November 5, 2010
When it comes to school layout, the latest catchword is “pods.” It’s a design style Norman Public Schools’ administration says reflects education tomorrow, not today. And it is the key element in the district’s new elementary school design, which the Board of Education approved during a special meeting Wednesday. The board also approved designs for […]
November 5, 2010
The big incoming crop of Republican governors and state lawmakers will inherit bleak conditions for funding school programs and face potentially vexing decisions about whether to pursue the ambitious education proposals crafted by their predecessors, often with bipartisan support. Many of those victorious GOP candidates campaigned on time-tested conservative platforms, emphasizing a return to local […]
November 4, 2010
The School Committee unanimously approved last night the conversion of a middle school and a high school into in-district charter schools, under a new state law that aims to turn around low-performing schools. Under the proposals, Patrick Gavin Middle School in South Boston would shut down at the end of this school year and reopen […]
November 4, 2010
Sweeping changes in the way public schools are funded can pave the way for improved student achievement, educators told a state panel Wednesday. The issue surfaced during the second meeting on whether Louisiana should overhaul the way it finances about 1,300 public schools attended by about 665,000 students. A key feature of the new plan, […]
November 4, 2010
Ohio voters defeated about half the 214 school levies on ballots, leaving some districts to contemplate closing schools and slashing bus routes, the Ohio School Boards Association said. Preliminary election results show that 105 levies, or 49 percent, failed to get voter approval. In Toledo, where voters Tuesday shut down a levy that would have […]
November 4, 2010
The Minneapolis School District’s teachers are like the children of the mythical Lake Wobegon: They’re almost all above average. Or so the record would seem to indicate. Over much of the past decade, Minneapolis has annually dismissed fewer than 3 percent of its teachers for poor performance. The other 97 percent often have graded out […]
November 4, 2010
Los Angeles Unified officials announced Tuesday that nine San Fernando Valley scho ols will be among more than 40 campuses eligible for the third round of the district’s landmark Public School Choice plan. The reform effort, approved in summer 2009, allows nonprofit organizations, charter operators and teachers to apply to run new and underachieving campuses. […]
November 3, 2010
Ten special needs students have filed a class action lawsuit in federal court alleging that the New Orleans public schools are discriminating against them because of their disabilities. In July, the plaintiffs, who are represented by attorneys from the Southern Poverty Law Center and Loyola Law Clinic, initiated a complaint process against the Louisiana Department […]
November 3, 2010
A coalition of 63 Kansas school districts sued the state Tuesday, alleging that cuts to education spending violate the state Constitution. The lawsuit seeks to compel lawmakers to reverse budget cuts made in response to the economic downturn. But it’s likely to be years before the case is settled. A previous school finance lawsuit tou […]
November 3, 2010
State ballot measures involving education faced a tough sell in Tuesday’s elections, including in Florida, where a hotly contested initiative that would have loosened a 2002 constitutional amendment governing class size went down to defeat. The Florida measure was supported by groups representing the state’s school boards and school administrators, but it faced stiff opposition […]