September 5, 2012

Local News

The News Journal
State representative and educator signs on as headmaster at Odyssey Charter
The Odyssey Charter School, known for its curriculum focused on math and Greek language, has announced the appointment of a new headmaster, Nick Manolakos. Manolakos has worked in public education for 34 years, most recently as academic dean for A.I. du Pont High School. He has worked at five other schools in Delaware, including Skyline Middle School, where he was principal from 2000 until 2006.

National News

Education Week
Ed. dept. gears up to oversee NCLB waivers  
Now that more than half the country is operating with No Child Left Behind waivers, the Department of Education must oversee 34 different state accountability systems and hold states to the promises they made to win the new flexibility. States are preparing to provide their first evidence that they are implementing their plans as proposed—and are already asking federal officials if they can tweak their proposals.

Nearly 900 districts set to compete for new Race to Top  
With $400 million up for grabs, 893 districts or groups of districts have told the Department of Education that they plan to compete in the latest Race to the Top competition. This includes nearly 200 large districts that are eligible for the top awards of between $30 million and $40 million. Another 433 small districts plan to compete for $10 million to $20 million. The rest are somewhere in between.

Associated Press
Emanuel appeals to parents as school strike looms
The Chicago teachers union has called for a strike Monday if there’s no agreement on a contract. Mayor Emmanuel has declined to take questions about the ongoing negotiations from reporters who followed him from school to school on the first day of classes for many of Chicago’s 400,000 public school students. A strike has become more likely as negotiations between the city and the union that represents more than 26,000 public school teachers have become increasingly contentious. The school district has offered teachers a four-year contract with raises of 2 percent a year, an offer that teacher’s union president Karen Lewis has repeatedly called unacceptable.

Related Topics: ESEA, NCLB, School Leadership