Customized Briefing for ZHENYING JIANG Leading the News In the Classroom On the Job Law & Policy Safety & Security NEA in the News Leading the News ED Tells Districts Not To Regard Students' Immigration Status. The AP（5/7, Armario）reports on the letter sent last Friday from ED OCR and the Department of Justice to districts across the US "reminding them that all students - legal or not - are entitled to a public education. The letter comes amid reports that schools may be checking the immigration status of students trying to enroll, and reminds districts they are federally prohibited from barring elementary or secondary students on the basis of citizenship status." The letter adds that districts are barred from seeking immigration status information in an attempt to deny service. The piece quotes ED's Justin Hamilton, "We put this letter out now because we know school districts are in the process of planning for the next school year, and wanted to make sure they had this in hand." Education Week（5/10, Walsh）reports that the "administration is reminding school administrators nationwide of their obligation under federal law to enroll children regardless of citizenship or immigration status," citing "cites Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, or national origin, among other factors, by public schools. It also cites Plyler v. Doe, the 1982 decision by the US Supreme Court that held a state may not deny access to a basic public education to any child, whether that child is present in the country legally or not." The piece notes that ED's Russlyn Ali and Charles P. Rose are signatories. "The Education and Justice departments stress in a fact sheet and a question-and-answer document that schools may require proof that a child lives within school district boundaries...but schools may not ask parents about a child's immigration status to establish residency." Advertisement  Read-i-cide, n. The systematic killing of the love of reading, often exacerbated by the inane, mind-numbing practices found in schools. In Readicide, Kelly Gallagher takes a hard look at instruction that discourages students from reading, and offers suggestions on how teachers can cultivate lifelong readers. Click here for details! In the Classroom Duncan, Other Officials Meet With Presidential Scholars. A number of smaller papers reported on local high school students' trip to DC to meet with Education Secretary Arne Duncan, President Obama, and other leaders after being named Presidential Scholars. Coverage was positive and presented the story as a rare opportunity for the scholars. For example, the Manitowoc（WI）Herald Times Reporter（5/10, Hodgson）that "Justin Jagodinsky, a senior at Roncalli High School, recently had an opportunity not afforded to many high school students. He was one of two students from Wisconsin - one of 104 from throughout the United States - selected for a program that included sessions with high-level government officials in Washington, D.C." The piece notes that President Obama, CIA Director Leon Panetta, Education Secretary Arne Duncan, and other high-ranking officials addressed the students. The Huntsville Times（5/10, Ammons）also reports on a local senior being selected as a Presidential Scholar, "one of 141 high school seniors to receive the recognition for demonstrating outstanding academic achievement, artistic excellence, leadership, citizenship, service and contribution to school and community." This piece does not mention Secretary Duncan. Texas Charter Founder To Lead Nascent Tennessee Turnaround District. The Knoxville News Sentinel（TN）（5/10, Alapo）reports that Chirs Barbic, "the founder of a successful Texas charter school chain" called YES Prep Public Schools "has been selected as head of a newly formed Tennessee school system that aims to turn around the lowest-performing schools." The Tennessee Achievement School District is "a cluster of five schools - four in Memphis and one in Hamilton County - that will be run as their own system." Barbic's charter chain has "received national recognition, including praise from US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan." Education Experts Argue Against ED National Curriculum. In a piece appearing at The Hill（5/10）"Congress Blog," Bill Evers, who served as US Assistant Secretary of Education for Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development, and former ED officials Kent Talbert and Robert Eitel, write that ED is pushing for "a national K-12 curriculum for English and mathematics," but is "acting at cross-purposes with existing federal statutes, and, as their initiative becomes better known, it may bring out a multitude of opponents." The writers argue that there is no obvious legal mandate for such a national curriculum from ED, adding that "federal control of what students learn in school certainly does not comport with the balance between national and state responsibilities in America's federal system." The writers lament that when Education Secretary Arne Duncan "announced the Department's grants to the testing groups on September 2, 2010, he pointed enthusiastically to one group 'developing curriculum frameworks and ways to share great lesson plans' and the other group developing 'instructional modules.'" Gifted Class Studies Alternative Energy. The York（PA）Daily Record（5/10, Thompson）reports on Scott Weaver's fifth grade gifted class at East York Elementary School, who just completed an alternative energy unit. "Because of the modern nature of the subject, the class was able to go on a number of field trips and bring in guest speakers to talk about how they're conserving energy." AVID Program Combines Academics With Life Skills. The Record and Herald News（NJ）（5/10, Fabiano）reports, "Englewood's AVID program - an intense, voluntary curriculum that targets middle achievers - is creating an increasing number of success stories, largely by combining academics with life skills." The program serves "15 schools across New Jersey and some 4,600 schools nationwide," and "focuses on the least-served students - those who have the desire to go to college, but are falling short." On the Job California Teachers Rally For Tax Hike Extension. The AP（5/10）reports, "Hundreds of teachers from around California descended on the state Capitol Monday to make the case for extending tax hikes as a way to stave off deep budget cuts to public education." The piece notes, "The California Teachers Association and other interest groups are calling on lawmakers to vote on the taxes outright before they expire, rather than waiting for a special election the teachers say would take too long and imperil about 20,000 public school jobs. That's about the number of layoff notices that were issued to teachers and other staff for the next school year."         The Orange County Register（5/10, Leal）reports, "Nearly 300 educators, parents, students and rallied on Monday outside the Orange County offices of state Assemblyman Chris Norby, R-Fullerton to support proposed tax extensions they said will prevent billions in cuts to public schools." "Hundreds" Of DC Teachers Receive Layoff Notices. Bill Turque writes at the Washington Post（5/10）"DC Schools Insider" blog that last Friday, DC Public Schools "sent large numbers of DCPS teachers...their 'excessing' notices. It means that budget, enrollment or programming changes have eliminated their jobs effective next month. The notices have been expected for months. Rising teacher salaries and squeezed school budgets made the action a virtual certainty." Mathematics Expert Rejects Use Of Value-Added Modeling In Education. John Ewing, president of Math for America, writes at the Washington Post（5/10）"Answer Sheet" blog about the "misuse" of mathematics historically, noting that the "most common misuse of mathematics is simpler, more pervasive, and（alas）more insidious：mathematics employed as a rhetorical weapon-an intellectual credential to convince the public that an idea or a process is 'objective' and hence better than other competing ideas or processes. This is mathematical intimidation." He adds that value-added modeling is "the latest instance of the phenomenon," noting that it is "touted as the modern, 'scientific' way to measure educational success in everything from charter schools to individual teachers. Yet most of those promoting value-added modeling are ill-equipped to judge either its effectiveness or its limitations." DC Schools Official Says District Will Use Value-Added Modeling In Evaluations. Meanwhile, in a posting on the Washington Post（5/10）"DC Schools Insider" blog, Bill Turque presents a partial transcript of an interview with "Jason Kamras, chief of human capital for DCPS and the principal architect of the IMPACT teacher evaluation system" about the potential use of value-added modeling in that program "holding teachers accountable for students reaching or exceeding predicted growth on standardized test scores." Kamras predicts that the number of teachers who are evaluated with such methodologies will rise in the coming years. New Film Argues For Higher Teacher Pay. The Los Angeles Times（5/10, Klein）reports on the screening of a "quieter school documentary" in this "Year of the Education Documentary," adding that "'American Teacher,' co-produced by acclaimed author Dave Eggers, does the usual job of weaving shots of classrooms and homes with interviews conducted with teachers, parents and experts. It carefully tiptoes around issues of school reform as it argues, with strong justification, that US teachers are paid far too little. It shows how many of them get outside jobs to make ends meet; the 12-hour days; the money spent out of pocket to make sure their students have necessary supplies." Chicago Honors Top Teachers With "Golden Apples." The Chicago Tribune（5/10, Malone）reports on the announcement of the "Golden Apple Awards," which are "bestowed annually on 10 of the best teachers in Chicago and the suburbs. ... Four other teachers won the award Monday. Five winners will be surprised in their classrooms Tuesday. All of this year's winners teach fourth through eighth grade and were selected from a pool of more than 600 nominees in the Chicago region. Each honoree receives a tuition-free sabbatical at Northwestern University, $3,000 and membership in the Golden Apple Academy of Educators." Stakeholders Look To Reduce Scope Of Nevada Bills Easing Teacher Terminations. The AP（5/10, Rindels）reports that the Nevada State Education Association is working "to soften two Democrat-sponsored bills making it easier to fire underperforming teachers, saying the bills don't do enough to protect employees from rash dismissals." Meanwhile, other groups "including the state's largest school districts and Gov. Brian Sandoval's staff - are trying to shape the bills as a way to reform the state's low-ranking K-12 education system." The AP explains that the measures attempt to deal with a recent "hiring spree" of teachers. Texas Districts To Receive Shares Of ED Job Retention Funding. The Austin American Statesman（5/10）reports, "The Austin school district will get $13.8 million in federal dollars meant to help save education jobs, according to an announcement by the Texas Education Agency on Monday." Noting the allotments going to neighboring districts, the American Statesman adds, "In its application to US Department of Education for $830 million in Federal Education Jobs Funds, the Texas Education Agency said it would distribute the money to districts under the state's school finance formula, which uses a weighted average daily attendance. The agency said districts would have discretion 'to decide how to use the money within the parameters of federal law, and districts that have funds remaining after the 2010-2011 school year may use remaining funds through September 30, 2012.'" Advocates Call For "Unbundling" Teaching. In a piece for Education Week（5/10）, Frederick M. Hess and Olivia M. Meeks of the American Enterprise Institute and City Light Capital venture partner Greg M. Gunn write that they find "the remedies" to low-quality education in the US "proffered by both the would-be reformers and the professional developers to be lacking. ... We might tackle the teacher-quality problem not by finding more superheroes able to master a hugely demanding job, or by placing boundless faith in training and professional development, but by rethinking the job so that more people might do it well. This entails unbundling the teaching job so that each teacher isn't asked to excel at so many different things, and reimagining the job in a manner that permits individual teachers to spend more time doing what they're best at." Virginia DOE Dispersing $2.7 Million In STEM Teacher Training Grants. WSLS-TV Roanoke, VA（5/10）reports, "More than $2.7 million in grants will go to Virginia universities, colleges, school systems, and teachers to help improve classroom skills in science, technology, engineering, and math." The Virginia Department of Education aims to use the STEM grants "to improve training and content for teachers. 'Teacher content knowledge is a critical component of effective instruction,' Superintendent of Public Instruction Patricia I. Wright said in a news release. 'Knowledgeable and confident teachers are essential to prepare students for post-secondary studies and STEM-related careers.'" Opposition to Last-In, First-Out Teacher Hiring Growing. PBS Newshour（5/10）broadcast a report on the "role of seniority in determining which teachers stay and who is let go" when districts announce layoffs, noting that in Hartford, Connectictut, "as in most places, layoffs are based entirely on seniority. It's last-in, first-out." Therefore, even highly-performing teachers must be laid off if they are the most recently hired. However, "with yet another round of teacher layoffs coming in Hartford and across the country, opposition to seniority is growing." Advertisement  Give your K-3 students real-life motivations for reading while providing a structure that supports effective literacy instruction with Reading for Real. You'll get step-by-step support in launching reading clubs that engage students as they read for authentic purposes about topics that interest them. Click here for details! Law & Policy Few Takers For Top Florida Education Spot. The Miami Herald（5/10, Solochek）reports that despite Florida's "national reputation as a leader in education reform," the search for a new state education commissioner has generated little or no interest, with the firm in charge of the search reporting zero applications with only three weeks left to apply. "Some blame the state's open records laws that make official applications public." Meanwhile, though "some board members predicted a strong field of candidates in the end...Former State Board of Education chairman T. Willard Fair of Miami agreed that the position should lure the nation's top reformers, considering the state's track record on issues as wide ranging as charter schools and performance pay. But he doubts that it will." Because of how former Commissioner Eric Smith's having been "ousted" by Gov. Rick Scott（R）. Safety & Security Study Addresses Bullying In Minnesota Schools. The AP（5/10）reports on a Departments of Health and Education analysis which found that "more than half of students in Minnesota schools reported they had been bullied or had bullied someone else at least once in the past year." The study "covered more than 130,000 students' responses to the Minnesota Student Survey, which is administered every three years to students in sixth, ninth and 12th grades." Minnesota Education Commissioner Brenda Cassellius argued that the analysis "was proof that school officials must do more to address bullying."         Minnesota Public Radio（5/10, Weber）reports, "The Minnesota report also includes recommendations addressing bullying, including training students, teachers and other adults in a school community. The recommendations also note a growing body of research that suggests strong, punitive punishments against bullies are ineffective." NEA in the News NEA Official In Running For Massachusetts District Superintendent. The Boston Globe（5/10, Byrne）reports on the search for a new superintendent at the Malden, Massachusetts, school district, noting that a pair of committees have begun "whittling the applicant pool down to a few who will advance to the public interview process. ... The two search groups" are "composed of an array of city officials, education professionals ,and stakeholder community members, as well as a Malden High School senior" and are interviewing a slate of candidates including "Marguerite Gonsalves, President of the Malden Education Association, the local teachers union." Gonsalves "serves on the National Education Association's Resolutions Committee." Facilities

Missouri NEA Branch To Vote On New Contract Wednesday.

The KTTS-AM Springfield（MO）（5/11）reports, "Teachers, librarians and school counselors represented by the Springfield branch of the National Education Association will be voting on the terms of a new two year contract on Wednesday." Noting that it includes modest pay raises, the piece adds that the contract "must also be approved by the school board" and "would take effect with the start of the coming school year."

The Springfield News-Leader（MO）（5/11, Riley）adds that this is the first time the district's teachers will vote on "an employment contract reached through collective bargaining. ... More than 1,700 members of the bargaining unit -- which also includes counselors and librarians -- were notified of the historic ratification vote by e-mail on Friday. 'It lays the foundation for future collective bargaining in the district and it thaws the freeze on salaries,' said Ray Smith, president of the Springfield National Education Association. 'It's a good feeling.'"

Nebraska Teacher Attends Teacher Of Year Event In DC.

The Fremont（NE）Tribune（5/11）reports that Nebraska Teacher of the Year Bob Feurer, a North Bend Central High School science teacher, "spent last week in Washington, D.C., to recognize the formal announcement of the National Teacher of the Year." At the ceremony, President Obama, "flanked by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, announced Michelle Shearer of Maryland as the 61st national teacher of the year." The Tribune notes that the "presidents of the American Federation of Teachers and National Education Association" delivered remarks at an evening reception.

Pennsylvania District's Teachers Union Strikes Pay Freeze Bargain.

The Towanda（PA）Daily Review（5/11）reports that according to a press release, the "Canton Area Education Association（CAEA）recently ratified the tentative agreement reached with the Canton Area School District to freeze all bargaining unit member salaries for the upcoming 2011-2012 school year." The piece notes that the CAEA is an NEA affiliate.

New Jersey Governor, Unions At Odds Over Teacher Tenure.

The Record and Herald News（NJ）（5/11, Brody）reports that while some states have recently passed laws limiting teachers' job security, in New Jersey, "Governor Christie faces a tougher slog in limiting tenure than his fellow Republican governors in those states：They had the backing of Republican-led legislatures. Christie, by contrast, continually ridicules 'do-nothing' legislators and the 'thugs' running the state's largest teachers union, while they lambaste him for his pugnacity, budget cuts and giving 'a tax break to millionaires.'" The piece continues to mull the future of "New Jersey's nearly century-old tenure system" in the face of such gridlock. Meanwhile, "Dennis Van Roekel, head of the National Education Association, has complained that politicians are putting too much emphasis on ways to fire a few bad teachers when it's more important to make sure talented people are drawn into the profession from the start."

NEA Expresses Openness To Using Student Performance In Teacher Evaluations.

Education Week（5/12, Sawchuk）reports on a "policy statement" that NEA officials are working on which, if approved, "would open the door to the use of 'valid, reliable, high-quality standardized tests,' in combination with multiple other measures, for evaluating teachers." The NEA's "9,000-delegate Representative Assembly" would have to approve the plan at a Fourth of July gathering in Chicago, but nevertheless, "the announcement comes as a major entry by the NEA in discussions about teacher evaluation, tenure, and due process. To date, the national union has remained silent on most of those issues, even while the president of the American Federation of Teachers, the other national teachers' union, has put forth various proposals. 'We have multiple states struggling with these issues,' NEA President Dennis Van Roekel said in an interview. 'Members want NEA to speak up and lead in this discussion.'"

        The Grand Rapids Press（5/12, Murray）reports that Van Roekel "told education writers last month that the unions 'have failed to lead on quality issues,' and he planned to step up." The Press reports that the plan includes "sweeping changes to evaluation and tenure plans" and says "tenure should not be automatically bestowed upon teachers, but earned. And teachers who don't meet the grade should be counseled out of the profession 'or be subject to a swift and fair dismissal process.'" Van Roekel recently said "that no incompetent teacher should remain in a classroom – 'The price for students is too high' – but said there also needs to be a better evaluation system so administrators can better identify which teachers aren't cutting it."

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In the Classroom

Experts Question Whether Charters Can Cure Detroit's Education Woes.

NPR（5/12, Hulett）runs a report on the school closures and budget deficit that have inundated the Detroit Public Schools, noting that Anthony Adams, president of the city's DOE, wants to "convert as many as 45 of the district's traditional schools to charters. Financially, this transition would help the district shed staffing expenses, including costly pension obligations. It would get management fees and lease revenues from charter operators. And it wouldn't have to shoulder the costs associated with shutting schools down, securing them and demolishing them." The piece notes that city officials have vowed to only grant charters to organizations with proven records of academic success, but notes that "some charter school experts say Detroit could have problems attracting the kind of high-caliber charter outfits that are familiar names on the national scene."

Illinois City Surrenders School Control To State.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch（5/12, Crouch）reports that the school board in East St. Louis, Illinois, has "approved an agreement that essentially allows for a state takeover of the failing district through 2014, and possibly beyond. It is only the second time that the Illinois Board of Education will be exerting this much authority over a school district. As of today, no contract may be approved, no employee may be hired, no curriculum decision may be made in East St. Louis schools without the approval of the state." A school board official said that improved student achievement was the desired result of the move, and "the intervention was triggered by academic failure throughout the school system," which has failed to make AYP for the past nine years.

On the Job

Miller, Christie Face Off Over Teacher Unions.

A number of articles today deal with New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's comments this week about teacher unions, portraying him as being firmly anti-union as he establishes himself increasingly as a leading figure in the education debate. Education Week（5/12, McNeil）reports that Christie "went toe-to-toe today on the role of teachers' unions in the lackluster state of American education, and how much unions are, or are not, standing in the way of change." At a "National Education Town Hall" event at George Washington University, their "duel of words" erupted in what "was on its way to being a snoozer." After Christie blamed unions for blocking change in education, "Miller, who is certainly not the unions' biggest champion, replies：'That's too simplistic.'" The piece notes that among other attendees was "Tony Miller, the deputy education secretary, who was a stand-in for Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, who couldn't make it."

        Education Week（5/12, McNeil）also runs a partial transcript of a "wide-ranging" interview with Christie, in which he "wasn't shy about casting blame for educational woes squarely on the shoulders of the teachers' unions." In addition, when asked about how Education Secretary Arne Duncan should use the next round of RTTT funds, Christie replied, "The same way he did the first time, 'to incentivize needed reform.'"

        The Newark Star-Ledger（5/12, Calefati）reports that in his appearance, Christie "asserted his national image as an education governor...reiterating his opposition to teachers unions, a practice known as last in first out and lifetime tenure for teachers. Christie appeared alongside other education reformers - including Deputy Education Secretary Anthony Miller, Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet, California Rep. George Miller and Harlem Children's Zone founder Geoffrey Canada - to discuss the federal government's role in education reform." The Star-Ledger relates Christie's comments criticizing the unions, and refers to his "sparring" with Miller.

        The Record and Herald News（NJ）（5/12, Jackson）adds that despite clashing with Miller over the role of teacher unions, Christie "praised President Obama's administration for tying significant federal funding to reform, and agreed with [Miller] that the Race to the Top program had shifted political debate." Meanwhile, Christie "argued that tenure should be earned 'over and over' during a teacher's career, and pay raises should be based on performance and not just because 'your feet hit the floor in the morning.' A staunch advocate for charter schools, Christie said charters are supposed to be laboratories to find educational changes that work." CNN（5/12, Bohn）also covers the forum, noting that it was "moderated by Jessica Yellin, CNN's national political correspondent." This article also focuses on Christie's clash with Miller. CNN also notes that Christie has broken ranks with some fellow Republicans by acknowledging a Federal role in education and by praising Obama and Duncan "for their reform efforts."

Unions, Other Groups, Working To Reshape Nevada Teacher Tenure Bills.

The AP（5/12, Rindels）reports on the efforts that unions are making to "soften two Democrat-sponsored Nevada bills making it easier to fire underperforming teachers, saying the bills don't do enough to protect employees from rash dismissals." The Nevada State Education Association has called for language with greater protection for probationary employees and "intensive assistance" for struggling teachers prior to termination. Meanwhile, "several groups, including the state's largest school districts and Gov. Brian Sandoval's staff, are trying to shape the bills as a way to reform the state's low-ranking K-12 education system."

Summer School Teacher Quality Under Renewed Scrutiny.

Education Week（5/12, Sawchuk）reports that with increased nationwide focus on teacher quality, the question of "which teachers get recruited for summer school, and how well does their instruction align to the knowledge and skills children need to master" is receiving increased consideration. "A hefty body of evidence documents the phenomenon of 'summer learning loss,' but consensus on the attributes of effective summer intervention, especially when it comes to access to high-quality teaching for students most at risk of falling behind, is only starting to emerge." However, "a handful of districts are beginning to wrestle with the topic, thanks in part to an emphasis on both teacher quality and expanded learning in the federal economic-stimulus legislation."

Group Launching Teacher Recruitment Campaign In Dakotas, Minnesota.

The INFORUM（Fargo, ND）（5/12, Nowatzki）reports that in the face of "a major exodus of baby boomers from the teacher profession," the Network for Excellence in Training, "a partnership between the Bush Foundation and 14 colleges and universities" in the upper Midwest, has launched an ad campaign aiming to recruit replacement teachers. "The two 30-second TV ads show classroom and workplace scenes and remind viewers of teachers' lifelong impact, concluding with, 'One teacher can change hundreds of lives. Are you ready to make your mark? Are you ready to be a teacher?' Nearly half of the teachers in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota are expected to retire or leave the profession in the next decade, said Peter Hutchinson, president of the Bush Foundation."

Bill Curbing Teacher Bargaining Rights Advances In Tennessee Legislature.

The AP（5/12, Schelzig, Johnson）reports that a "proposal to limit teacher's collective bargaining rights" has passed out of a Tennessee House committee on a narrow vote. "The House Finance Committee recently declined to take up a version similar to one passed by the Senate earlier this month to more thoroughly dismantle union negotiations. The version that passed Wednesday changes the bill back to exempt from negotiations areas like evaluations and merit pay, but stopped short of abolishing bargaining altogether."

Virginia DOE Issuing Grants To Improve STEM Teacher Skills.

The AP（5/12）reports that the Virginia Department of Education is releasing some $2.7 million in STEM teacher improvement grants, saying that "17 partnerships between school divisions and colleges and universities won the awards, part of a competitive Math and Science partnership grant competition. The partnerships will provide in-service training for STEM teachers and create professional development programs tied to state science Standards of Learning."

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Safety & Security

Davis Promotes Anti-Bullying Legislation.

In an op-ed in The Hill（5/12）, IL7 Rep. Danny K. Davis（D）writes, "Our children can't learn or thrive in unsafe schools that tolerate bullying or harassing. As President Obama pointed out at the White House Conference on Bullying we must：'dispel the myth that bullying is just a harmless rite of passage or an inevitable part of growing up. It's not. Bullying can have destructive consequences for our young people. And it's not something we have to accept.'" Davis lists a number of negative consequences of bullying, referring to the recent spate of bullying-linked student suicides, adding, "On Thursday, May 12, I will be hosting a Capitol Hill Anti-Bullying Briefing to explore some critical issues of the safety and well-being of our children." Davis also touts legislation he introduced to "to amend the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act to include bullying and harassment prevention programs."

Facilities

Audit Points To Mismanagement Of Florida District Construction Projects.

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel（5/12）reports that auditors with the Palm Beach County, Florida, School District are accusing "administrators of lax oversight of two large construction projects. The report cites $15.7 million in possibly 'inappropriate and incorrect payments' to contractors, and violations of School Board policies and other procedures." However, administrators "strongly denied any waste of taxpayer money. ... In a report anticipated for two years and released Tuesday, school district auditors examined the handling of the $27.2 million Palm Beach Gardens Elementary modernization, which opened in August 2008, and the $30.3 million Hope-Centennial Elementary, a new campus that opened near West Palm Beach in August 2009." The article continues to detail the report's findings and the reaction of district officials.

Virginia District Unveils Ambitious School Construction Agenda.

The Hampton Roads Virginian-Pilot（5/12, Minium）reports that municipal officials in Norfolk, Virginia, "describing the city's aging school buildings as dreadful," have announced plans "to speed up plans to build new schools, even if it means taking money from other projects. If the city doesn't act soon, 'We'll just fall further behind,' Mayor Paul Fraim said." Current plans to "build or renovate one new school every three years" are "not acceptable, council members said. Fraim said he hopes the city can build five schools in the next six years. According to a 2007 study, the average age of the division's 55 buildings was 42 years."

School Finance

Another Virginia City Opts Out Of Governor's Merit Pay Plan.

The Hampton Roads Virginian-Pilot（5/12, Vegh）reports that the school board in Norfolk, Virginia, has elected to forego "a teacher pay-for-performance program promoted by the state for schools considered hard to staff." The piece notes that the program "would give bonuses of up to $5,000 for teachers who receive exemplary ratings in seven categories," while the current "pay system is based on a teacher's professional education and years of experience." Local officials said that "scant time to prepare an application by the June 15 deadline and no state funding to sustain a pay-for-performance plan after the funds run out" contributed to the decision.

NEA in the News

Teacher Firings Lead To Dueling Rallies In Providence.

The Providence Journal（5/12, Borg）reports on "back-to-back rallies at the State House" in Providence, Rhode Island, Wednesday, noting that "as Mayor Angel Taveras' rally was wrapping up, teachers shouted, 'Shame! Shame! Shame!' From across the room, a group of the mayor's supporters retorted with 'Angel! Angel! Angel!'" The piece notes that because of "severe" budget constraints, "five schools are closing next year, displacing more than 1,400 students, and more than 100 teachers will be dismissed." After the mayor's rally, hundreds of teachers "flooded the rotunda." In attendance was "Robert Walsh, executive director of the National Education Association, Rhode Island."

NEA Moving Toward Obama Endorsement Despite Democrat-Labor Tensions.

NPR（5/12, Overby）runs a report focusing on tensions between organized labor and its traditional ally, the Democratic Party, noting that "in a little publicized but bluntly phrased speech last month, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka gave some union lawyers a dire prediction of what's ahead for organized labor. He said the Republican assaults on unions amount to 'true existential challenges,' and that labor needs to demand accountability from its allies, including 'Democrats who have been weak friends, or worse.'" However, Democratic fundraiser Michael Fraioli "predicts that the rift will heal as the 2012 races heat up. In fact, the biggest union of all - the National Education Association - is already moving toward endorsing President Obama."