May 17, 2000
Education Week, Vol. 19, Issue 36
Federal
Federal Contractor Pleads Guilty To Theft, Conspiracy
Six Department of Education employees have been suspended indefinitely without pay in connection with a recently uncovered scheme that allegedly defrauded the agency of more than $1 million, the Department of Justice announced last week.
School & District Management
Houston's Paige Becomes Top-Paid Superintendent
Rod Paige of Houston has become the nation's highest-paid superintendent, after a school board vote there raised his salary to $275,000 a year.
School & District Management
Superintendents' Program Celebrates 10th Anniversary
Harvard University's Urban Superintendents Program is one of the oldest and best-known of a growing number of efforts to create innovative training programs to better prepare school administrators for the new pressures of accountability and demands to improve.
Curriculum
Civics Alliance Forms To Combat Youths' Political Apathy, Cynicism
A coalition of education groups convened by a former presidential aide is setting out to improve civics education in the schools.
School & District Management
Pa. Targets 11 Districts For Takeover
Philadelphia and 10 other low-achieving Pennsylvania school systems are bracing for the impact of a new law that gives the state education department vast new powers to intervene in them—and ultimately take them over.
Education Funding
House, Senate Appropriators Differ on School Spending
Congressional Republicans sent some mixed signals on federal education spending last week, as Senate appropriators slightly exceeded President Clinton's huge budget request while their House counterparts fell significantly short.
Reading & Literacy
Technical Difficulties
Assessing students' writing poses special challenges. Some worry it comes at too high an instructional price.
IT Infrastructure & Management
School Groups Wary Of Online-Tax Proposals
Some school groups and state policymakers are asking Congress to tread carefully as it takes up legislation that could limit tax revenues from sales over the Internet.
Teaching Profession
Gore Walking Fine Line On Teacher Accountability
The teacher-accountability plan that Vice President Al Gore proposed this month presents a mixed bag for teachers.
The teacher-accountability plan that Vice President Al Gore proposed this month presents a mixed bag for teachers.
Education
Federal File
Wrong turns
President Clinton might never have showed up at the schools selected for his tour through the Midwest this month if he had used the map posted on the White House World Wide Web page.
Education
Senate Defeats Compromise Proposal For Reauthorization
The Senate overwhelmingly rejected a proposal last week that some moderate Democrats had hoped might break the partisan stalemate over reauthorizing the nation's main K-12 education law.
The Senate overwhelmingly rejected a proposal last week that some moderate Democrats had hoped might break the partisan stalemate over reauthorizing the nation's main K-12 education law.
Equity & Diversity
Mass. Stance on Anti-Gay Bias In Schools Stirring Debate
Gay-rights advocates in Massachusetts are hailing new regulations protecting gay and lesbian students from harassment and discrimination in schools. But a gubernatorial commission is criticizing the state school board's decision to change language governing how homosexuals are to be portrayed in the school curriculum.
School Choice & Charters
Bill Offering Vouchers To Disabled Passes in Fla.
As Florida officials fight to save the nation's only statewide voucher program, Gov. Jeb Bush is expected to sign a bill this month that would broaden the program by letting students with disabilities transfer to private schools if their public schools fail to meet their needs.
Education Funding
Calif. Leaders Cut Deal With Teachers On Raising Pay
California teachers were celebrating a deal with Gov. Gray Davis and legislative leaders last week that the teachers say should give them a belated share of the Golden State's booming economy in the form of higher salaries.
Education Funding
N.C. Town Forms Foundation To Give More to Schools
In an era when many communities begrudge the money that goes to public schools, the town of Cary, N.C., might just be an anomaly. The 98,000-resident suburb of Raleigh has money to spare, and officials there would like to share their prosperity with students.
Teaching Profession
Honored Teachers Want More Pay and Respect
Aretha Franklin isn't the only one clamoring for "a little respect." The nation's top educators also feel unappreciated, underpaid, and overworked, all factors that they say contribute to the inability of school districts to retain classroom teachers.
Education
50th Teacher of the Year Shifted Her Career Path
Marilyn Jachetti Whirry took an unusual route in her education career, but that route eventually brought her to the White House Rose Garden, where she was honored last week as the National Teacher of the Year 2000.
Education
Collegeboard.com Prepares To Launch
Willard C. Korn has been on the job for just over a month now as the president and chief executive officer of collegeboard.com, the budding for-profit venture of the College Board. That's a lot in Internet time, and Mr. Korn has been busy hiring staff members and preparing what he hopes will be the premier World Wide Web site for college-preparation services.
School Choice & Charters
For Some Wayward Youths, Job Corps Offers Redirection
Since 1964, the Job Corps has been the centerpiece of the federal government's efforts to help disadvantaged youths ages 16 to 24 improve their academic skills and find employment.
Equity & Diversity
Ohio High Court Again Overturns Finance System
Ohio's system for financing its schools is still broken and must be fixed within the next 12 months, the state supreme court ruled last week.
School Choice & Charters
Voucher Programs Pose Unique Set of Challenges
Of the continuum of options that make up the school choice movement, none puts as much faith in the free market as vouchers. Parents, the thinking behind such programs goes, should be the primary regulators, and government's job should be limited to giving families tuition aid that they can use at the private school of their choosing.
Of the continuum of options that make up the school choice movement, none puts as much faith in the free market as vouchers. Parents, the thinking behind such programs goes, should be the primary regulators, and government's job should be limited to giving families tuition aid that they can use at the private school of their choosing.
Education
Education Dept. Throws Itself A 20th-Anniversary Party
Just five years ago, many believed the Department of Education wouldn't be around to see its 20th anniversary.
Accountability
New York Adopts Plan for Rating All Schools Based on Test Scores
The New York state school board has adopted the first phase of a plan to rate schools according to student test scores, including—in the future—those from a school's racial and ethnic subgroups.
Curriculum
State Journal
Culture clash
A student-carved statue that was removed from a high school by the Hawaii Department of Education last month will be soon put back in place.
Teacher Preparation
International Report Finds U.S. Teacher Salaries Lagging
America continues to be the world's biggest education spender, but precollegiate teachers here may not be getting their fair share of the investment, an international report suggests.
Education
Correction
A Feature article on arts education in the May 10, 2000, issue of Education Week ("Classroom Renaissance") incorrectly identified Hollis Headrick and the Center for Arts Education, of which he is the executive director. The New York City-based center has granted $21.5 million to assist arts programs at 81 public schools in the city.