Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee says: if President Bush isn’t open to a compromise on education spending, Democratic leaders are willing to wait for a new president to take office who might be more disposed to supporting their priorities
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/03/05/26budget.h27.html

School Funding Litigation/Policy

DC Superior Court judge rules that the public has no right to see the education spending plan for the coming fiscal year until it is submitted to the DC Council with the entire city budget
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/27/AR2008022703423.html?nav=rss_education

IL income tax increase gets new attention as a way to fund public schools
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-il-xgr-incometax,0,2493982.story

If FL has any hopes of seeing its education system spin out the talent needed for a stronger economy, it better step up with some cash, says top business economist
http://www.miamiherald.com/458/story/436374.html

State Roundup

CA governor and education officials unveil their plan to improve 97 school districts that face the stiffest sanctions for failing to meet federal academic improvement targets; the crux of the strategy is to send out "assistance teams"
http://www.latimes.com/news/education/la-me-schools28feb28,1,7988693.story?track=rss

CA joint plan will help 96 troubled school districts improve academically - a move intended not only to lend a hand, but to avoid losing millions of federal education dollars
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/02/28/BAPTV9NIV.DTL&feed=rss.education

CA high school dropouts cost state billions of dollars, and strategies to reduce dropout rates are insufficient, says researcher
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/02/28/MNQFV919C.DTL

DE advocates for early childhood and after-school education programs seek additional money from finance committee
http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080228/NEWS02/802280375/1006/NEWS

RI state officials reveal that nearly 80 percent of 11th graders cannot do the math expected of them
http://www.projo.com/education/content/education.1_02-28-08_K89699K_v3.1e5c61.html

In the News on February 27, 2008

Opinion – School choice is not enough: Recent developments suggest that markets in education may not be a panacea and that we should re-examine the direction of school reform
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120364195876084617.html?mod=rss_opinion_main

Common Core, new research and advocacy organization that lobbies for more teaching of the liberal arts in public schools, releases a survey to demonstrate that a significant proportion of teenagers live in “stunning ignorance” of history and literature
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/27/us/27history.html?ex=1361768400&en=4694f052bb6a809e&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

K-12 education was overshadowed by worries about a weakening economy in the nation’s governor annual meeting
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/03/05/26nga.h27.html

School Funding Litigation/Policy

FL Legislature is shaping plans to slash more than $500million from this year's budget, and education is in line for the biggest cut
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/state/orl-loccuts27022708feb27,0,5338438.story

NJ Supreme Court declines to set a deadline for the state government to provide money to continue a court-mandated program to upgrade school facilities
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/02/27/25brief-5.h27.html

State Roundup

CA governor will reveal specific improvement plans for each of the 97 school districts that have missed NCLB test targets for five consecutive years
http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/742251.html

Study finds that students attending private schools through the school voucher program are not doing much better or worse than students in public schools
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/02/26/56778wivoucherschoolsmps_ap.h27.html

IA Senate approves a bill that will require school districts to follow a state-mandated curriculum
http://www.qctimes.com/articles/2008/02/27/ap-state-ia/d8v2fuqg2.txt

OK House approves legislation to add three days to the school year and give schools more flexibility to set the length of the school day
http://ap.ardmoreite.com/pstories/state/ok/20080226/251386769.shtml

Providence Schools Superintendent meets with Teachers’ Council to get honest answers about schools and teacher morale
http://www.projo.com/ri/providence/content/mc_teachers_02-27-08_RQ95JOB_v12.35715d4.html

In the News on February 26, 2008

Federal/NCLB

VA governor does not support a state withdrawal from NCLB
http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2008-02-26-0105.html

Other News

Commentary – Why after-school programs are a powerful resource for English-language learners
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/02/27/25weisburd.h27.html

School Funding Litigation/Policy

AK House approves a $230 million increase in education spending over the next three years; some describe the plan as historic but others warn can't be sustained
http://www.adn.com/front/story/326468.html

ID school districts sue the members of their state’s supreme court – not the state – in a school finance case, and so far they seem to have the upper hand
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/02/27/25stjour.h27.html

State Roundup

Already strapped for money, AZ could face a bill for millions of dollars for failing to fund a program for English language learners
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0226flores0226.html

FL proposal to restore a school voucher program is rejected by a state panel, but a plan that would lift a constitutional ban on state aid to religious schools gets early approval
http://www.miamiherald.com/775/story/432588.html

County in GA will become the first school district in the nation to separate classrooms by sex - a move born of desperation because of poor test scores, soaring dropout rates, and high numbers of teenage pregnancies
http://www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2008/02/26/single_sex_schools_planned_in_georgia/

After years of continuous growth, which outpaced the growth in total student enrollment, special education rosters decline substantially in VA
http://hamptonroads.com/2008/02/state-sees-drop-students-enrolled-special-education

Federal/NCLB

VA considers a proposal through which it would become the first state to set a deadline – summer 2009 – for planning a pullout from NCLB
http://hamptonroads.com/2008/02/virginia-considers-leaving-education-act-behind

Report calls for new measures of educational outcomes and equity, by broadening the scope of the National Assessment of Educational Progress
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/02/27/25naep.h27.html

Throughout the presidential campaign, leading Democrats have shown similar standpoints on education, until this month when they have exhibited differing opinions on private school vouchers
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/02/27/25dems_ep.h27.html

Study shows that restrictive labor agreements, are tying the hands of superintendents around the country who want to pay top teachers more and transfer them between schools
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/24/AR2008022402012.html?nav=rss_education

School Funding Litigation/Policy

GA House budget-writers vow to stop a five-year cycle of school cuts next year by pumping $140 million extra into education
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/stories/2008/02/21/budget_0222.html

State Roundup

Alabama school board plans to close 16 schools
http://www.al.com/news/birminghamnews/index.ssf?/base/news/120393092586860.xml&coll=2

80 percent of dropouts come from just 20 percent of high schools: New study shows that most CA schools are doing a good job of keeping kids in class
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/02/21/BA7DV5PVD.DTL&feed=rss.education

ID pre-school advocates arm themselves with a survey to show that the Legislature is going against the will of the majority, in hopes to advance the availability of early education programs
http://www.idahostatesman.com/newsupdates/story/305207.html

Report shows that nearly half of public school 9th graders who started high school in the last seven years have dropped out without earning a high school diploma
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-dropout_25feb25,1,5192379.story

School choice has been a bumpy road so far in post Katrina LA
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/02/27/25nolacommunity_ep.h27.html

Published Monday, Mar. 3, 2008