February 11, 2015
Delaware News
The News Journal
With Wilmington schools at crossroads, TNJ to host forum
This is a seminal moment for education in Delaware, with Wilmington’s public schools at the heart of a passionate debate about how best to improve student achievement. The News Journal invites you to join them Tuesday, Feb. 24 at the Chase Center in Wilmington for panel discussion aimed at imagining a better future for our children attending public schools.
Christina told to close or hand over Priority Schools
The Christina School Board must choose by Feb. 27 whether to close its three Priority Schools or hand them over to charter schools or other education management organizations, the Department of Education has said in a letter to district staff. The letter leaves one possible alternative: If Christina works with the state on the possibility of redistricting schools so that it no longer operates city schools, it could be removed from the Priority Schools saga altogether.
Delaware family celebrates new law for disabled
The ABLE (Achieving a Better Life Experience) Act allows eligible people with disabilities to establish ABLE accounts, which resemble qualified college-savings programs known as 529 plans, while protecting their eligibility for Medicaid and other federal benefits.
WHYY
Christina school district to talk redistricting with Delaware Department of Education
The Christina School District Board of Education elected Tuesday night to talk with the state Department of Education about a plan that would take Christina out of Wilmington and give its city schools to the nearby Red Clay Consolidated School District.
A small Delaware education experiment thinks big
The Delaware Leadership Project (DLP), the state’s first alternative training path for aspiring principals, is recruiting its fifth cohort.
WDDE
State tells Christina School District it must make decision on Priority School
The Christina School Board met Tuesday night and passed two resolutions in response to the letter from DOE. The first directs superintendent Dr. Freeman Williams and Board president Fred Polaski, or his designee, to meet with DOE officials. A separate resolution supports the findings of the Wilmington Education Advisory Group.
Lawmakers react to state’s ultimatum on Christina’s Priority Schools
Sen. Bryan Townsend (D-Newark), a critic of the state’s Priority Schools plan, says he’s optimistic that DOE is willing to talk about redrawing the district’s borders.
National News
The Wall Street Journal
Federal ratings of colleges tied to U.S. aid hit bump
The Obama administration has scaled back its ambitions for an aggressive plan to rate colleges and siphon federal dollars from the poorest performers, undermining a key plank in its strategy to rein in runaway education costs. The administration plans to release its ratings criteria this summer but appears to be running into major obstacles, both technical and political, in completing the system.
USA Today
More state takeovers of public schools possible
The recent takeover of the Little Rock School District by the Arkansas State Board of Education has angered parents and surprised even seasoned school reform observers. Such a takeover is rare, but as schools nationwide begin to see the results of new math and reading tests based on tougher Common Core standards, they could find themselves the targets of similar moves.
The Washington Post
Pro-charter school group estimates 14 percent enrollment gain nationwide
The National Alliance of Public Charter Schools estimates in a new report that 2.9 million children now attend U.S. charter schools, up 14 percent from last school year.
Politico
No profit left behind
A POLITICO investigation has found that Pearson stands to make tens of millions in taxpayer dollars and cuts in student tuition from deals arranged without competitive bids in states from Florida to Texas. The review also found Pearson’s contracts set forth specific performance targets — but don’t penalize the company when it fails to meet those standards. And in the higher ed realm, the contracts give Pearson extensive access to personal student data, with few constraints on how it is used.
Hechinger Report
How do you fix America’s high schools? We’re going to find out.
There is reason for hope. The crisis in American workforce preparation is propelling innovation in both the design of new high schools and the overhaul of existing ones. Advances in technology are enabling the personalization of instruction in ways educators have long dreamed of.
Lehigh Valley Express-Times
College affordability, lowering student debt at heart of Pa. lawmakers’ bills
More than a dozen bills aimed at making college more affordable and lessening students’ debt loads were proposed this week in the Pennsylvania General Assembly.