April 5, 2017
Delaware News
The News Journal
Delaware’s top seniors recognized by Bunting
Secretary of Education Susan Bunting will recognize top public school students from the Class of 2017 at the annual Secretary of Education Scholars banquet at 6 p.m. April 25 at Dover Downs Hotel & Casino in Dover. Governor John Carney and other state leaders will be joined by the students’ families, district superintendents, heads of charter schools and principals to celebrate the students’ accomplishments.
Christina school board member resigns
Margaret Mason, a member of the Christina Board of Education, has announced that she is resigning her board seat, effective immediately. Mason was first elected to the Christina Board in 2016 from District B, and her current term was not scheduled to expire until 2021. The Delaware Department of Elections announced on April 3 that it would extend the filing deadline for Nominating District B. The next school boards election is May 9.
Program trains teachers for high-needs schools
A new program is trying not only to infuse Wilmington with a new supply of highly effective, certified teachers but offering students from all over the country an opportunity to serve in high-needs schools. The Great Oaks Charter School network is one of two to partner with New York University this year to offer an innovative teacher training program organizers say is on the forefront of a movement to upend how educators are mentored and taught.
Department of Technology and Information
Hands on tech day for 8th and 9th grade girls
Girls in the 8th and 9th grades are invited to spend a fun filled day learning about careers in technology and getting an inside glimpse of what it might be like to work in the technical fields. DigiGirlz Day is designed to encourage young women to explore the possibilities available in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). DigiGirlz is May 2, 2017 at Wilmington University’s Dover Campus starting at 8:30 am.
Newsworks
Colonial sets new schools referendum, threatens massive cuts should it fail again
Barely one month after voters overwhelmingly rejected a referendum bid, Colonial School District has scheduled a scaled-down plan for voters to consider – and threatened massive cuts if it fails. Delaware’s fourth-largest district with nearly 10,000 students, Colonial had sought additional funds on Feb. 28 in two separate votes. One would have paid for expanded preschool, technology upgrades and other improvements.
Department of Education
82 high school seniors named Secretary of Education Scholars for their outstanding academic achievement
Secretary of Education Susan Bunting will recognize top public school students from the Class of 2017 at the annual Secretary of Education Scholars banquet at 6 p.m., Tuesday, April 25 at Dover Downs Hotel in Dover. Governor John Carney and other state leaders will be joined by the students’ families, district superintendents, heads of charter schools and principals to celebrate the students’ accomplishments.
National News
EdSurge
In one of Connecticut’s most innovative districts, belief in every student comes first
In mission statements across the country, references to personalized learning abound, hanging proudly from schoolhouse walls. We admire them and use them as shining examples of our aspirations. Yet when we speak about “every student” and “all children,” do we really believe those words at our core? I have a suspicion that these simple words—“every” and “all”—are often overlooked by the hundreds of people who make up an educational organization.
Education Next
What do international students think of American schools?
In 2001, the Brown Center conducted a first-of-its-kind survey of foreign exchange students, asking kids from abroad who have attended U.S. high schools what they think about U.S. education and their American peers. It quickly became one of the most popular studies in the center’s history. In the 2017 Brown Center Report on American Education, author Tom Loveless replicated the survey, hoping to shed light on what is peculiarly American about American high schools.
Desert News
This group of youths almost never go to college, but Utah has a plan to change that
States remove abused and neglected children from dangerous or troubling situations every day and place them in foster care, promising to keep them safe. That doesn’t mean the children are promised an especially bright future. Statistics are disheartening, despite the good intentions and best efforts of policymakers, caseworkers and others. Foster kids move from home to home and change schools on average six times while in care, so most are perpetually behind in school by at least one grade level.
Education Week
A look at some states that have turned in their ESSA plans
Monday was the first official deadline for states to submit their Every Student Succeeds Act plans to U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos for approval. And, as of Monday evening, nine states and the District of Columbia had turned in their plans to the feds, according to the U.S. Department of Education. Those on the list: Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Tennessee, and Vermont. (We’ve linked to their plans, or a summary of them, when possible.)
Chalkbeat
Principals matter — and Tennessee wants to do a better job of equipping them
The job of a principal has changed a lot over the last decade. Instead of just hiring teachers, managing the building, and stepping in for the toughest discipline issues, today’s principals also serve as catalysts for the quality of classroom instruction. They not only hire teachers but they observe, evaluate and coach them. That’s why Tennessee is launching a new initiative to get teachers with untapped leadership potential to the principal’s office, as well as support and develop principals who are already there.