Comments on: Pleasant Hill mayor wants more community involvement in MDUSD schools

By: Theresa Harrington

Theresa Harrington — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 01:39:18 +0000

Here are two education events coming up Tuesday and Wednesday focused on educating students for college and careers to benefit the California economy: http://www.contracostatimes.com/twitter/ci_22667060/public-invited-two-education-events-tuesday-and-wednesday

By: Theresa Harrington

Theresa Harrington — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 17:57:30 +0000

An here’s a story about the large number of teachers in CA who are teaching subjects for which they have no credential: http://hechingerreport.org/content/in-california-thousands-of-teachers-missing-needed-credentials_11228/

By: Theresa Harrington

Theresa Harrington — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 17:53:42 +0000

Here’s an article reflecting lack of satisfaction by teachers and principals in their jobs, further addressing the need to attract and retain high-quality employees: http://hechingered.org/content/teacher-job-satisfaction-at-25-year-low_6076/

By: Wendy Lack

Wendy Lack — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 17:38:20 +0000

Degree inflation hits disadvantaged families hardest, as this New York Times article illustrates.

http://nyti.ms/Vydemi

An undergrad college degree has become the new high school diploma — an essential requirement for any white collar job, including file clerk. The education gap further stratifies society . . . an unhealthy cultural trend.

By: Theresa Harrington

Theresa Harrington — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 21:03:27 +0000

To celebrate the good work that is going on in the district, MDEA is planning its First Annual MDUSD Academy Awards, to be held May 17 at Centre Concord: http://library.constantcontact.com/download/get/file/1102938290270-236/Nomination+Form.pdf

MDEA is accepting nominations for teachers, classified employees, administrators and parent volunteers to be honored. Nomination deadline is March 28.

By: Theresa Harrington

Theresa Harrington — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 20:59:30 +0000

For those interested in getting more involved in local schools, you might be interested in attending the Equity Advisory Team meeting from 2-4 p.m. today at the district office, where the Equity and Disproportionality Plan will be presented: http://www.mdusd.org/Lists/UpcomingEvents/Attachments/311/equity-advisory-team-agenda-021913.pdf

Thanks to the board’s decision to make this a board committee, “Public attendance and comments are welcome at this meeting,” according to the agenda.

By: Theresa Harrington

Theresa Harrington — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 20:26:10 +0000

Here is a US Dept. of Ed blog post that stresses the importance of counselors in actually providing help to students, instead of just identifying student needs: http://www.ed.gov/blog/2013/02/partnering-with-counselors-to-reduce-school-violence/

By: Theresa Harrington

Theresa Harrington — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 19:29:10 +0000

Speaking of being in it for the kids, a national commission on Equity and Excellence has just released a report called “For Each and Every Child,” which lays out recommendations in five key areas for erasing the achievement gap: http://www2.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/eec/equity-excellence-commission-report.pdf

I just listened in on the teleconference with reporters and commission members releasing this report, which Congressman Mike Honda from Silicon Valley helped to orchestrate. He said he plans to hold Town Hall meetings in his district to delve more deeply into these issues, which include: improving school finance and efficiency – in part by making it more transparent, attracting and retaining high-quality teachers – especially in high-poverty areas, improving access to early childhood education for every child, meeting the needs of students in high poverty communities – by focusing on things outside the schoolhouse that can be done to help students be ready to learn, and changes to the way education is governed – including improvements in accountablity structures, directed towards increased equity and greater excellence.

I will be interested to hear your reactions!

By: Jim

Jim — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 18:42:04 +0000

@71 Wendy — If the charter operator is proved to be misusing public funds, then it would make sense to punish the responsible administrators in the organization, not the students. Imagine the fear that those parents and students must be experiencing — that they will be thrown back into their local Oakland Unified school, or into a lottery for scarce seats in one of the other successful charters in the city.

But the other “conflict of interest” that the Chron missed is Oakland Unified’s approval and regulatory authority (granted by the state) over schools that offer residents a competitive alternative to the district’s own miserable schools. We’ve seen that conflict quite clearly here in MDUSD and in other districts, although it seldom gets media attention. For some reason, despite all the reams of evidence, people keep believing that these local dysfunctional districts — with their own colorful histories of corruption, legal troubles, and incompetence — are actually “in it for the kids”.

By: Wendy Lack

Wendy Lack — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 17:29:54 +0000

Sad news from Oakland re top charter schools:
http://bit.ly/XrE7Yo

Excerpt: “Three of the highest-performing schools in the state are on the verge of being shut down by the Oakland school board, a decision that will pit passionate students and parents against district officials trying to safeguard taxpayer cash. The vote will be either the latest or the last chapter in the controversial story of American Indian charter schools.”

Of course there’s no excuse for financial mismanagement or ethical conflicts. And if charter operators are engaged in misconduct, it must stop.

However one cannot help but marvel at the hypocrisy of a failed school district such as Oakland Unified criticizing others for financial mismanagement! I think this qualifies as chutzpah — writ large.