Georgia was among 23 states that had been exempting retired state employees from taxes. Some states have moved to comply with the ruling by also exempting Federal employees. Georgia was among nine that equalized treatment by taxing state employees.
The suit, filed jointly by the Georgia Association of Educators and the state employees’ union, alleges that the retroactive tax is unconstitutional because it violates the contract between the state and its retirees.
The Dade County, Fla., school board in December approved five proposals for new elementary schools--all developed by local educators--that were selected from a nationwide competition for innovative ideas.
The competition, known as the Saturn Schools Project, was launched last August. At that time, the district announced that it would be opening nearly 50 new elementary schools over the next seven years and asked educators from across the nation to submit plans.
Of the 36 proposals received and evaluated so far, 23 came from outside the district and 13 were from within. Dade will continue to solicit proposals for the 43 other schools that it intends to build.
The Exxon Education Foundation has awarded a $640,000 grant to the American Federation of Teachers to support the development of three pilot professional-practice schools.
The proposed institutions, which will be jointly operated by school districts and universities, are viewed as both training grounds for new teachers and laboratories for research designed to improve teaching. The AFT says the schools will be similar to the teaching hospitals where physicians are trained.
A Federal appeals court has upheld a lower-court ruling allowing peace activists the same opportunity as military recruiters to address Atlanta students at the district’s “Career Day.’'
The ruling stems from a suit filed in 1984 against the city’s school board by the Atlanta Peace Alliance. The suit charged that the district’s policy of allowing military recruiters, but not antiwar groups, to participate in Career Day events was discriminatory.
The U.S. Justice Department had joined the suit at the district court level, arguing that the recruiters should have preferred access “for reasons of national security.’'
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit ruled in November that the peace group could not be barred solely on the basis of its antiwar position.
