News

State officials in Alabama distributed more than $5 million to 315 elementary schools, middle schools and high schools as rewards for improved student performance. The selection criteria identified schools whose students had made adequate progress in test scores for two consecutive years – and scored above the Statewide average in advanced reading and math.

USA Today – September 14, 2007

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The Georgia State Board of Education has approved changes that will require high school freshmen to take more math and science classes. The goal of the new rules, which will take effect in the 2008-2009 School Year, is to increase the number of graduating students who attend college.

USA Today – September 14, 2007

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The State of Iowa rejected almost 30 School Districts’ grant applications for funding for Pre-School Programs because of the way they were typed. Per the State’s guidelines, the applications were supposed to be double-spaced instead of single spaced.

USA Today – September 14, 2007

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A Federal judge has ruled that the Milwaukee Public School system has systematically failed to provide special education services to all of the children who need them – and that the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction has failed to exercise adequate oversight over the schools. In his ruling, U.S. Magistrate Judge Aaron Goodstein ruled that, during the period from 2000 through 2005, the School District failed to properly evaluate students who were suspected of having disabilities on a timely basis – and routinely suspended them instead of determining what, if any, special education services they needed.

Judge Goodstein’s decision did not include any indication as to what penalties, if any, he may impose on the School District and/or the State in conjunction with his ruling. He did, however, indicate that all of the parties should make a concerted effort to reach an out-of-court settlement so that there will not be another drawn-out legal battle over what should happen next. He also ordered all of the attorneys involved in the case to meet with him on September 27th.

Milwaukee Sentinel Journal – September 11, 2007

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Toys "R" Us is expanding its efforts to help the parents of special-needs children find suitable toys. In this regard, the company recently distributed 3 million copies of its annual "Toy Guide for Differently-Abled Kids" catalog – and expanded its Website at toysrus.com to include guidelines about toy selection by parameters including skill-building and age.

Lekotek, a not-for-profit company that helps parents with therapeutic development and play for special needs children, has been reviewing the products in the Toys "R" Us’ catalog – and assigning them code symbols for the development skills they aid. All 586 of the Toys "R" Us stores will showcase the catalog – and some of the toys listed therein – throughout the month of September.

USA Today – September 10, 2007

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All 52 schools in Paterson, NJ were shuttered on Friday, September 7th, for a variety of fire code and safety violations. The schools, which collectively include approximately 28,000 students, had opened one day earlier for the 2007-2008 School Year.

The Paterson School District has been under State control for several years. Several other School Districts that had also been under State control – including Jersey City and Newark – were returned to partial local control before the start of the new School Year.

The New York Times – September 8, 2007

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The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has formally rejected New York State’s request to expand its State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to cover children from families whose annual incomes are up to four times the Federal poverty level of $20,650. As a result of the rejection, the State will not be able to provide health insurance for an additional 70,000 children (Note: New York State’s SCHIP program currently includes 390,000).

The rejection was based on several changes to the SCHIP program that were recently enacted by CMS with respect to States that want to provide coverage for children from families whose annual incomes are above $51,625 for a family of four. These changes include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The States must have already enrolled at least 95% of the eligible children whose families annual incomes are at or below $41,3000 for a family of four; and
• The newly eligible children must have been without any health insurance coverage for at least twelve (12) months.

New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer indicated that New York would file a lawsuit to challenge the ruling. Several other States have also indicated that they are considering legal challenges to CMS’ new rules for the SCHIP program.

The New York Times – September 8, 2007

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Alabama’s K-12 school system received its largest private grant ever – a $13.2 million contribution to expand its Advanced Placement (AP) program and to improve its students’ performance on AP exams. The grant came from the Dallas, TX-based National Math and Science Institute – and was funded by the Exxon Mobil Corporation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation.

USA Today – September 7, 2007

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Shortly after launching a new program that allowed students to charge their meals via fingerprint scans, officials at Wilmette (IL) Elementary School District 39 were forced to put the system on hold. The reasons that lead to the system being suspended were concerns that it may be in violation of a new Illinois law that limits the use of biometric information to protect children’s privacy – and glitches caused by "grubby fingers" and other system errors.

Chicago Tribune – September 7, 2007

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A recent survey of middle school and high school students in New York State indicates that students who get good grades are not respected by their peers. A companion survey of the students’ parents indicated that twenty-five percent (25%) of them identified "smaller class size" as the most needed improvement in schools.

The New York Times – September 7, 2007

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Education Secretary Margaret Spellings has criticized Congressional attempts to weaken some provisions of the No Child Left Behind Law. According to Secretary Spelling, the proposed Congressional changes would allow States to remove children from testing regimens and tutoring services.

The No Child Left Behind Law, which was originally passed in 2002, is due to expire as of September 30, 2007. Both the House and the Senate are working on legislation that would extend – and modify – the original legislation.

The New York Times – September 6, 2007

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Because of new Federal guidelines – and an increased awareness of health problems associated with childhood obesity – School Districts across the country are taking steps to provide healthier food to their students. Per the new Federal guidelines, every School District must develop a "Wellness Plan" that will encourage students to eat healthier foods.

Some critics have indicated that the Federal guidelines are lax and antiquated. In this regard, they point out that although the guidelines bar jelly beans and popsicles, they allow such items as Dove bars and Snickers bars because the latter contain "some nutrients".

More than half of the States have already adopted guidelines that are stricter than the Federal guidelines. In a study last year, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) graded each State’s nutrition guidelines. Only one (1) State, Kentucky, received an "A" from the CSPI – while twelve (12) were awarded "Bs", six (6) plus the District of Columbia were awarded "Cs", eight (8) were awarded "Ds", and twenty-three (23) were awarded "Fs".

The New York Times – September 5, 2007

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During the period from 1994 through 2003, the number of American children and adolescents treated for bipolar disorder increased from 20,000 to 800,000. In this regard, some experts theorize that the increase reflects the fact that doctors are doing a better job of identifying the disorder in non-adults – while others believe that the disorder is currently being overdiagnosed.

Bipolar disorder is not one of the thirteen (13) disabilities that are listed in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). As a result, students with bipolar disorder are generally not identified as Special Education students.

The New York Times – September 4, 2007

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The Elizabeth (NJ) School District, which serves mostly poor and minority families, is providing free school uniforms to all of its more than 9,000 students. Since January 2006, the School District has spent more than $2 million on navy blue blazers, khaki pants, polo shirts and other clothing for its students.

The New York Times – September 2, 2007

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All 12 alternative high schools in Detroit, MI that were previously run by business, church and community groups will be shut down until Detroit Public Schools can determine if/how the schools can be operated in compliance with the Michigan law that mandates all of the teachers at the schools be employees of the School District. In the past, the schools hired their staff as independent contractors – and did not make contributions on their behalf to the Michigan Public School Employees’ Retirement System (Note: As a result of this omission, the Detroit Public School has been ordered to re-pay the $5.9 million that the State of Michigan contributed on behalf of the 1,000 students who attended the alternative high schools during the 2006-2007 School Year).

Detroit Free Press – August 31, 2007

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The State took over control of the public schools in Bald Knob, AR because of the School District’s $2 million budget shortfall. In doing so, the State Education Commission, Ken James, indicated that the 1,300-student School District’s finances were the worst he had ever seen.

USA Today – August 30, 2007

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The Oldham County, KY School Board voted to return any cell phones that are, henceforth, confiscated from students. Per the previous policy, students who were caught more than one using their cell phones in school forfeited their phones to the School Board – which, in turn, donated them to local shelters for battered women.

USA Today - August 29, 2007

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An elementary school in Colorado Springs, CO has banned tag on its playground after some children complained that they were being chased – and/or tagged – against their will. Running games are still allowed as long as the students do not chase one another.

The New York Times – August 22, 2007

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Several States have indicated that they will legally challenge the newly enacted Federal rules that will limit their ability to provide publicly subsidized health care coverage to children. The new rules would force at least 19 States to cut back their existing State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) coverage – and would make it virtually impossible for any State to expand that type of coverage in the foreseeable future.

The New York Times – August 22, 2007

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A recent study by researchers at the Urban Institute indicates that there may be as many as 5.4 million children without health insurance at some point during the course of any given 12-month period. The results of the study were endorsed by the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office.

One of the primary reasons why children lack insurance coverage is because their parents are unaware that they qualify for the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). In this regard, SCHIP provides coverage for families whose incomes exceed the eligibility standards for the Medicaid program (Note: Although eligibility standards vary by State, most of the 6.6 million children who receive SCHIP coverage are from families whose income is between $20,650 and $41,300 for a family of four).

The national enrollment rate for SCHIP coverage was approximately 72% during the 2004-2005 time period. As a result, some 2.6 million eligible children are not currently receiving SCHIP benefits even though they are eligible for the program.

The New York Times – August 22, 2007

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The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has established new standards that will make it much more difficult for States to extend health care coverage via the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to children in middle-income families. The new standards were set forth in a letter that was sent by the CMS Director, Dennis G. Smith, to State Medicaid Agencies at 7:30 PM (EDT) on Friday, August 17th, 2007.

In conjunction with the new standards, States that want to provide SCHIP coverage for children in families with incomes above 250 percent of the Federally-established poverty level will have to meet several new requirements (Note: The poverty level for a family of four is currently $20,650 of annual income). Per these new requirements, States will, among other things, need to demonstrate that they have enrolled at least 95 percent of the children in the State who are in families whose incomes are below 200 percent of the poverty level in the SCHIP program or the Medicaid program (Note: To date, no State has achieved that level of enrollment). In addition, States would only be allowed to enroll children from families whose incomes are above 250% of the poverty level if those children had been without any insurance coverage for at least one year.

States that had previously been given Federal approval to operate SCHIP programs that do not conform to the new standards will be given twelve months to amend their State Plans so that they conform to the new standards. In this regard, CMS has indicated that it "…may pursue corrective action" with respect to any States that do not submit appropriate "State Plan" amendments.

The New York Times – August 21, 2007

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Unable to find enough US-born candidates, the Los Angeles, CA School District has hired approximately 115 Math, Science and Special Education Teachers from Canada, India, the Philippines and Spain. This is the largest influx of foreign born teachers in the School District’s history.

USA Today – August 21, 2007

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Starting this School Year, High School students in Puerto Rico will be required to perform a total of 40 hours of community service during their 3 years of school. This program, which was begun during the prior School Year on a trial basis, allows students to assist programs that provide assistance and services to abused and neglected children, the elderly, and victims of domestic violence.

USA Today – August 21, 2007

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A recent audit of the New Jersey Education Department indicates that the agency’s ability to oversee the State’s 615 School Districts is being hampered by inadequate staffing and resources, organizational problems, a lack of training, and internal communication problems. The audit report also noted the potential for "competing priorities and inconsistent decision making processes" because the State’s education system is jointly overseen by the Education Department – and by the State Board of Education, whose 13 members are appointed by the Governor and who set the State’s educational policies.

The audit report included a variety of recommendations concerning the Education Department. These included, but were not limited to, the following:

• increasing the agency’s staff and resources so that it can handle its responsibilities with respect to a new Statewide monitoring system for School Districts;
• restructuring the agency’s operations and business processes; and
• improving the agency’s communications with its staff via an expanded utilization of E-Mail and an Intranet Website.

The New York Times – August 18, 2007

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Minnesota Governor Timothy J. Pawlenty has called for the establishment of Statewide "Teacher Academies" that would allow Teachers to spend their summers in rigorous training classes. In doing so, he indicated that the new entities would be much more cost effective that the existing system of local training centers.

USA Today – August 16, 2007

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Measles prevented Leah Moore Harris Fulmer from attending her High School graduation ceremonies. Later, because her academic transcripts could not be located, she was not able to receive her diploma. The problem was finally resolved when Ms. Fulmer was presented with her diploma at a recent meeting of the Provo, Utah School Board. Dressed in a white gown, the 94-year old graduate tossed her graduation cap into the air at the end of the ceremony.

USA Today – August 16, 2007

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A record number of high school students took the ACT College Entrance Exam in the Spring of 2007. In this regard, 1.3 million students who took the exam had an average national composite score of 21.2 – up from 21.1 in 2006.

The number of minority students who are taking the ACT Exam has also risen dramatically in recent years. More specifically, 17.6% more Black students – and 23.4% more Hispanic students – took the exam in 2007 versus the numbers taking the exam in 2003.

The State with the highest average composite score was Massachusetts with a score of 23.58 – and the State with the lowest average composite score was Mississippi with 18.9 (Note: The District of Columbia’s average composite score was 18.7). In two States, Connecticut and Illinois, 100% of the graduating students took the ACT exam – and in two other States, Delaware and Rhode Island, only 9% of the graduating students took the test.

USA

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More than 36,000 middle and high school students in Philadelphia, PA will be provided free weekly passes for public transportation to and from school for the 2007-2008 School Year. Previously, the local School Districts only provided traditional bus service to students in grades K-6.

USA Today – August 15, 2007

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School officials in Arlington, TX temporarily closed 20 playgrounds after a fire caused by spontaneous combination destroyed one playset. The outbreak of the fire was captured on a security video at Anderson Elementary School – and is believed to have been caused by the decomposing wood fiber surface of the playground.

USA Today – August 15, 2007

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All 12 alternative high schools in Detroit, MI that were previously run by business, church and community groups will be shut down until Detroit Public Schools can determine if/how the schools can be operated in compliance with the Michigan law that mandates all of the teachers at the schools be employees of the School District. In the past, the schools hired their staff as independent contractors – and did not make contributions on their behalf to the Michigan Public School Employees’ Retirement System (Note: As a result of this omission, the Detroit Public School has been ordered to re-pay the $5.9 million that the State of Michigan contributed on behalf of the 1,000 students who attended the alternative high schools during the 2006-2007 School Year).

Detroit Free Press – August 31, 2007

back to top

The State took over control of the public schools in Bald Knob, AR because of the School District’s $2 million budget shortfall. In doing so, the State Education Commission, Ken James, indicated that the 1,300-student School District’s finances were the worst he had ever seen.

USA Today – August 30, 2007

back to top

The Oldham County, KY School Board voted to return any cell phones that are, henceforth, confiscated from students. Per the previous policy, students who were caught more than one using their cell phones in school forfeited their phones to the School Board – which, in turn, donated them to local shelters for battered women.

USA Today - August 29, 2007

back to top

An elementary school in Colorado Springs, CO has banned tag on its playground after some children complained that they were being chased – and/or tagged – against their will. Running games are still allowed as long as the students do not chase one another.

The New York Times – August 22, 2007

back to top

Several States have indicated that they will legally challenge the newly enacted Federal rules that will limit their ability to provide publicly subsidized health care coverage to children. The new rules would force at least 19 States to cut back their existing State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) coverage – and would make it virtually impossible for any State to expand that type of coverage in the foreseeable future.

The New York Times – August 22, 2007

back to top

A recent study by researchers at the Urban Institute indicates that there may be as many as 5.4 million children without health insurance at some point during the course of any given 12-month period. The results of the study were endorsed by the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office.

One of the primary reasons why children lack insurance coverage is because their parents are unaware that they qualify for the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). In this regard, SCHIP provides coverage for families whose incomes exceed the eligibility standards for the Medicaid program (Note: Although eligibility standards vary by State, most of the 6.6 million children who receive SCHIP coverage are from families whose income is between $20,650 and $41,300 for a family of four).

The national enrollment rate for SCHIP coverage was approximately 72% during the 2004-2005 time period. As a result, some 2.6 million eligible children are not currently receiving SCHIP benefits even though they are eligible for the program.

The New York Times – August 22, 2007

back to top

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has established new standards that will make it much more difficult for States to extend health care coverage via the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to children in middle-income families. The new standards were set forth in a letter that was sent by the CMS Director, Dennis G. Smith, to State Medicaid Agencies at 7:30 PM (EDT) on Friday, August 17th, 2007.

In conjunction with the new standards, States that want to provide SCHIP coverage for children in families with incomes above 250 percent of the Federally-established poverty level will have to meet several new requirements (Note: The poverty level for a family of four is currently $20,650 of annual income). Per these new requirements, States will, among other things, need to demonstrate that they have enrolled at least 95 percent of the children in the State who are in families whose incomes are below 200 percent of the poverty level in the SCHIP program or the Medicaid program (Note: To date, no State has achieved that level of enrollment). In addition, States would only be allowed to enroll children from families whose incomes are above 250% of the poverty level if those children had been without any insurance coverage for at least one year.

States that had previously been given Federal approval to operate SCHIP programs that do not conform to the new standards will be given twelve months to amend their State Plans so that they conform to the new standards. In this regard, CMS has indicated that it "…may pursue corrective action" with respect to any States that do not submit appropriate "State Plan" amendments.

The New York Times – August 21, 2007

back to top

Unable to find enough US-born candidates, the Los Angeles, CA School District has hired approximately 115 Math, Science and Special Education Teachers from Canada, India, the Philippines and Spain. This is the largest influx of foreign born teachers in the School District’s history.

USA Today – August 21, 2007

back to top

Starting this School Year, High School students in Puerto Rico will be required to perform a total of 40 hours of community service during their 3 years of school. This program, which was begun during the prior School Year on a trial basis, allows students to assist programs that provide assistance and services to abused and neglected children, the elderly, and victims of domestic violence.

USA Today – August 21, 2007

back to top

A recent audit of the New Jersey Education Department indicates that the agency’s ability to oversee the State’s 615 School Districts is being hampered by inadequate staffing and resources, organizational problems, a lack of training, and internal communication problems. The audit report also noted the potential for "competing priorities and inconsistent decision making processes" because the State’s education system is jointly overseen by the Education Department – and by the State Board of Education, whose 13 members are appointed by the Governor and who set the State’s educational policies.

The audit report included a variety of recommendations concerning the Education Department. These included, but were not limited to, the following:

• increasing the agency’s staff and resources so that it can handle its responsibilities with respect to a new Statewide monitoring system for School Districts;
• restructuring the agency’s operations and business processes; and
• improving the agency’s communications with its staff via an expanded utilization of E-Mail and an Intranet Website.

The New York Times – August 18, 2007

back to top

Minnesota Governor Timothy J. Pawlenty has called for the establishment of Statewide "Teacher Academies" that would allow Teachers to spend their summers in rigorous training classes. In doing so, he indicated that the new entities would be much more cost effective that the existing system of local training centers.

USA Today – August 16, 2007

back to top

Measles prevented Leah Moore Harris Fulmer from attending her High School graduation ceremonies. Later, because her academic transcripts could not be located, she was not able to receive her diploma. The problem was finally resolved when Ms. Fulmer was presented with her diploma at a recent meeting of the Provo, Utah School Board. Dressed in a white gown, the 94-year old graduate tossed her graduation cap into the air at the end of the ceremony.

USA Today – August 16, 2007

back to top

A record number of high school students took the ACT College Entrance Exam in the Spring of 2007. In this regard, 1.3 million students who took the exam had an average national composite score of 21.2 – up from 21.1 in 2006.

The number of minority students who are taking the ACT Exam has also risen dramatically in recent years. More specifically, 17.6% more Black students – and 23.4% more Hispanic students – took the exam in 2007 versus the numbers taking the exam in 2003.

The State with the highest average composite score was Massachusetts with a score of 23.58 – and the State with the lowest average composite score was Mississippi with 18.9 (Note: The District of Columbia’s average composite score was 18.7). In two States, Connecticut and Illinois, 100% of the graduating students took the ACT exam – and in two other States, Delaware and Rhode Island, only 9% of the graduating students took the test.

USA Today – August 15, 2007

back to top

More than 36,000 middle and high school students in Philadelphia, PA will be provided free weekly passes for public transportation to and from school for the 2007-2008 School Year. Previously, the local School Districts only provided traditional bus service to students in grades K-6.

USA Today – August 15, 2007

back to top

School officials in Arlington, TX temporarily closed 20 playgrounds after a fire caused by spontaneous combination destroyed one playset. The outbreak of the fire was captured on a security video at Anderson Elementary School – and is believed to have been caused by the decomposing wood fiber surface of the playground.

USA Today – August 15, 2007

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