June 16-30, 2011, News Archive

6/30/11 Changing NC pre-kindergarten core of schools case
"Changes in the state budget about to take effect are at the heart of a court fight challenging whether North Carolina is living up to its constitutional duty to give every child the opportunity for a good education."

6/30/11 New national data show disparities in academic offerings
"This isn't specifically a Wake County item, but it could still have ramifications on how things move forward in the school district in the post-socioeconomic diversity era."

6/30/11 GSIW questioning Wake's lack of publicity of Education Week graduation report
"In an article Tuesday on the New Raleigh website, GSIW Program Coordinator Patty Williams touts the recent Education Week report as being "good news about our Wake County public schools." But she also says "we're just wondering why the school district isn't sharing it."

6/30/11 ED task force to discuss Project Bright Idea
"In a nutshell, the goal of Project Bright Idea is to increase the number of children from underserved populations in gifted and academically challenging programs. The idea is the students are more likely to excel and perform as if they're gifted if high expectations are set for them."

6/30/11 Forbes sez: Raleigh is No. 1 city to do bidness.
"We are the only East Coast city in the top 10. Our lofty status is due to the low cost of doing business here combined our highly educated labor force, according to Forbes. Which must be why the GOP-led General Assembly has chosen to reduce taxes and slash education spending."

6/29/11 The cost of your holiday gift
"Republican legislative leaders made the decision that it was much better for you and for North Carolina to layoff teachers and teacher assistants, slash mental health services and take $2 billion out of the health care economy than ask you to keep paying that 23 cents a day that you have been paying for the last two years."

6/29/11 Wake assignment test draws 14,000 hits
"The survey responses will be sent to SAS Institute, which is developing the mathematical formula that will be used to determine how seats will be filled."

6/28/11 High school accreditation bill becomes state law
"It's now state law that that North Carolina-run colleges, universities and community colleges are prohibited from considering whether a student came from an accredited school when making admissions, scholarship and loan decisions."

6/28/11 John Hood on gains in school choice in Wake County and statewide
"Most of the focus of Hood's column last week in the conservative Carolina Journal focuses on the lifting the state's charter school cap and allowing tax credits for special-needs kids who attend private schools."

6/28/11 Bob Geary on Ron Margiotta "crippling" the blue plan
"Is Wake County school board chairman Ron Margiotta out to cripple Superintendent Tony Tata's use of achievement choice schools in the new controlled-choice student assignment plan?"

6/28/11 Wake school days won't get longer after all
"Last week, the state Board of Education approved a measure to allow school systems to use five additional state-mandated school days for the 2011-12 school year for teacher training instead of academic instruction."

6/28/11 Nearly 14K households test Wake schools assignment plan
"Nearly 14,000 Wake County households participated in a trial run of a proposed student assignment plan expected to go before the local school board for approval this fall, a school system spokesman said Tuesday."

6/27/11 Wave of teens about to hit Wake schools
"It's time to pay the price for the record growth that flooded Wake County elementary schools in the middle part of the last decade."

6/27/11 Back on board
"What do you know - the N.C. School Boards Association apparently doesn't amount to some kind of liberal front group after all. The association even provides services that a no-nonsense school system might consider to be - egad - useful!"

6/27/11 Panel seeks better middle school outcomes in South
"As educators prepare students to compete in a world where technology changes with blinding speed, they should focus more on young teens who too often fall behind in reading, math and science, a Southern education group said Monday."

6/27/11 Rural counties to feel education cuts most
"The state's $19.7 billion budget is expected to mean cuts to thousands of education jobs, and the smaller rural counties are expected to feel the biggest impact."

6/26/11 On education, tell it to the judge
"Hauling out that measuring rod can be a nasty job, but somebody has to do it. Judge Howard Manning Jr. has had no shortage of practice."

6/25/11 Anne McLaurin's 2021 redistricting recommendations
"One recommendation that drew discussion was the one saying that if a law firm is hired for restricting it should be a non-partisan firm."

6/24/11 Cash Michaels on the change diversity policy supporters never wanted to see
"In an analysis piece in the latest issue of The Carolinian, Michaels calls the new plan "the change that no one who embraced the heralded and productive socioeconomic student diversity policy ever wanted to see - Wake County Public Schools, moving as far away as possible from the old mission - making sure that no child was trapped in an unhealthy school."

6/24/11 9 high schools make 'best' list
"Nine Triangle high schools have made Newsweek's revamped list of "America's Best High Schools."

6/24/11 N.C. school board looks at adding 5 classroom days
"North Carolina's statewide school board is deciding how many schools can avoid adding five more days to the traditional academic calendar."

6/24/11 Judge issues no ruling on budget cuts
"Attorneys for five poor school districts asked a judge for an injunction Thursday to stop changes to the More at Four pre-kindergarten program before they take effect July 1."

6/24/11 Choices chancy
"Just because the outcry is not there, the plan will not achieve the maximum educational potential or make Wake County nationally significant as in the past."

6/24/11 Ron Margiotta on not setting aside too many achievement choice seats
"Wake County school board chairman Ron Margiotta gave a foretaste of what could be one of the big fights ahead on the adoption of the new student assignment plan."

6/24/11 CMS finds the money to save middle school sports
"Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools has found enough money to keep middle schools sports alive next year, CMS officials announced today."

6/24/11 Margiotta splits with Tata over the Blue plan's achievement goal
"In the interview, Margiotta differed with Tata over how many seats to reserve in the designated high-achievement schools for kids coming for reasons of low-achievement."

6/23/11 Co-pay will hurt More at Four, official testifies
"The legislature's changes to "More at Four" will cause irreparable damage to the highly regarded pre-kindergarten program and shut out thousands of low-income children, a state education administrator testified Wednesday in court."

6/23/11 Wake schools balk at 5 more days
"During the meeting Tuesday, the school board approved changes affecting how long students are in school this fall and the way student discipline will be handled in the state's largest school district."

6/23/11 Choice, chance
"Choice has its place, but it shouldn't become an excuse for backtracking on principles of equal opportunity that have served the community so well."

6/22/11 The desperate denials continue
"People in classrooms are getting fired and Republican leaders and their propagandists are desperately denying they have anything to do with it."

6/22/11 Judge to hear if budget keeps NC schools up to par
"A North Carolina judge is reviewing the state's $19.7 billion budget, other recent state legislation and what's happening in the state's classrooms as he watches whether every child is getting the chance for a sound basic education."

6/22/11 School cuts go before judge
"Today, a judge will examine what happens when an economic crisis leads to school budget cuts, and whether that jeopardizes the constitutional right of North Carolina children to obtain a basic education."

6/22/11 Parental choice poised to win the nod in Wake
"Barring a last-minute school board revolt, Wake County families will now get to pick which schools they want their children to attend, instead of being told where to go based on their address."

6/22/11 Manning's turn
"And today, in his Raleigh courtroom, he'll be determining in a hearing he called whether sizable cuts to the public school budget by Republican legislators will deny children in poor districts that right. If he does so determine, GOP leaders and Democratic Gov. Beverly Perdue will have to get to work to adjust the budget in whatever time frame the judge allows."

6/22/11 Yellow light for Wake schools Blue plan
"Sure enough, while Blue enjoyed a smooth ride through the Wake suburbs, it coughed and sputtered in Southeast Raleigh and Eastern Wake County-critical rough spots for a controlled-choice plan that is heavily dependent on parents' involvement if it's to succeed."

6/22/11 ...five-day forcast
"So the Republican legislators who decided to grow North Carolina's school year by five days were heading in a sensible direction. The problem: They've tried to do it on the cheap, and without getting local school officials who will have to carry out the change properly on board."

6/21/11 Rev. William Barber agrees to Tony Tata's expanded meeting agenda
"It looks like the Rev. William Barber, president of the state NAACP, will agree to discuss issues such as minority teacher recruitment and community outreach when he meets with Wake County Superintendent Tony Tata."

6/21/11 Adding 5 school days sets off a tiff
"For all the clock-watching algebra students who know the precise moment the bell will ring, down to the position of the second hand, your wait may get a little longer."

6/21/11 Wake school board reorganizes: Chaos ensues.
"I'll begin again, for the 4th time, when our school board returns. However, as near as I can determine, the code of conduct for live-bloggers does not require me to remain past the three-hour mark when there is so little at stake. Not to say being vice chair of the school board is so little. No, it's less than little."

6/21/11 Judge: NC schools case based on results, not money?
"The North Carolina judge monitoring the lawsuit requiring that every child receive the chance for a sound basic education says rulings in the long-running case don't say that more money is the answer."

6/21/11 Manning and Mitchell: Leandro case not about money
"The Leandro case isn't about money, say the presiding judge and the former chief justice who wrote the first Supreme Court ruling in the case."

6/21/11 Judge speaks before hearing on NC school districts
"The North Carolina judge monitoring the state Supreme Court's ruling requiring that every child receive the chance for a sound basic education speaks to an school group a day before a hearing about the state budget."

6/21/11 Tedesco defends new job
"Wake County school board member and new vice-chairman John Tedesco defended his new job Tuesday night."

6/21/11 56 ballots later, Tedesco named school board vice chair?
"A fractured Republican majority on the Wake County Board of Education took 56 rounds of voting to elect John Tedesco vice chairman tonight - a standoff that illustrated the tension among the people governing the state's largest school district."

6/21/11 Tata unveils assignment proposal that boosts parental choice
"Wake County schools Superintendent Tony Tata presented a student assignment proposal that he says prioritizes parental choice to the school board Tuesday."

6/20/11 How much Charlotte-area counties will lose
"The state budget reduction in education funding forces county school systems to cut their budgets in 2011-12. Here is the estimated reduction for the counties (not including other line-item cuts in the state budget)."

6/20/11 Survey reveals confusion about Wake student-assignment proposals
"Plenty of Wake Forest parents made their views known in Wake County schools' recent online survey of what people want in a new student-assignment plan. Those from Wendell stayed away in droves."?

6/20/11 Tony Tata aiming to reduce principal autonomy
"It looks like the question of reducing autonomy for Wake County principals is something that Superintendent Tony Tata will be pushing for as he continues to put his stamp on the school district."

6/20/11 Wake school board to consider extending school day
"The Wake County Board of Education will consider Tuesday a proposal to extend the school day next year by 10 minutes to comply with a new state requirement that adds five days to the academic calendar."

6/20/11 School system reaches out for more feedback on assignment plan
"Members of the task force that studied how to best implement a new student assignment policy for Wake County schools reached out to the community Monday to get more parents' input on a proposed course of action."

6/19/11 Wake parents encouraged to test student assignment proposal
"Wake County schools are holding a series of outreach events this week to get more parents involved in figuring out how one proposed student assignment plan would work."

6/19/11 Gap between rich, poor schools may be growing
"North Carolina's 1.5 million public school children depend on the state to pay the majority of their educational costs, but that long-held tradition may be changing."

6/19/11 Racial achievement gap persists at Wake schools
"Wake County school board members agreed Saturday to set new goals for improving minority student performance after a report showing that the state's largest school district isn't closing its racial achievement gap."

6/18/11 Tata says Wake County's layoffs to exclude teachers
"More Wake County school employees will be laid off because of state budget cuts, but school leaders said Friday that none of them will be teachers or teacher assistants."

6/18/11 Discussing the achievement gap and setting new goals
"At Superintendent Tony Tata's request, the board agreed to set target performance goals for individual subgroups as opposed to a specific systemwide goal. Tata will consult with staff and come back with a draft of the specific numbers for the targets. (It's a variation on the goals set by the prior boards.)"

6/17/11 The Follies
"People across the state personally know teachers and teachers assistants who have been laid off and others who are waiting for their pink slips to come in the mail."

6/17/11 Test drive for Wake student assignment proposal extended
"More Wake County parents are needed to take part in a trial run of one proposed student assignment plan, schools Superintendent Tony Tata said during his weekly press conference Friday."

6/17/11 Wake classrooms protected, but other cuts loom
"Classroom positions in Wake County will be protected and some new teachers will be hired, but hundreds of jobs will be lost in administrative, custodial, clerical and transportation services under the state budget that became law Wednesday, school officials said."

6/17/11 Wake extends deadline for online test of student assignment plan
"Wake County school leaders are extending until next Friday an online simulation of a plan that could be used to determine how students will be assigned to school."

6/17/11 Wake not expecting to lay off teachers or teacher assistants because of state budget
"Wake County Superintendent Tony Tata said today that there are no plans to lay off any teachers or teacher assistants, but that the recently adopted state budget will cause them to fire custodians and central office personnel."

6/17/11 Lobbying to become chair of the school board
"The behind-the-scenes battle to be appointed chair of the Wake County school board might not be decided until the vote on Tuesday."

6/17/11 Tony Tata on extending the blue plan simulation, meeting with the NAACP and the budget?
"The deadline for the online simulation of the blue plan has been extended from Monday until next Friday. Tata said he's gotten 10,260 responses but wants 12,000. Outreach events will be held Sunday and Monday in Southeast Raleigh and Eastern Wake, where the response has been lower than the rest of the county."

6/17/11 Researching whether to grandfather feeder patterns
"How far should grandfathering be extended in the new Wake County long-term student assignment plan?"

6/17/11 Wake board retreats to agree on goals
"With a public meeting on his proposals for student assignment on the calendar for Tuesday, Wake County Superintendent Tony Tata will spend Saturday with his employers on the Board of Education."

6/16/11 John Tedesco named head of N.C. Center for Education Reform
"Wake County school board member John Tedesco has landed on his feet as president of the newly formed N.C. Center for Education Reform."

6/16/11 Debating whether Wake should drop AdvancED for state accreditation
"Should the Wake County school system take advantage of new legislation that would allow it to seek state accreditation of its high schools in lieu of using AdvancED?"

6/16/11 John Tedesco has a job ... he's an education reformer
"Worried that John Tedesco of Wake County school board fame (or infame, as the case may be) was out of work? Fear not - he has new a gig fronting for the North Carolina Center for Education Reform."

6/16/11 Education group names Tedesco as CEO
"Wake County Board of Education member John Tedesco has been named president and chief executive of a new education reform group."

6/16/11 Layoffs sweeping through school districts
"With the school year over and the state budget passed, many teachers across the region have learned in recent days that they no longer have a job."

6/16/11 Teachers feel sting of defeat as Senate overrides veto
"Disappointed teachers looked on Wednesday afternoon as the Senate negated Gov. Bev Perdue's veto and gave final approval to a $19.7 billion budget."

6/16/11 Tedesco to head new education reform group
"Wake County school board member John Tedesco has been hired to lead a new statewide education reform group."

6/16/11 What drives teachers
"As I sit in my classroom, I am starting to wonder why I care. Why do I care to create appropriate activities that will keep my students engaged and learning the last week of school, since all I supposedly care about is my pay and pension?"

NEWS ARCHIVE

June 16-30, 2011, News Archive

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