March 13, 2017

Delaware News

Delaware Public Media
Delaware’s new Dept. of Education under Susan Bunting
Throughout his campaign last year – and here at the start of his term in office – Gov. John Carney emphasized the state’s Department of Education would look much different under his watch.  He’s promised a shift from its regulatory role to a support role. What exactly that will look like is still a bit unclear, but we do know that the person in charge of making it happen is Carney’s choice for Education Secretary – former Indian River School District superintendent Susan Bunting.

Longhurst to revive afterschool program push
One state lawmaker is continuing her fight to give Delaware kids more access to after school programs. House Majority Leader Valerie Longhurst (D-Bear) is calling on the state to restore funding for public after school programs that legislators cut in the midst of the 2008 financial crisis. Before the economic downturn, lawmakers set aside extra money for the programs, totaling more than $10 million in fiscal year 2008, for example.

The News Journal
Mayor offers scholarships to college-bound Wilmington students
Wilmington Mayor Michael S. Purzycki’s first College Scholarship Awards Program is now accepting applications from college-bound students who are residents of the city of Wilmington. The application deadline is April 28. This year, the scholarship program will grant $30,000.

Rodel Blog
Legislative hall pass: Compulsory ed law aims to curb dropouts
Blog post by Neil Kirschling, program officer at the Rodel Foundation of Delaware
Discouraging drop-outs is a hot topic in Delaware this year, and one way that policymakers are seeking to accomplish this is by amending the state’s compulsory education law—the law that defines the age range in which a student is required to attend school or some other equivalent education program.

Can personalized learning defray the cost of special education
Blog post by Rachel Wiggans Chan, senior program officer at the Rodel Foundation of Delaware
Special education costs nearly twice as much as regular classroom education, but early intervention can decrease special education costs by 40 percent. Scrapping the one-size-fits-all education system we have today and replacing it with an individualized approach may be just what’s needed to meet every students’ needs and maximize student success.

How dropping out leads to lost economic potential 
Blog post by Rachel Wiggans Chan, senior program officer at the Rodel Foundation of Delaware
The lost economic potential of high school dropouts is no joke for Delaware’s economy. Typically, high school dropouts earn $8,000 less annually, compared to high school graduates. In Delaware, high school dropouts are twice as likely as high school graduates and six times as likely as college graduates to live in poverty.

National News

Great Falls Tribune
Special education struggles to find funding in the Legislature
The main state budget bill at the state Legislature passed first reading last week with some surprises, such as the restoration of $11.5 million to higher education funding, and some expected cuts. But one area has consistently struggled to find funding so far throughout the entirety of the 65th Montana Legislative session — special education. Funded through a combination of federal dollars and state money, special education has seen minimal increases in state funds, leaving local and federal dollars to pick up the slack, according to a report by the legislative school funding interim committee.

Bismarck Tribune
Educators react to state education innovation bill
For state educators, 2015 marked the end of the No Child Left Behind Act and replaced it with the Every Student Succeeds Act, giving states more flexibility to set their own achievement standards for public schools. North Dakota is now taking that flexibility further with a new bill in the state Legislature that would allow school districts to submit plans to the Department of Public Instruction for education innovation programs that reflect their schools’ individual needs.

U.S. News & World Report
Senate votes to rescind Obama rules on school accountability
The Senate on Thursday voted to end an Obama effort to identify and help struggling schools and students, as President Donald Trump and Republicans work to undo some of his predecessor’s key policies. Senators voted 50-49 to rescind accountability rules issued in November to help states implement the 2015 Every Student Succeeds Act, a law that addresses school ratings, student report cards and other ways to spot and help troubled schools.

MinnPost
Looking to give high schoolers better access to vocational training, legislators propose credit-for-apprenticeships program
As high schools, especially those in Greater Minnesota, struggle to offer vocational training for in-demand career fields like healthcare, manufacturing and construction, legislators are looking to make student access to what’s known as career and technical education (CTE) a little easier. On Monday, Rep. Jim Nash, R-Waconia, proposed legislation that would allocate $1 million in tax credits for businesses as part of a plan to create a vocational apprenticeship pilot program at 10 high schools across the state.