Christina is opening a Montessori Preschool this fall, positions available in Newark! #june15th

Wilmington location is full! Must apply by June 15th. Because it is pre-school, this is a tuition program. It will expand to Kindergarten in subsequent years, adding grades. TUITION ASSISTANCE IS AVAILABLE!

Christina Early Childhood website: http://www.christinaeec.org/

Applications below:

English:

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Spanish:

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Still waiting on that 5/10/12 lesson plan.

Education funding vid.

Agents in the field. Reports due in soon.

 

Breakup imminent. #DOE #Pencader

Voices 4 Delaware Education, both versions, are just part of a growing trend.

8 days and counting since the petition demanding transparency has been sent to Mr. William Keenan, registered agent of Voices 4 Delaware Education Action Fund. No response.

Read article below in full here: http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2012/05/23/32adv-local.h31.html?tkn=XUZFualW%2B5PMq2hwFPL0G1iDYVvt%2F77q3sRt&cmp=clp-edweek

 

Setting an Agenda

Another nationwide education advocacy group, StudentsFirst, is concentrating on state policy for now, according to its founder and chief executive officer, Michelle A. Rhee, a former District of Columbia schools chancellor. Ms. Rhee said her 2-year-old organization, which hopes to raise $1 billion in five years, may turn to local elections “when we start to home in on states where we’ve passed the majority of our policy agenda and are starting to work with local jurisdictions on implementation.”

Stand for Children officials say their work in local elections encourages voters to become more informed and impassioned about education issues. Like DFER, Stand for Children operates separate 501(c)3 and 501(c)4 entities under the federal tax code and assigns them different organizational or political duties, which vary depending on what is permitted by law.

Some teachers’ unions, however, take a different view of the participation of groups like Stand for Children in local elections.

Defining the Players

501(c)3

• Engage primarily in educational work, such as publishing nonpartisan analyses and reports or training local volunteers on the process of grassroots advocacy
• Restricted lobbying
• Prohibited from partisan political activity
• Donations are typically tax-deductible, and the organizations do not have to publicly disclose donors’ names.

501(c)4

• Unlimited grassroots and direct lobbying, in addition to educational work
• Limited amount of partisan political activity that may include “independent expenditures”—advertising supportive of or in opposition to candidates that is not coordinated with candidates’ campaigns
• Donations are not tax-deductible, and the organizations typically do not have to disclose donors’ names.

PAC

• Political action committees donate directly to candidates or to political parties, subject to federal and state contribution limits
• Donors’ names must be disclosed.

IEC

• Popularly referred to as “super PACs” at the federal level, these committees can spend unlimited sums on independent expenditures
• Donors’ names are disclosed.

SOURCES: Alliance for Justice; Education Week

“What it does is sort of take away the typical community voice that you have in those school board races, because it becomes pretty much like a state race,” said Henry Roman, the president of the Denver Classroom Teachers Association, which opposed some of Stand for Children’s preferred contenders in a 2011 school board race.

Philip Rumore, the president of the 3,600-member Buffalo Teachers Federation, which endorsed the candidate who finished second to Mr. McCarthy, Patricia Devis, said his union’s power in local races traditionally derives not from financial contributions but from providing organizational support for candidates. His union, for instance, will sometimes ask each of its members to call voters on a list on assigned dates to remind them to vote.

But he admitted to being stunned by the amount of money provided by Education Reform Now Advocacy.

“I don’t like to say this, but there’s no way we can compete with that kind of operation,” Mr. Rumore said. In May elections, when voter turnout is traditionally low, major spending on mailers and phone calls is especially effective, the union official said: “It’s money that rolls.”

But representatives of education advocacy groups say nothing fundamental has changed in the landscape of local campaigns, except that more players are paying attention to important, and often overlooked, elections.

Previously, “maybe there weren’t (c)3s and (c)4s, maybe the mechanics are slightly different, maybe the names have changed and the rules of engagement have changed,” said Sue Levin, the executive director of the Oregon chapter of Stand for Children. “But the idea that a school board is a politicized body—and that its members and decisions are of intense interest to the community—is as old as public education in America.”

Pencader Peccadillos. Stay Tuned DE, action is coming.

Newark NJ to buy out teacher contracts with Zuckerberg money

Reblogged from the seventh type:

This is for all you Facebook-loving teachers.

In 2010, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg donated $100 million to the Newark NJ school district. Now in 2012, we find out:

Newark could follow in the footsteps of New York City, Houston and other cities, to offer buyouts to teachers, to save money, that will help plug monetary shortfalls that they face.

Read more… 286 more words

Why Not,...

Reblogged from Does Experience Count?:

Ta-da!  This is my 100th post.  I just finished my 99th, and was all set to close up shop for the day, when I realized that I could accomplish this little goal by just staying seated for a while longer. Actually, it takes me a rather long time to create most of my posts.  I envy the bloggers that put out more than one a day. 

Read more… 661 more words

Ed reform bullpucky bingo

Reblogged from Seattle Education:

We’ve all heard these words and phrases coming out of the mouths of ed reformers. If nothing else, these folks do remain true to their script. I have heard these terms from leadership within the Washington State PTA,  the League of Education Voters, Stand for Children, Michelle Rhee, Arne Duncan,  the Broadies and many other corporate privateers. Unfortunately, these words and phrases have reverberated throughout the corporate sponsored media as well.

Read more… 338 more words

Comment Rescue from Rep. Kowalko. re: DE PTA.

Submitted on 2012/05/19 at 11:38 am

I am still waiting for “any” response from National PTA or Delaware PTA to my official request of National PTA that the behavior and policy implementation (apparently resulting from decisions made without the rest of the De. boards knowledge or consent by an overly ambitious lone decider) invoked in the questionnaire be either disavowed or explained. I have not received any communication such as the site posted apology/explanation from the De. PTA board, National PTA board or parties responsible for the ethically challenged questionnaire solicitation although I formally requested a response in my official capacity as a duly elected State Representative who sits on the Education Committee.

You have my encouragement and permission to forward this comment to Ms. Francis of the School Boards Association for dissemination to all School Boards and the PTA membership as well as the general public if you would be so kind. This shallow effort to offer explanation or excuse to a limited audience does not satisfy the ethical obligation of responding to an official inquiry made on behalf of all Delawareans as my request intended and shows a significant lack of respect for the elected office.

John Kowalko

New Jersey Gov. Christie and Newark, NJ Mayor Cory Booker come together. Hilarious! #netDE #Booker!