ConnCAN's Education News Roundup

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2008-05-19T14:26:00.000-07:00

Thanks for checking out the ConnCAN Blogspot!

While we are no longer updating this blog, you can subscribe to the Education News Roundup and get a weekly compilation of pertinent news clips delivered directly to your inbox every Thursday afternoon.

Please contact me at danielle.smith@conncan.org to sign up.

2007-11-28T11:17:00.000-08:00

ConnCAN in the News

PMS Celebrates Testing Success
By Jeff Mill, The Middletown Press, November 22, 2007

PORTLAND - The major share of the credit for the middle school's success in a recent survey of schools goes to the teachers, school Principal Scott Giegerich said.

The school was rated first in an assessment of "performance gains" among sixth, seventh and eighth-grade students from 2006 to 2007.The school also ranked eighth in ConnCAN's list of "most improved schools.

One of the first things we did was to share data," Giegerich said. "We looked at CMT scores for the last five years and then, as a staff, we identified both areas of strength and areas in need of attention."
Throughout the process, there was an emphasis on sharing and cooperation.

Teachers shared examples of specific approaches with the entire staff, which included math, language arts, science social studies world language and unified arts, Giegerich explained.

News Articles

City School Overhaul Advances
By Rache Gottlieb Frank, The Hartford Courant, November 20, 2007

Hartford's school board took a giant leap Tuesday into what will be the redesigning of most of the school system when it approved initial plans to create four new schools and directed the superintendent to redesign four existing low-performing schools and close one elementary school in order to convert it into a magnet school.

By unanimous vote, the board approved a first reading of a plan to create an Achievement First charter school — New Haven's successful Amistad Academy is an Achievement First school — a second Breakthrough Academy, an International Baccalaureate, similar to the one in East Hartford, and a Montessori elementary school. The board will take a final vote next month.

About 500 teachers wearing pins bearing the word "respect" and parents who feel left out of the redesign process protested in a cold drizzle outside before the meeting, and then moved inside, where they demanded a role.

Other board members promised that parents and teachers will be included in the future. "Change of this magnitude happens in stages. Our work is really just beginning," board member Pamela Richmond said.

Public allowed to place items on BOE meeting agenda
By A.J. O’Connell, The Wilton Villager, November 22, 20007

WILTON — The public has long been able to comment at Wilton's board of education meetings. Now, thanks to a change in the board's bylaws, members of the community are now allowed to place an item on the school board's agenda.

"It's been pointed out that while we conduct our meetings in public, they are not public meetings," said board member Troy Ellen Dixon, who led the revision of the board's bylaws this year.

Academic goals for St. Jude kids tailor-made
By Linda Conner Lambeck, The Connecticut Post, November 19, 2007

MONROE — When parent Lynn Dafcik recently sat down with Marie Cassin, a teacher at St. Jude School, to discuss how son Andrew was doing, there were few surprises.

Dafcik — and Andrew — already knew the goals set for him and even which words in reading still pose a challenge to the 6-year-old.

It was, after all, spelled out in an Individualized Academic Plan developed for Andrew at the start of the academic year, with his mother's input.

The goals for Andrew are based on how well he scores on several tests. This year, every student in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten and the first grade at St. Jude has a plan tailored just for them.

Within three years, students in all 39 schools in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport will have a custom-developed learning road map if John Cook, the deputy superintendent of diocesan schools, has his way.

2007-11-19T18:19:00.000-08:00

ConnCAN in the News

Portland school ranked No. 1 for mastery test improvement
By Jeff Mill, The Middletown Press, November 17, 2007

Sally E. Doyen got her "report card" this week. Her response? "We're thrilled!" the superintendent of schools said, after learning that the Portland Middle School has been judged a winner by education officials.

The school was ranked number-one in the state for "performance gains" on the 2006-07 mastery test results, Doyen said. What's more, Portland also ranked number eight for most improved, according to an analysis compiled by ConnCAN, a statewide education advocacy and outreach group.

Doyen left no doubt about who deserves the credit for the school's success."This is the result of a lot of hard work on the part of the staff and the students," she said. "We spent a lot of time over the last three years aligning our curriculum and developing both consistent goals and consistent expectations," she added. "And now, we have gotten this wonderful payoff!"

Middle School Honored
The Hartford Courant, November 16, 2007

Portland Middle School was ranked No. 1 by the state in the area of "Performance Gains" for the 2006-07 mastery test results comparisons.

The rating appeared in "The State of Connecticut Public Education," a 2007 report card for elementary and middle schools provided by the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now. Portland was also ranked No. 8 in the state for "Most Improved."

Pursue magnet school plan for town
The Stamford Advocate, November 18, 2007

Opponents of the plan to turn New Lebanon School into a magnet program say the Board of Education should apply the brakes until new questions are answered about requirements involving race and school diversity.

But many educators, including those at New Lebanon, where test scores are lagging, believe diversity achieved through magnet schools helps all students to learn. And there is evidence to bear them out, including a recent report by ConnCAN, an education advocacy organization. Among other findings, the report rated Stamford's Rogers Elementary School -- a magnet school -- among the state's top five schools in terms of raising student performance and closing the achievement gap between white and minority, and poor and nonpoor students.

Opinions and Editorials

Money Should Follow City Kids To Suburbs
By Rick Green, The Hartford Courant, November 9, 2007

We've got over 100,000 seats in public school classrooms in suburbs around Hartford and there's room for just 1,000 city kids. One percent. That's so pathetic it's embarrassing to even say.

Our affluent and middle class towns say they don't have space for more than this. Fine, but there are consequences here - be prepared for the day when we can't find enough skilled workers or bunks in our prisons.

As it turns out, there's a reason for this limited success: Most of the money doesn't follow the kid to the suburbs.

"The grant that follows the child is woefully insufficient," said Bruce Douglas, director of the Capitol Region Education Council, which runs Project Choice.

So, for example, the state of Connecticut - which is under a court order to desegregate metropolitan Hartford schools - gives Avon about $2,500 for each of the 41 children it takes. The district, however, spends about $11,000 per child. This is no education crisis, it's a taxpayer rip-off.

One percent. We need a judge, a governor or an education commissioner with the backbone to tackle this.

News Articles

High School May Get Harder
By Arielle Levin Becker and Rachel Gottlieb, The Hartford Courant, November 16, 2007

High school students would be required to pass end-of-course exams, complete a yearlong independent study project and earn 24 credits in specific areas to graduate from any public school in Connecticut under a set of recommendations being considered by the State Board of Education.

The recommendations, put together by a committee that included teachers, school officials and representatives of business and higher education, are part of a high school redesign effort intended to address stagnating test scores, wide achievement gaps and concerns that a growing number of state students graduate high school unprepared for college or the workforce.

It will be years before any recommendations are adopted; state education officials will spend much of the next year soliciting public comment, and the legislature must authorize any changes in graduation requirements.

2007-11-19T18:14:00.000-08:00

November 12, 2007

News Articles

State seeking school reform: Proposal urges higher standards
By Eileen FitzGerald, The News Times, November 11, 2007

The state Department of Education unveiled a far-reaching redesign meant to increase rigor -- and the state's reported 75-percent high school graduation rate.

The plan, unveiled during a state Board of Education meeting Wednesday, is called a "work in progress." Officials will seek comments and recommendations during visits across Connecticut before it is adopted.

The proposal calls for the state to write a model curriculum it will offer to schools for voluntary use. Students would have to take and pass more courses to graduate, and the state would create end-of-year exams for five subjects. Students would have performance tests, like labs or research presentations, for other subjects.

The plan also adds a senior project -- such as an internships outside of school -- to the high school graduation requirement. It would test skills beyond academics and provide ways for students to accelerate at a faster pace than they can now.

Day 4 In Sheff Case Reveals Rift
By Rachel Gottlieb Frank, The Hartford Courant, November 10, 2007

Testimony by the state's education commissioner on the fourth day of a hearing on the Sheff vs. O'Neill desegregation lawsuit revealed a testy relationship between Hartford's superintendent of schools and the state Department of Education over state efforts to quicken the pace of desegregation.

State Education Commissioner Mark McQuillan on Friday summarized an exchange of letters that began last summer between him and Superintendent Steven Adamowski in which McQuillan asked Hartford to submit documents showing why several of the city's magnet schools didn't have enough white students and how the district intended to remedy the problem.

Spotty Sheff Enforcement
By Rachel Gottlieb Frank and Magdalene Perez, The Hartford Courant, November 9, 2007

Over the years the state has helped develop a comprehensive plan to desegregate Hartford's schools, spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the efforts, appealed to suburban districts to open their schools to city students and offered training to suburban districts to help city students succeed, state witnesses testified Thursday in the Sheff vs. O'Neill desegregation case.

But cross-examination of those witnesses in Superior Court in Hartford revealed that shifts in management have resulted in spotty results and murky accountability since 2003, when the plaintiffs in the Sheff lawsuit reached a compromise agreement with the state on integration goals.

New Lebanon: A Magnet School in Progress
By Anne W. Semmes, The Greenwich Citizen, November 9, 2007

Now that the Board of Education has unanimously voted on New Lebanon School as the district's fourth magnet school, the focus has shifted to how best to strengthen this elementary Byram school identified by Dr. Betty Sternberg, superintendent of schools, as racially unbalanced.

"New Leb has issues of an achievement gap with its mix of minority and white students," said Colleen Giambo, board chairman. "We will try to address closing this gap."

"There will be a committee of administrators and teachers," she said, to consider the different strategies for closing the gap. "They will go though a similar process of development as happened with other magnet schools in town. Each school is different, with different parental interests. Julian Curtiss has international language instruction and Hamilton Avenue has small classes and a pre-school."

Bard President to Meet With City Over C Grade
By Elissa Gootman, The New York Times, November 9, 2007

One of New York’s most prominent educators, Leon Botstein, the president of Bard College, has joined the chorus of criticism over the City Department of Education’s blunt new A through F rating system for public schools, saying in an interview yesterday that it was “reductive” and “depressing.”

But while most city schools received grades this week, Bard High School Early College, associated with Mr. Botstein’s college, did not. Its grade and those of 22 other schools were reported as “under review” by the department. In fact, Mr. Botstein said, he learned last week that the school had earned a tentative grade of C on a draft copy of the report card — even though its graduates earn not just a high school diploma, but two years’ worth of college credits. And he is holding out hope that the grade will be changed.

Online Newsletters

Reporter Robert Frahm Leaves The Hartford Courant
By Alexander Russo, This Week in Education, November 9, 2007

The list of veteran education reporters who are leaving the newsroom just keeps getting longer. After over 20 years at the Hartford Courant, Robert Frahm recently took a buyout. He follows Dale Mezzecappa, Bob Sipchen, Richard Lee Colvin, Mike Bowler, and others who have left the education beat, most of them due to downsizing.

With an education team that once numbered four, the Hartford Courant (bought in 2001 by the Tribune Company) had cut and lost education reporters until Frahm was all but the last man standing, he said when I met him recently.

2007-11-19T18:09:00.000-08:00

November 8, 2007

ConnCAN in the News

In Praise of Schools That Work
By Rick Green, The Hartford Courant, November 6, 2007

Good schools are where more children are learning more - not just the schools where the top achievers already attend.

It's time that we paid more attention to rewarding the achievement at Charter Oak, and others, such as New Beginnings Charter School in Bridgeport, Holmes School in New Britain and East School in Torrington..

"There are only seven other schools in the state that made a bigger jump," said Marc Porter McGee of ConnCan, a business-funded reform group.

Focusing on performance gains, instead of schools with just high test scores, will show us where the real learning is occurring, McGee said. Interestingly, among the top 10 elementary schools, seven are traditional public schools.

The list reveals a striking diversity, which means that it's not about where these schools are, but what goes on inside.

"A great school is a great school, regardless of the demographics," McGee said. "It's not about just moving kids along. It's about making more progress every year."

Report: Achievement gap closing in some Stamford, Norwalk schools
By Alexandra Fenwick, The Stamford Advocate, November 5, 2007

Last month, the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, a New Haven group, released its 2007 report, which rates the progress of elementary, middle and high schools in five categories.

Kendall in Norwalk increased its percentage of Hispanic students scoring within goal range to 63 percent, up from 56 percent last year. At Marvin, it was 58 percent. Kendall Principal Tony Ditrio said he likes accountability but it should be fair.

"I don't mind being judged by those (tests), I just want someone to take into account that traditionally some groups don't do as well as others," he said. "That's where the rubber meets the road and that's why ConnCAN is so important to us. Connecticut is mostly white and affluent and cities that are poor. Those rich communities don't have the issues we deal with. They look at NCLB and it's no big deal. They don't even get scored for half of the subgroups because they don't have enough kids."

No Child Left Behind does not measure subgroups, such as black, Hispanic or low-income students, if fewer than 40 such students are in a school.

"The most important indicator is growth of students' scores in schools," said Marc Porter Magee, ConnCAN director of communications and research. "If you look at a snapshot, schools like Wilton or Greenwich are at the top, but they're not necessarily adding more value. Their students come in at 90 percent and maybe go up to 91 percent. But when you look at a cohort of students, the same class from year to year, some schools are making huge gains year to year and being overlooked."

News Articles

Ohio Goes After Charter Schools That Are Failing
By Sam Dillon, The New York Times, November 8, 2007

Ohio became a test tube for the nation’s charter school movement during a decade of Republican rule here, when a wide-open authorization system and plenty of government seed money led to the schools’ explosive proliferation.

But their record has been spotty. This year, the state’s school report card gave more than half of Ohio’s 328 charter schools a D or an F.

Charter school advocates worry that Mr. Dann’s crackdown may prove popular with Democratic and independent voters nationwide. Ohio’s labor leaders enthusiastically applaud it.

“If chronically lousy charters aren’t closed, the charter movement will continue under assault from its opponents,” said Todd Ziebarth, a policy analyst at the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools.

Free online materials could save schools billions
By Greg Toppo, USA Today, November 7, 2007

Since March, Dixon Deutsch and his students have been quietly experimenting with a little website that could one day rock the foundation of how schools do business.

A K-2 teacher at Achievement First Bushwick Elementary Charter School in Brooklyn, N.Y., Deutsch, 28, has been using Free-Reading.net, a reading instruction program that allows him to download, copy and share lessons with colleagues.

But perhaps the most significant development is at the most elementary level. Last fall, a Florida textbook adoption committee approved Free-Reading, a remediation program for primary-school children that's believed to be the first free, open-source reading program for K-12 public schools. It's awaiting approval by Eric Smith, the state's incoming education commissioner, who could approve it by mid-December.

Florida is one of the top five textbook markets in the USA, so its move could lead to the development of other free materials that might someday challenge the dominance of a handful of big educational publishers.

"This is an important and perhaps powerful initiative," says Adam Newman of Eduventures, an education research and consulting firm in Boston. "Those adoption lists are sort of hallowed ground, so to be approved for one of those is a breakthrough."

Schools chief opens door to coffee talk
By Kate Ramunni, The Connecticut Post, November 6, 2007

Superintendent MaryAnne Mascolo took over the helm of the Seymour Public Schools this year after former Supt. Tom Petruny retired. One of her priorities is to increase communication between administrators and parents, she said.

The meetings, which also feature coffee, muffins and Danish, are held alternately in the mornings and evenings to accommodate parents' schedules, Mascolo said. The December meeting will be held Dec. 8, from 9 to 11 a.m.

Parents are welcome to talk about anything on their minds, she said, though she does ask that if it is something that will need to be researched that she be notified about it before the meeting.

Teamwork among teachers aims to improve learning
By Rachael Scarborough King, The New Haven Register, November 5, 2007

A model for reorganizing the teaching process has educators in two local towns excited about teachers working together to close achievement gaps.

In the North Branford and Guilford school districts, administrators and board of education members have spent a lot of time lately talking about the concept of "professional learning communities."

According to the experts, the system will bring teachers out of their individual classrooms and have them working in groups to instill focus on learning rather than teaching.

2007-11-08T12:22:00.000-08:00

November 5, 2007

Opinions and Editorials

What Every Child Needs
By Ann Hulbert, The New York Times, October 28, 2007

Calling for an overhaul of the current patchwork of uneven preschool programs, UPK proponents invoke neuroscientific evidence of brain growth rather than child-care needs. They cite the long-term economic benefits of an early investment in boosting “cognitive skills” and “school readiness,” especially for low-income children. There is little mention of, say, pretend play in the pitch for government-subsidized pre-K, which supporters argue should be affordable and available (though not necessarily mandatory) for all.

The universal-preschool mission, too often dismissed as nanny-state meddling, capitalizes on the inclusive No Child Left Behind drive to close the K-12 achievement gap: the moment is ripe to reach downward to the post-diaper and pre-backpack stage, where disparities between white and minority students start.

News Articles

Schools: A Shift Of Views On Sheff
By Rachel Gottlieb Frank, The Hartford Courant, November 5, 2007

A decade after the state Supreme Court ordered the desegregation of schools across Greater Hartford in the landmark Sheff v. O'Neill case, the goal of integration remains elusive.

Magnet schools, the cornerstone of the state's plan to bring together white children and children of color using voluntary incentives, have fallen short. Hartford's schools still have a population that is predominantly black, Hispanic and poor.

Now, as the Sheff plaintiffs head back to court Tuesday to demand the state make good on its assurances, advocates of integration are facing increasing skepticism on the part of both state lawmakers and city officials over both the cost - and value - of continuing down the same path.

Shelton receives state grant for school readiness classroom
By Gabriella Doob, The Shelton Weekly, November 2, 2007

The Shelton Board of Education was recently awarded one of four new State Readiness Grants from the Connecticut Departments of Education and Social Services. The grant of $107,000 will go to fund a full-day, full-year preschool program for Shelton children ages 3 to 5.

The purpose of the program is to make affordable preschool available to Shelton families, said Patricia Curran, chair of the School Readiness Council and director of instruction for the Shelton Board of Education.

School board candidates facing big issues
By Christine McCluskey, The Journal Inquirer, November 1, 2007

MANCHESTER - Board of Education candidates have proposed a lot of big ideas over the past several weeks, from an achievement gap task force to report cards for parents, as they hope for a future on a board for which improving student achievement will be more important than ever.

2007-11-08T12:17:00.000-08:00

November 1, 2007

ConnCAN in the News - Television

“Dropout Factories”
WTNH News Channel 8
October 30, 2007

“We're the state with the largest achievement gap in the country which means that we have some students that are performing great and some students whose scores place them near the bottom of the nation.”

Marc Porter Magee is director of research for the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, which just published its study of Connecticut schools. He says there are schools like Troup magnet middle school in New Haven that are closing the gap.

“What it takes to turn it around is a school that organizes itself around catching kids up, around reaching every child.”

(Click on “Click for QuickView” to view the television segments.)

E-Newsletters

Report Review: The State of Connecticut Public Education

By Coby Loup, The Education Gadfly, The Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, November 1, 2007

ConnCAN's second annual report on Connecticut's public schools is pretty gloomy. To start, only a third of minority and low-income students are meeting state goals on the Connecticut Mastery Test, compared with two-thirds of middle-class white students. And the gap is widening.

Although pupils in all subgroups made similar gains on the state test in elementary school last year, by middle school low-income and minority students had fallen behind their white peers. In terms of income, Connecticut's 8th-grade gaps in reading and math are the widest in the country.

Thankfully, a few daisies sprout through the weeds. The state's handful of charter schools, for instance, which serve substantially more minority and low-income students than traditional schools, made greater overall gains on the state test last year.

Newspapers

Handful of city schools among Top 10 for student improvement
By Marie Garriga, The New Haven Register, October 30, 2007

Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, a nonprofit agency dedicated to closing the achievement gap between poor and "non-poor" students, issued its 2007 Report Card on 1,000 Connecticut Schools and a set of Top 10 lists for schools that raise student achievement.

New Haven’s Amistad Academy and Elm City Preparatory School made their usual strong appearance in the Top 10 lists for middle schools. New Haven’s magnet schools, including Lincoln-Basset International Baccalaureate Magnet School and Troup Magnet Academy of Sciences in New Haven, also won spots.

"A number of outstanding educators in a variety of public schools across Connecticut are blazing a trail and delivering dramatic gains in student achievement," said Alex Johnston, ConnCAN’s executive director. "These Top 10 Schools are a great place to start in looking for broader solutions in the effort to close our state’s achievement gap."

Hamilton Ave. among schools rewarded by town firm for significant achievement
By Wynne Parry, Greenwich Times, October 31 2007

Five Fairfield County elementary schools that have made progress erasing gaps in achievement while pushing all students forward were honored last night at an awards ceremony at Norwalk Community College. The top winner was Rogers Magnet Elementary School in Stamford.

Twenty percent of Rogers students improved their standardized test performance to reach the state's goal range from 2006 to 2007, according to the nonprofit group ConnCAN's school report card.

Hamilton Avenue School has had similar success. Four years ago, it was ranked at the bottom among schools in its district, according to Principal Damaris Rau. Now it is ranked third in the state for most improved elementary, according to ConnCAN.

News Articles

'Parent report card' proposal draws national attention, local opposition
By Christine McCluskey, The Journal Inquirer

MANCHESTER - The parent report card proposal Board of Education member Steven "Moose" Edwards outlined last week gained national attention this morning with a feature on NBC's "Today" show.

The point isn't to punish parents, Edwards says, but to identify the families who could most benefit from school-based assistance programs. An example might be extra tutoring for students whose parents can't help with homework, he has said.

But the proposal has generated strong criticism both in Manchester and elsewhere.

It's "absolutely the worst idea I've ever heard," said Democratic school board member Michael E. Pohl, who also is on the ballot next week. Pohl said a parent report card could be used in a custody battle as evidence against a parent and would be unfair to single parents who have to work more than one job.

Official Proposes Grading Parents: Report Cards Pitched For Moms And Dads
By Jim Farrell, The Hartford Courant, October 29, 2007

He knows the experiment quickly failed when it was tried in Chicago seven years ago, but a school board member in Manchester is nonetheless suggesting that his district institute a parent report card program.

Edwards wants parents and guardians to be evaluated in areas that include whether they ensure that their child gets to school on time, with homework completed, and properly nourished and dressed for the weather.

He said the program would not be punitive, but instead would help the district identify struggling parents who might need support.

2007-11-08T12:03:00.000-08:00

October 29, 2007

Opinions and Editorials

Parent-focused Board of Education would be refreshing
By Bill Doak, East Hartford Gazette, October 26, 2007

East Hartford Public Schools have never needed good leadership more. Meetings are racked with bitterness and infighting, tensions at an all-time high, and town schools have never been ranked worse than recently.

This is because the size of the school leadership pie has gotten smaller and smaller. PTOs and PTAs are not producing the school and community leaders like they once did. Board of Education members don't have kids enrolled in the school system, so they are not as immediately aware of what is going on in the rapidly-changing hallways of town schools. Of those running, only Jim McElroy and Dorese Roberts have children in the school system. That's it.

What East Hartford needs - desperately - is quality programs. Quality programs, yes, for the academically talented kid, but quality programs that discover the talents in all.

We need better. The consequence in not electing good leaders? No one is held accountable, standards are ill-defined and the next crop of talented teachers ends up looking anywhere but East Hartford for a job. That, East Hartford, is something we can't allow. And that is how important your vote November 6 is.

News Articles

Education issues spark Torrington debate
By Megan Broderick, The Republican American, October 24, 2007

Torrington High School's 20 percent dropout rate, the need for increased parent involvement in the school system and problems at Torrington Middle School were some of the top issues discussed by Board of Education and mayoral candidates in an education debate Wednesday night.

Consultant begins assessment of East Hartford schools
By Ben Rubin, Journal Inquirer, October 24, 20007

EAST HARTFORD - The state Department of Education this week brought in a consulting group to assess the entire school system, prompted by years of sagging test scores.

The agency will be visiting classrooms and meeting with parents, students, teachers, and administrators in each school system to see what key changes can be made to raise student achievement.

"We really see this as an opportunity to partner with the districts so we can see improvement," Deborah Richards, acting chief of the newly created state education Bureau of Accountability, Compliance, and Monitoring.

More Manchester students attending magnet schools
By Christine McCluskey, Journal Inquirer, October 23, 2007

MANCHESTER - The enrollment of Manchester students in the town's public elementary, middle, and high schools over the past year fell more than projected while enrollment in out-of-town magnet schools jumped by almost 50 percent.

Author: Minority Education Needs Solutions
By Katie Warchut, The Day, October 23, 2007

New London — It's time to stop making excuses when children of color do not achieve, diversity expert Glenn Singleton told an audience of educators and students Monday.

Blaming their families, income, or inability to speak English, he said, is a copout.“Let's talk about race,” Singleton said. “Everything else is just a smokescreen.”

Magnet schools: Attractive enough?
By Andrew Shaw, The Greenwich Time, October 22, 2007

The lack of interest in applying to the magnet school is forcing administrators to consider changes in the program. A committee will examine all facets of the three magnet schools and better monitor student applications. Some advocate not adding more magnet schools until there is a better understanding of what works and what doesn't.

Moms, Dads Urged To Be Stronger Advocates
By Susan Campbell, The Hartford Courant, October 21, 2007

Participants in a Saturday parent advocacy meeting came dressed mostly in their Sunday best, which was fitting because the meeting of the advocacy group CT Parent Power felt like a revival.

CT Parent Power is a 5-year-old grass-roots nonprofit organization, said Tauna Idone, the organization's community coordinator. Members learn to advocate for their children, speak with legislators, rally voters, and encourage other parents to get involved.

2007-11-08T12:00:00.000-08:00

October 22, 2007

Opinions and Editorials

Magnet school aid may need adjusting
The New Haven Register, October 21, 2007

A change in how the state distributes local school aid may jeopardize Connecticut's most successful effort to integrate inner-city schools by attracting suburban students.

The result of the changes in the aid formula mean that New Haven could lose $2 million in the 2008 school year and $4 million in the 2009 school year for its magnet school budget. The city could bill the suburban student's home district, but that district as well as New Haven or other magnet host districts will see a 25 percent drop next year and a 50 percent drop the following year in its main state education grant for each student attending a magnet school.

The result may be, as New Haven fears, that suburban districts will no longer send as many students to city magnet schools because of the loss of state aid. As with charter schools that draw their enrollment from public schools, state aid should follow the student. Taxpayers should not pay twice for a student's education.

News Articles

Board Of Education Faces Challenge Of Closing 'the Achievement Gap'
By Elaine Stroll, The Day, October 21, 2007

New London — Twelve candidates from three political parties are seeking two-year terms on the seven-member Board of Education.

The school board will face a number of important issues in the next two years. The biggest, according to current President Alvin G. Kinsall, is “working toward closing the achievement gap.” Besides seeking an overall increase in test scores, Kinsall said, the school board must address a disparity between the test scores of white students and the lower scores of their black and Hispanic counterparts.

The board also must continue work to lower dropout rates and boost retention and graduation rates, said Kinsall and current board member James Pearce.

Teachers haven't heard last of performance pay proposal
By Andrew Shaw, Greenwich Time, October 21, 2007

The arbitration ruling on Thursday that turned down performance pay for some non-tenured Greenwich teachers led to jubilant responses from state teacher unions, but local and state Boards of Education predict the performance pay issue isn't dead yet.

It was teachers, though, who claimed victory in the first performance pay proposal of its kind in Connecticut. Performance pay was lambasted by the Greenwich Education Association for creating what they believe is a corporate culture inside the classroom, although the Board of Education saw it as a means of attracting top teachers by giving bonuses for good work.

Teachers Agree to Bonus Pay Tied to Scores
By Elissa Gootman, The New York Times, October 18, 2007

The Bloomberg administration and the New York City teachers’ union announced an agreement yesterday on a plan that would give teachers bonuses based largely on the overall test scores of students at schools that have high concentrations of poor children.

The plan, negotiated for months, is a major breakthrough for Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who for years has advocated extra pay to reward high-performing teachers.

In a bow to the union, the bonus money would go to schools for overall performance, and then would be distributed to teachers. The agreement also gave the union something it had long sought: city backing for senior teachers to retire with full pension benefits, five years earlier than they can now.

Special ed teacher certification pushed
By Linda Conner Lambeck, The Connecticut Post, October 18, 2007

BRIDGEPORT — Southern Connecticut State University's program to turn teacher aides here into fully certified special education teachers in a year, at no cost, has yet to reach its full enrollment of 30 participants.

The program is that tough.

Already offered in New Haven and Hartford, the program has yet to attract a full contingent of 30 participants who stick with the program through completion. New Haven has had about 17 complete the program; Hartford, 10.

Panel drops plan to close middle school
By Chris Gosier, The Stamford Advocate, October 19, 2007

The committee, which is exploring ways to reduce overcrowding and socio-economically balance schools, decided yesterday that closing Turn of River Middle School - or any middle school - would not save enough money to justify the disruption to students and families.

The committee also decided merging Westover and Hart magnet elementary schools isn't the best way to balance the two schools' populations.

Those ideas had arisen from the committee's months long discussion about redistricting, or revamping district boundaries so that no schools are crowded and that all have about the same socioeconomic makeup as the entire city.

2007-11-08T11:54:00.000-08:00

October 18, 2007

News Articles

School Redesign Procedure OK'd: Questions Remain About Assignment Of Teachers In Affected Facilities
By Rachel Gottlieb Frank, The Hartford Courant, October 17, 2007

The school board approved a plan Tuesday that roughly lays out the process for redesigning schools that consistently perform poorly, but it left vague questions about what will happen to teachers and other staff at schools that go through transformations.

Under the new policy, Hartford schools that perform substantially below the proficient level for two consecutive years without improvement, or fail to make adequate yearly progress under the No Child Left Behind law for five consecutive years, may be redesigned or their buildings may be used for a different purpose.

A Post-Katrina Charter School in New Orleans Gets a Second Chance
By Joseph Berger, The New York Times, October 17, 2007

Despite the heartbreaking destruction it left behind, Hurricane Katrina created tantalizing opportunities, including the chance of a fresh start for a majority of this city’s schools, which had been among the nation’s worst.

The remedy that officials chose was to turn 40 of the roughly 80 salvaged schools over to state-chartered and state-financed groups of business and community leaders, and to let them provide oversight with fewer of the bureaucratic rules that hobble school leaders. Conversion to charters is a free-market strategy that the Bush administration champions, and in Louisiana it backed its belief with $24 million.

Schools can handle racial achievement gap without task force, Republican candidate says
By, Christine McCluskey, The Journal Enquirer, October 15, 2007

MANCHESTER - A Board of Education candidate says his opponent's proposal for a task force on the racial achievement gap is well-intentioned, but bypasses the ongoing efforts of school-system administrators

"I just think that we have a lot of the experts right in our central office," Moran added.

Schools await OK for improvement plan
By Linda Conner Lambeck, The Connecticut Post, October 15, 2007

The state is withholding $2 million from Bridgeport schools until it can show how it will use the money to improve education. Local school officials submitted a plan to the state late last month, and Supt. of Schools John Ramos met with McQuillan last week.

The commissioner has offered to let the district stagger the assessments. Instead of having a consultant critique 18 schools this year, at a cost of $7,000 apiece, the district can do 12 this year and six next year, said Thomas Murphy a state Department of Education spokesman.

Rollback: School Integration Efforts Face Renewed Opposition; Supreme Court Ruling Sways Milton Battle; Off to Private School
By Joseph Pereira, Wall Street Journal, Oct 11, 2007

Last spring, town officials in this affluent Boston suburb changed the elementary-school assignments for 38 streets -- and sparked outrage. Some white families had been reassigned to Tucker, a mostly black school which has historically had Milton's lowest test scores.

Among those reassigned is Kevin Keating, a white parent who is talking to lawyers about going to court to reverse the plan. I "just don't feel good putting [my son] in an inferior school," he says. His ammunition: the U.S. Supreme Court's June ruling that consideration of race in school assignments is unconstitutional. Without the backing of the Supreme Court, Mr. Keating says his effort wouldn't have "much of a standing."

2007-10-15T16:54:00.000-07:00

Editorials and Opinions

Invest in state's future via higher education
By, Harold C. Wibling, The News-Times, October 14, 2007

Connecticut is poised to make an historic investment in public education as a 10-year capital plan for the state's largest public university system, recently approved by the General Assembly, awaits final action. Unfortunately, it is innocently caught in an unrelated public squabble between the governor and legislature about what should and shouldn't be included on the state's list of bond authorizations.

At a time when the eroding cohort of 20- and 30-year-olds headline virtually every report about Connecticut's population, CSUS graduates are one group that sticks in our state. Thus, improving the education provided by these institutions is clearly an investment in Connecticut's future, the benefits of which will accrue to every resident.

So, just who are these graduates? They are our future teachers (already, two of every three classroom teachers in Connecticut schools graduates from a CSUS university), small business entrepreneurs and bank presidents, directors of nursing and mechanical engineers, chambers of commerce executives and municipal fire chiefs. In the traditional Land of Steady Habits, they are precisely the people who will keep Connecticut steady, our economy growing and our quality of life second to none.

News Articles

Blurring Lines Among Both Students and Subjects
By, Jay Mathews, The Washington Post, October 15, 2007

In three classrooms along a short corridor at Blue Ridge Middle School in Loudoun County, there were several scenes last week of educational convention turned upside down. Lemmert and colleagues Alisa Gladstone and Amy Wood decided last year to experiment with placing honors, regular and special education students in the same rooms, offering a course that unified social studies and English, and encouraging every child to reach higher than before.

Such innovations are uncommon in U.S. public schools, given the old pressure to conform to tradition and the new one to raise standardized test scores. But plenty of teachers still find that if they are seized by an idea, as Lemmert, Wood and Gladstone were, and can convey that passion to supervisors, they have a chance to see what happens when they go in a different direction.

Making Cash a Prize for High Scores on Advanced Placement Tests
By Jennifer Medina, The New York Times, October 15, 2007

The city is expanding the use of cash rewards for students who take standardized tests with a $1 million effort financed by philanthropists who will pay students who do well on Advanced Placement exams.

High school students who get a top score, a five, on the exams will earn $1,000. A score of four will be worth $750, while a three will earn $500.

The A.P. program is intended to increase the number of low-income, black and Latino high school students in New York who take and pass A.P. tests. In city schools, less than 1 percent of black students pass an Advanced Placement exam, according to city data analyzed by the program.

State Lauds Magnet School
By, Jennifer Masi, The Bridgeport News, October 11, 2007

Multicultural Magnet School in Bridgeport has received a Blue Ribbon honor from the federal Department of Education.
The No Child Left Behind Act's Blue Ribbon School designation is considered one of the most prestigious education awards in the country.

Multicultural Magnet was the only Blue Ribbon award recipient in Connecticut and one of only three in New England. Nationwide, 287 schools were honored with a Blue Ribbon.

2007-10-11T13:11:00.000-07:00

Editorials and Op-eds

High Stakes Flim Flam
By Bob Herbert, The New York Times, October 9, 2007

Not only has high-stakes testing largely failed to magically swing open the gates to successful learning, it is questionable in many cases whether the tests themselves are anything more than a shell game.

If teachers, administrators, politicians and others have a stake in raising the test scores of students — as opposed to improving student learning, which is not the same thing — there are all kinds of incentives to raise those scores by any means necessary.

One aspect of the No Child Left Behind law that doesn’t get enough attention is that while it requires states to make progress toward student proficiency in reading and math, it leaves it up to the states themselves to define “proficiency” and to create the tests that determine what constitutes progress.

That’s absurd. With no guiding standard, the states’ tests are measurements without meaning.

Dumbing Education Down
By, Chester E. Finn Jr., The Wall Street Journal, October 5, 2007

So far, so good. But while NCLB circa 2001 is rigidly prescriptive about the "improvement" part, it's vague about where to set the bar. As a result, a fourth grader living in Hamtramck or Pueblo may be judged "proficient" according to Michigan's or Colorado's low standards, yet fail by a mile to match the attainments of his or her peers in Worcester, Mass., or Columbia, S.C., places with far loftier notions of proficiency.

Yet official Washington seemingly lacks the stomach to take this on. The conventional wisdom is that "national standards and tests" are politically taboo because conservatives don't like "national" and liberals don't like standards and testing. The Gates and Broad foundations are spending tens of millions to overturn that taboo during the upcoming election, but few in the 110th Congress seem to be listening.

Nor is anybody ready to tackle the other part of NCLB's core problem: the quest for universal proficiency. No educator in America believes this can be achieved anytime soon, not with 100% of the kids and by any reasonable standard of proficiency. The truth is that boosting our students' proficiency from today's 35% to 70% or 80% would be a transformative accomplishment. But no politician dares say that, lest he instantly be skewered with "which 20% of the kids don't you care about?"

News Articles

Board member will propose 'achievement gap task force' to address learning disparity
By, Christine McCluskey, Journal Inquirer, October 9, 2007

MANCHESTER - After a recent report on this year's Connecticut Mastery Test scores showed racial achievement gaps persisting in Manchester, Board of Education member Geoffrey R. Luxenberg developed a plan he says he will propose at Wednesday night's board meeting.

Luxenberg wants to create a bipartisan "achievement gap task force" that would meet twice a month for a year, receiving testimony from people from around the state who have been successful in narrowing achievement gaps.

The task force would look for proven ways to address the gaps in all subject areas but with a special emphasis on reading, where the gaps widened at some grade levels

Balancing Act for schools: Stamford to use nonracial factors to ensure diversity
By Chris Gosler, The Stamford Advocate, October 11, 2007

The Board of Education has come up with a new plan for assigning students to schools in response to a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling limiting districts' consideration of race in the process.

Administrators will look at three nonracial factors: Whether a student receives free or reduced-price lunches, lives in income-restricted housing or is learning English.

Racial balance plan OK'd for McKinley
By, Andrew Brophy, The Connecticut Post, October 8, 2007

FAIRFIELD — The state Board of Education has approved a plan designed to reduce the percentage of minority students at McKinley School.

McKinley's minority percentage was 41.25 percent in 2006-07, while the districtwide average for elementary schools was 12.51 percent.

The local Board of Education's plan to reduce McKinley's minority percentage gave parents of all McKinley students the option of sending their children to Stratfield, Dwight or Jennings elementary schools, beginning this school year.

Next fall, the plan allows parents of McKinley students who are not doing well academically to send their children to another elementary school, and it also allows parents of students in other elementary schools who are doing well academically to send their children to McKinley.

Puzzling Racial Gap
By, Robert A. Frahm, The Hartford Courant, October 7, 2007

Most educators agree that poverty is a powerful underlying cause of the achievement gap. But as experts look at places like Bloomfield, some say that race and culture - apart from income - appear to influence achievement in ways that are not always easily understood.

But the achievement gap also occurs among minority students in middle-class and wealthy suburbs.

On a 2005 nationwide reading test, the gap between black and white high school seniors whose parents were college graduates actually was larger than the gap between blacks and whites whose parents had not finished high school.

Why?

2007-10-11T12:59:00.000-07:00

ConnCAN in the News

Monitoring Each Student’s Progress Endorsed Over NCLB Strategy
By Audrey M. Marks, The Day, October 5, 2007

Washington — With the No Child Left Behind Act up for reauthorization, New London Superintendent of Schools Christopher Clouet wants Congress to change how education progress is measured without eroding the standards of quality education.

Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., introduced a bill in April that would assess results by tracking the progress of each student through the school system in addition to calculating how well students do as a whole based on the standardized tests. The number of students in advanced placement courses and the dropout rate also would be considered when judging a school's progress.

The Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, an education advocacy group known as ConnCAN, also is endorsing the idea of assessing student progress over multiple years but cautioned that the change shouldn't create more problems with the program.

“We need to be cautious about how we change standards of accountability,” said Alex Johnston, executive director of ConnCAN, in an interview. “We need to be sure we don't create situations where kids can fall through cracks.”

Learning Gaps Sully Our State
By Stan Simpson, The Hartford Courant, October 3, 2007

By now, Connecticut's distinction as the state with the widest academic achievement gap in the country is pretty much common knowledge.

What's not widely known is that the gap between the state's poor and non-poor students and between its white students and their African American and Latino peers is widening.

"If low income students [in Connecticut] did as well as they did in Massachusetts, we'd have the third-smallest achievement gap in the country, instead of the largest," said Alex Johnston, executive director of Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, a statewide organization whose mission is to close the achievement gap.

Magnets: Show Us Results
By, Rick Green, The Hartford Courant, September 28, 2007

Standardized test scores show that magnet schools, however much they make us feel good, aren't altering the overall differences in student performance that leave white children far ahead of minority children in reading, math and writing.

"People have taken their eye off the ball, which is achievement," said Mark Porter McGee, research director for the corporate-funded school reform group ConnCan. "Integrating schools is not by itself a solution to the problem."

Editorials and Op-Eds

The Adomski Gambit
The Hartford Courant, October 8, 2007

Controversial though it may have been, a comment by Hartford Superintendent of Schools Steven Adamowski at a state Board of Education meeting last week points to an underlying change in the nature of the Sheff v. O'Neill dilemma.

The focus of resolving the Sheff case has been on racial balance. Almost nothing is said of economic integration, yet that seems to be an increasing part of the problem.

Public policy should embrace both challenges. The interdistrict magnet schools should be going after suburban kids, white and minority.

Segregation Has to End
By, Elizabeth Horton Sheff and Eugene Leach, The Hartford Courant, October 7, 2007

Eleven years ago, the Connecticut Supreme Court stated an urgent truth: "It is crucial for a democratic society to provide all of its schoolchildren with fair access to an unsegregated education." Progress has been fragmentary and slow, but a great many parents, educators and other citizens remain dedicated to achieving the goal.

That's why it is so troubling to learn that Hartford's school superintendent, Steven Adamowski, apparently doubts the validity of the court's mandate.

Education: A Shared Responsibility
By, Staff, The New Haven Independent, October 7, 2007

Every year New Haven seeks additional well-qualified teachers, especially in areas such as math and science. Let's attract, develop and retain these colleagues. We all can be ambassadors in this -- and for the cause of improving the foundational skill of reading, among people of all ages.

The Independent's series on parents' involvement in education is welcome. Everyone, parents or not, can reinforce the high expectations our community should have for ourselves and our educators, as well as for students.

Accountability for tax dollars is a universal concern. Achievement gaps are, too -- urgency is the right word with kids' futures at stake. New Haven students on average have both significant needs and immense potential.

The Worry Behind The Numbers
The New York Times, October 7, 2007

Connecticut passed a milestone recently: it added enough jobs so that more than 1.7 million residents are now employed, a record. About 16,600 jobs have been added since August of last year.

A closer look at the types of jobs that the state has gained inspires more caution than celebration. Nearly half of all the new jobs added to the Connecticut economy since 2000 are low-paying service jobs, including casino workers, security guards, nursing aides and food service workers.

It seems clear that education is the key to the state’s future prosperity. Connecticut must improve its literacy rates and its K-12 educational system, especially in the cities, home to many of its least-educated residents and poorest, most struggling schools. The state must also strengthen its four-year and community colleges, which will play an increasingly vital role in providing the advanced education that is the true foundation of high-paying jobs. It is a big challenge, one that the employment numbers don’t convey.

Get Congress Out of Our Classroom
By Diane Ravitch, The New York Times, October 3, 2007

DESPITE the rosy claims of the Bush administration, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002 is fundamentally flawed. The latest national tests, released last week, show that academic gains since 2003 have been modest, less even than those posted in the years before the law was put in place. In eighth-grade reading, there have been no gains at all since 1998.

No Child Left Behind can, however, be salvaged if policymakers recognize that they need to reverse the roles of the federal government and the states. In our federal system, each level of government should do what it does best. The federal government is good at collecting and disseminating information. The states and school districts, being closer to the schools, teachers and parents than the federal government, are more likely to be flexible and pragmatic about designing reforms to meet the needs of particular schools.

Our Schools Must Do Better
By, Bob Herbert, The New York Times, October 2, 2007

What’s needed is a wholesale transformation of the public school system from the broken-down postwar model of the past 50 or 60 years. The U.S. has not yet faced up to the fact that it needs a school system capable of fulfilling the educational needs of children growing up in an era that will be at least as different from the 20th century as the 20th was from the 19th.

The first is teacher quality, a topic that gets talked about incessantly. It has been known for decades that some teachers have huge positive effects on student achievement, and that others do poorly. The positive effect of the highest performing teachers on underachieving students is startling.

The second area to be mined for potentially transformative effects is the wide and varied field of alternative school models. We should be rigorously studying those schools that appear to be having the biggest positive effects on student achievement. Are the effects real? If so, what accounts for them?

Education Pitfalls in Standardized Testing
The Wall Street Journal, October 1, 2007

Letters in response to Guy Darst’s September 22 article “Mass Testing”

News Articles

Comment Raises Eyebrows
By Rachel Gottlieb Frank, The Hartford Courant, October 4, 2007

Hartford Superintendent of Schools Steven Adamowski told state officials Wednesday that magnet schools - the cornerstone of ongoing desegregation efforts in the region - are falling short of their goal and that "there is no research to suggest that minority students will do better by sitting next to a white student."

"We're disappointed that it's 2007 and the superintendent wants to debate whether it is a bad thing for Hartford's minority children to be taught in racially segregated schools," said Matthew Collangelo, an attorney with the NAACP Legal Defense Fund who is representing the plaintiffs in the Sheff v. O'Neill desegregation lawsuit.

He said it is the state's job to create both rewards and punishments to encourage what he called suburban "fiefdoms" to engage with Hartford to end racial and economic isolation of city students.

Shake-Up Proposed For Hartford Schools
WFSB, October 3, 2007

HARTFORD, Conn - Superintendent Steven Adamowski offered to the state Board of Education a grim assessment of student achievement, and introduced an ambitious plan for reforms in the school system.

Currently, the Capital City has the greatest achievement gap in the country: Only 30 percent of students make it to their high school graduation.

Adamowski presented the board with two initiatives that would involve change. One option would advocate the state funding a student, not a school, in an all-choice system, meaning that parents can choose where to send their children to school.

A second option Adamowski suggested involves an all-balanced reform that would transform low-performing schools via district intervention, redesign or closure.

College is New Charter School’s Target
By, Linda Conner Lambeck, The Connecticut Post, October, 3, 2007

The city's latest charter school, developed by the creators of Amistad Academy in New Haven, opened Aug. 29.

Principal Debon Lewis said Achievement First Bridgeport Academy has begun to establish a distinctive culture. Students are referred to as scholars.

Grace Mwine, 10, a former Barnum student, said she misses her old school and friends, but is glad she's at the new school. At Barnum, the focus was "on getting us to the next grade. Here, they're focused on getting us to college," she said.

Special Education: When Should Taxes Pay Private Tuition?
By John Hechinger, The Wall Street Journal, October 1, 2007

Today, the U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear arguments to resolve the central question of the case: Must parents of special-education students give public schools a chance before having taxpayers reimburse them for private-school tuition? How the justices respond will have broad implications for school budgets and the movement toward "mainstreaming," or educating disabled children in regular classrooms. Mr. Freston, pledging to donate any proceeds, has said the fight is about principle, not money.

2007-10-11T12:37:00.000-07:00

September Archives

ConnCAN in the News

Special Meeting Requested
By Kevin D. Roberts, The Register Citizen, September 12, 2007

WINSTED – School Board members Cheryl Bartley, Raymond Pavlak and Carmelina Connole signed a letter written by Bartley calling for a special meeting to deal with student achievement. By law, a meeting must be held if three of the board's members sign a request for a special meeting.

Bartley was out of town, so Pavlak read the letter to the board. It cited a report from the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, which stated that Pearson Middle School has been given a performance grade of D- for its 2006 report card. The school ranks 126 out of 134 schools, according to the group's Web site.

The board took a vote about adding Bartley's request to the agenda for discussion, but the motion was defeated unanimously. Molinelli said she will speak at a later date regarding the specifics of the special meeting request.

City SAT scores continue to rise
By Maria Garriga, New Haven Register, September 6, 2007

"While average reading and math scores on the SAT test went down nationally and statewide, New Haven’s scores went up," said Catherine Sullivan-DeCarlo, spokeswoman for New Haven public schools. The combined reading and math SAT scores for New Haven went up 4 points over last year, compared with a 6 point decline for Connecticut and a 4 point decline for the nation, the district reported Wednesday.

Nonetheless, average SAT scores in New Haven Public Schools were drastically lower than those across the nation and state. Connecticut posted an average SAT score of 504 in math, 502 in reading, and 503 in writing. Nationally, 2007 SAT test takers scored an average of 509 in math, 498 in reading, and 488 in writing.

"Certainly compared to the steady declines statewide New Haven looks better than many districts but it also has a lot of ground to close to reach the state average," said Marc Porter Magee, research director for Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, a research and advocacy nonprofit agency that focuses on the achievement gap between students at urban and suburban schools. "The gain was 3 points over two years, so the average annual gain since 2007 is 1.5 points in math and reading. At the rate of increase, from 2007 it would take New Haven 129 years to reach the state average, or the high school class of 2136."

"If our goal is to close the achievement gap, we can’t be satisfied with modest increases," Magee added.

New state education czar focused on achievement gap
By Maria Garriga, New Haven Register, September 2, 2007

State Education Commissioner Mark K. McQuillan has a bashful smile and a rumpled suit. Don’t let that fool you. McQuillan means business. He means to close Connecticut’s achievement gap, the largest in the country, where low-income urban students often lag several grades behind their more affluent suburban peers.

“At one time Connecticut led the nation,” McQuillan said about why he came to Connecticut. “I did see this as a state in transition. We are building an accountability organization. The department is a vehicle for change.”

“Massachusetts is a state that has really taken seriously the task of raising minority and low income student scores,” said Marc Porter Magee, research director for Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, an education research and advocacy group.

News Articles

City Tries to Assess Head Start Program
By Maria Garriga, The New Haven Register, September 17, 2007

Mayor John DeStefano Jr. has requested a report on the effectiveness of the city's Head Start program in closing the achievement gap between urban and suburban students. Superintendent of Schools Reginald Mayo agreed to get the report ready for the mayor, but the request has complications.

Very young children cannot be measured by standardized tests because they may not even understand basic concepts necessary for them to be tested. But educators can and do measure them against child development charts that show how much a child has mastered relative to what should be mastered at his or her age, Tina Mannarino, the city's early childhood education supervisor said.

Critics want changes to No Child Left Behind
By Eileen FitzGerald, The Danbury New Times Live, September 16, 2007

Danbury Associate Superintendent William Glass would like the reauthorization of No Child Left Behind to allow schools the chance to fail in one area of student achievement without being a failure overall and to require improvement but not the absolute increases demanded now.

"It never made sense to have students in special education who have special needs or those who are just learning English to be tested at the same level as their peers,'' Glass said. "Hispanics can be just learning the language. They could be high-achieving in reading and math in their own language but not achieve at proficiency yet in English.''

Connecticut children leading different lives
By Randy James, The Republican American, September 16, 2007

Thanks to strong school performance and high average incomes, a new report ranks Connecticut third in the nation for children's health and well-being.

But away from the state's picturesque towns and wealthier enclaves, the lives of young people are strikingly different. In terms of educational achievement, health, poverty and even plans for the future, the state's 835,000 children live in remarkably different worlds.

Experts give numerous explanations for Connecticut's disparities, including the fact that a small number of residents earn extravagant salaries in finance and other specialized fields requiring high levels of education. Meanwhile, formerly dependable, low-skill jobs continue to dwindle.

Statewide, more than half of urban children live in low-income families — those earning twice the poverty level or less — according to the Connecticut Kids Count project. In the state's suburbs, by contrast, the figure is just 15 percent.

Weston schools reformat reading program
By Terry Castellano, The Weston Forum, September 14, 2007

Weston’s Reading Intervention Program (RIP), available to assist children in grades kindergarten through three, has been reformatted for this school year and utilizes a three-tiered approach.

“The reformatting of the Reading Intervention Program came about after looking at research into ‘best practices’ — what programs and instruction have been shown to provide the best results in education,” said Jerry Belair, assistant superintendent of schools. “Students in need of intervention will now receive more time in reading instruction; they will attend regular classroom reading instruction as well as receive additional instruction during the school day.”

Amistad Plans Schools in Hartford
By Allan Appel, The New Haven Independent, September 12, 2007

Patricia B. Sweet, director of external relations at Achievement First, the umbrella organization that operates Amistad Academy and Elm City Prep, reported that the group has received approval from the state's Department of Education to operate both an elementary and a middle school in Hartford.

"We of course need to line up the funding," Sweet said in a telephone message, "but, yes, Amistad is excited to be part of the revival of the Hartford public school system that is under way through the leadership of the new superintendent Steven Adamoski."

Sweet said that subject to receiving necessary funding from the state and other sources, the new Hartford-based Amistads could be operating as early as next September.

At Weston High School Sophomores 'strong' on CAPT
By Terry Castellano, The Weston Forum, September 12, 2007

Last year’s Weston High School sophomores were described as having a “strong showing” on the 2007 Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT) by Jerry Belair, assistant superintendent of schools.

With more than 99% of the class participating in the testing, Weston scored in the top 10 school districts across the state on each of the four sections of the CAPT. Particularly impressive was Weston’s score on the science section, where 84.5% of the sophomores scored at or above goal, the largest percentage of test-takers to do so statewide.

Looking at the numbers, 79% of Weston students scored at or above goal in mathematics, 76.5% at or above goal in reading, and 82% at or above goal in writing.

School board discusses recruiting minority teachers
By:Christine McCluskey, Journal Inquirer, September 11, 2007

MANCHESTER -Interim Human Resources Director William Brindamour told the Board of Education that of the 45 teachers newly hired for this school year, five, or about 11 percent, are members of minority groups.

Almost half of all Manchester students are members of minority groups. Board members have expressed concern that these students need more role models from their own backgrounds in the schools.

And while teachers throughout the school system receive training on how to work effectively with students from different backgrounds, school officials say more diverse staffs would be another step toward the goal of this training - improving education for minority students.

Groton Board Backs NCLB-improvement Bill
By Katie Warchut, The Day, September 11, 2007

A majority of Board of Education members Monday followed hundreds of school districts across the country in supporting proposed legislation to improve the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

U.S. Rep. Don Young, R-Ark's proposal has provisions that would make sure students tested in more than one subgroup aren't counted multiple times; change subgroup sizes based on school size; give schools a one-year deferral for not making “progress” if only a small number of students fail to score as proficient; and allow different groups to have different rates of increase to reach 100 percent proficiency.

Groton is one of the state's school districts that has been designated as “in need of improvement,” but is on hold this year because it was able to make the required benchmark of progress.

Gianacoplos said it's unfortunate that the district has lost important preschool programs because NCLB sanctions required Groton to redirect funding for professional development.

Most Ledyard Students Below State Reading Average On CAPT
By Jenna Cho, The Day, September 12, 2007

Ledyard — Students here performed below the statewide average in both reading and writing on the CAPT.

Statewide, 45.6 percent of students on average met the state goal in reading. In writing, 49.5 percent of the students here met the state goal, while 52.9 percent statewide met the goal.

Female students in Ledyard significantly outperformed their male counterparts in reading and writing. In reading, 45.6 percent of girls met the state goal, but just 24 percent of boys met it. In writing, 58.9 percent of the girls met state goal, while only 37.7 percent of boys did..

Ed chief says scores show work needed
Bill McDonald, Connecticut Post, September 10, 2007

MILFORD — "We went up in science and reading and down in writing and mathematics," said Law Principal Janet Garagliano, of CAPT test scores that were made available to the district Aug. 30.

"Overall, I'm happy with the scores, but there is room for improvement," said Foran Principal Michael Cummings. Foran's results showed 90.6 per cent proficient in mathematics, 95.1 in science, 85.4 in reading, and 87.2 in writing. Law's proficiency results were: mathematics, 78.8 percent; science, 89.4; reading, 80.

Merit Pay for Teachers Draws Debate
By Nancy Zuckerbrod, The Associated Press, September 10, 2007

The head of the nation's largest teacher's union and a top House Democrat had a testy exchange Monday over the inclusion of merit pay in an updated version of the No Child Left Behind education law.

California Rep. George Miller, chairman of the House education committee, criticized National Education Association President Reg Weaver for rejecting the merit-pay proposal.

The proposal would give bonuses, worth up to $10,000 in most cases, to "outstanding" teachers. The proposal doesn't spell out who would be eligible for the extra money but says raising student test scores must be a factor.

Weaver said that level of detail should be bargained locally, not spelled out by Congress. The NEA has long opposed linking individual student scores to teachers' pay, though many local teachers unions across the country are agreeing to such proposals.

The Greatest Education Lab
By Walter Isaacson, Time Magazine, September 6, 2007

Paul Vallas, the man who took over the troubled school systems of Chicago and then Philadelphia and upended them, stood before a crowd of New Orleans parents in a French Quarter courtyard earlier this summer and offered a promise. "This will be the greatest opportunity for educational entrepreneurs, charter schools, competition and parental choice in America," he said. Call it the silver lining: Hurricane Katrina washed away what was one of the nation's worst school systems and opened the path for energetic reformers who want to make New Orleans a laboratory of new ideas for urban schools .

Mixed Test Results for city’s sophomores
By Chris Gosler, The Stamford Advocate, September 10, 2007

The latest Connecticut Academic Performance Test results show that a quarter to a third of Stamford students met the state goal. In math, 27 percent of students met the goal, and 26 percent in science. In reading, 34 percent of students met the state standard, and 35 percent in writing.

In Stamford, the percentage of students making goal is down at most schools and in most subjects. In one of the biggest drops, students making the writing goal dropped 44 percent to 33 percent at Stamford High School. Stamford fell below the rest of the state in the percentage of students meeting goal this year. Statewide, that figure ranged from 44 percent to 53 percent, depending on the subject, and tended to dip slightly from 2006 to 2007.

Superintendent Joshua Starr said part of the reason is that Stamford is more diverse than other districts. Stamford should be compared to other urban school systems, he said.

State’s Largest Pre-K Gets Underway
By Allan Appel, New Haven Independent, September 10, 2007

Traci Turner-Moore is the education coordinator of the new Pre-K program at the rebuilt Celentano School. New Haven's citywide Pre-K effort -- the state's largest -- begins its first full week Monday. Some 2,100 little people, like three-and-a-quarter year-old Thea and Edmund Bassett, attending 8:30 to 12:30 classes in programs around the city.

The demand for Pre-K slots in general is high throughout the city, particularly in the East Rock area. So the space in the observatory building, which used to be spillover classroom space for the Celentano K-8, was converted to Pre-K use. Turner-Moore said the program has a waiting list.

States Investing More In Pre-K Education
By Julia Silverman, Associated Press, September 5, 2007

Nearly a million children now attend state-funded preschool, up more than a third from five years ago. States are investing $4.2 billion in such programs, an increase of 75 percent since 2005, according to Pre-K Now, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group.

The movement has been buoyed by research showing that the programs are cost-effective, a lure for businesses, and may lead to higher standardized test scores.

Aging state creates unique problems
By Pam Dawkins, Connecticut Post, September 6, 2007

The state's economic development goals, she said, include sustainable growth, more diverse economic development opportunities, an improved quality of life and expanding the state's presence in the global marketplace. Traditional business concerns of regulatory oversight and the cost of being here must be balanced against other concerns, such as sprawl, high housing costs and clogged transportation systems.

The cost of doing business remains the key concern for 76 percent of respondents. However, the availability of qualified workers and rising payroll costs - a lack of trained workers is creating a tighter labor market, so businesses are paying higher wages and benefits to recruit and retain workers - are also troubling survey respondents.

"That is going to be the number one challenge," said Peter M. Gioia, a CBIA vice president and economist, of the lack of qualified, skilled workers. He spoke during the same session as Rodriguez.

Not only do businesses need skilled workers to keep themselves growing, Gioia said, but a shrinking pool of consumers means businesses who sell products or services here will have smaller customer bases.

Consultant to evaluate city schools
By Linda Conner Lambeck, Connecticut Post, September 5, 2007

HARTFORD — A consulting firm with British roots stands to collect up to $825,000 in state Education Cost Sharing money — earmarked for the state's neediest school districts — to make suggestions officials hope will boost student learning and test scores.

Trevor Yates, a vice president for Cambridge, said the firm's work at Columbus has led to improvement in students' reading test scores.

Supt. of Schools John Ramos said Thursday that the Cambridge work is solid and could offer new insights in addition to validating work the district is doing. "We have a good handle on what the issues are. A lot of it is about being empowered to get the work done in a district that is constantly in a tailspin," he said.

'Soul-Searching' Over Test Results—Bloomfield Jolted By Decline In Students' Scores
By Robert A. Frahm and Steven Goode, Hartford Courant, September 1, 2007

"Every adult working in this school district needs to do some soul-searching, including me," Superintendent of Schools David Title said after reviewing results that found that nearly two-thirds, or 65 percent, of 10th-graders failed to meet the high school's proficiency standard on the math portion of the test, for example. Last year, 43 percent missed the proficiency mark.

Title said the low scores, in part, may reflect a chronic achievement gap that finds many minority students in Connecticut and across the nation lagging behind white students in subjects such as reading and math. Minority students, most of them black, account for more than 90 percent of Bloomfield High School's enrollment.

2007-10-11T12:25:00.000-07:00

August Archives

ConnCAN in the News

Achievement gap keeps widening
By Maria Garriga, New Haven Register, August 31, 2007

Half of Connecticut’s 10th-graders reached state goals on the 2007 Connecticut Academic Performance Test, the Department of Education reported Thursday, and the achievement gap dividing Hispanic and black students from their white and Asian peers loomed larger than ever.

“I’m shocked. These are some of the lowest scores I’ve ever seen,” said Marc Porter Magee, research director for the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, a research and advocacy group that focuses on the achievement gap in schools.

“In the Connecticut Mastery Tests, usually about 30 percent of African-American and Hispanic students reach goal. Generally speaking, students lose ground over time so that students in elementary grades get higher scores than students in high school,” Magee said.

Magee said that in some of the major cities, barely any black or Hispanic students reached state goals.

News Articles

Teaching To Make A Difference
By Rick Green, Hartford Courant, August 28, 2007

It's no secret the best graduates don't choose teaching. Emily Barton, a 2004 Yale graduate who oversees teachers working in Connecticut, told me Teach for America is beginning to change career choices for young graduates. This alone is reason enough to support Teach for America.  "We see people making very different career choices as a result of this," Barton said, noting that two-thirds of Teach for America participants stay in education and 200 have risen to become school principals, including Christopher Leone at Hartford's Pathways to Technology Magnet School.  

Schools Fall Short Of Federal Standards
By Robert A. Frahm, Hartford Courant, August 30, 2007

Almost one-third of all public schools in Connecticut landed on a federal government academic warning list today -- a number that is expected to grow even larger as federal standards continue to get tougher, state officials said.  Some schools already have made substantial reforms. Among them is Jumoke Academy, a Hartford charter school that met federal goals for the second year in a row and, as a result, was one of only eight schools to be removed from a list of schools targeted for improvement under the federal law.  Jumoke saw significant improvement over several years after extending the school day, adding Saturday and summer school classes and hiring more experienced teachers, said Michael Sharpe, the school's chief executive officer.

SAT Achievement Gap Stays Wide
By Robert Frahm, Hartford Courant, August 29, 2007

Record numbers of black and Hispanic high school students in Connecticut and elsewhere are taking the SAT college entrance exam - but some are also looking for colleges that no longer require the test.  In part, that is because many continue to lag far behind white and Asian students, according to annual results released Tuesday by the College Board.  Both state and national results showed a slight decline this year in most scores, with the achievement gap for black and Hispanic graduates remaining one of the nation's most difficult problems in education.

Fifth-Graders Get “Amistadized”
By Allan Appel, New Haven Independent, August 29, 2007

"Welcome to one of the best performing schools in the state of Connecticut," so Amistad Academy director Matt Taylor greeted some of the fifth graders and their parents who reported for their first-day at the award-winning charter school. In smart t-shirts and khakis, some as crisp as the fine 7:15 a.m. air, the kids lined up for what staff calls "Amistadization."

That is, a half day's orientation on how to wear the uniform (shirt always tucked in, belt buckle facing front); how to recognize and respect all teachers and address them (always Mr. or Ms.); how to stand in lines (always straight, never "snakes"); how to address staff and each other (always with direct eye-contact); and, most importantly, to learn what is expected of them during the coming year.

Average SAT Scores Fall in Nation, Connecticut
Staff and Wired Reports, Norwich Bulletin, August 29, 2007

In Connecticut, average scores among the approximately 29,000 public school students who took the SAT declined for the second consecutive year in reading and math, and also dipped in writing.

About 80 percent of Connecticut's public school students took the exam, placing it fourth in participation nationwide.

"While our strong participation rate demonstrates a growing number of students with aspirations for college, we are concerned about the decline in scores," state Education Commissioner Mark K. McQuillan said.

Congressman Offers Revisions to ‘No Child’
By Jay Mathews, Washington Post, August 28, 2007

The leading House Democrat on education issues proposed revisions yesterday to the No Child Left Behind law that would ease the penalties for public schools that barely miss academic testing targets but tighten another rule that has helped the District and Virginia.

The proposal would allow states to use more than annual tests in reading and math to rate schools; give credit to states for students who are projected to reach proficiency within three years; and require states to test certain students with limited English skills in their native language. For some schools that fall only slightly short of academic targets, the proposal would also lift requirements to provide after-school tutoring and let students transfer to better schools.

2007-09-27T19:34:00.000-07:00

ConnCAN in the News

State's scores stable as others rise
By, Maria Garriga, New Haven Register, September 26, 2007

Connecticut students, whose scores this year on a national test administered by the National Assessment for Educational Progress left national averages in the dust, but improved little over state children who took the test in 2005.

The Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, an education research and advocacy group, concluded NAEP results showed Connecticut's achievement gap has grown although it was already the widest in the nation. Research Director Marc Porter Magee said the gap in reading between poor and "non-poor" fourth-graders grew from 3.3 to 3.8 grade levels, and in math from 2.6 to 3 grade levels. In eighth grade, the achievement gap in reading grew from 2.9 to 3. In math, however, the achievement gap among eighth-graders shrank from 3.7 to 3.6.

Mayor Takes On School Critics
By Paul Bass, New Haven Independent, September 24, 2007

Who should meet with whom? That's one unresolved question in a testy exchange of letters between local education reformers and the mayor and schools superintendent.

The exchange is the latest chapter in ongoing tensions growing out of criticism of the city's school system by a New Haven-based advocacy group called Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now (ConnCAN). Mayor DeStefano accuses the group of being basically a front for charter schools. The group calls itself a constructive independent voice for closing the achievement gap through better-performing schools of all kinds.

Is ConnCAN failing to offer constructive criticism? Or can the school system's leaders not accept constructive criticism?

News Articles

Schoolkids Post Modest Gains In National Test; NAEP Scores Are Up Since '05, But Persistent Gaps Fuel Fight Over No Child Left Behind
By John Hechinger, The Wall Street Journal, September 26, 2007

Yesterday, the National Assessment of Educational Progress, or NAEP, administered by the U.S. Department of Education, showed an increase in math and reading achievement among U.S. fourth- and eighth-graders from 2005 to 2007.

Supporters of No Child Left Behind immediately hailed the results as showing the success of the law, which is up for renewal this year and aims to bring students from all backgrounds up to minimum education standards. But despite improving performance among most racial groups, the lagging performance of minority students, often called the "achievement gap," persisted from past years. In addition, despite some improvement in math scores since No Child Left Behind took effect in 2002, reading results among eighth-graders have actually declined since then. Those results give ammunition to those who want to change the federal education law.

Jack Jennings, president of the Center on Education Policy, a nonpartisan think tank in Washington, pointed out that NAEP scores have been improving for more than 15 years. In a fact sure to be cited by opponents of No Child Left Behind, Mr. Jennings noted that gains were sharper immediately before the law took effect than afterward. "That finding is going to be one of the most explosive," he said.

New Haven Launching 4 New Magnets
By Allan Appel, The New Haven Independent, September 26, 2007

The Board of Ed received word late Tuesday that it has received a three-year $6-7 million grant to help create one new magnet school and convert three other schools to magnets.

One of those, Ross/Woodward, is going to have the classics as a theme. The two other schools, Beecher and John Daniels, will have museum studies and international learning and Spanish language for all students, respectively, as themes. The grant will also help to underwrite the creation of a new school, the University of New Haven Science and Engineering High School,

Math Scores Rise, but Reading Is Mixed
By, Sam Dillon, The New York Times, September 26, 2007

America’s public school students are doing significantly better in math since the federal No Child Left Behind law took effect in 2002, but gains in reading achievement have been marginal, with performance declining among eighth graders, according to results of nationwide reading and math tests released Tuesday.

The results also showed that the nation had made only incremental progress in narrowing historic gaps in achievement between white and minority students, a fundamental goal of the federal law.

Legislators considering bill that would mandate later school start date
By, Robin Walluk, The Wilton Bulletin, September 24, 2007

“In recent years state guidelines regarding the school year have been blurred beyond recognition to allow the mandatory 180 days, interrupted by everything from professional development days to the prospect for bad weather, and it’s gotten to the point where more direction is needed,” said Mr. Gaffey in a press release. “I’d like the school calendar to be adjusted and integrated to have uniformity statewide.”

“In light of the many serious issues facing education today, I am surprised to learn that the Connecticut General Assembly would take time to focus on mandating a start date for schools,” Dr. Richards said. “I would respectfully submit that their time would be better spent on addressing issues such as the growing shortage of teachers, the need to prepare students for life in a rapidly changing world and the school facilities challenges in the state of Connecticut.”

Legislators representing Wilton don’t agree with Mr. Gaffey’s assessment.

Cross Country: Mass. Testing
By, Guy Darst, The Wall Street Journal, September 22, 2007

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick’s biggest surprise is a planned overhaul of what is probably the nation's best public school system -- a reform effort he calls his "Readiness Project." He has asked for reports on 66 proposals ranging from making school days longer to dropping tuition in community colleges. The fear is that he's about to emasculate testing requirements put in place more than a decade ago.

Back in the 1992-93 school year, the Bay State instituted rigorous testing requirements, including exams 10th-graders must pass in order to graduate from high school. Massachusetts students usually do well on the exams of the National Assessment of Educational Progress. But fourth-graders and eighth-graders in the past two years came in first, or statistically tied for first, in both English and mathematics on the NAEP. No state had ever done that.

The anti-testers, however, aren't happy. "In states throughout the country, student assessment is done with multiple measures including course work, projects, in-depth study and grades, along with standardized test scores," two of them wrote earlier this year. Gov. [Deval Patrick] insists he supports MCAS as one measure of achievement. In announcing his "Readiness Project" in June, he said, "Being ready means public education that is about the whole child, not just success on a single standardized test." That's the kind of language that can be code for junking standardized tests.

2007-09-24T11:48:00.000-07:00

News Articles

Officials call for more regional efforts
By, Genevieve Reilly, Connecticut Post, September 19, 2007

TRUMBULL - Most of the mayors and first selectmen agreed that regional cooperation between their communities could play a role in equalizing the educational opportunities between urban and suburban schools.

The bigger responsibility for educational equity, however, said Trumbull First Selectman Raymond G. Baldwin Jr., lies with the state. "Each town not only competes economically, but also for education dollars from the state," he said, and that needs to be corrected by the state General Assembly.

Corda Outlines Systemic Effort to Improve Schools
By Teresa Errico, Norwalk Citizen News, September 20, 2007

Superintendent of Schools Salvatore Corda on Tuesday outlined for the Board of Education the efforts being made to improve student performance district-wide.

Corda reviewed the seven plans set up for the district, along with the Board of Education's goals, that focus on the instruction core of the school system and the interaction between the teachers and students.

All three of the city's high schools, all four of its middle schools and five of its 12 elementary schools have been identified as "in need of improvement" under the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, based on student performance on the 2007 Connecticut Mastery Test and Connecticut Academic Performance Test. The district also is in need of improvement, according to a state Department of Education report released Aug. 30.

To help the district improve, each of the schools and the central office will be participating in a quality review program guided by the Cambridge Education Group, Corda said.

Public input sought on state school funds
By Bill McDonald, Connecticut Post, September 20, 2007

MILFORD — The Milford Education Funding Committee, studying ways to get more state aid, wants to involve the public through an education forum in November.

"The public should have an idea what's involved," said Joan Politi, chairwoman of the committee formed by the Board of Aldermen. "We hope to have an education forum with the PTA's help in November."

Politi noted Milford is expecting $10.3 million in ESC funding for the 2007-08 fiscal year, which was $430,000 more than received the previous fiscal year.

"That's 4 percent," she said. "We still don't feel it's meeting our needs. We're going to try to advocate for more."

Education and Schools Are a Focus for Edwards
By Julie Bosman, The New York Times, September 22, 2007

DES MOINES - Speaking at Brody Middle School here, the Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards outlined a plan that he said would evaluate students more effectively, reduce class sizes and reward teachers who work in high-poverty schools with up to $15,000 in incentive pay, initiatives similar to those championed by education officials in New York City and elsewhere.

He also called for universal preschool, the creation of a national university that would become a “West Point for teachers” and an initiative that uses what he described as “education SWAT teams” to sweep in and rebuild failing schools.

Diversity dilemma Parents, RISE committee disagree over influence of race on options
By, Andrew Shaw, The Greenwich Time, September 23, 2007

As Greenwich considers adding magnet programs they hope will scatter children of different races across the district, some white parents have spoken out against underperforming, non-English speaking students coming to their child's school and taking attention away from their child.

Supporters of the Board of Education's task force, which is examining racial imbalance, say that the comments of those parents are actually bigoted remarks veiled in the language of requests to preserve a neighborhood school system the state says is racially segregated.

As of Oct. 1, 2006, 168 minority students attended Hamilton Avenue and 119 attended New Lebanon, compared to Old Greenwich, which had 19 minority students last year, according to the most recent data available.

2007-09-21T10:04:00.000-07:00

News Articles

City's schools enter top 5 for Broad prize
By Peter Urban, The Connecticut Post, September 19, 2007

Bridgeport was one of five finalists for the 2007 Broad Prize for Urban Education, a national competition to reward urban school districts that demonstrate the greatest overall performance and improvement in student achievement.

As a finalist, the city's schools will receive $125,000 from the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation that will go to high school seniors for college scholarships. Bridgeport was also a finalist last year and divided the $125,000 prize among 14 deserving students, Ramos said.

The city's schools also narrowed the achievement gap between Hispanic students and the state average for white students in reading and math at all grade levels. Bridgeport was also recognized for engaging the local business community in the education process.

Magnet schools rank as top option
By Andrew Shaw, The Greenwich Time, September 19, 2007

The Board of Education's task force ranked adding two magnet programs as the most viable solution to fixing racial imbalance, space use and declining enrollment, according to an unofficial poll of members yesterday.

In the unofficial hand count, 19 members voted that adding two magnet programs -- likely at New Lebanon and Glenville Schools -- would be the best option. Ten other members voted it the second best option.

The board will make a decision on what action they want to take on Oct. 25 at their regular meeting, held at 7 p.m. at Parkway School. The first phase of any plan would not begin to be implemented until the next budget cycle.

Support Grows for Teacher Bonuses: More Schools Offer Performance Pay as House Debates Issue
By Michael Alison Chandler, Washington Post, September 18, 2007

A movement gaining momentum in Congress and some school systems in the Washington region and beyond would boost pay for exceptional teachers in high-poverty schools, a departure from salary schedules based on seniority and professional degrees that have kept pay in lockstep for decades.

In the District, a five-year, $14 million federal grant is fueling a pilot program to reward teachers and principals in a dozen high-poverty public schools each year that achieve the strongest gains in test scores and share successful strategies with others. Details are being worked out by the city school system, the local teachers union and a partner organization, New Leaders for New Schools.

Alabama Plan Brings Out Cry of Resegregation
By Sam Dillon, The New York Times, September 17, 2007

After white parents in this racially mixed city complained about school overcrowding, school authorities set out to draw up a sweeping rezoning plan. The results: all but a handful of the hundreds of students required to move this fall were black — and many were sent to virtually all-black, low-performing schools.

Black parents have been battling the rezoning for weeks, calling it resegregation. And in a new twist for an integration fight, they are wielding an unusual weapon: the federal No Child Left Behind law, which gives students in schools deemed failing the right to move to better ones.

The schools superintendent and board president, both white, said in an interview that the rezoning, which redrew boundaries of school attendance zones, was a color-blind effort to reorganize the 10,000-student district around community schools and relieve overcrowding. By optimizing use of the city’s 19 school buildings, the district saved taxpayers millions, officials said. They also acknowledged another goal: to draw more whites back into Tuscaloosa’s schools by making them attractive to parents of 1,500 children attending private academies founded after court-ordered desegregation began.

Tuscaloosa’s rezoning dispute, civil rights lawyers say, is one of the first in which the No Child Left Behind law has become central, sending the district into uncharted territory over whether a reassignment plan can trump the law’s prohibition on moving students into low-performing schools. A spokesman, Chad Colby, said the federal Education Department would not comment.

2007-08-20T10:44:00.000-07:00

ConnCAN in the News

Some Hope on Closing the Achievement Gap in Stamford
By Chris Gosier, Stamford Advocate, August 20, 2007

The achievement gap between groups of public school students persists, but it has changed in ways that offer hope, according to the latest Connecticut Mastery Test scores.Marc Porter Magee, spokesman for ConnCAN, a nonprofit advocacy group, said he's encouraged by the example of Scofield Magnet Middle School, a high-achieving school that also has a small achievement gap. Scores of minorities at high-achieving schools often mirror the lower scores of those groups districtwide, he said.

Teachers and culture at a school make a big difference, Magee said.

"A lot of these schools have a school culture that's about no excuses," he said. "It's amazing the power that that kind of culture can have. Some teachers are just really good at catching kids up."

News Articles

Achievement Gap Strategy Tops School Board Agenda
By Alexandra Fenwick, Stamford Advocate, August 20, 2007

NORWALK - The Board of Education will tackle a busy back-to-school agenda tomorrow at its last meeting before classes begin Aug. 29.The biggest item on the agenda is a presentation by Superintendent Salvatore Corda on the district's Instructional Plan - the blueprint for closing the achievement gap between white and minority students, board Chairwoman Jody Bishop-Pullan said.

The plan, adopted in 2001, is "always evolving," she said. It identifies goals such as emphasizing language arts and math, and focusing on the 25 percent lowest-performing students.

Law Helps Fill Magnet School Seats
By Eileen FitzGerald, Danbury News Times, August 20, 2007

A new state law will allow magnet schools to enroll students directly once participating school districts fill the seats they wanted.

Until now, local boards of education had to agree to enroll students in magnet schools, which are schools with themes meant to bring together students from various communities to reduce racial isolation.

The state still is working out the details of the new law, which took effect July 1.

"What the law is doing is taking the option of attending the magnet school and giving it to the parents," said William Magnotta, the state's program manager for the magnet schools.

Schools Can Manage Loss of Aides
By Chris Gosier, Stamford Advocate, August 15, 2007

STAMFORD - Superintendent Joshua Starr laid out educational assistant staffing figures for the coming school year yesterday, telling the Board of Education that staff cuts in that area will not hurt instruction.The district will have 28 fewer special-needs educational assistants this fall, under current projections, because of various fiscal pressures.
Administrators have found areas where the schedule could be tightened up so the assistants' time could be used more efficiently, he said. or instance, some assistants were assigned to a student for two hours a day but not for the remaining four hours in their workday.

ACT Scores Continue Modest Upward Trend for Class of 2007
By Justin Pope, Wilton Villager, August 15, 2007

The high school class of 2007 posted a modest increase on the ACT college entrance exam, extending the test's upward scoring trend and showing improved levels of preparation for college.

Still, the results highlight the persistent gap between the preparation levels of high school graduates and the skills they need to do well in college. Only 23 percent of test-takers met a benchmark score that indicates readiness in a range of introductory, core college courses.

The national average ACT composite score rose from 21.1 last year to 21.2 _ on a scale of 1 to 36 _ extending its recent pattern of slight but noticeable increases.

The ACT says one-year trends are not necessarily meaningful, but that the average scoring increase of 0.4 points since 2003 is significant, considering 1.3 million of this year's high school graduates took the test.

Fairfield Oks Plan to Shift Students
By Andrew Brophy, Connecticut Post, August 14, 2007

FAIRFIELD — The Board of Education voted 6-2 Tuesday night to approve a voluntary plan that is designed to reduce the number of minority students at McKinley School.

"I think Fairfielders are ready for a plan based on choice. I think this is a long time coming," said school board Chairman Dave Weber.

All McKinley parents will be given the choice of sending their children to another elementary school in September. If more than 25 children want to leave McKinley, a lottery will be held to select 25.

Parents Not Happy With Options Given by Hamden School
By Annie Rourke, WTNH, August 14, 2007

Hamden (WTNH) _ A charter school is trying to re-emerge with a new, clean image but its choice for a new school site is being marred once again by controversy.
Many parents News Channel 8 spoke to simply hadn't made up their minds about whether they want to continue to send their kids to the Highville Charter School in Hamden. The board needs 250 students to be registered in order to get funding from the state.

"We have to get current students registered and anyone who wants to come registered or we will not have our charter renewed," says Chip Croft of Highville Charter School.

2007-08-09T10:31:00.000-07:00

ConnCAN in the News

Analysis contends state achievement gap remains
By Maria Garriga, New Haven Register, August 9, 2007

NEW HAVEN — The latest analysis of Connecticut’s mastery test scores shows the education achievement gap between urban and suburban schools has not budged over the past two years.

The Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, a nonprofit education advocacy and research agency, released its analysis last month which showed the average gap has stagnated between white and black students at 38.9 percent, and at 39.1 percent between white and Hispanic students. Math scores for Hispanic eighth-graders were the second lowest in the United States, said Marc Porter Magee, the agency’s research director.

“We have not made our best efforts,” Magee said. “The biggest problem is that we have great schools, but we don’t allow them to expand,” he said, in reference to the state’s restrictions on charter school growth. He also said it’s time for Connecticut’s non-performing schools to either improve or be shut down. “One of the hardest things to do is shut down a school that is not performing,” Magee added. The coalition has also been pushing hard for universal highquality preschool for urban children.

Charter School Groups Ups The Ante On Scores
By Maria Garriga, New Haven Register, August 7, 2007

NEW HAVEN — City charter schools run by Achievement First, including the trail-blazing Amistad Academy, again beat many of their own standardized scores with a majority of students reaching or exceeding state averages on the 2007 Connecticut Mastery Tests.

Amistad eighth-graders received top scores in math in the New Haven district, but took second place to Worthington Hooker School in reading and writing, according to Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, an education research and advocacy nonprofit agency.However, Amistad students are nearly all from low-income households, compared with only 16 percent of students at Worthington Hooker.

In math, students showed massive progress over their own scores last year: 73 percent of the 2007 eighth-graders at Amistad scored at goal, compared to 40 percent in 2006 when they were seventh-graders.

"This is another year in which Achievement First Schools have been consistent in doubling the number of students at state goal from district levels," said Marc Porter Magee, the coalition's research director.

Opinions and Editorials

CMT scores show areas of concern
Editorial, Connecticut Post, August 2, 2007

Although there's no direct correlation, there is a sense of irony that in a year when the General Assembly approved a large infusion of new state aid to communities for public education, the results of the 2007 Connecticut Mastery Test showed a continued decline in student reading scores. All that new state aid definitely is needed.

State education officials are worried by the results of the latest CMT because the percentage of students in the state meeting goal and proficiency levels in reading remained flat or decreased. There was statewide improvement, however, in writing and math, especially in some grades with scores up 5 percentage points.

All public school students in grades three through eight must take the CMT tests each spring and they offer a snapshot of the health of public education in the state.

The CMT is just one barometer for measuring progress by students, but it is a key gauge on how schools are meeting the demands of the federal No Child Left Behind law.

No doubt, this year's CMT results will lead to calls from some quarters that increased state funding is not the solution to improving student skills and narrowing the widening achievement gap between urban and suburban school districts and minority and non-minority students.

We don't buy that argument. Poor urban centers such as Bridgeport, New Haven and Hartford remain strapped for revenues and have their ability to spend on education limited by their tax bases.

A Vote for “No Child”
Washington Post, 08/07/07

Blaming No Child Left Behind for failures of public education seems to be in vogue these days. The Bush administration act, which mandates measurement of public school performance, is a favorite whipping boy of interest groups and the politicians who cater to them. So it was refreshing to hear a leading liberal Democrat speak passionately about his commitment to this landmark law. More important was the promise by Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), who heads the House education committee, to fight for the bill's reauthorization this year.

Mr. Miller's leadership, and that of Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) in the Senate, will be key if the gains of No Child Left Behind are to be sustained and extended. In a speech last week, Mr. Miller made clear his intention to move a bill next month. If Congress doesn't act this year, prospects will dim as the law, already under attack from both right and left, bogs down in presidential politics. The law probably would continue under an automatic one-year extension, but lost would be the chance to make improvements essential to its long-term viability.

News Articles

Elementary School May Be Closed
By Robert Frahm, Hartford Courant, August 8, 2007

Barnard-Brown School in downtown Hartford would close as an elementary school next year and undergo renovations as the new site for Capital Preparatory Magnet School under a recommendation announced Tuesday.

A Hartford school board committee selected Barnard-Brown in part because of its proximity to Capital Community College, where Capital Preparatory shares space in the former G. Fox department store, a downtown landmark at 950 Main St.

Barnard-Brown, at 1304 Main St., is within walking distance of the college and would allow Capital Preparatory to maintain its relationship with the community college, including an arrangement under which Capital Preparatory's students can take college-level courses.

Clouet Vows To Improve NL's CMT Reading Scores
By Jenna Cho, New London Day, August 9, 2007

New London — New London public schools have seen improvements in Connecticut Mastery Test results in math and writing, but reading scores have remained flat over the past seven years.

It's something the district is intent on changing.

“We're not happy with the results, and we're not just sitting around saying, 'Oh, my God, the ship is sinking,'” Superintendent of Schools Christopher Clouet said.

He said the school district has a plan. Last year, the district implemented changes to the reading curriculum that included aligning all the elementary schools' reading curriculums into one uniform reading program for kindergarten through third grade and another for fourth and fifth grades.

The new curriculums are still getting their “sea legs,” Clouet said, and need time to yield results.

Dodd proposes free community college education for every American
Norwich Bulletin, August 9, 2007

U.S. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, D-Conn., said Wednesday that there can be no higher priority in America today than insuring that every American has the best educational opportunities without worrying about the cost.

Dodd, visiting Manchester Community Technical College in New Hampshire, unveiled a portion of his education proposal, calling for increase student aid - and free college tuition at community colleges across the country.

Dodd will unveil the remaining portion of his sweeping education proposal, those affecting kindergarten through high school, in a speech to the New Hampshire chapter of the National Education Asociation tomorrow.

Dodd is making his 16th visit to the Granite State since declaring his candidacy for the presidency in November. The Manchester stop was the first on a four-day swing through the state.

2007-07-26T08:28:00.000-07:00

ConnCAN in the News

Joe pushes for renewal, expansion of 'No Child'
By Maria Garriga, New Haven Register, July 26, 2007

U.S. Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman, I-Conn., who championed the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act in education, plans to introduce a bill Wednesday that would reauthorize the law while making sweeping changes that increase accountability measures and close loopholes.

The reauthorization, billed All Students Can Achieve, calls for teachers to be evaluated based on how much students learn, expands use of data analysis to track individual student progress over time, introduces voluntary national education standards, sets up state committees on curriculum quality, and closes loopholes in the law that permit states to not count special categories of students if they fall below certain numbers.

...

"Lieberman is taking a leadership role in getting NCLB reauthorized. One of the great frustrations with NCLB is that it labels schools as failing but doesn't do much beyond that. He is putting more tools on the table for better public schools," said Marc Porter Magee, spokesman forConnecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, also known as ConnCAN, an education advocacy and research group.

News Articles

Yale Opens Labs To City High-Schoolers
Georgia Kral, New Haven Independent, July 26, 2007

These Career High seniors are experimenting with biotechnology this summer. In a Yale laboratory they mix bacterial cells with bioluminescent jellyfish cells, manipulating the genetics of an organism.

The students participate in the SCHOLAR (Science Collaborative for Hands-On Learning and Research) program, which awards top Career High School science students with the opportunity to study for free at Yale for three weeks in the summer- and to live on campus.

"It's nice to do stuff that most kids don't get to do," said Stephan Cunningham, a senior.

The SCHOLAR program began 10 years ago when Forrest Lee led a group of educators to New Orleans' Xavier University, a leader in science education. Lee as well as magnet research teachers Rose Coggins (the new principal of Wilbur Cross High School) and Michael Curaso (current principal of Career) worked with Xavier to devise a science summer program.

Group: Math, Reading Time Up at Schools
By The Associated Press, New York Times, July 25, 2007

WASHINGTON (AP) -- U.S. students are spending more time on math and reading and less on other subjects, an apparent consequence of the No Child Left Behind law.

Roughly two-thirds of elementary schools surveyed by the nonpartisan Center on Education Policy reported increasing math and reading time since the law was passed in 2001.

The law requires annual testing in reading and math in grades three through eight and once in high school. Schools face sanctions if they miss testing benchmarks.

''Clearly what this is showing is, what schools are held accountable for is what they put the emphasis on,'' said Jack Jennings, president of the Washington-based center.

The report, being released Wednesday, says that of the districts reporting an increase, elementary schools are spending on average 37 minutes more per day on reading, math or both since the law was passed.

Union-Friendly Maverick Leads New Charge for Charter Schools
By Sam Dillon, New York Times, July 24, 2007

LOS ANGELES — Steve Barr, a major organizer of charter schools, has been waging what often seems like a guerrilla war for control of this city's chronically failing high schools.

In just seven years, Mr. Barr's Green Dot Public Schools organization has founded 10 charter high schools and has won approval to open 10 more. Now, in his most aggressive challenge to the public school system, he is fighting to seize control of Locke Senior High, a gang-ridden school in Watts known as one of the worst in the city. A 15-year-old girl was killed by gunfire there in 2005.

In the process, Mr. Barr has fomented a teachers revolt against the Los Angeles Unified School District. He has driven a wedge through the city's teachers union by welcoming organized labor — in contrast to other charter operators — and signing a contract with an upstart union. And he has mobilized thousands of black and Hispanic parents to demand better schools.

Educators and policy makers from Sacramento to Washington are watching closely because many believe Green Dot's audacious tactics have the potential to strengthen and expand the charter school movement nationwide.

2007-07-23T10:29:00.000-07:00

News Articles

Senate Approves Major Overhaul of the Federal Student Aid Program

By Diana Jean Schemo, New York Times, July 20, 2007

WASHINGTON, Friday, July 20 — The Senate approved a major overhaul of federal student aid early today, cutting taxpayer subsidies to student lenders by more than $18 billion and funneling most of the money into increasing federal grants for low- and middle-income students and easing repayment terms on federal loans.

The bill passed by a bipartisan majority of 78 to 18 after the vote was temporarily delayed by a flurry of largely unrelated amendments, a reflection of the lingering rancor over the debate on Iraq this week. The House passed its version of the legislation last week, and the differences must now be reconciled.

The White House, which had threatened to veto the House bill, had a more measured response to the Senate’s version, objecting mainly to provisions that ease repayment of only some loans and grant loan forgiveness for public service employees. But the administration said it expected to “resolve these issues through the legislative process.”

Parents Graduate

By Melinda Tuhus, New Haven Independent, July 23, 2007

Marc Palmieri had a clear message on the last day of the New Haven Public Schools’ Summer Parent Training Institute: parenting is hard, and you deserve a meaningful partnership with school personnel to make a success of it.

He said it’s important to focus on a child’s strengths when speaking to parents, but not to neglect discussing areas that need improvement. Too often, he said, teachers gloss over a student’s weaknesses, perhaps hoping not to offend a parent — which hurts the student in the long run. James Moye, father of eight children (pictured with Patti Avallone, Title I supervisor who runs the training), said that was unacceptable. “Our children are the primary purpose of why we’re here. It’s about keeping it real with them. They want to hear the truth."

Cross Has New Principal, As Fonzi Goes Downtown

By Allan Appel, New Haven Independent, July 23, 2007

The woman in this picture has the second toughest job in the New Haven Public Schools (NHPS) system, according to its superintendent. The man standing next to her has just left that position to come work downtown in the central NHPS administration and in his spare time to pursue his movie actor career.

Rose Coggins is the newly appointed principal at Wilbur Cross High School. Bob Canelli, leaving there after four years, will become the new supervisor of magnet schools. They were among dozens of new appointments and transfers of administrators and teachers announced at a Friday afternoon Board of Education meeting.

Teens Thrilled With Online Summer School

Associated Press, New York Times, July 23, 2007

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (AP) -- When Scott Landry flunked a math class in his Townsend high school this year, he was told he would not make it into the 10th grade unless he went to summer school.

So how was the 14-year-old starting his third week of a summer algebra class?

''I'm going skateboarding and hanging out with my friends,'' he said.

With a growing number of schools around the country allowing students to take classes and make-up credits online, summer school's punitive reputation is slipping. And more students are finding they need not miss out on summer camp, vacation or jobs.

First lady, education secretary to visit Waturbury

By Randy James, Waturbury Republican-American, July 21, 2007

WATERBURY — The city will roll out the red carpet for first lady Laura Bush and the nation's top education official next week. Bush and U.S. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings will visit Driggs School on Tuesday to announce a grant to improve school libraries. The event at Driggs, 77 Woodlawn Terrace, is scheduled for 10:45 a.m.

"It's a real boost to the psyche of the city," Mayor Michael J. Jarjura said.

Logistical details have not been announced, but no road closures are expected. A school leader said the grant will give the school system $299,000 to improve libraries.

Opinions and Editorials

Alternative ed needs stable situation

Stamford Advocate Editorial, July 22, 2007

Stamford's legal obligation to educate does not end when a high school student is suspended, expelled or has disciplinary, behavioral, psychological or medical problems. But the method of delivery can change. Stamford's Alternative Routes to Success program sometimes is called in to teach these students one-on-one or in small-group settings. The hope is that these students can continue to learn without disrupting classmates at one of the city's other high schools.

2007-07-19T09:27:00.000-07:00

News Articles

Court Allows State to Take Control of Charter School

By Robert A. Frahm, Hartford Courant, July 13, 2007

State officials went to court Thursday to seize control of a charter school that has compiled a strong academic record despite accusations that its director used thousands of dollars in school funds for personal expenses.

The decision to try to save the Highville Mustard Seed School in Hamden came after a group of parents convinced Attorney General Richard Blumenthal that their children have thrived there, and that the school should stay open.

Hartford Superior Court Judge James Graham granted the state's request in what Blumenthal called an unprecedented step designed to "stop the cronyism and corruption and internal conflict" that threatened to undermine the state-funded school.

Race-based Racketeering in public schools

By Lewis M. Andrews, Waterbury Republican-American, July 16, 2007

As public educators continue to come under fire for failing to improve mediocre schools, those with a vested interest in the status quo increasingly mask their self-serving agenda with phony prescriptions for racial equity — projects designed to recruit the naive while intimidating knowledgeable critics into silence.

The most successful racial strategy is the so-called "education-equalization" or "education-equity" lawsuit. This is a legal action aimed at compelling a legislature to raise school funding, especially in poor and minority areas.

To date, education-equity suits have been filed in 42 states, with the court finding for plaintiffs in more than half. In November 2005, an organization called the Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education Funding (CCJEF), representing traditional allies of the teacher unions, filed a brief with the state Supreme Court which, if upheld, would cost taxpayers more than $2 billion.

Edwards Pushes Better Education for Poor

By Thomas J. Sheeran, Washington Post, July 17, 2007

PITTSBURGH -- Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards on Tuesday called for measures to strengthen education for poor children and make schools more economically diverse in order to fight poverty.

"We don't just have racial segregation in our schools, we have huge economic segregation," Edwards said while on the Pittsburgh leg of an eight-state tour to highlight poverty issues. "We have two public school systems in America ... one for those who live in wealthy suburban areas and then one for everybody else."

Griswold presents third budget to voters

Julie A. Varughese, Norwich Bulletin, July 18, 2007

GRISWOLD -- Taxpayers will head to the polls Thursday for the third time to vote on the proposed 2007-08 combined town and education budget.

The $30.88 million proposal calls for a 16.75 mill tax rate, which is a 0.34 mill decrease compared to last year, according to Board of Finance member Joseph Przylucki.

Using the figures from the recent revaluation, it would have required a tax rate of 17.09 mills to fund last year's budget, Przylucki said

Court Ruling Is Clear On Not Using Race For Schools

By Steven J. Stein, Greenwich Time, July 18, 2007

The statement by Steve Walko, a member of the town task force on racial imbalance, space use and declining enrollment, to the effect that the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Parents Involved in Community Schools vs. Seattle School District is not "... something we can ignore" suggests there is controversy about the use of race in allocating children to schools within a district (Greenwich Time news story, July 16).

Moreover, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal and the spokesman of the state Board of Education (as reported) add confusion, not enlightenment, to what the Supreme Court majority decided on June 29. It is simple and straightforward: Allocating children to different publicschools based on their race violates the Fourteenth Amendment's equal protection guarantee.

Montgomery Ranks 5^th in U.S.
By Daniel De Vise, Washington Post, July 18, 2007

A new study by Forbes magazine ranks Montgomery County public schools fifth in the nation "for the buck," with nods to Howard and Loudoun schools for delivering return on educational investment. It ranks D.C. and Alexandria schools among the worst.

The analysis, "Best and Worst School Districts for the Buck," ranks 97 jurisdictions for performance -- as measured by SAT data and graduation rates -- relative to per-pupil spending. It focuses on locales with populations greater than 65,000 where more than half of school funds come from property taxes.

Education plan focuses on race

By Angela Carter, New Haven Register, July 19, 2007

NEW HAVEN — Democratic mayoral candidate James Newton Wednesday unveiled a “10-Point Education Platform” he said would “close the ever-widening achievement gap,” put resources in the classroom and increase parental involvement.

The main architect of the platform is Hamden High School Principal Gary Highsmith, who began his career as a substitute teacher in city schools in the 1980s and worked his way up to assistant principal of the K-5 Beecher School before leaving the district.

“We want to create a world-class system in New Haven,” Newton said. “We know we can put that together. We brought Gary on board to put that together.”

Opinions and Editorials

Educating Future Employees

Hartford Courant Editorial, July 18, 2007

When it comes to corporate commitment to Hartford's youths, The Hartford Financial Services Group must rank among the most generous.

Recently, the company named the 17 student recipients of its two annual college scholarship programs - the Alliance for Academic Achievement and the STAG Leadership Scholarship. Both programs offer four years of financial aid, summer employment, mentoring and life skills courses.

The 14 Alliance winners receive $5,000 in financial aid, and the three seniors in the STAG program receive $3,500 annually. Some 115 students have attended college through the Alliance program since it began in 1999. About 1,600 have graduated from the STAG program since 1966.

2007-07-12T12:48:00.000-07:00

Opinions and Editorials

Don't leave this law behind
Ronald Brownstein, LA Times, July 11, 2007

Progress is slow under Bush's 2001 education reform, but No Child Left Behind is worth improving.

The complaints are reaching a crescendo as Congress moves closer to reauthorizing No Child Left Behind, the education reform law that President Bush passed with rare bipartisan support in 2001. Conservatives are wailing about federal intrusion. Teachers unions and some leading Democrats moan that the law relies too much on testing as the measure of student progress. And some parents echo each of those indictments.

There's no doubt the law has minted enemies. But Kati Haycock, president of the Education Trust, a nonpartisan group that advocates for low-income children, has it right when she says the law wasn't designed "to make people happy." It was passed because too many students in too many places were not learning enough. It wouldn't be doing its job if it left in place the practices that produced those unacceptable results. Grumbling, in education as in everything else, is the inevitable price of change.

Closing the Gaps
By Fred Smith, New York Sun, July 11, 2007

On June 27, as a final salute to the school year, Mayor Bloomberg told business leaders about the advances that had been made in test scores that were, according to him, "most importantly closing the racial and ethnic achievement gaps in the classroom."

His words were echoed by Chancellor Klein, who, in talking about narrowing the gap, calls education this generation's civil rights movement.
At the state level, the regents chancellor, Robert Bennett, issued one or two sentences on the educational status of 1.2 million students. The press releases that accompany the annual English and math test results often include this quote from him: "Closing the achievement gap is the Regents' highest priority."

Two mandates of the No Child Left Behind Act, which was enacted in 2002, have placed enormous emphasis on improving and measuring the basic skills of all students.

By the 2013-2014 school year it is expected that, with few exceptions, every elementary and middle school student will be proficient in English and math. Additionally, there will be no appreciable differences among the various groups of students, which translates into elimination of the gap.
Taking these objectives to their logical endpoint means that in six years everyone will pass the test's threshold of proficiency, regardless of race, gender, economic background, or other diversities. In this vision, all gaps are bridgeable and on deadline, too.

News and Articles

Parents, Teachers, Docs Seek An Earlier Start
by Allan Appel, New Haven Independent, July 12, 2007

Each year hundreds of New Haveners are born to teen mothers or without prenatal care. They start school behind the ball, not yet ready to learn. More than 100 people gathered at Conte-West Hills School to come up with a plan to turn that around.

The people present at Wednesday night’s meeting of the New Haven School Readiness Council’s planning task force included day care providers, pediatricians, parents, and early childhood teachers.

They knew they face challenges captured in daunting statistics: Of the approximately 2,000 kids born every year in the city, 275 are born to teen mothers; 500 are born to mothers who receive inadequate prenatal care, and about 220 have low birth weight. Also, when they are ready to enter school, only a third or so have the skills needed for kindergarten-level literacy. And it doesn’t get a whole lot better by third grade, where, according to 2006 statistics, only 33.2 percent scored proficient or above on a standardized reading test.

2007-07-09T09:30:00.000-07:00

Opinions and Editorials

For real integration, try charter schools
By Liam Julian, The Courier-Journal, Louisville, Kentucky

In 1975, a federal court ordered Jefferson County Public Schools to integrate classrooms. Now the Supreme Court has mandated the opposite: Jefferson County may no longer use race in deciding where students attend school.

In fact, Louisville hasn't actually had to racially integrate its schools for seven years. In 1991, the Supreme Court ruled that places like Jefferson County could return to their old systems of neighborhood-based school assignments, once the districts had taken "practicable" steps to eliminate the legacy of segregation. But Louisville, which was freed in 2000 from federal desegregation oversight, evidently liked its integrated schools and was willing to fight for them.

OK College Expansion Funds
Hartford Courant, Editorial July 9, 2007

Five years have passed since the state began spending about $800,000 a year to lease two empty floors in Hartford's G. Fox building that were intended to house the state Banking Department.

The department has not moved in, and the rent tab is now up to $4.4 million of taxpayer money.

Three years have passed since the General Assembly, having satisfied itself that the Banking Department move was not happening, approved $6 million to renovate the vacant floors for classroom use by Capital Community College, located in the same building.

An Irresponsible, Spendthrift Budget
By Matthew M. Daly, Hartford Courant, July 9, 2007

The state budget process has come to an end, and with it comes a big slap in the face to fiscal conservatives.

Most thinking taxpayers who have read about, listened to and watched our elected leaders discuss this budget must be asking themselves a simple question. Where do we get these leaders? Could it be they are from Mars or Jupiter? (I would have said some place closer, like Sweden, but even the socialist Swedes have universal school choice.)

The Republicans' newly elected Senate minority leader, John McKinney, a self-described fiscal conservative and social moderate, recently stated, "It's not a Republican budget, it's not a Democratic budget, it's a compromise."

Really - let's see.

Connecticut ranks: per capita as the highest taxed state in the country, No.2 in the amount of property taxes paid, near the top in bonded debt, and has a near net zero job growth increase in the private sector over the past 16 years.

News Articles

The ABCs of learning online
By Stefanie Olsen, CNET News.com, July 9, 2007

Like many 7- and 8-year-old girls online, Emily and Kayla Strickland are regulars to Barbie.com and the virtual world Webkinz.

But much to their mom's delight, the sisters also have been longtime fans of Starfall, an educational Web site whose star is quickly rising among parents, teachers and kids as young as 2 years old.

Like a Sesame Street program, the free Web site teaches kids their ABCs and the basics of reading through the use of audio and visual phonetics, games and animations. Exercises on Starfall include sounding out vowels ("ah"), reading books like The Little Hen and decorating a virtual character.

"We read a lot at home, but for them, it seems 'more fun' online," said Tressa Strickland, Emily and Kayla's stay-at-home mom and a former preschool teacher living in Waco, Texas. "I like the fact that they are advancing their reading skills and not even knowing it."

Beyond its child-friendly simplicity, Starfall signifies a small but growing force of change in an education field that's long been dominated by textbook publishers and software makers. Like other industries disrupted by the Internet or new technology, Starfall opens access to learning exercises for free online. It does so in a noncommercial way that entertains its audience much the way PBS has for previous generations.

Education funding for record books Towns benefit from more aid, distribution changes
By Paul Hughes, Waterbury Republican American, July 9, 2007

HARTFORD The upscale, Republican-leaning suburb of Southbury is getting a whopping 53 percent increase in state aid under the new state budget.

The increase translates into more than $1 million in additional funding for the new fiscal year that started July 1. Only Westport saw a larger proportional increase.

Southbury is benefiting from a record increase in state education spending and changes made to how the state distributes that money.

Other suburbs are also reaping financial benefits. Overall, 15 towns are receiving increases of 30 percent or higher, including seven of the state's 10 wealthiest communities.

Sheff Case Returns To Court: School Desegregation Issue Had Been Stuck In The State Legislature
By Robert A. Frahm, Hartford Courant, July 6, 2007

The struggle to desegregate Hartford's public schools is back in court.

Plaintiffs in the Sheff v. O'Neill case filed a legal motion Thursday, saying they will wait no longer for the legislature to approve a tentative agreement that would require the state to take aggressive new measures to reduce racial isolation in Hartford's public schools.

A 4-year-old settlement in the long-running case failed to reach its goals and expired last week. The state and the Sheff plaintiffs reached a tentative agreement in late May that would establish new goals and extend the settlement, but the legislature so far has not approved the extension.

Schools Move Toward Following Students’ Yearly Progress on Tests
By Winnie Hu, New York Times, July 6, 2007

The Cohoes city school district, outside Albany, is considering a gifted program for elementary students and adding college-level courses after discovering that its top students improved less on standardized tests in the past two years than everyone else in the district.

In Ardsley, N.Y., a Westchester County suburb, administrators intend to place more special education students in regular classes after seeing their standardized test scores rise in the last year.

And as the New York City Department of Education begins grading each public school A to F for the first time this fall, more than half the evaluation will be based on how individual students progress on standardized tests.

2007-07-05T12:19:00.001-07:00

Opinions and Editorials

SCHOOLS: Merit-pay resistance fades

Editorial, Republican-American, July 3, 2007

Unions' long-standing hostility toward merit pay, however, is receding. Though the National Education Association still believes it inappropriate, American Federation of Teachers supports it when factors other than standardized-test scores are weighed, and the United Federation of Teachers is willing to discuss bonuses for entire schools that show sustained growth in student achievement.

This significant and welcome thawing is attributable to the building consensus that merit pay energizes veteran teachers and attracts bright young people to the profession. The consensus is supported by a growing body of evidence showing bonuses work.

News Articles

Activist likely choice to fill BOE vacancy

By Amanda Pinto, Norwalk Hour, July 5, 2007

NORWALK — The city's Democratic Town Committee will likely appoint Shirley Mosby to fill the board of education position vacated when Richard Fuller retired July 1, Committee Chairwoman Galen Wells confirmed Tuesday.

Mosby is the co-president of the Parent Leadership Training Institute, and is involved in various Norwalk High School parent groups including African-American Outreach, which she chaired, the high school's principal search and building construction committees, and the Junior Achievement program.

She is also a past first vice president of Norwalk's chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Program for Hispanic students has its successes

By Chris Gosier, Stamford Advocate, July 5, 2007

STAMFORD - Brian Eirin, 16, used to skip school and was at risk of joining the ranks of Hispanic high school dropouts. Without a new Stamford program known as ALTA, or Aspiring Leadership Through Success, Brian said, he would "still be running around in the streets."

Hispanic students have the highest dropout rate in the state, but the program, backed by more than $140,000 in state funds, is hoping to change that. It is seeing some success.

An Appointment The Mayor Never Misses

By Daniella Altimari, Hartford Courant, July 3, 2007

Lunchtime at Macdonough Elementary School in Middletown: Most of the fourth grade is parked in the cafeteria, but a 10-year-old in a crimson hoodie is headed in the opposite direction. There's a buoyancy to his step, even though he's carrying his lunch on a flimsy plastic foam tray.

A few minutes later, a man in a well-tailored dark suit walks in. He is Sebastian Giuliano, the mayor of the city, and he has come to see Anthony Bartucca, the boy he is mentoring, just as he has every Friday morning throughout the school year.

Schools may study overcrowding

By Melvin Mason, Connecticut Post, July 4, 2007

The city's School Building Commission may hire a consultant to study whether the city should build another elementary or middle school to address classroom overcrowding.

The New England School Development Council is expected to give a presentation of its proposed review of the district's four schools and future space needs when the building panel meets at 6:30 p.m. today in City Hall.

Acting Supt. of Schools Anne Giddings said NESDEC, based in Marlborough, Mass., will look at the district's space needs and enrollment projections to offer recommendations.

2007-07-05T12:19:00.000-07:00

Opinions and Editorials

SCHOOLS: Merit-pay resistance fades

Editorial, Republican-American, July 3, 2007

News Articles

Activist likely choice to fill BOE vacancy

By Amanda Pinto, Norwalk Hour, July 5, 2007

She is also a past first vice president of Norwalk's chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Program for Hispanic students has its successes

By Chris Gosier, Stamford Advocate, July 5, 2007

Hispanic students have the highest dropout rate in the state, but the program, backed by more than $140,000 in state funds, is hoping to change that. It is seeing some success.

An Appointment The Mayor Never Misses

By Daniella Altimari, Hartford Courant, July 3, 2007

Schools may study overcrowding

By Melvin Mason, Connecticut Post, July 4, 2007

The city's School Building Commission may hire a consultant to study whether the city should build another elementary or middle school to address classroom overcrowding.

Acting Supt. of Schools Anne Giddings said NESDEC, based in Marlborough, Mass., will look at the district's space needs and enrollment projections to offer recommendations.

2007-07-02T12:15:00.000-07:00

ConnCAN in the News

More CT

By Andy Rotherham, Eduwonk.com, July 2, 2007

If you follow the saga of the big achievement gaps, NCLB pushback, etc...from one of our most prosperous states, you won't want to miss this NYT ed.

Opinions and Editorials

The Perils Of Ignoring Race

Stan Simpson, Hartford Courant, June 30, 2007

Pardon me if I get a little testy about court rulings that deal with race, integration and public education. As we debate the latest U.S. Supreme Court ruling, understand that there's never been the political will to execute meaningful, comprehensive changes to correct racial inequities in schools.

Fifty-three years after a landmark Supreme Court decision ordered school desegregation, rapid re-segregation is taking place in public schools - even as America grows increasingly diverse. The achievement gap, really more of a preparation gap, between white students and their black and Latino peers has widened.

We Keep Succeeding At Failure

Rick Green, Hartford Courant, June 29, 2007

As we nod off again, give thanks to the Supreme Court for its 5-4 decision telling us not to bother with race when trying to create equality in education.

No, this inequality isn't about "extreme" issues like race. It's not about income either, since our cities are repositories of impoverished minorities. So relax, there's no need to disrupt our antique education system, which preserves and enhances divisions based on race and class.

If you believe this hokum, then you probably think more money will solve our education problems. These divided, inferior schools will be our downfall, preventing us from having an educated, competitive workforce

News Articles

Highville parents going to bat for endangered school

By Ann DeMatteo, New Haven Register, July 1, 2007

In fighting for the survival of the Highville Mustard Seed Charter School, parents are taking tips from the school’s mission statement. Parents are being "competent in communications and problem-solving" and relying on their community involvement, in hopes of pulling the school through an extremely bumpy ride that has hit roadblock after roadblock.

Highville is one of 16 charter schools of choice in the state that operate independently of any local or regional board of education and are instead accountable to the State Board of Education. Of the charter schools, Amistad Academy in New Haven is considered the most successful, managing to consistently boost achievement by poor, urban youngsters to the level of their suburban peers. The school earlier this year was named Connecticut’s 2006 Title I Distinguished School for receiving the greatest net academic gains statewide on the Connecticut Mastery Test.

Many schools to have administrative changes

By Chris Gosie, The Advocate, July 2, 2007

The school district has filled two posts in its central office, which will be smaller in the fall because of budget cuts. Each appointee will oversee two curriculum areas that were overseen by separate program directors, school board President Martin Levine said.

The only other central office post to be filled is assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction. Joanna Nicholson will do the job in the interim, a district official said. Starr proposed a 10-person reduction in the central office because of budget reductions mandated in recent months by the Board of Finance and Board of Representatives. The school board approved the cuts.

Court Rejects Diversity Plans; Little Effect Seen In Hartford

By Robert Frahm, Hartford Courant, June 29, 2007

A U.S. Supreme Court decision forbidding schools from enrolling children strictly on the basis of race threatens many voluntary desegregation plans throughout the nation, but experts believe that it will have little effect on school desegregation efforts in Hartford.

That is because Hartford's court-approved desegregation plan in the Sheff v. O'Neill case differs from the voluntary plans in Louisville and Seattle that were overturned in Thursday's 5-4 Supreme Court ruling.

The key difference, legal experts said, is that the magnet schools and school choice plans that are a central piece of the Sheff efforts do not single out students by race. Rather, the plans attempt to achieve racial balance by selecting students based on where they live.

2007-06-28T11:29:00.000-07:00

ConnCAN News Release

State Budget Funds Key Programs for Closing Achievement Gap

Three key provisions of ConnCAN’s “Great Schools for All” plan for closing Connecticut’s achievement gap—expanding high-quality preschool, creating innovative new public schools, and ensuring greater accountability for results—received a significant boost with $123 million in new funding over two years in the State Budget.

News Articles

Schools Must Ignore Race in Placing Pupils, Justices Say
Associated Press, New York Times, June 28, 2007

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected school assignment plans that take account of students' race in two major public school districts. The decisions could imperil similar plans nationwide.

The rulings in cases affecting schools in Louisville, Ky., and Seattle leave public school systems with a limited arsenal to maintain racial diversity.

The court split, 5-4, with Chief Justice John Roberts announcing the court's judgment. Justice Stephen Breyer wrote a dissent that was joined by the court's other three liberals.

Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote a concurring opinion in which he said race may be a component of school district plans designed to achieve diversity.

Union to Help Charter Firm Start School in the Bronx
By Jennifer Medina, New York Times, June 28, 2007

Green Dot Public Schools, a charter school operator from Los Angeles, is seeking to expand into New York with the cooperation of the teachers' union.

Under the proposal, Green Dot, which is heavily financed by the billionaire philanthropist Eli Broad, would open a high school in the South Bronx. The school, which must be approved by the state, would become one of only a handful of charter schools in the city to use a union contract.

The cooperation of the union, the United Federation of Teachers, is unusual. It has been lukewarm toward charter schools, many of which actively oppose unions. The schools are publicly financed but are largely free from the control of local school districts.

Students improve computer skills
By Andrew Shaw, Greenwich Time, June 26, 2007

Greenwich Public Schools students are getting better at using technology, and classroom performance should improve with the addition of more technological tools, school administrators say. Fifth- and eighth-graders were tested several times this year to gauge their computer skills, and the results showed that when teaching methods were adjusted to address their weak spots, the students improved, John Curtin, assistant superintendent of curriculum, research and evaluation, and Fran Kompar, director of library and media, told the Board of Education at a recent meeting

The increase in skills was noticeable for all elementary and middle schools, but it was most marked from those schools on the western side of Greenwich, especially New Lebanon School.

"This is a definite closing of the achievement gap," Kompar said.

2007-06-25T11:07:00.000-07:00

Opinions & Editorials

A Rank Exercise—Jay Mathews' method for ranking America's best high schools is so narrow it may actually be misleading.

By Andrew J. Rotherham and Sara Mead, Washington Post, June 22, 2007

But in 1998 Newsweek, which is owned by the Washington Post, began publishing a list of "The 100 Best High Schools in America." The ranking is based on "The Challenge Index," a measure developed by Washington Post education reporter Jay Mathews. The list, published annually the past few years, has become increasingly influential. Other media outlets now cover it like a horserace, and high schools all over the country are reacting to the scrutiny.

Our research shows that the Challenge Index's methodology is far too focused on a single, narrow indicator. While education policy is increasingly focused on closing achievement gaps, the Challenge Index pays no attention to differences in achievement or AP- and IB-test-taking rates for students from different racial and economic groups, nor does it ask whether high schools are achieving their most fundamental goal: enabling students to earn a diploma.

A successful high school should show high levels of student achievement, graduate almost all of its students and not let any demographic subgroup lag far behind. National education policies, and increasingly state policies, reflect these values. To be sure, graduation rates and student achievement are hardly the only indicators of a school's quality. They are, however, reasonable minimums.

Accepting the Challenge—My ranking system may not be perfect, but it helps parents choose the best schools for their children.

By Jay Mathews, Washington Post, June 22, 2007

Most of the Newsweek and Post readers who follow our education coverage carefully are parents, not think-tank researchers or college professors or Education Department staffers. They are far less interested in Rotherham's and Mead's concern over which assessment has the most value for policy makers and are far more interested in which schools are best for their kids.

As Americans, we are accustomed to measuring schools by average test scores and drop-out rates. Rotherham and Mead want us to continue to use those factors, as well as ethnic achievement gaps, when rating schools. That is fine for scholars but for real people who have to make real decisions about public schools, it is not very helpful. Except in a tiny handful of cases, which I will get to in a moment, the schools with the highest test scores, the narrowest achievement gaps and the lowest drop-out rates are the schools with the wealthiest parents, living in the most expensive communities.

So what are parents to do if they cannot afford to buy a house in Scarsdale or Winnetka or Bethesda or Beverly Hills, where that great wealth creates what Rotherham and Mead tell us are the best schools?

Bush Can Declare Victory On Education Battlefield
By Laurence Cohen (Editorial), Hartford Courant, June 22, 2007

President Bush will be remembered for the two wars that he fought - one foreign, one domestic.

His strategy has been similar for both: Shout real loud; move full speed ahead, without nuance or perceptible mulling of options; and remain stubborn in the face of widespread opposition.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will be best judged by historians and foreign policy gurus in the decades ahead. But on the domestic front, Bush can already declare victory - even though most of the enemy is still alive and well. It was "No Child Left Behind" that unleashed the Bush administration dogs against all manner of teacher unions and PTA moms and educational bureaucrats and do-nothing school boards. It was the war cry, "No Child Left Behind," that Bush wouldn't stop chanting, wouldn't give up on, wouldn't be distracted from.

News Articles

His Charge: Find a Key to Students' Success
By Jennifer Medina, New York Times, June 21, 2007

Roland G. Fryer, who was hired by Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein to advise him on how to narrow the racial gap in achievement in the city's schools, made his professional name in economics by applying complex algorithms to document how black students fall behind their white peers. But his life story challenges his own calculations.

In some sense, I am an anomaly," said Dr. Fryer, who grew up poor and rose to become an assistant professor of economics at Harvard before he was 30. But he quickly corrected himself and added, "I am not sure."

The way he sees it, there are thousands of students in New York's schools who have the potential to be as successful as he is. His job as the system's "chief equality officer," he said, is to find, in his research, the keys to motivating them.

Colleges Expect Pool To Shrink
By Michael Regan, Hartford Courant, June 24, 2007

As members of Connecticut's Class of 2008 tour prospective colleges this summer, they have more than their senior status to distinguish them: They are the crest of a high school graduate wave that began rising more than a decade ago and will fall for at least a decade to come.

In Connecticut and the rest of New England, colleges - particularly those with primarily regional enrollments - are preparing for a decline in high school graduates of as much as 13 percent.

"This definitely is something that enrollment managers across the Northeast have had their eye on for some time," said Kathy Kurz, a principal in the Rochester, N.Y.-based consulting firm Scannell & Kurz.

The two studies cited most often by educators extend to 2016 and 2018 respectively, but other population projections suggest that the trend could continue into the 2020s in New England.

And although it doesn't directly project the number of high school graduates, the Census Bureau says the region's population of 18-year-olds - the age at which most students finish high school and begin college - will continue dropping through 2023.

2007-06-21T12:04:00.000-07:00

Opinions & Editorials

Young Teachers Hold Promise

Editorial, Hartford Courant, June 21 2007

Hartford's decision to hire 25 new teachers from the Teach for America program furthers the city's goal of closing the achievement gap between low-income nonwhite students and middle-class suburban students.

In Connecticut, Teach for America graduates got a good share of the credit for the gains made at the Elm City College Preparatory School, a New Haven charter school where low-income students far surpassed the state average in all categories of the Connecticut Mastery Test.

Hartford can't lose by trying the same approach. There is something to be said for young, cocky idealists who enter teaching through an unconventional path and aren't afraid to be held accountable for the success or failure of their students.

News Articles

Budget Negotiators Give To Get Deal

By Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, June 21, 2007

While nonpartisan "number crunchers" are still finalizing the totals, House Speaker James Amann of Milford said the budget would increase by about 8.8 percent in the first year and about 4 percent in the second year. Education cost-sharing funds, which are the largest grant to cities and towns, would increase by about $180 million in the first year and $80 million in the second year.

Amann and Williams said they hope to wrap up the special session on Friday, although some veteran Capitol insiders said they would not be surprised if the voting spills over into Saturday."The Republicans said the debate would be short," Amann said. "That sounds promising."

School board attracted to magnet idea

By Andrew Brophy, Connecticut Post, June 20, 2007

The mandatory reassignment of McKinley School students to other elementary schools in town appears to be off the table as a solution to McKinley's "racial imbalance."

"Nobody wants to do anything forcing somebody to go to a school they don't want to," Board of Education member Helen Dodson said Tuesday night.

Ed Linehan, an educational consultant who spoke to the school board Tuesday night, said solving McKinley's racial imbalance by giving parents more choices was the way to go.

"I think that the moment you make things compulsory, you define an opposition. We certainly value having options and having choices," Linehan said. "I would not support a system of any kind where movement of kids is compulsory."

H.S. Diploma? Not Enough.

By Janice Podsada, Hartford Courant, June 19, 2007

When Malcolm Harrison graduated from Hartford's Weaver High School in 2005, he had a plan: Get a full-time job, buy a car, rent a place of his own. The high school diploma that Harrison believed would land him a job with a big, well-known company such as RadioShack, Wal-Mart, AutoZone, Home Depot or UPS hasn't proved to be the entry ticket he had hoped for. He said he filled out applications but never got a call back.

Even 20 years ago, a high school degree was credential enough to obtain an entry-level clerical or manufacturing job with one of the nation's large regional or national firms. But in the intervening years, both corporate America and the kind of jobs available have become more selective and sophisticated.

Mayo Gets New Contract -- & A Grilling
By Allan Appel, New Haven Independent, June 19, 2007

The Board of Ed unanimously renewed Superintendent Reggie Mayo's contract -- then proceeded to grill him and his team on "Five Bold Goals" they promised to meet by next year. The board heaped praise on Mayo, who has led the system since 1992, at its Monday night meeting. Mayo will receive a 4 percent increase to $184,000 in a new three-year contract, and its approval at the BOE meeting was relatively pro forma.

2007-06-18T11:02:00.000-07:00

ConnCAN in the News

School Basics: Reading, Writing, Arithmetic, Real Estate
By C. J. Hughes, New York Times, June 17, 2007

In fact, every 12-percentage-point difference in scores on the Connecticut Mastery Tests, the standardized exams that students in Grades 3 through 8 take every year, is worth $5,065 to those buying or selling a home, according to the study, called “School Choice in Suburbia: Public School Testing and Private Real Estate Markets.”

“The information is in the marketplace on one side of the transaction or the other,” said Alex Johnston, the executive director of the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, a two-year-old group whose mission is to close the academic achievement gap in Connecticut.

Making it worse is that top-ranked school districts are often available only to those students who can afford to live there. “Geography,” Mr. Johnston said, “shouldn’t be the driver of access to a quality public education.”

Report: Graduation rates lower than reported in state
Chris Gosier, Stamford Advocate, June 16, 2007

Connecticut's high school graduation rates overstate the percentage of students who get diplomas, a new report says.

The report by ConnCAN, a nonprofit advocacy group, gives new graduation rates purporting to show how likely students are to finish high school in four years.

The report says Stamford's rate was 77 percent in 2004, compared to 90 percent reported by the state, and Norwalk's rate was 70 percent vs. the state figure of 88 percent, according to the May 30 report.

2007-06-11T15:58:00.000-07:00

ConnCAN in the News

Graduation rates overstated by 16 percent
By Randy James, Republican-American, June 10, 2007

It's difficult to overstate the importance of a high school diploma. An 18-year-old dropout will earn an average $260,000 less over a lifetime than a high school graduate, according to a Princeton University study. Dropouts are also more likely to become single parents and unemployed.

Education officials claim their figures are more thorough than the study's numbers. But for many observers, the report confirms what they already suspected.

"Previous studies show Connecticut's official graduation rates probably overstate the actual rate by 10 percentage points," said Marc Porter Magee, research director at ConnCAN, an education research group. "The state numbers are awfully high."

Education Dept. slow to upgrade reporting standards
By Amanda Falcone, Record-Journal, June 8, 2007

Changes in the way the state Department of Education collects and reports data are coming soon. While the department says establishing new systems and formulas takes time, an education advocacy group, Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, is critical of the state for not moving fast enough.

"It's past time we developed a comprehensive and publicly accessible system for tracking the progress of every public school student in our state," said Alex Johnston, the organization's executive director, in a prepared statement. It also is time to modify the formula Connecticut uses to determine its graduation rate, he said.

Murphy does not disagree, but says the department is working to make that happen.

http://www.myrecordjournal.com/site/index.cfm?newsid=18452732&BRD=2755&PAG=461&dept_id=592754&rfi=8

News Articles

Test Scores Decline Slightly
By Robert A. Frahm, Hartford Courant, June 8, 2007

While students in most states made gains in reading and mathematics tests following the enactment of the federal No Child Left Behind Act five years ago, schoolchildren in Connecticut did not.

"We have to heighten our expectations and really bear down to see what the potential reasons are," said Mark K. McQuillan, Connecticut's new education commissioner.

Of particular concern is the poor performance of many low-income and minority children, especially in the state's big cities, where the gap between them and middle-class white children is among the largest in the nation.

Schools discipline on agenda
By Ed Stannard , New Haven Register, June 11, 2007

Carroll E. Brown, president of the black coalition, said the program will discuss alternatives to school suspensions and expulsions, which she believes especially hurt the minority students in West Haven.

Groups such as the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union have focused on the increase in "zero tolerance" disciplinary policies, which result in harsh penalties for lesser offenses.

According to Youth Rights Media, in 2001-02, 19 percent of suspensions in New Haven schools were for fighting, bullying, weapons or drugs, while 60 percent were for violating school policies such as dress codes or hall pass rules.

Discussion focuses on graduation requisites
By Maria Garriga, New Haven Register, June 7, 2007

The annual epidemic of "senioritis" in high school may be eradicated if Education Commissioner Mark K. McQuillan succeeds in making high school exit exams a graduation requirement.

McQuillan said tougher graduation requirements could help close the achievement gap.

At McQuillan's invitation, a group of school superintendents, principals and union officials shared their thoughts directly to the state Board of Education at its monthly meeting Wednesday.

"You don't make a pig fatter by weighing it," joked David Larson, executive director of the Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents, saying teaching, not testing, gives students more knowledge and skills.

State Skills Test Waived For City Schools Chief
By Robert A. Frahm, Hartford Courant, June 7, 2007

Hartford's school superintendent, hired last fall to bolster the school system's lagging performance in reading and mathematics, won a reprieve this week from an exam that would have tested his own basic skills.

"Dr. Adamowski has spent most of his adult life leading school systems," said state Rep. Andrew Fleischmann, D-West Hartford, who introduced an amendment authorizing the waiver. "It seems evident he's well qualified to be superintendent in the city of Hartford."

Fleischmann, co-chairman of the legislature's education committee, said he would prefer that Adamowski "focus on reforming Hartford's schools rather than taking another exam."

2007-06-04T18:29:00.000-07:00

ConnCAN in the News

Graduation rates inflated, study says
By Maria Garriga, New Haven Register, June 4, 2007

A national education research group has issued a report claiming graduation rates in Connecticut and the nation have been grossly inflated by under-counting dropouts. The report was issued by the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center, an arm of Education Week, a national publication that covers the education sector.

Educators protested any charges of grade inflation.
Education advocates say educators need to rethink the way they calculate graduation rates.

Marc Porter Magee, research director for ConnCan, said the state method for calculating dropouts fails to capture many students who drop out in ninth and 10th grades. He said more accurate data collection on graduation rates would give educators better tools.

News Articles

Blunt, Gruff And On A Mission—New Britain School Chief Offers No Apologies For Her Overbearing Style
By Matt Burgard, Hartford Courant, June 4, 2007

Kurtz, now 60 and entering her seventh year as the district's first black school superintendent, said her parents never let their race get in the way of
their dreams, despite regular run-ins with bias and ignorance.

"If you don't see eye to eye with my mission, Idon't have time to try to convince you," Kurtz said matter-of-factly during a recent conversation in her office in the downtown education building. "People like that are obstacles, frankly. I don't need them around."

"Am I a strong presence? Absolutely," she said. "But that doesn't mean I'm not accountable. I can talk all I want, but if I'm not getting the job done, the board is going to let me know about it, and I realize that."

Forum Looks At Black Community –Stresses Need For Churches, Families To Help Bridge The Achievement Gap
By Larry Smith, Hartford Courant, June 3, 2007

The black community needs to look to its church and families to help close achievement and education gaps, panelists in a forum said Saturday.

Stanley F. Battle, recently appointed chancellor of North Carolina A&T University, who moderated the discussion, said the achievement gap across the country is enormous, particularly in the African American community.

The forum, "The Role of the Black Church in Bridging the Achievement Gap in the Black Community," was sponsored by the lay organization and steward board of Bethel AME Church in Bloomfield.

He also said that members of the community should "agitate, agitate, agitate" for improvement and change in education.

2007-05-24T15:08:00.000-07:00

News Articles

Parents' Role Seen As Vital To Change—School Chief Begins PR Job: Selling Plan
By Robert A. Frahm, Hartford Courant, May 24, 2007

Adamowski told the board that replacing failing schools with high-quality alternatives is the central objective of his plan. It would give students across
the city a broad array of options ranging from all-boys or all-girls academies to schools focusing on careers such as nursing, teaching or financial services.

"What we have now, for the most part, is not working," said board member Andrea Comer. "Let's not pretend by making drastic changes we're making things worse. By creating more choices, at least, hopefully, we will address more parents' concerns. I think we're taking a step in the right direction."

New York Eighth Graders Show Gains in Reading
By David M. Herszenhorn, New York Times, May 23, 2007

The number of eighth graders reading at grade level or above in New York State climbed impressively this year for the first time since 1999, when the state adopted tougher educational standards and its modern testing system, according to scores released yesterday from the annual statewide English
exam.

“We have deplored low performance in middle grades in the past,” said the state education commissioner, Richard P. Mills, at a news conference in Albany. “But when you see improvement and you call and find out that people earned improvement by doing the right things, we have an obligation to celebrate that.”

Schools Facing Radical Change—City Superintendent Will Seek Biggest Overhaul In Decades
By Robert A. Frahm, Hartford Courant, May 23, 2007

School Superintendent Steven J. Adamowski's plan would radically alter the 24,000-student system by creating choices such as a year-round elementary school, all-boys or all-girls academies and high schools specializing in subjects ranging from nursing to military studies.
"This is an issue of closing the achievement gap," Adamowski said. The traditional 20th-century model of schools, he added, "is not working for us."

2007-05-21T11:10:00.000-07:00

News Articles

A Program Left Behind—The State's 19 Vo-Ag Centers Are Underfunded, Over-Enrolled
By Lynn Doan, Hartford Courant, May 21, 2007

Many of the state's 19 vo-ag centers are reporting the same struggles.

Programs may have the space to expand but not enough teachers.
Center directors say sparse funding has caused their teaching staffs to dwindle, even as interest in the programs and job demand from the state's $2.2 billion agricultural industry are exploding.

"As we look to increase support for the local school systems, vo-ag schools must be included on the list," Fleischmann said. "These vocational
agricultural high schools are a very important piece of Connecticut's
educational fabric."

Adult education gives younger students more options
By Maria Garriga, New Haven Register, May 20, 2007

The Adult Education Centers are attracting teens who would otherwise be lost to the educational system. Some of the students say the caring teachers are a big draw.

Tiffany Sanjurjo, 17, left a small New Haven magnet school as a junior. "The school was a big front. The teachers were suppose to care. They
didn’t," she said. But her parents would not allow her to attend one of the
city’s major high schools because they were concerned she would be drawn into altercations.

"I had an attitude, but I’ve grown a lot here. This school has helped me more than anything," she said. "The teachers are like a second set of parents. They will stay late. They will go out of their way for you. They don’t move on in class until everybody understands."

Her affection for the school is so great that she rushed to return after having a baby and gallbladder surgery four days apart. Her surgery was March 12. "I came back a week after my surgery because I wanted to catch up on my work and make sure I didn’t get too far behind."

Adult education graduates commended for earning degrees
By Roxanne Mansfield, Norwich Bulletin, May 21, 2007

Family and friends gathered to watch as students accepted general education diplomas and high school credit diplomas.

"Our teachers feel privileged to be a part of your lives," Mary Berry, director of the Norwich Regional Adult Education Cooperative, told the 2007 graduates. Berry said this year's class was the largest over which she has presided.

"High school wasn't for me," he said. "I felt like there was a focus on everything but education. I found the GED test more challenging."

Giving immigrants a chance
By Mary E. O'Leary, New Britain Herald, May 21, 2007

The confluence of immigrant gains at the national, state and local levels this week has advocates hopeful for major changes on the horizon.

Magdalia Astro, 19, a Peruvian immigrant who graduated from Cooperative High School in New Haven, said she would be able to access courses at Gateway Community College for one-third the price she now pays if the
bill were to pass.

"We can't continue to be indifferent to what is happening in America's classrooms," with successful immigrants stymied from advancing beyond high school, Reinoso said.

"These kids will serve as a catalyst to other kids. Hopefully this will become a domino effect in their own immediate community. We're talking about poor kids who are first generation going to college who are future taxpayers," Reinoso said.

Principals Act in Plan to Reduce Bureaucracy
By Julie Boseman, New York Times, May 18, 2007

More than a third of New York City’s public school principals embraced a challenge from Chancellor Joel I. Klein to free themselves as much as
possible from outside oversight under a new reorganization and become full stewards of their individual schools, the city said yesterday.

The new system is the cornerstone of an effort by Mr. Klein to promote
accountability and transparency in the school system by forcing principals to shoulder more responsibility for their own schools.

The results of the principals’ selections were announced just one day after their union voted overwhelmingly to ratify a new contract that would allow significant bonuses and raise their average salary by more than 23 percent. By the 2009-10 school year, principals could earn two bonuses — $25,000 for leading a troubled school, and a $25,000 performance bonus — potentially pushing some annual salaries beyond $200,000.

Opinions & Editorials

Our view: State must step up to fund schools; towns squeezed
Editorial, Norwich Bulletin, May 21, 2007

The struggle between funding education and keeping property taxes reasonable is in full swing in towns all across Eastern Connecticut.
It's a sad time. The choice pits the needs of children against the needs of
the rest of the community. Often the loudest voices are those of the senior
citizens on fixed incomes.

Thanks to state and federal mandates and contracts for associated unions, superintendents have very little wiggle room in their budgets. Add to that the burden many Eastern Connecticut towns, such as Colchester, Grisiwold and Sterling, are facing with overcrowding and the costs associated with new schools, and there is a recipe for disaster.

The only ones who can fix this are the members of the General Assembly.

2007-05-17T07:15:00.000-07:00

ConnCAN in the News

Educators left in suspense
By Randy James, Republican-American, May 17, 2007

The bill, which would take effect before the 2008-09 school year, is a response to concerns that many suspended students treat their punishment as vacation and lose valuable classroom time. Public schools statewide issued 77,000 out-of-school suspensions last year, officials say.
The issue has drawn special scrutiny in Waterbury, where nearly half of the city's high school students have been suspended out of school this year. "There's an incentive for some students to purposefully get themselves suspended so they don't have to get to school," said Rep. David K. Labriola, R-Naugatuck, a supporter. "This bill would eliminate that problem."
ConnCAN, an education research and advocacy group, also backs the idea."Often the kids who end up in out-of-school suspension fall behind," Executive Director Alex Johnston said. "I think this is a practice we need to move away from."

More Charter School Proposals Sought
By Maria Garriga, New Haven Register, May 15, 2007

In response to several legislative bills calling for new charter schools, the Department of Education has put out a request for proposals that could lead to two more schools opening as early as fall. The state has 16 charter schools, each of which runs independently of local school boards. The state gives them flexibility in curriculum and structure.
“The state of Connecticut is funny in that it approves schools before it approves funding. Last year, the state approved four new charter schools but only had funding for two,” said Marc Porter Magee, spokesman for ConnCAN. Magee said ConnCAN estimates show that three students applied for every one of those 3,600 slots, suggesting an overall demand for about 10,000 slots in charter schools.

Opinions & Editorials

Magnets Not Closing Color Gap
By David Medina, Hartford Courant, May 16, 2007

Sheff v. O'Neill guaranteed Hartford children pleasant new learning environments; higher, rigorous expectations for success; and resources to achieve that goal. Students and their families should take full advantage of the opportunity. Connecticut's neglectful track record in this area suggests that they shouldn't count on it happening again without another big lawsuit.

Some speculate that whites will gravitate to Hartford magnets as the schools burnish longer track records of excellence. That's heartwarming. But getting a better education now is much more important than ending racial and economic isolation. If whites come, they come. If they don't, let it be their loss.

News Articles
Those Tax Hikes? Forget It, Says Rell
By Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, May 16, 2007

Gov. M. Jodi Rell, who last week backed away from a plan to balance her budget by increasing the state income tax, declared Tuesday that the legislature can pass her budget with "no tax increases whatsoever."

The statement marked a major turnaround. Rell has officially dropped plans to increase the state income tax by 10 percent over two years and boost the cigarette tax to $2 per pack, up from $1.51 per pack.

2007-05-14T11:11:00.000-07:00

May 14, 2007

News Articles

Summer School Focus: Reading
Tests This Month Will Determine Which K-3 Students Must Attend 14-Day Session
By Robert A. Frahm, Hartford Courant, May 11, 2007

The city's school system is making the summer classes mandatory for struggling readers. Under a new state law, school districts are required to offer summer classes to students who are substantially below grade level.

Just 15 percent of Hartford's third-graders met the state goal on the reading portion of last year's Connecticut Mastery Test, the lowest proportion of any school system in the state.

English Language Learners as Pawns in the School System’s Overhaul
By Samuel G. Freedman, New York Times, May 9, 2007

Just three years ago, Columbus was a traditional neighborhood high school with 548 ELLs among its 3,491 students. Fast-forward to the current school
year. The Columbus building is now known formally as the Columbus campus. It includes a downsized version of the former high school and four minischools, part of the Department of Education’s adoption of the small-school model as the answer to what ails secondary education in New York City.

This much is certain: With the pressure of No Child Left Behind, which uses standardized test scores to determine compliance with the law, what school would seek out new immigrants, who may not score well? Columbus, after all, has failed to make “adequate yearly progress” in language arts.

“The situation at Columbus is, unfortunately, not unique,” said Ujju Aggarwal, an organizer for the Center for Immigrant Families, an advocacy group. “Rather, it points to a proactive strategy fueled by No Child Left Behind, to continue to marginalize low-income children of color. By dismantling schools that have historically been under-resourced into smaller schools under the pretense of ‘choice,’ immigrant children continue to be displaced by our public education system.”

50 Years Later, Little Rock Can’t Escape Race
By Adam Nossiter, New York Times, May 9, 2007

In the latest clash, white parents pack school board meetings to support the embattled superintendent, Roy Brooks, who is black. The blacks among the school board members look on grimly, determined to use their new majority to oust him. Whites insist that test scores and enrollment have improved under the brusque, hard-charging Mr. Brooks; blacks on the board are furious that he has cut the number of office and other non-teaching jobs and closed some schools.

Dr. Greene, of the University of Arkansas, said he feared that the
dispute was really about patronage, not educational quality. “I think it would be hard to make strong criticisms of the superintendent on educational grounds,” he said.

Black parents remained largely silent at the board meeting. But several other black parents interviewed as they picked up their children at Dunbar Middle School were not following the board majority’s line.

Opinions & Editorials

Course for Families Enhances Math Test Scores
By Cara Bafile, Education World, May 2007

The process prompted Ladysmith Elementary School to create a preparatory course for standardized tests that focused on math skills. The weekly course was held on Tuesday night for six weeks. Charipar organized the classes and sent reminders home with students. The course had two main components: sharing test-taking strategies, which were taught by Charipar, and practicing with actual math questions, which was handled by classroom teachers.

"The key is that parents were taught, along with their children,
strategies for test taking," Charipar shared. "Not the least of those strategies
is the basic need for children to have a good night's sleep and breakfast in the morning."

2007-05-10T06:59:00.000-07:00

News Articles

Column: A pushy mother's work is never done, especially when it comes to education
By Elizabeth Ogsa, Norwich Bulletin, May 10, 2007

But Lucy's thoughts are more than humor. The influence of mothers on the success of their children is profound. The Rand Institute, perhaps the most respected organization in educational research, points to the correlation of mothers' ages and education with student achievement as demonstrated on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (Rand, 1994).

As we move into May and June, we find ourselves celebrating occasions of motherhood and education. When the two converge, we have a powerful formula for student achievement.

Thanks to all mothers who are wise enough to push. You're a factor in your children's success that is second to none.

Budget Plan Aims To Put Money Right Into Schools
By Robert A. Frahm, Hartford Courant, May 9, 2007

The proposed $272 million budget, a 4.1 percent increase over this year's budget, includes a recommendation for 17 new teaching jobs for freshman classes at the city's three large high schools. It is part of Adamowski's plan to reverse a pattern that sees two out of three students drop out of school and leaves many of the remaining students unprepared for college or work.

"We cannot tolerate a system where only one in three children has a future by virtue of the schools they attend."

Adamowski, who took over the 22,000-student system last fall, also has proposed cutting 20 central office jobs and shifting about $12 million in federal Title I money directly to school principals to use as they see fit.

4th-graders sought for planned school
By Linda Conner Lambeck, Connecticut Post Online, May 7, 2007

BRIDGEPORT — A charter school modeled after Amistad Academy in
New Haven begins sending out applications today to parents of fourth-graders who attend 10 schools in the city's East Side and East End.
The school, to be called Achievement First-Bridgeport, is expected to open next fall with 84 fifth-graders in space leased from by Holy Rosary Church on East Washington Avenue.

Eventually, Achievement First- Bridgeport intends to grow to a 720-student school accommodating grades kindergarten through eight.

Charter School Closing Doors—Money Runs Out Before Year Ends
By Robert A Frahm, Hartford Courant, May 5, 2007

Officials of the Cross-Cultural Academy of Arts & Technology, an experimental school that opened last fall, told parents this week the school could no longer afford to pay its teachers and would be closing with six weeks left in the regular school year.

Charters are part of a national reform movement designed to encourage innovation by allowing educators, community leaders and entrepreneurs to operate publicly supported schools without many of the regulations governing traditional public schools.

Opinions & Editorials

Provide More Aid to Charters
Forum, New Haven Register, May 9, 2005
By Carlton L. Highsmith

If all of Connecticut's public schools performed as well as the state's public charter schools, the percentage of blacks students performing at grade level would jump from 28 percent to 54 percent, substantially reducing Connecticut's achievement gap.

Those who have the power to bring about change are responsible for giving every child in our state equal opportunities for success with no excuses. Fully funding public charter schools and helping to expand these educational success stories are the right place to start in keeping this promise to our children.