, doesn't appear to be as strongly positioned as New York going into the final round. While New Jersey's application made bold promises about teacher evaluations and other areas, those assurances were not backed up by any legislative moves nor agreements from the teachers' unions.
"One could argue that New Jersey has a lot of work to do before they could carry on a state-wide reform effort," said Charles Barone, federal policy director of Democrats for Education Reform.
Continue reading "New York, New Jersey Named Race to the Top Finalists"....
