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Welcome!
What is Urban Edge?
Urban Edge is a service that provides CUBE districts with relevant information to help your awareness of education issues around the country. We will glean news sources, blogs, research studies, and NSBA's wide range of expertise for timely information that guides CUBE districts in making sound decisions.
Around the nation
News from the Department of Education
On Friday, July 24, President Obama visited the Department of Education to kick off the announcement about $5 billion in grants to states that create programs that are innovative in education. The innovation includes Obama administration favorites like pay for performance teacher pay incentives and charter schools, among other ideas, and seven states have already loosened their restrictions on charter schools to try to compete for the money. This money is tied to the larger bill that was passed earlier this year, and as many states are using stimulus money allocated for education to fill gaps in the state budget and are not getting to the local districts, the innovation may take longer to happen.
Link to eschool news 7/27/09
NSBA's Economic Stimulus Resource Center
Bill Gates advises more data decision making
As the chairman of Microsoft, Bill Gates became one of the richest men in the world, and in the last eight years, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has given over $4 billion to improve America's high schools. In a speech to the National Conference of State Legislatures, he talked about the changes that need to occur in America's schools and emphasized the use of data to make sound decisions. Whether it is data to measure teacher effectiveness, graduation rates, or utilizing technology, Gates said, "The way I see forward is to use measurement to drive quality."
Link to Google/AP Story 7/21/09
Full Text of Bill Gates' remarks
H1N1 continues to be watched
More news on H1N1 that may impact CUBE districts continued to make the media rounds last week. The Associated Press issued the results of a new poll on how parents feel about vaccinations, and many support those vaccinations in schools. The virus impacts more young people, and with the virus taking a break for the summer (virus' thrive in cooler temperatures), the fall is likely to see a up tick in H1N1, not to mention "regular" flu season. With all the likely confusion over vaccinations, the flu, and how to protect children, a third of adults and one in four parents say that they oppose swine flu vaccination.
Link to Associated Press story 7/28/09
Link to NSBA's School Health web site
Obama administration looks at Harlem Children's Zone
A program that gets parents involved starting with "Baby College" and has strict rules regarding food, sleep, and routines to benefit children is being looked at as a model by the Obama administration to replicate in other urban areas around the county. The Harlem Children's Zone is a comprehensive look at a child's life and helps the entire community raise children through a "conveyor belt" that will guide them from birth until they graduate from high school. The results are still being played out, but Geoffrey Canada, the founder of the idea says, "We're trying to get enough kids in college so that you end intergenerational poverty, and we're well on the way to doing that."
Link to Washington Post 8/2/09 (free registration)
CUBE News
We need your help! Do you know someone who has dedicated their life to educating urban schoolchildren through school board leadership? Was there an inspirational person who encouraged you to get involved in public education who happened to be a school board member? If so, consider nominating them for CUBE's Benjamin Mays Lifetime Achievement Award. For more information, click here for the application.
CUBE’s Task Force Executive Groups provide a leadership opportunity and a way for you to be more involved with CUBE by providing guidance and strength to our mission of excellence and equity in education. The Task Force Executive Groups are essential to CUBE because they provide the foundation for CUBE programming at our conferences and guide us by discussing the important issues facing CUBE districts. Members of the CUBE Task Force Executive Groups are proactive advocates of education and have a strong vision for CUBE and a board member from a CUBE district in good standing and able to secure the support, financially and otherwise, of your school board and school district to fully participate in the CUBE program. If you are interested, the application can be found here.
Congratulations to Hillsborough County, FL for being named "Corporation of the Year" by the Florida Minority Supplier Development Council (FMSDC). "The School District of Hillsborough County has a comprehensive minority supplier development process that truly reflects the District’s commitment to doing business with minority businesses," said FMSDC President Malik Ali. "Their efforts consistently address the full spectrum of supplier development and are worthy of being modeled by others."
Congratulations to Trenton, NJ for receiving a grant from the U.S. Department of Education to create safer and healthier learning environments. Trenton was one of just 29 districts in the country to be part of the grants totaling over $32 million. For more information, click here.
Are you in an NFL (National Football League) market? The NFL is accepting applications to revitalize and create football fields in urban markets across the country, including many CUBE districts. If you would like more information about these grants, contact Kevin Scott (kscott@nsba.org) for the details. The deadline for proposals is October 29, 2009.
Meetings Minute
CUBE's Annual Conference is coming October 8-11 to Austin, Texas. Registration is now open and the full brochure is available on CUBE's web site. Highlights include the CUBE Annual Award presentation and best practices session, looking at the Latino achievement gap, ways to improve urban graduation rates, and more. The hotel cutoff date is September 9th.
NSBA's Technology and Learning Conference (T+L) takes place in Denver, Colorado October 28-30, 2009. Among the presentations and honors, three districts are recognized with a video salute showcasing technology initiatives across their districts during the T+L Conference General Sessions, including a CUBE district, Newport News, Virginia. Join thousands of educators at T+L to learn more about what Newport News has done to make technology work well for students.
CUBE recently wrapped up the Issues Seminar in Chicago, IL. Check CUBE's Conferences and Meetings page for more information, including all available presentations. Thank you to the following sponsors of the Issues Seminar:
Program Note
Did you know that all previous editions of the Urban Edge are available on CUBE's web site? If you missed an issue, wanted to go back to find a link to a research study we referenced, or need some information about what other districts are doing, click here.
Disclaimer
Links on the Urban Edge are subject to change or become inactive after a period of time. Please be aware that CUBE has no control over links to other organizations or entities.
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