WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Barack Obama shocked students at a Washington school Friday by popping in to give them encouragement at the beginning of the new year.
“I do believe that most of the problems we have are going to be solved by you,” Obama told a group of students from McKinley Technology High School, according to an Instagram video posted on his account after his unannounced visit.
In the video, a small group of students can be seen gasping in surprise as Obama walks into a room with a cheery “How’s it going, everybody?”
The former president has made few public appearances since leaving the White House in January.
Obama will be attending a fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee on September 27, only the second time he’s publicly raised money for his party since leaving the White House. Obama attended a fundraiser hosted by former Attorney General Eric Holder for the National Democratic Redistricting Committee back in July.
A new report — “Busting the Myth of ‘one-size-fits all’ Public Education,” — from the Center for Public Education (CPE) found an abundance of choice in public schools, both in program offerings and school selection. CPE is the research tank for the National School Boards Association (NSBA). The report comes at an opportune time with the increasing focus in Washington, D.C. and state capitals on educational choice.
“Extraordinary activities and approaches occur in public schools every day because school boards and school leaders continually devise and employ innovative approaches to help students succeed,” said Thomas J. Gentzel, Executive Director & CEO of the National School Boards Association. “The constant effort to enhance public education has produced an amazing array of learning opportunities spanning course selection, learning styles, and choice of school.”
Public schools are not the monolith critics of public education make them out to be. CPE found that the broadest range of educational and extracurricular options exists in public schools. The report notes that while larger public high schools offer more program choices than smaller ones, even small public schools do better compared to private high schools in programs for which data is available: Gifted or Honors classes, Advanced Placement, and distance learning. High-poverty public schools also outpace private schools overall on high-level course offerings.
Other key findings in “Busting the Myth of ‘one-size-fits all’ public education,” include:
Public high schools offer more educational and extracurricular options for students including the arts, Advanced Placement, Gifted or Honors classes, and distance learning opportunities than private schools.
Public schools are more likely to offer afterschool child care and tutoring or enrichment activities.
School counselors play a key role in students’ learning and care: Eighty percent of public schools have at least one part-time counselor compared to only 32 percent of private schools.
The vast majority of public high schools offer access to hands-on college experience with almost all (98 percent) offering career preparation.
The majority of public school students have the option to transfer to schools within their districts or neighboring districts.
“The neighborhood public school remains the school of first choice for the large majority of families, as school districts offer a growing range of options in their efforts to better serve the different interests and needs of individual students,” said Patte Barth, Director of the Center for Public Education. “This not only includes the nearly two-thirds of school-aged children who have access to public schools outside their attendance zone. As this report shows, curricular and extracurricular options abound inside the public school building, too, that are designed to engage students in learning.”
School choice advocates tend to define educational choice in a binary way – with the sole focus on choice of school building. But that approach fails to recognize the number and range of options that are offered inside public school buildings. When it comes to choices and opportunities for students, CPE’s report shows that public schools offer the broadest range of educational choices and are not “one-size-fits all.”
Read the report, “Busting the Myth of ‘one-size-fits all’ Public Education,” by Patte Barth and Chandi Wagner at http://bit.ly/2wO14Q5
“Our nation’s libraries serve all community members, including immigrants, offering services and educational resources that transform communities, open minds and promote inclusion and diversity,“ said Neal.
“We are disappointed that the protections of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program are in jeopardy. Through no fault of their own, these undocumented youth were brought to this country as children, and deserve the opportunity to contribute to our society without the fear of being deported. We ask Congress to work together to find a solution to this issue.”
Best practices and resources to better serve immigrant populations are currently available through the ALA’s Libraries Respond website.
The American Library Association is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 57,000 members in academic, public, school, government, and special libraries. The mission of the American Library Association is to provide leadership for the development, promotion and improvement of library and information services and the profession of librarianship to enhance learning and esure access to information for all.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos today announced the approval of Louisiana’s consolidated state plan under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). — Letter to Louisiana from Secretary DeVos regarding State Plan.
August 15, 2017
Honorable John White
Superintendent of Education
Louisiana Department of Education
P.O. Box 94064
Baton Rouge, LA 70804Dear Superintendent White:I am pleased to approve Louisiana’s consolidated State plan under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), to implement the requirements of covered programs under the ESEA and of the amended McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (McKinney-Vento Act). I congratulate you on this significant accomplishment.
My decision regarding Louisiana’s consolidated State plan is based on input from U.S. Department of Education (Department) staff who reviewed and carefully considered the plan submitted by Louisiana. Consistent with ESSA, the Department conducted a peer review of the sections in your consolidated State plan related to Title I, Part A and Title III, Part A of the ESEA and Subtitle B of Title VII of the McKinney-Vento Act. The Department only reviewed information provided in Louisiana’s consolidated State plan that was responsive to the Revised State Plan Template for the Consolidated State Plan that was issued on March 13, 2017. I have concluded that Louisiana’s consolidated State plan satisfies those requirements. Accordingly, Louisiana’s consolidated State plan that was submitted on August 8, 2017, warrants full approval.
Louisiana’s consolidated State plan remains in effect for the duration of the State’s participation in the programs covered by the plan. Each State is responsible for administering all programs included in its consolidated State plan consistent with all applicable statutory and regulatory requirements even if those requirements are not addressed in Louisiana’s plan. Louisiana must periodically review and revise the plan as necessary to reflect changes in the State’s strategies and covered programs. If Louisiana makes significant changes to its consolidated State plan at any time, such as changes to its accountability system or long-term goals, Louisiana must submit information about those changes to the Department for review and approval. The Department will provide information on the process for amending a State plan at a later date.
Please be aware that approval of Louisiana’s consolidated State plan is not a determination that all the information and data included in the State plan comply with Federal civil rights requirements, including Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and requirements under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. It is Louisiana’s responsibility to comply with these civil rights requirements.
Please note that this letter, with Louisiana’s approved consolidated State plan, will be posted on the Department’s website.
It has been a pleasure working with your staff on this review. Please accept my congratulations for Louisiana’s approved consolidated State plan. Thank you for the important work that you and your staff are doing to support the transition to the ESSA and most importantly to lead Louisiana’s students to achieve at high levels. The Department looks forward to working with you to ensure that all children have the opportunity to reach their full potential.
Sincerely,
/s/
Betsy DeVoscc: Honorable John Bel Edwards, Governor of Louisiana
Washington — U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos today released the following statement:
“Real change and innovation in education will not come from Washington—it will come from states where parents and students demand more education options and have their voices heard. I commend Gov. Rauner and Superintendent Smith for their leadership in making Illinois the 18th state to adopt a tax credit scholarship program. By expanding choices for families and focusing funding on individual students, this program will help thousands of Illinois children succeed.”
West Virginia’s proposed federal Every Student Succeeds Act compliance plan, which includes a planned new public school accountability system plus plans for how to improve schools that score low in that system, is seeing significant changes and public praise and criticism ahead of its scheduled submission to the U.S. Education Department next month.
Among the changes so far, the state Department of Education is now planning to take into account schools’ five-year high school graduation rates, atop their four-year rates.
The department is also abandoning its proposal to initially assign each of its four planned labels for school performance measures to a quarter of elementary, middle and high schools. This would have been done by comparing Mountain State schools’ performance only to other in-state schools on each performance measure and, for each measure, assigning the lowest label to the bottom-scoring 25 percent, the next lowest to the next 25 percent, and so on.
The plan is online for public comment through 4 p.m. Wednesday at wvde.state.wv.us/essa. Michele Blatt, the state education department’s assistant superintendent over the Division of Support and Accountability, said the state Board of Education is scheduled to vote on the plan Sept. 7 or Sept. 8. The federal education department must then review it.
Contact: (202) 401-1576, press@ed.gov
WASHINGTON — U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos today announced the approval of the District of Columbia, Illinois, Oregon and Tennessee consolidated state plans under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).
“As more and more state plans come under the Department’s review, I am heartened to see how states have embraced the spirit of flexibility under ESSA to improve education for individual students,” said Secretary DeVos.
Allowing states more flexibility in how they deliver education to students is at the core of ESSA. Each state crafted a plan that it feels will best offer educational opportunities to meet the needs of the state and its students. The following are some of the unique elements from each state’s approved plan as highlighted by each state:
District of Columbia
Creates the School Transparency and Reporting (STAR) framework, a universal framework for every public school in DC that will provide an easy-to-understand annual rating to each school based on 1-5 stars.
Measures the quality of Pre-Kindergarten through use of the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS), which assesses the quality of teacher-child interactions in early childhood classrooms.
“DC’s plan is guided by our commitment to providing equitable access to high quality education for all students and flexibility for our schools to meet the unique needs of all students,” said DC State Superintendent for Education Hanseul Kang. “This plan is the right one for DC, and I am proud that it was informed by rigorous engagement with partners and community members, including the DC State Board of Education, local education agencies, parents, educators, and advocates.”
Illinois
Creates a College/Career Ready Indicator for high schools that measures the readiness of students for college based on several indicators, including GPA, performance on postsecondary readiness exams and attendance, in addition to considering community service hours, summer employment, participation in ROTC, and/or earning industry credentials.
Uses survey responses from students to help assign schools a “school climate” score, giving students a chance to provide meaningful feedback and ensuring the student perspective will be a part of the school’s overall summative rating.
“Illinois is committed to supporting the whole child in transforming learning opportunities for all students in our state,” said Illinois State Superintendent of Education Tony Smith, Ph.D. “We want every child to feel well known and well cared for in our schools and to receive the individual support they need for academic excellence and postsecondary success. The Illinois ESSA Plan gives us the opportunity to foster collaboration and partnerships to build educators’ and leaders’ capacity for improved student outcomes. We appreciate the partnership with the U.S. Department of Education throughout the ESSA process, and we look forward to our continued efforts on behalf of each and every child.”
Oregon
Prioritizes four commitments in its plan: advancing equity; creating a well-rounded education; strengthening district systems; and fostering ongoing stakeholder engagement.
Implements a new “Freshmen on track” measure to confirm that students have completed at least 6 credits within the first semester of freshmen year, recognizing the importance of credit attainment in early high school in order to graduate on time.
“Today is a tremendous milestone for Oregon. Oregon’s State Plan is founded on equity and represents the voices and communities we serve,” Oregon Deputy Superintendent Salam Noor said. “We want to put every one of our learners on a path to success from birth through high school, and beyond. And whether our students choose to attend college or go straight into the workforce, it’s critical that their school experience is full of opportunity, and ensures they are college and career ready.”
Tennessee
Supports teacher and principal residencies to create more high-quality pipeline opportunities for prospective candidates to move into those roles; also establishes new grant initiatives that focus on increasing innovation and diversity in the educator workforce.
Focuses on college readiness through the Tennessee Promise initiative.
“Our ESSA plan is built on what we’ve started in Tennessee and centered on the belief that every student should be ready for postsecondary when they graduate high school,” said Tennessee Education Commissioner Candice McQueen. “Tennessee’s education community helped us to create a strong plan that will help us take our work to the next level, and we look forward to continuing these partnerships now as we move forward.”
WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos today announced the approval of Maine and Vermont’s consolidated state plans under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).
“Both Maine and Vermont’s plans were found to comply with the law, so I am happy to approve them,” said Secretary DeVos. “I want to thank the chief state school officers, governors and all other stakeholders who helped craft these plans that will help their students succeed.”
Allowing states more flexibility in how they deliver education to students is at the core of ESSA. Each state crafted a plan that it feels will best offer educational opportunities to meet the needs of the state and its students. The following are some of the unique elements from each state’s approved plan as highlighted by each state:
Maine
Creates a three-tiered system of support for schools based on performance, with the highest level of support offering coaching and mentoring to teach effective strategies for school turnaround, in addition to increased funding for staff professional development.
Plans to reduce the number of non-proficient students in half by 2030.
“Maine’s ESSA plan is moving away from compliance and regulation toward a model that supports and assists schools and educators, especially in areas where students are at a disadvantage,” said Robert G. Hasson, Maine Commissioner of Education.
Vermont
Creates an innovative measure of postsecondary outcomes by measuring the percentage of former high school students enrolled in college or trade school, employed in the workforce and/or enlisted in the military approximately 16 months after their high school experience ends.
Includes physical education in its accountability system to encourage schools to attend to the whole child and to help promote a lifestyle of healthy living.
“The Vermont State Plan reflects Vermont’s simultaneous goals of supporting our most vulnerable students while focusing on solutions that are practical and effective to meet our educational needs,” said Rebecca Holcombe, Vermont Secretary of Education. “We have worked hard to create a plan that values student success for all, both in the classroom and in preparing our students to be engaged and contributing citizens once they leave our schools.”
A new report — “Busting the Myth of ‘one-size-fits all’ Public Education,” — from the Center for Public Education (CPE) found an abundance of choice in public schools, both in program offerings and school selection. CPE is the research tank for the National School Boards Association (NSBA). The report comes at an opportune time with the increasing focus in Washington, D.C. and state capitals on educational choice.
