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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
Los Angeles school board votes to expand choice
The Los Angeles school board voted last week to allow parents more choice in the schools that their child will attend. The move, approved in a 6-1 vote, allows the expansion of nonprofit charter schools for the next four years, potentially making 250 campuses chartered in L.A. Although opposed by some, the plan had strong backing from the mayor and after an almost four hour meeting with thousands marching in support and opposition outside, the motion approved. The "My Public School Choice" resolution hopes to give more options to parents, encourage partnerships, and replicate success district-wide. Two stories from the L.A. Times give more details about the decision.
Link to Los Angeles Times 8/25/09
Link to Los Angeles Times 8/27/09
Saint Paul announces new goal
In a move that will be closely watched locally and beyond, Saint Paul public schools (MN) announced that they will improve student achievement in math and reading by ten percentage points this year. To be more specific, the goal is targeted to reach students of color, who have struggled in recent years on Minnesota state assessments. Saint Paul has hired an outside consultant and plans to increase the use of tutors, among other techniques to help improve the scores. School board members were upset that minority scores are so low and hope that this new focus will help those students, specifically.
Link to Star Tribune 8/18/09
A close look at charter schools in Arizona
Charter schools have been in existence in Arizona for approximately 15 years. A recent investigation by the Arizona Star newspaper looked closely at the issues facing charter schools there, including financial oversights and sub-par student performance, meanwhile some charters are succeeding. Arizona has over 500 charter schools compared to 1,400 non-charters, and with one-quarter of the schools having a "charter" title, about 30 of these schools are listed as "underperforming" or " failing." The number of charter schools is expected to increase in the coming year, with the focus from the Department of Education on the use of charters, and since Arizona has so much experience, it is surely a state that will be watched.
Link to Arizona Daily Star 8/16/09
What innovative school reform looks like, literally
How many times over the last year have you heard the expression, "innovative education?" But what is innovative in one part of the county may be old-school in another area, and as more districts and states are trying to win Race to the Top funds, innovation may be hard to prove. The Pearson Foundation worked with local districts (including CUBE and other urban districts) to create a series of videos showcasing some of the creative ideas coming out of schools today. The 12 people showcased range from college professors to principals and they give their insight on how they view education reform.
Link to eSchool News 8/18/09 (preview, free registration for entire article)
Link to videos from Pearson Foundation
Urban school boards in Texas ban "sexting"
"Sexting," sending sexually explicit text messages, will be officially banned by some school districts this school year. In Houston and Mesquite, a policy has been put in place as a proactive measure. Both districts point out that they have not had problems with sexting, but they want to have guidelines in place in case it does. Forty eight percent of teens say that they have received sexually suggestive text messages, e-mails, or instant messages. Other districts already have policies in place so students cannot use phones during the day, eliminating the need for another policy specific to sexting.
Link to Dallas Morning News 8/24/09
Milwaukee mayor could get control of schools
Mayoral control may be making its next stop in Milwaukee, as the mayor, the governor, and other local experts weigh in on changing the governance structure there. Secretary of Education Duncan has singled out Milwaukee as a district that could benefit from a mayoral control movement, but as the president of the Milwaukee School Board pointed out in a recent article, many of the problems were under a different school board and stem from larger issues in city government. The Wisconsin Association of School Boards has also weighed in on this matter.
Link to Milwaukee Business Journal 8/31/09
Link to Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 8/15/09
Fourth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina
New Orleans Recovery School District (RSD) has made a big impact on student achievement in New Orleans, and the changes have changed the dynamic between school boards, teachers unions, and corporations running schools. People outside of New Orleans are looking carefully at what is happening there, as it may be a model for other struggling districts nationwide. RSD is essentially a charter school district and many have criticized the district for reforming the district too much (almost 60% of students in New Orleans go to a charter school). But as Superintendent Paul Vallas shared with CUBE attendees at the CUBE Issues Seminar in Chicago this June, there are seven steps he thinks districts can take to improve urban education anywhere.
Link to USA Today article 8/27/09
Link to School Board News article on Vallas' comments (Fall '09 edition)
CUBE News
Are you following your favorite celebrity, sports star, or political candidate on Twitter? Have you succumbed to the pressure to tweet? CUBE has entered the fray, and we hope that you will follow us for regular updates on items impacting urban education. Think of this as a way to stay in touch between editions of the Urban Edge. Follow CUBE_Edge on Twitter!
CUBE announces finalists and special recognition districts for the CUBE Annual Award for Urban School Board Excellence. This year, Atlanta, Georgia, and Broward County, Florida were named finalists for the CUBE award, while Baltimore City, Maryland, Jefferson County (Louisville), Kentucky, and Wake County (Raleigh), North Carolina will receive special recognition awards for their governance progress and commitment to diversity, respectively. To see NSBA's full press release about the awards, click here.
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. CUBE welcomes keynote speakers James H. Johnson and Dr. Peter Negroni, in addition to ever-popular site visits to local Austin schools, the CUBE Annual Award luncheon, and sessions on key topics challenging urban education today. HURRY! 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. Other CUBE districts will also be presenting-come join a growing list of educators at T+L to learn more about what Newport News and other urban districts have done to make technology work well for students.
NSBA News
The Center for Digital Education, in conjunction with the National School Boards Association, is conducting the 2009 Digital School District Survey. Public school districts are invited to participate in the study which showcases and acknowledges those school districts and boards around the nation who are using information technology tools to serve their communities, schools, teachers, students and administrators. It highlights the boards’ online presence, the technology applications that allow the public to interact with school board members, electronic access to information such as school board calendars, policies and agendas, and technology advancements in the school board chambers. Deadline, September 11. Click here for the survey.
Have you ever wondered how the NSBA advocacy efforts work for you? As National Affiliate districts, CUBE benefits greatly from the combined efforts of NSBA's advocacy staff. A new tool is available for you to see the how the efforts are paying off. The new web page can be found here.
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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