December 3, 2015
Delaware News
The News Journal
Lawmakers take aim at Department of Education’s budget
The Delaware Department of Education’s budget appears to be in lawmakers’ crosshairs as they hunt for ways to save money. Several legislators on the Joint Finance Committee, which writes the state budget, said in a hearing Wednesday that too much money that should be going directly to schools is instead funding bureaucratic positions at the state level. And with a budget gap looming, that could make it a prime target for cuts.
NewsWorks
First year, first generation: Josee’s diary
We’ve been following a group of first-generation college students from Delaware as they transition to higher ed. In addition to running periodic stories about their journeys, we’ve helped each student keep an audio diary. The below diary is from Josee Lazarre, a freshman at Delaware Technical and Community College in Georgetown, Delaware.
TEDxWilmington
Fix poverty, fix education or fix nothing
Tony Allen speaks at a 2015 TEDx event in Wilmington, Delaware. Tony Allen is the chairman of the Wilmington Education Improvement Commission, a Commission created by the Delaware General Assembly to strengthen public education for low-income black and brown students throughout the state.
WDEL
Caesar Rodney Assistant Superintendent stepping down for University of Delaware job
The Caesar Rodney School District’s assistant superintendent is leaving the job, effective January 1, 2016. The district announced Tuesday that Dr. Jeffrey Lykens is stepping down to work full-time at the University of Delaware.
Sussex County Post
Phase III of Sussex Academy renovation completed
Phase III of the Sussex Academy charter school renovation project is complete. Gillis Gilkerson, a prominent general contracting/construction management firm on Delmarva, announced completion of the 21,844 square foot project, which included the renovation of the school’s cafeteria, stage, library and kitchen in a one-story block building.
Internship provides energized connection between Del Tech, Indian River district
There soon will be an energized connection between the Indian River School District and Delaware Technical Community College. Scott Iseman, Chief Facility Director/Energy Manager at Del Tech’s Owens Campus in Georgetown, is bound for the Indian River district on an internship. The mission, Mr. Iseman says is to “save money, reduce energy consumption … while providing a good learning environment.”
Dover Post
Capital takes coding week district-wide
Capital School District will expose students to the world of computer coding next week. From Dec. 7 to Dec. 11, each school will participate in the Hour of Code campaign designed to teach students about computer coding and creating computer programs.
East Dover lays out plan to counter focus status
When Julie Giangiulio became principal at East Dover Elementary School she already knew about its state “focus school” status — and she invited the challenge of rising above that classification. During the Nov. 18 Capital School District Board of Education meeting, Giangiulio laid her out her 54-page strategy to work with the school’s staff developing a plan that’ll improve student standardized test performance.
Techincal.ly Delaware
How a Dover high schooler started Kent County’s first robotics team
It all started a little more than a year ago, when Soohan Kim, then a freshman at Dover High School, was invited by a friend to check out a FIRST Robotics Competition at the University of Maryland. So he decided to start one himself — no small feat for a high school student, considering FIRST teams must have nonprofit status, build and practice space, a minimum of two adult mentors and a budget to accommodate competition fees and travel expenses.
National News
NPR
House set to vote on education overhaul
It’s almost a decade overdue, but the U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to vote later today on a bill to replace the No Child Left Behind law. Since NCLB was signed by President George W. Bush in early 2002, the federal government has played a major role in telling states how to run — and reform — their schools. But this new bill signals a sea change in the federal approach.
Time Magazine
Why Mark Zuckerberg wants to spend on personalized learning
When Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan announced Tuesday night that they will give away almost all of their Facebook shares for charitable purposes, they wrote that their initial focus would be “personalized learning, curing disease, connecting people and building strong communities.” Sometimes called “teach to one” or “adaptive technology,” personalized learning uses interactive software to tailor lessons and assignments to individual students, in order to reflect their strengths and weaknesses, and the pace at which they learn.
Philly.com
N.J. recess bill: Go and play, every day
A bipartisan-backed bill recently cleared the state Assembly’s Education Committee that would require school districts to provide a daily recess period for students in kindergarten through the fifth grade. The recess would have to be at least 20 minutes long and held outdoors, if possible.
The Detroit Free Press
Bills aim at keeping student data private
The apps your kids use at school. The software that helps them improve their reading skills. The consultant who helps analyze test scores. Chances are they all have access to some information about your child. Now, Michigan lawmakers want to make sure no one can sell that personally identifiable information or use it and students’ online behavior to target them with advertising. It comes in the form of three bills now before legislators in the Michigan House.