EDUCATION & EQUITY NEWS    

NATIONAL

Bush Budget Revives Private-School Funding Fight
CNN.com, February 5, 2002

A proposal in President Bush's budget to give a tax credit for private school tuition has revived a long-simmering dispute over using public funds for private or religious schooling. (See also: Bush Budget Proposes Education Tax Credit, The Washington Post, February 4, 2002; Budget of the United States Government Fiscal Year 2003, White House Office of Management and Budget, 2002.)

President's Proposed Budget: Bush Education Boost Panned
Atlanta Journal-Constitution, February 5, 2002

The spending increase proposed by President Bush for the Education Department isn't large enough to satisfy major education groups. But his decision to pour most new education spending into programs that help students who are poor or have disabilities went unchallenged.

New Test Stresses the Practical: GED
Revisions Focus on Real-World Concepts
Richmond Times-Dispatch, February 7, 2002

Anyone seeking a General Educational Development diploma this year will face a new test that requires more analytical thinking about real-world concepts. The GED test, which is designed and distributed by the American Council on Education, has been changed to better reflect what today's high school students are supposed to know upon graduation. The exam has not been changed since 1988.

L.A. to Integrate Disabled Pupils
Los Angeles Times, January 31, 2002

The Los Angeles Unified School District is starting a dramatic overhaul of its special education programs, aiming to place into regular classes 35,000 disabled students who now are segregated. The reforms will end separate schools for disabled children over the next four years.

Opinion: Federal Funds Should Educate, Not Just Employ
The Los Angeles Times, February 4, 2002

For years, educators and their political allies have complained that Washington did not invest enough money in Title I, the massive federal program that provides extra funds for public schools in poor neighborhoods.

PENNSYLVANIA

Money Woes May Close Cyber Charter
The Philadelphia Inquirer, February 7, 2002

Faced with multiplying lawsuits, dwindling funds and mounting complaints, Teach - the Einstein Academy Charter School - is struggling to continue providing online education to 2,200 Pennsylvania students in their own homes. Education Secretary Charles Zogby says the state won't send any more money until complaints about lack of textbooks, computers, Internet access, and special-education services are addressed.

City School Consultants to Be Picked in March
The Philadelphia Inquirer, February 7, 2002

Philadelphia's School Reform Commission announced that they will, by March 22nd, select a management consultant firm or firms to help run the city's schools. (See also: City Offers to Help Reform the Schools, Philadelphia Daily News, February 7, 2002.)

Opponents of Phila. School Takeover Refile Lawsuits
The Philadelphia Inquirer, February 7, 2002

Opponents of the state takeover of Philadelphia's public schools yesterday refiled two lawsuits that were dismissed by the state Supreme Court last month.

WASHINGTON, DC METRO AREA

Cafritz, Money Counters Disagree Over
Who Ran Up $62.5 Million School Deficit
The Washington Post, February 7, 2002

In October, D.C. school board President Peggy Cooper Cafritz told the D.C. Council that there was no budget deficit in the public schools. Since then, accountants working for the District have completed a citywide audit that shows a deficit of $62.5 million for the fiscal year that ended in September.

D.C. Students Well-Armed at School
The Washington Times, February 7, 2002

The number of assaults with deadly weapons in D.C. schools has doubled in the past four years, even though the system has spent $8 million on metal detectors, cameras and security officers trying to keep students safe.

VIRGINIA

Virginia Scores Top National Averages
The Washington Times, February 7, 2002

Virginia students scored higher on average on most Stanford 9 standardized tests in the fall than their counterparts nationwide.

MARYLAND

Charter Schools Stuck in Political 'Quicksand'
The Baltimore Sun, February 7, 2002

The prospects for the passage of the Maryland's first charter school law are uncertain because the Senate and House of Delegates continue to disagree over specifics of such a law.

Math Curriculum Overhaul Called For
The Baltimore Sun, February 7, 2002

Concerned about falling math test scores, the Anne Arundel County school board is urging an overhaul of the mathematics curriculum to get teachers, students and parents more excited about the subject.

Evening School Offers Wealth of Opportunities
The Washington Post, February 7, 2002

St. Mary's is the only one of the three Southern Maryland counties that has an evening high school. Students must be at least 16 years old to enroll and can take up to four classes per semester. Classes meet twice a week for two hours between 3:30 and 7:30 p.m.

Many Fear Fallout of School Upheaval
The Washington Post, February 7, 2002

Following the Prince George's County School Board's 6-3 vote to fire Superintendent Iris Metts and local leaders' attempts to rein in the board, many county residents are worried that the continual bickering among school officials will seriously hurt the system's ability to attract a competent new leader and experienced, certified teachers. (See also: Education a Blood Sport in Prince George's County, The Washington Times, February 7, 2002; An Early Verdict on Metts?, The Washington Post, February 6, 2002; Emergency Oversight Of Schools Supported: Glendening Backs Panel to Manage Pr. George's Board, The Washington Post, February 5, 2002; School Board Takes Heat as Metts Gains Time and Support, The Washington Post, February 5, 2002 .)

Professors Urge New Formula for Algebra in Md.
The Baltimore Sun, February 6, 2002

Forty professors at the University of Maryland, College Park and the Johns Hopkins University have signed a petition calling for state educators to increase the standards for algebra learning at the K-12 level so that they match up with "the most rigorous international state content standards available."

State Urged to Fund More Kindergarten
The Baltimore Sun, February 6, 2002

G. Reid Lyon -- President Bush's top reading adviser -- has called on Maryland lawmakers to put more resources into early childhood education, particularly to install full-day kindergarten statewide.

Schools Neglected in Baltimore's Rehabilitation
The Baltimore Sun, February 5, 2002

While various neighborhoods in Baltimore are experiencing economic improvement and growth, the city's schools are not part of the upswing.

Edison Fails to Improve Two Schools
The Baltimore Sun, January 30, 2002

Edison Schools, Inc., the for-profit company hired to take over three failing Baltimore elementary schools, has said that it is "terribly disappointed" by the schools' performances on the latest statewide tests and has replaced one principal.

SPECIAL ARTICLES & REPORTS

Beyond Access: A Foundation Guide to Ending the Organizational Divide
(Executive Summary - pdf file)
National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, December 2001

Congressional Actions for Children in 2001
Children's Defense Fund, January 11, 2002

Learning In Deed: The Power of Service-Learning for American Schools
The National Commission for Service Learning, January 28, 2002

School Reform: Stay the Course
Hoover Institution, January 28, 2002

Strengthening and Promoting the Formation of Healthy Families
Mathematica Policy Research, 2002

Test Drive
Time.com, February 8, 2002

From the article: "By now, state high-stakes exams have become a fact of life in the American classroom. Less noticed is the growing presence--and power--of firms like Kaplan that teach students and their teachers how to master them."

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