In Case You Missed It – August 26, 2024

Here are links to last week's^† articles receiving the most attention on NEIFPE's social media accounts. Keep up with what's going on, what's being discussed, and what's happening with public education.

Be sure to enter your email address in the Follow Us By Email box in the right-hand column of our blog page to be informed when our blog posts are published.

NOTE: NEIFPE's "In Case You Missed It" will not be published next week. We'll be back with more updates on September 9, 2024. Thanks for supporting Public Education.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"Privatization is a kind of reverse social contract: it dissolves the bonds that tie us together into free communities and democratic republics. It puts us back in the state of nature where we possess a natural right to get whatever we can on our own, but at the same time lose any real ability to secure that to which we have a right. Private choices rest on individual power… personal skills… and personal luck. Public choices rest on civic rights and common responsibilities, and presume equal rights for all." -- The late political theorist, Benjamin Barber, quoted by Jan Resseger in Parents’ Rights Activists, Privatizers, and Project 2025 Conspire Against Public Schooling

REJECT PROJECT 2025

Part 2: Parents’ Rights Activists, Privatizers, and Project 2025 Conspire Against Public Schooling

We must protect our vulnerable students and reject Project 2025 (no matter what it's called now) and the people who support it.

From Jan Resseger

...Project 2025 would:

• promote universal school choice (universal private school tuition vouchers);
• eliminate the Head Start program that serves preschoolers in poverty;
• discontinue Title I, that provides federal funding to schools serving low-income children;
• rescind federal civil rights protections for LGBTQ+ students;
• undercut the federal capacity to enforce civil rights law; and
• “reduce federal funding for students with disabilities and remove guardrails designed to ensure these children are adequately served by schools.”

Five of these Project 2025 proposals threaten hard won political victories for justice accomplished since 1960. All of these protections for vulnerable groups of children are threatened today by political efforts to elevate the rights of particular parents to protect their children from “woke” policies or from peers the parents consider undesirable in public schools. The sixth—universal school privatization—would, of course, also create the opportunity for parents to remove their children, at public expense, to private educational institutions that can insulate those children from experiences and peers that threaten their parents’ values. In his commentary, Harris elaborates on the ways publicly funded school privatization permits schools to discriminate: “While private schools cannot legally discriminate based on race because of the Civil Rights Act, they can discriminate on most other dimensions, including religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, class, income, and disability status. Moreover, the protections against racial discrimination are stronger in public schools, with additional avenues for recourse available to public school students through the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil rights.”

A GOOD DAY FOR FLORIDA

Florida: Moms 4 Liberty Lose Key School Board Races!

Make sure you're registered to vote...make sure your driver's license (or other identification) hasn't expired. Be ready to vote for those who support public schools.

From Diane Ravitch

The extremist culture warriors in Florida flopped at the ballot box on Tuesday. Not even Governor DeSantis’s endorsement helped them in their crusade to ban books, censor history, and sugarcoat what children may learn.

DeSantis quite deliberately set out to take control of Florida’s education system, including its schools and public colleges. He believes that as Governor, he is authorized to shape the curriculum to match his extremist agenda. He has poured billions into charter schools and vouchers for all, no income limits. He has grabbed control of the boards that oversee public colleges, and he has handpicked college presidents from his circle of cronies. The state’s sycophant legislature gives him whatever he wants, including the elimination of tenure in higher education and the ideological takeover of the state’s highly regarded progressive college, New College, which has been transformed into a conservative outpost that values athletics more than philosophy and that abhors gender studies and other “woke” courses.

Scott Maxwell of the Orlando Sentinel wrote about the voters’ rebuff to “Moms for Censorship,” err, “Moms for Thought Control, err, “Moms for Liberty.” Voters in most school districts rejected the right wingers endorsed by DeSantis.

Folks, this was a good day for the students and teachers of Florida.

INDIANA AND LOCAL NEWS

Vic’s Statehouse Notes #387 – Indiana Governor must prioritize public education

Jennifer McCormick will support public schools in Indiana.

From Vic Smith at Indiana Coalition for Public Education

Our public education students and schools need a Governor who will protect their funding.

Candidate Mike Braun has proposed a cut in property taxes which solves the property tax problem on the backs of public school funding and local government funding. Under current law, public schools fund vital services with property tax money: bus transportation, maintenance and repairs, debt service for new buildings and referendum funding.

Mike Braun could have presented a plan that replaced the money that would be cut from schools with state sales or income taxes, but he didn’t. He didn’t even release a fiscal analysis showing the amount public schools would lose.

This has happened before. When property tax caps were put into the Indiana Constitution, public schools and local government lost funding. “Replace, don’t erase” was the rallying cry to resist the loss of public school funding. Replacement of lost funding is again the issue that leaves public schools wondering how to maintain current programs for public school students.

Mike Braun is not protecting public education students, but Jennifer McCormick’s new property tax plan issued August 15th aims to do so, offering “targeted relief to those who need it most without cutting essential police, fire and school services to Hoosiers,” according to a fact sheet released by her campaign team about the complex plan. She also found a way to provide a fiscal estimate of her plan, which Mike Braun did not do.

It Wasn’t Always Like This in Indiana...

After second draft released, questions linger over Indiana’s proposed diploma changes

The new high school graduation requirements must be approved by the end of the year, but so far, some details are still up in the air.

From Indiana Capital Chronicle

A revamped high school diploma model proposed by Indiana education officials appears to have earned approval from the state’s higher education institutions and several school advocacy groups, but others around the state — including parents, teachers, business owners and lawmakers — say they still have questions about the plan.

Many said their support hinges on unreleased — or uncertain — details about post-graduation outcomes, financial impact, and the feasibility of widespread work-based learning.

“While parts of the proposal appear to be a step in the right direction, this updated diploma proposal remains a major change that high school students, educators and counselors must adjust to,” said Rep. Cherrish Pryor, D-Indianapolis, in a Tuesday statement.

“There are still many unanswered questions about the work-based learning requirements,” Pryor continued. “For example, who will pay for student transportation? How will school counselors handle the increase in workload in the midst of a counselor shortage? At the end of the day, this is an unfunded mandate that will unfairly burden our chronically underfunded public schools.”

Northwest Allen County Schools lands 'strategic' 35 acres

From the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette**

The Northwest Allen County Schools board agreed Monday to buy about 35 acres of land near Carroll High School for $1.2 million without knowing how the district might use it.

“The fact that that’s connected to the high school gives you a lot of options,” said Brandon Basham, chief financial officer.

The sellers are the Barrett family, who have previously sold land to NACS. Basham told the board the parents always wanted their children to sell the land to the school if they didn’t want it, and the children are honoring those wishes.

The purchase price – $1,222,000 – is the average of two appraisals.

“The Barrett family could have a lot of options for that land, so we really appreciate what they’re doing for the school district,” Basham said.

He added that NACS has been preparing for this potential land purchase for a while.

JOIN US

An Evening with Jennifer McCormick

NEIFPE is proud to co-sponsor this event featuring Jennifer McCormick, candidate for Governor of Indiana. We hope you can attend.

Click HERE to register for the September 25th event:







**Note: The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette is behind a paywall. Digital access, home delivery, or both are available with a subscription. Staying informed is essential; one way to do that is to support your local newspaper. For subscription information, go to fortwayne.com/subscriptions/ [NOTE: NEIFPE has no financial ties to the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette]

^†Note: NEIFPE's In Case You Missed It is posted by the end of the day every Monday except after holiday weekends or as otherwise noted.

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In Case You Missed It – July 15, 2024

Here are links to last week's^† articles receiving the most attention on NEIFPE's social media accounts. Keep up with what's going on, what's being discussed, and what's happening with public education.

Be sure to enter your email address in the Follow Us By Email box in the right-hand column of our blog page to be informed when our blog posts are published.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"Across the nation, conservative billionaires are funding a coordinated effort to dismantle public education to pay for private school vouchers that largely benefit wealthy families and enable corporations to avoid paying their fair share of taxes. In the last three years, an unprecedented number of states have expanded their private school vouchers, many providing universal access to these policies for the first time. Under the false promise of “school choice”, Republican-led state legislatures are adopting or expanding K-12 private school vouchers that drain hundreds of millions of dollars from their state budgets and public education systems to fund unaccountable private schools. The cost of private schooling is increasing well beyond what lawmakers anticipated, further draining state resources needed to pay for public services like public schools." -- U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pension, Senator Bernie Sanders, Chairman

SENATE COMMITTEE TAKES ON VOUCHERS

Senator Sanders Releases Report Assailing Billionaire-Funded Voucher Movement

The Senate HELP Committee has released a report on vouchers.

From Diane Ravitch

Sen. Bernie Sanders released a report Tuesday detailing how right-wing billionaires are bankrolling coordinated efforts to privatize U.S. public education by promoting voucher programs that siphon critical funding away from already-underresourced public schools.

The report notes that last year, the American Federation for Children (AFC)—an organization funded by former Trump Education Secretary Betsy DeVos—”ousted state lawmakers in Iowa and Arkansas who resisted proposals to subsidize private education in states and passed expansive private school vouchers.”

Aided by millions of dollars in funding from DeVos and her husband, “AFC’s political affiliates and allies spent $9 million to win 277 out of 368 races to remove at least 40 incumbent lawmakers,” the report adds.

The DeVos family is hardly alone in using its wealth to undercut U.S. public education...

CHOOSING THE "RIGHT" TEN COMMANDMENTS

When Religion Becomes Farce

There's a reason not to mix church and state. Which version of the Ten Commandments should we use? Should we include Buddha's Eightfold Path? excerpts from the Rig Veda? or the Koran? We have a diverse population so we should stick to the First Amendment's prohibition against establishing a state-sponsored religion by favoring one religious tradition over others.

From Sheila Kennedy

Most of us have seen the news that Louisiana now requires posting the Ten Commandments in that state’s schoolrooms. What I hadn’t seen reported–until this fascinating article from Salon–is that the version to be posted comes not from the Bible, but from Hollywood. Rather than go to any of the biblical texts, Louisiana opted for Cecil B. DeMille’s, taking the version to be posted from “The Ten Commandments.”

Actually, that shouldn’t be a surprise–Christian nationalists aren’t known for consulting original texts. Or for honesty.

The article is lengthy–and fascinating. It quotes several biblical scholars who have read–and engaged with–the biblical versions...

DELETING CLIMATE CHANGE IN TEXTBOOKS

Florida: Textbook Authors Told to Delete References to Climate Change

"If we pretend it doesn't exist, maybe it will disappear..."

From Diane Ravitch

Leslie Postal of the Orlando Sentinel reports that Florida’s Department of Education has warned textbook authors to delete references to climate change, although some apparently are getting through. This is especially egregious since Florida is one of the states most threatened by climate change.

She writes:

Textbook authors were told last month that some references to “climate change” must be removed from science books before they could be accepted for use in Florida’s public schools, according to two of those authors.

A high school biology book also had to add citations to back up statements that “human activity” caused climate change and cut a “political statement” urging governments to take action to stop climate change, said Ken Miller, the co-author of that textbook and a professor emeritus of biology at Brown University.

THE DANGER OF PROJECT 2025

Project 2025: Ending Public Education for Students with Disabilities

The Republican Party's Project 2025 has an entire section on education that includes the elimination of the U.S. Department of Education, universal vouchers, and the elimination of teachers' unions. Media Matters has an excellent summary, here.

From Nancy Bailey's Education Website

Project 2025 wishes to eliminate the U.S. Department of Education (USDOE). The USDOE should not be eliminated, but serve as a vital bridge, a unifying force, and a check on local and State education departments, ensuring the cohesive and well-rounded development of our public education system.

In recent years, the USDOE has failed, opening its doors to corporations wanting to end public education and funding elite-driven, unproven programs like Common Core State Standards. It hasn’t supported teachers, students, and parents like it should and has reduced student privacy protections.

However, the USDOE is still responsible for vital programs, like special education, ensuring students from infancy to age 21 have services, Title I programs, and more, to ensure that there are no barriers for children educated in America.

LOCAL NEWS

East Allen County Schools eyes new buildings, renovations in long-range vision

Changes for EACS...

From the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette**

East Allen County Schools unveiled Tuesday a $190 million plan to build two new schools and renovate others.

The proposed projects, which would affect property owners differently, are part of the district’s broader long-range plan, which addresses the years through 2032. Superintendent Marilyn Hissong spent about 50 minutes detailing the student-based safety and renewal initiative.

“(It) represents our collective commitment to the future of our students, our schools and, most importantly, our communities,” Hissong said during a public hearing before the school board’s regular meeting.

The overall plan calls for improvements in every attendance area – Harding, Heritage, Leo, New Haven and Woodlan – with construction of new schools beginning as early as next year.

New Southwest Allen County Schools leader ready to listen

From the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette**

Kent DeKoninck’s experience mentoring school leaders in recent years sometimes reminded the longtime educator why he retired.

But those relationships also reminded the former Indiana Superintendent of the Year what he missed.

“Anytime I was involved with superintendents and/or principals and helping them through issues, it’s like, I miss this,” DeKoninck said. “I miss that piece of me that wants to help and wants to solve problems and wants to make situations better for kids and for staff and for parents.”

That niggling feeling shouldn’t be an issue anymore. DeKoninck began leading Southwest Allen County Schools last week following the June 30 retirement of Superintendent Park Ginder.

**Note: The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette is behind a paywall. Digital access, home delivery, or both are available with a subscription. Staying informed is essential; one way to do that is to support your local newspaper. For subscription information, go to fortwayne.com/subscriptions/ [NOTE: NEIFPE has no financial ties to the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette]

^†Note: NEIFPE's In Case You Missed It is posted by the end of the day every Monday except after holiday weekends or as otherwise noted.

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In Case You Missed It – August 21, 2023

Here are links to last week's^† articles receiving the most attention on NEIFPE's social media accounts. Keep up with what's going on, what's being discussed, and what's happening with public education.

Be sure to enter your email address in the Follow Us By Email box in the right-hand column of our blog page to be informed when our blog posts are published.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"Shifting blame away from the for-profit healthcare system and the government’s response to the coronavirus is part of what makes the learning loss narrative so valuable to politicians who have no interest in challenging existing patterns of wealth and power. It is a narrative meant to distract the public and discipline teachers. Here’s the recipe: 1. Establish that closing schools hurt students using a narrow measure like test scores; 2. Blame closure of schools on teacher unions rather than a deadly pandemic; 3. Demand schools and teachers help students “regain academic ground lost during the pandemic” — and fast; 4. Use post-return-to-normal test scores to argue that teachers and schools are “failing”; 5. Implement “teacher-proof” (top-down, standardized, even scripted) curriculum or, more insidiously, argue for policies that will mean an end to public schools altogether." -- From Rethinking Schools: The “Learning Loss” Trap"

TEST SCORE PANIC

New IREAD-3 scores show no significant progress among Indiana’s third graders on 2023 exams

This article explains how Indiana's reading test scores were declining even before the pandemic and the disparity in scores achieved by different groups of children. As you read the original article, note that the author equates "test scores" with "literacy."

Also note that this article could have been titled, "2023 IREAD-3 scores show slight improvement over 2022." Even "friendly" media has a tendency to cover education negatively. 

From the Indiana Capital Chronicle

One in five Hoosier third graders continue to struggle with foundational reading skills, according to new standardized test results released Wednesday.

Data from the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) shows 81.9% out of the roughly 82,000 third graders at public and private schools in Indiana passed the 2023 Indiana Reading Evaluation and Determination, also called the IREAD-3 test. Tests were administered statewide this spring and summer.

The results are nearly stagnant from the last academic year, when 81.6% of students’ scores indicated reading mastery. The state education department’s goal is that 95% of students in third grade can read proficiently by 2027. As of this spring, 242 schools have reached that goal — an increase from 210 schools a year ago.

Latest results indicate Indiana’s younger students also still lag behind pre-pandemic reading fluency.

In response to the outcry about stagnant test scores, Indiana teacher, Justin Oakley, posted the following at Indiana Educators United, a private Facebook Group [note: edited for clarity and length].

Just some thoughts [about the] Indiana politicians going on news and or social media about "abysmal" 3rd grade reading scores...and "loss of learning/reading scores" in [the] past decade

Let's recap...

Who's been in COMPLETE CONTROL OF ALL LAWS AND POLICY in Indiana since 2011? Billions of dollars passed out [and] AWAY from public schools? (recently, a 740% increase...making $220,000+ to qualify for vouchers to private/religious/etc schools) (the federal poverty or qualifications for free/reduced lunch is family making $28,000) That seems pretty obnoxiously ONE SIDED...?

Also, with a straight face follow along with here: the same foaming at the mouth, wild eyed , snarling toxic culture warriors [are] pushing book bans and removing books. Quick question: can you simultaneously be mad at reading levels...[and] ban books? Can we say teachers ain't teaching your kid to read while you're pushing to remove books in same, sane, universe of consciousness? Or, am I missing something here coherent?

...the majority of our political leaders couldn't pass ILEARN or 8th grade Math and Language Arts testing. (Or, [get a] passing grade on Civics testing) OR better yet, make it one full day teaching in a local school they represent.

...Thanks to the hardworking teachers and education staff that have to listen to this insanity daily and still do a job!!!!!! *And, care about kids.

INDOCTRINATION IN FLORIDA

Who’s Indoctrinating?

"It's only indoctrination if I don't agree with it. Otherwise, it's fact."

From Sheila Kennedy

There’s a psychological mechanism called “projection,” — it’s when people accuse others of faults they themselves harbor. Several commenters to this blog have noted that the GOP routinely engages in projection.

Ron DeSantis’ Florida just shot down any lingering doubts about the accuracy of that observation.

Over the past few years, Republican culture warriors have become positively hysterical over the “indoctrination” of students by public schools and universities. To some extent, they’re right–after all, education imparts facts and–at best– enables critical thinking. A very expansive definition of “indoctrination” might stretch to include the broadening of a student’s frame of reference.

On the other hand, I have previously argued–and firmly believe– that what really upsets Republicans is the lack of indoctrination–the failure of educators to convey their preferred, albeit distorted, versions of history and science.

THE PRONOUN WARS

Pronouns law a ‘stunning waste of time’

In his School Matters blog, Steve Hinnefeld wonders whether the Republicans in the Indiana General Assembly don't know what they're doing or don't care. Perhaps it's both.

From School Matters

...why would Indiana legislators come up with a regulation that will cause extra work and confusion at the start of the academic year. Either they don’t know what they’re doing, or they don’t care.

The regulation comes from House Enrolled Act 1608, approved by lawmakers and signed by Gov. Eric Holcomb in the spring. Dubbed the “pronouns law,” it requires schools to notify a parent within five days if their child asks to be called by a different name or pronoun at school.

The intent is clear. Legislators wanted to be sure parents were informed if their child adopted a different gender identity at school. It’s part of their philosophy of supporting “parents’ rights.”

But they backed away from explicitly targeting gender identity, maybe because it would have invited a lawsuit, and made the law much broader. It says at least one parent must be notified if a student asks to change their name or the “pronoun, title, or word to identify the student” at school.

It would appear to require notification if, for example, a student named William asks to be called Will. That’s how many schools seem to be interpreting it: Any deviation from the name on enrollment records calls for telling a parent. In a large school, that’s likely to be dozens, maybe hundreds, of notifications.

SOME GOOD NEWS

The Dallas Miracle! Superintendent Wants Joy in the Classroom, Not Test Prep!

It's nice to read about a superintendent who understands that children are more than test scores.

From Diane Ravitch

During her state of the district address last May, superintendent Stephanie Elizalde said the district would soon eschew the numerous tests designed to find out whether students were ready for the STAAR in favor of, as she put it, more “joy” in the classroom.

In last year’s address, she declared teaching to the test was “officially dead,” and added that some schools were testing as frequently as every few weeks in preparation for the STAAR test, and doing classwork in between those assessments that also practiced STAAR strategy.

“How about we put them all together and we have a huge bonfire?” she said.

FORMER FWCS SUPERINTENDENT DIES

Former, longtime FWCS superintendent Wendy Robinson dies

From the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette**

Wendy Robinson, whose career with Fort Wayne Community Schools spanned nearly 50 years, died Friday.

Robinson retired in June 2020, at age 69, as superintendent of FWCS, which this month welcomed nearly 30,000 students back to classrooms.

Julie Hollingsworth, an FWCS board member and former educator in the district, said Robinson was incredibly smart and politically savvy. She was always conscious of the district’s reputation.

“We had a very respectful relationship,” Hollingsworth said Friday. “She had a good sense of humor, and I enjoyed working with her as a colleague.”

Robinson’s impact at FWCS, Hollingsworth added, said a lot about her work ethic and dedication.

...FWCS released a statement saying the district was saddened to hear of Robinson’s death.

“Dr. Robinson was a lifelong advocate for children, and supporting public education was her passion. She truly believed educating all children to high standards was the moral purpose of all educators. She had high expectations for the employees of Fort Wayne Community Schools – no matter the position – because every staff member had a role to play in students’ lives,” the statement said.

Robinson was with FWCS for 47 years, starting as an elementary teacher.

Dr. Wendy Robinson visits an FWCS classroom.

**Note: The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette is behind a paywall. Digital access, home delivery, or both are available with a subscription. Staying informed is essential; one way to do that is to support your local newspaper. For subscription information, go to fortwayne.com/subscriptions/ [NOTE: NEIFPE has no financial ties to the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette]

^†Note: NEIFPE's In Case You Missed It is posted by the end of the day every Monday except after holiday weekends or as otherwise noted.

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In Case You Missed It – August 14, 2023

Here are links to last week's^† articles receiving the most attention on NEIFPE's social media accounts. Keep up with what's going on, what's being discussed, and what's happening with public education.

Be sure to enter your email address in the Follow Us By Email box in the right-hand column of our blog page to be informed when our blog posts are published.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"Because America’s schools are so highly segregated by income, race, and ethnicity, problems related to poverty occur simultaneously, with greater frequency, and act cumulatively in schools serving disadvantaged communities. These schools therefore face significantly greater challenges than schools serving wealthier children, and their limited resources are often overwhelmed. Efforts to improve educational outcomes in these schools, attempting to drive change through test-based accountability, are thus unlikely to succeed unless accompanied by policies to address the OSFs that negatively affect large numbers of our nations’ students. Poverty limits student potential; inputs to schools affect outputs from them." -- David Berliner in Poverty and Potential: Out-of-School Factors and School Success, March 2009.

POVERTY IS THE UNDERLYING PROBLEM

Enough Tinkering. To Improve Education for All, Attack Inequity Not Teachers or Public Schools

Poverty effects student achievement. The 2009 report by David Berliner, Poverty and Potential: Out-of-School Factors and School Success, listed a number of "out of school factors" associated with poverty that had an impact on school achievement.

In 2007, Education Policy Researcher Gerald Bracey wrote, "When people have said 'poverty is no excuse,' my response has been, 'Yes, you're right. Poverty is not an excuse. It's a condition. It's like gravity. Gravity affects everything you do on the planet. So does poverty.'"

More than twelve million American children live in poverty. No amount of tinkering with charter schools, vouchers, testing, or any other privatization scheme will help improve students achievement until we address the underlying problem.

From DAILY KOS

Government support for charter schools and vouchers fosters an out-for-yourself destiny rather than one of mutual benefit. Personal choice as a governing principle for an education system promotes escape from a network of mutuality, setting people against one another in a divisive winner-and-loser competition.

Only an unequivocal explicit rejection of the ideology of privatization will stop the erosion of democracy and the advance of inequity, resegregation, and divisiveness. More transparency and the banning of for-profit charter schools are insufficient. Neither is evidence of less-than-stellar achievement results for charter schools and voucher-funded private schools. Fewer, but still consequential, state-level tests, are not enough. None of those measures will turn around the wrong turn of bipartisan education policy of the last several decades because they all fail to challenge and replace underlying inequitable anti-democratic principles

TEACH FOR AMERICA FAILED

Teach for America Promised to Fix the Teacher Exodus Before Anyone Even Noticed There Was One. Now It’s Choking on Its Own Failure

It turns out that five weeks of training isn't enough training for someone to become a competent teacher.

From Steven Singer at Gadfly on the Wall Blog

Teach for America (TFA) was a solution to a problem it helped create.

Educators have been leaving the profession for decades due to poor salary, poor working conditions, heavy expectations and lack of tools or respect.

So Wendy Kopp, when in Princeton, created a program to fast track non-education majors into the classroom where they would teach for a few years and then enter the private sector as “experts” to drive public policy.

These college graduates would take a five week crash course in education and commit to at least two years in the classroom thereby filling any vacant teaching positions.

Surprise! It didn’t work.

In fact, it made things worse. Apparently deprofessionalizing education isn’t an incentive to dive into the field.

ALL PUBLIC SCHOOLS LOSE MONEY TO VOUCHERS

‘We’re under attack’: Public school officials alarmed over rise of school vouchers that will have biggest year ever

Public schools cannot choose their students. Private schools can. Public schools must report to the state and account for every penny they get in tax money. Private schools don't have to.

From WANE.com

...Public schools must account for every penny.

“In the voucher program, no dollars are accounted for,” Downs said. “Each district in Indiana is governed by a school board that must publicly report every expense.”

With the religious schools, it’s anyone’s guess where the money is spent, although some have noted large scale building programs that came about after the voucher program was introduced.

“If you get federal dollars for say, special education. Those dollars are supposed to support your existing programs you are legally responsible to provide. It cannot supplant. What that means is you can’t take that money, pay for things you’re already paying for and use that money somewhere else,” Downs explains.

“So if we’re going to look at how these religious organizations or private schools are using tax dollars, it’s important to know we need to be able to see if those dollars are supplanting dollars that are going to something else that taxpayers may not be in favor of.

“The solution is anybody who receives these dollars needs to open up their records and show us how their money is being used like any school district. Every school district has monthly meeting where every penny is reported in an open board meeting and the board has to vote to approve and accept those expenses,” Downs said.

“And that is every expense.”

SHAKESPEARE IS TOO RAUNCHY FOR SCHOOL

"There's some raunchiness": Florida crackdown on books comes for Shakespeare

From Salon

...rather than read titles like "Romeo and Juliet" or "Macbeth" in full, students will be assigned excerpts from the works. District officials stated that students seeking to read the classics in full may do so if they obtain copies; however, teachers have been cautioned to heed the excerpt-only guidelines, as they could face parent complaints or disciplinary action for going against them.

The decision was made "in consideration of the law," according to school district spokeswoman Tanya Arja. "There's some raunchiness in Shakespeare. Because that's what sold tickets during his time," said Joseph Cool, a reading teacher at Gaither High School. "I think the rest of the nation — no, the world, is laughing us," he added. "Taking Shakespeare in its entirety out because the relationship between Romeo and Juliet is somehow exploiting minors is just absurd." When asked by the Tampa Bay Times if he felt students could glean the same experience from reading play excerpts as one might from the full works, Cool replied, "absolutely not."

MOMS FOR LIBERTY HAVE JOINED IN THE CHORUS BASHING PUBLIC EDUCATION AND TEACHERS

The Real Agenda of Moms for Liberty

From The Nation

...top education officials from four states—Florida, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and South Carolina—took the stage with Moms for Liberty cofounder Tiffany Justice. Their goal seemed to be to disparage public schools, painting a picture of a “literacy crisis” that they blamed on teachers’ unions and the encroachment into the classroom of “woke nonsense.” “These are folks that want to destroy our society; they want to destroy your family, and they want to destroy America as we know it,”

SCHOOL MATH

Gary Rubinstein: Is the Math Taught in School Useful? No.

From Diane Ravitch

Part of my evolution in thinking about these ideas comes from watching my own kids who are now 15 and 12 go through the standard math curriculum. They have had decent teachers throughout the years and have always gotten 4s on the New York State tests so you would think that I’m thrilled but when I look at the things that they learned (because they were part of the curriculum) and the things that they have not learned (because they were not part of the curriculum) it frustrates me. Many parents who are not math teachers might feel the same way when they look at what their children are learning in math but they don’t dare question it. It reminds me of The Emperor’s New Clothes, nobody wants to seem like they aren’t smart enough to know why we have to learn how to multiply mixed numbers with different denominators. But as a math teacher who thinks about things like ‘what is the goal in learning this concept?’, ‘Is this concept needed to learn a more difficult concept?’, ‘Does this topic provide opportunity for the students to have ‘aha’ insights for themselves?’, I am constantly critiquing what I see my children learning about. And within my own teaching I am always trying to teach whatever topics are in the curriculum in a way that gives my own students an experience where they get to use their reasoning skills and not just blindly follow an algorithm.

WELCOME TO THE NEW YEAR - ISTA

Celebrating public schools at the start of a new year

ISTA (Indiana State Teachers Association) President, Keith Gambill opens the new school year.

From Indiana Capital Chronicle

Our dedicated public school educators work tirelessly to provide an unparalleled educational experience for every child, regardless of their background, ZIP code or circumstances. They’re not just conveyors of knowledge; they’re the architects of inspiration. They ignite the flames of curiosity, encouraging our students to ask questions, challenge assumptions, and explore the world around them. By cultivating critical thinking and problem-solving skills, our educators equip our children with the tools they need to succeed.

Beyond academics, our public schools are vibrant communities that celebrate diversity and promote inclusivity. In the classroom, students from various backgrounds come together, learning side by side, fostering empathy, and developing a deeper understanding of one another. These interactions lay the foundation for a future where compassion and cooperation transcend social barriers, creating a more united Indiana.

As we embrace the joy of returning to school, it’s essential to recognize that education goes beyond the classroom. Our schools play a pivotal role in nurturing the physical and emotional well-being of our students. School-based programs ensure that children have access to nutritious meals, mental health support, and a safe haven where they can flourish.

WELCOME TO THE NEW YEAR - FWCS

Fort Wayne Community Schools staff celebrates new academic year

Fort Wayne Community Schools starts a new year.

From the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette**

Standing at Parkview Field’s home plate, Rhonda Eitsert faced her Fort Wayne Community Schools co-workers Tuesday and described her childhood fraught with upheaval and insecurity.

More than 4,000 employees – who filled the stands from third base to first base – listened to Eitsert and others during a morning event celebrating the start of the new academic year.

...Eitsert, a nutrition services dietitian, told the crowd she spent two years in foster care. During her middle school years, she lived in seven homes, attended six schools and acted like a fool in class as a survival strategy.

She said she was fortunate to have educators, including eighth grade science teacher Roy Williams, who challenged her to “dig deep” and find her own path. Williams told her he knew she could be successful and that he would be proud of her if she could achieve that potential in his class – a message that resonated with her.

Eitsert would later become the first person in her family to graduate from college, and she would raise three college-educated children. She shared her story to remind educators how they can affect students.

“It’s a testament to a teacher with a superpower – the power to influence a life,” Eitsert said. “While you may not remember all of your students, many of them will remember you. You never know when you might become someone’s Mr. Williams, leaving an indelible mark on their journey.”

MORE THAN JUST POLICE

School resource officers offer more than policing for local schools

Local school resource officers bring more than just a badge to their schools.

From the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette**

“I believe that it takes a village to raise a child and you can count me as being part of your village,” the Allen County Sheriff’s Department officer said in describing his approach with Southwest Allen County School students. His strategy includes mentoring and coaching.

Kirkland said he wants to pay forward the support he had from school resource officers growing up.

“There was a resource officer in my path – multiple resource officers actually, men and women in law enforcement – that were able to guide and mentor me,” he said. “I just want to do the same for others.”

The Allen County Sheriff’s Department employs 14 school resource officers who are assigned throughout the county. The Fort Wayne Police Department places school resource officers across six city middle schools.

**Note: The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette is behind a paywall. Digital access, home delivery, or both are available with a subscription. Staying informed is essential; one way to do that is to support your local newspaper. For subscription information, go to fortwayne.com/subscriptions/ [NOTE: NEIFPE has no financial ties to the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette]

^†Note: NEIFPE's In Case You Missed It is posted by the end of the day every Monday except after holiday weekends or as otherwise noted.

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In Case You Missed It – August 7, 2023

Here are links to last week's^† articles receiving the most attention on NEIFPE's social media accounts. Keep up with what's going on, what's being discussed, and what's happening with public education.

Be sure to enter your email address in the Follow Us By Email box in the right-hand column of our blog page to be informed when our blog posts are published.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"Parents who have children in public schools are satisfied with them, based on their experience. But the general public swallows the negative narrative spewed by the mainstream media and rightwing politicians and thus has a sour view of public schools. This gap in perception has persisted for many years but seems to be increasing as Republican politicians like Texas’s Greg Abbott and Florida’s Ron DeSantis amp up their attacks on public schools.

"Since it is not newsworthy to report that most parents are satisfied with their children’s public schools, the media loves to publish stories about crises and failure. Eventually, it becomes the conventional wisdom." -- Diane Ravitch

PARENTS OVERWHELMINGLY APPROVE OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS -- AGAIN

Matt Barnum: Pundits and Politicians Despair about Public Schools, But Parents Are Happy with Them

As has been true for decades, American public school parents are happy with their children's public schools. Media coverage, on the other hand, means that "those other schools somewhere else" are no good.

If parents are overwhelmingly satisfied with their local schools, where are the terrible schools?

From Diane Ravitch

The pandemic upended many things about American schooling, but not this long-standing trend. In Gallup’s most recent poll, conducted late last year, 80% of parents said they were somewhat or completely satisfied with their child’s school, which in most cases was a public school. This was actually a bit higher than in most years before the pandemic. A string of other polls, conducted throughout the pandemic, have shown similar results.

“Contrary to elite or policy wonk opinion, which often is critical of schools, there have been years and years worth of data saying that families in general like their local public schools,” said Andy Smarick, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank.

THE PLAN TO STARVE PUBLIC SCHOOLS

For at least two decades the Indiana General Assembly and other state legislatures around the country have done their best to divert tax money from public schools to privately run charter schools and private religious schools. If someone had devised a plan to specifically strip public schools of needed funds they could not have come up with a better way to do it. This year, for example, more than 95% of Indiana families are eligible for vouchers to help pay for religious school education.

The voucher plan was originally meant to help low-income students "escape" from "failing" public schools. Most of the students who now use Indiana's school vouchers are not low-income, and many are from families who have been paying for private education without state assistance. For this reason, the Republican supermajority in the Indiana General Assembly has stopped referring to school vouchers as a plan to help low-income students and is now focused on "parental choice." Ironically, when schools are privatized it's the school that has the choice of what students are allowed to attend, not the other way around.

Instead of trying to fund three systems of education (public, charter, private/religious), the General Assembly ought to follow Article 8 of the Indiana Constitution and

...provide, by law, for a general and uniform system of Common Schools, wherein tuition shall be without charge, and equally open to all

Textbook fee elimination will require adjustments

Fortunately, Indiana parents will no longer bear the burden of enormous textbook fees because of the inability (or refusal) of the legislature to fully fund public education.

Unfortunately, the General Assembly hasn't provided enough money to cover the costs of textbook fees for the state's public school systems.

From the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette**

Parents are getting a big win as their kids go back to school this year: no more textbook fees. But as the details unfold, school districts around the state are preparing for a shortfall between what the state is going to give them and what the actual costs are.

Lawmakers, pushed by GOP Gov. Eric Holcomb, did the right thing in the state budget and eliminated those pesky fees, which sometimes cost parents hundreds of dollars per child.

Indiana was one of only seven states to charge the fees even though the state constitution requires a free public education.

But there are questions about whether legislators set aside enough money to make up the costs.

Indiana's near-universal voucher program starts now

Billions of tax dollars are being funneled into the accounts of religious institutions.

From Axios Indianapolis

When Hoosier students start heading back to school this week, it's expected that thousands more will do so at a private school while the state picks up the tuition tab.

Driving the news: State lawmakers earlier this year expanded eligibility for the Indiana Choice Scholarship program, known as private school vouchers, allowing all but the wealthiest Hoosier families to get a voucher to cover at least part of the cost of private school tuition.

Why it matters: The change is expected to balloon participation in the program, diverting millions of public dollars away from public schools and sending the money instead to mostly religious schools that don't have to accept all students or follow the same non-discrimination laws.

How it works...

Evidence suggests voucher schools push out struggling students

Parents don't always get to choose their schools. Private and charter schools often choose their students.

From Steve Hinnefeld in the School Matters Blog

Do private schools push out students who receive state-funded tuition vouchers when they struggle academically? A newly published research study provides evidence that they do.

On the other hand, the researchers don’t find support for the idea that the schools are “cream skimming”: that is, admitting more voucher students who are high-achieving and easier to educate.

The study, “Cream Skimming and Pushout in Students Participating in a Statewide Private School Voucher Program,” was published in the journal Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis. Authors are R. Joseph Waddington and Ron Zimmer of the University of Kentucky and Mark Berends of Notre Dame.

...[The researchers] find little evidence that students with low test scores or a history of discipline problems were less likely to enroll in private schools with vouchers. But they do find evidence of pushout: for example, the lowest-achieving voucher students were 3 to 9 percentage points more likely to leave private schools than higher-achieving peers, a “modestly” higher rate.

WHO IS DOING THE INDOCTRINATION?

Florida Adopts Curriculum to Indoctrinate Students in Rightwing Views

The right-wing governor of Florida has complained that public schools try to "indoctrinate" and "groom" students. The opposite is true.

From Diane Ravitch

Gov. Ron DeSantis repeatedly says he opposes indoctrination in schools. Yet his administration in early July approved materials from a conservative group that says it’s all about indoctrination and “changing minds.”

The Florida Department of Education determined that educational materials geared toward young children and high school students created by PragerU, a nonprofit co-founded by conservative radio host Dennis Prager, were in alignment with the state’s standards on how to teach civics and government to K-12 students.

The content, some of which is narrated by conservative personalities such as Tucker Carlson and Candance Owens, features cartoons, five-minute video history lessons and story-time shows for young children. It is part of a brand called PragerU Kids. And the lessons share a common message: Being pro-American means aligning oneself to mainstream conservative talking points.

APPARENTLY, QUALIFICATIONS DO NOT MATTER

Houston: Miles Seeks Approval to Hire Uncertified Principals and Teachers

These folks know nothing about education. They apparently believe that "anyone" can teach. It takes a trained professional to make the thousands of daily educational decisions that teachers make. It's more than just babysitting.

From Diane Ravitch

Mike Miles is asking the Texas Education Agency to allow him to recruit uncertified teachers, principals, and deans. This move follows the Broadie playbook that education experience doesn’t matter. Broadies are known for their love of TFA. Miles may be reaching even lower since uncertified teachers do not require a college degree.

Houston ISD is seeking board approval this month for a waiver from the Texas Education Agency to hire uncertified deans and assistant principals for the next three years.

**Note: The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette is behind a paywall. Digital access, home delivery, or both are available with a subscription. Staying informed is essential; one way to do that is to support your local newspaper. For subscription information, go to fortwayne.com/subscriptions/ [NOTE: NEIFPE has no financial ties to the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette]

^†Note: NEIFPE's In Case You Missed It is posted by the end of the day every Monday except after holiday weekends or as otherwise noted.

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In Case You Missed It – July 31, 2023

Here are links to last week's^† articles receiving the most attention on NEIFPE's social media accounts. Keep up with what's going on, what's being discussed, and what's happening with public education.

Be sure to enter your email address in the Follow Us By Email box in the right-hand column of our blog page to be informed when our blog posts are published.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"The people of America deprive us of every privilege—they turn round and taunt us with our inferiority!—they stand upon our necks, they impudently taunt us, and ask the question, why we don’t stand up erect? they tie our feet, and ask us why we don’t run? that is the position of America in the present time, the laws forbid education, the mother must not teach her child the letters of the Lord’s prayer; and then while this unfortunate state of things exist they turn round and ask, why we are not moral and intelligent; and tell us, because we are not, that they have the right to enslave [us]." -- Frederick Douglass

FLORIDA: WHERE HISTORY GOES TO DIE

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis claimed that he "wasn't involved" in writing the state's 2023 Social Studies standards, but he defended them nonetheless. In response, former U.S. Rep. Will Hurd of Texas tweeted that slavery "wasn't a jobs program that taught beneficial skills."

Florida Attempting to Revive the “Happy Slave” Myth as Real History

Beneficial skills don't matter when you don't "own your own body."

From Gadfly on the Wall Blog

Frederick Douglass was widely considered the most photographed American in the 19th century, though he never smiled in a single portrait.

He stares out of the frame with a look of quiet dignity, but never joviality or contentment.

The reason for this is simple – he didn’t want to perpetuate the myth of the “Happy Slave.”

Douglass was born into bondage until he fled to the North at age 20. He was considered a fugitive for nine more years until 1845 when English friends raised $711.66 to buy his freedom. He was already a famous orator, author and abolitionist.

But he knew the power of a picture and how a still image of him grinning ear-to-ear might be used by slaveholders to indicate that people of color enjoyed their own servitude.

Now 158 years after the Civil War, the Florida Department of Education is trying to perpetuate that same myth with its new guidelines for Black history curriculum in public schools.

Among other things, the guidelines suggest that American slavery was not all bad because enslaved people developed skills that “could be applied for their personal benefit.”

Letters from an American: July 22, 2023

Heather Cox Richardson analyzes the new Florida Social Studies standards.

From Letters from an American by Heather Cox Richardson

The Florida Board of Education approved new state social studies standards on Wednesday, including standards for African American history, civics and government, American history, and economics. Critics immediately called out the middle school instruction in African American history that includes “how slaves developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit.” (p. 6). They noted that describing enslavement as offering personal benefits to enslaved people is outrageous.

But that specific piece of instruction in the 216-page document is only a part of a much larger political project.

Taken as a whole, the Florida social studies curriculum describes a world in which the white male Founders of the United States embraced ideals of liberty and equality—ideals it falsely attributes primarily to Christianity rather than the Enlightenment—and indicates the country’s leaders never faltered from those ideals. Students will, the guidelines say, learn “how the principles contained in foundational documents contributed to the expansion of civil rights and liberties over time” (p. 148) and “analyze how liberty and economic freedom generate broad-based opportunity and prosperity in the United States” (p. 154).

TIME TO END TESTING

Bob Shepherd: Past Time to End Our Obsession with Standardized Testing

The entire post is below...

From Bob Shepherd, quoted by Diane Ravitch

"I have come to believe that there is one way and one way only that we will eliminate the federal testing mandate, which has had such blood-sucking costs over the years, direct costs and opportunity costs in loss learning, and which has brought about a dramatic devolution in our curricula and pedagogy.

"The tests will remain in place until the national teachers’ unions take up the cause of ending them, until they call a national strike to do that. This would take real guts, real leadership. But until the teachers’ unions do that, until they institute a national action to end the testing, they are COMPLICIT IN CHILD ABUSE. I mean that. It’s not hyperbole. The testing is child abuse. It robs kids of large percentages of the time that they could be spending learning. And it robs them of coherent curricula and pedagogy. Instead, they get random exercises on random “skills” from the puerile Gates/Coleman “standards” bullet list and its progeny around the country.

"ENOUGH. It’s been an utter failure. It’s been devastating. Time to end it."

NACS BOARD FEARS CONTENT OF LIBRARY CONFERENCE

Northwest Allen County Schools board pauses vote on library conference attendance request

The last sentence in the quote below says it all. School Board members are afraid of what a keynote speaker might say. As they see it, it's their job as "thought police" to protect staff members from wrong thinking which they might bring back to students. The professionalism of the employee doesn't matter.

We agree that there are professional conferences that the School Board might question paying for. Still, with the recent history of this board, and the current "culture war" atmosphere in Indiana and around the nation, there's reason to believe that the refusal to pay for this conference might be based on political rather than educational reasons.

From the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette**

The Northwest Allen County Schools board wants more information about a November library conference before voting on an employee’s request to attend.

The board tabled Terri Uchtman’s professional development proposal in a 3-1 vote Monday. Members said they wanted more information about the activities planned for the Indiana Library Federation’s annual conference in Indianapolis.

The agenda posted online includes information about some speakers and indicates details about the 12 breakout sessions will be available soon.

“We don’t even know what the content is going to be,” member Darren Vogt said. “For me to approve something where I don’t know what the content is, I’m going to vote no.”

...This isn’t the first time a professional development request has divided the board. A split vote in January 2022 denied staff from attending a conference about students’ emotional well-being. Members feared what a keynote speaker might say, particularly about critical race theory.

FWCS BOARD OKs $10 MILLION IN IMPROVEMENTS

Fort Wayne Community Schools board OKs financing for $10 million in improvements

From the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette**

Fort Wayne Community Schools’ plan to finance about $10 million in safety and accessibility improvements with general obligation bonds got the board’s final blessing Monday.

The elected leaders also agreed to hire two businesses to provide services for the accessibility projects, which will affect 11 buildings.

The pre-construction services contract with FCI Construction totals $28,125. The design services agreement with Martin Riley Architects and Engineers is estimated at $449,400.

The work will be funded with general obligation bonds – a common tool districts use to pay for projects outside the operations fund.

The accessibility upgrades have an overall construction budget of $6 million. They will affect Young Early Childhood Center; Adams, Harrison Hill, St. Joseph Central and Weisser Park Elementary Schools; Jefferson, Kekionga, Lane, Northwood and Portage Middle Schools; and the Center for Academic Success at Nebraska.

**Note: The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette is behind a paywall. Digital access, home delivery, or both are available with a subscription. Staying informed is essential; one way to do that is to support your local newspaper. For subscription information, go to fortwayne.com/subscriptions/ [NOTE: NEIFPE has no financial ties to the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette]

^†Note: NEIFPE's In Case You Missed It is posted by the end of the day on Mondays except after holiday weekends or as otherwise noted.

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In Case You Missed It – June 5, 2023

Here are links to last week's^† articles receiving the most attention on NEIFPE's social media accounts. Keep up with what's going on, what's being discussed, and what's happening with public education.

Be sure to enter your email address in the Follow Us By Email box in the right-hand column of our blog page to be informed when our blog posts are published.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"The reality of what DeSantis and Moms for Liberty are doing is now clear to everyone: With a combination of lies, misinformation, and intimidation, they want to create an America where it’s easier for a white supremacist to ban a book than it is for a Black child to read a poem." -- The Unprecedented Newsletter Blog

FLORIDA'S ATTACK ON PUBLIC EDUCATION GOES NATIONAL

Today we look at Florida Governor Ron DeSantis's attack on public education. Along with his right-wing legislature, DeSantis has declared an all-out war on learning.

The three following stories focus on Florida's attack on public education and learning in general.

First, the Scientific American Editorial Board reviews Florida's anti-science agenda.

Then, Diane Ravitch and the Washington Post write about the move to restrict access to poetry by Amanda Gorman, whose poetry was featured in the 2021 Inauguration of President Biden.

Finally, before moving on to other topics, we present an article about how red states across the country (including Indiana) are following Florida's lead.

“Scientific American” Editorial Board Warns About DeSantis “Anti-Science Agenda”

From Diane Ravitch

Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, is running for president of the United States on a record of anti-diversity, pro-censorship, white nationalist measures. He has targeted education, LGBTQ rights and access to health care, and should he prevail, his anti-science candidacy stands to harm millions of Americans.

DeSantis has banned books in school libraries, restricted teachers’ classroom discussions about diversity, prohibited high school classes that focus on Black history and people, politicized college curricula, limited spending on diversity programs, ignored greenhouse gas reduction in climate change policy, diminished reproductive rights and outlawed transgender health care.

The governor has refused all evidence that masks are safe and help prevent COVID, appointed a surgeon general who advised against vaccines, and continues to paint science and evidence as restrictions to the freedom of Floridians. Instead of limiting the role of government, as he claimed in his fight against masks, he is expanding it to selectively promote a particular religious agenda.

Florida: The Banning of Amanda Gorman’s Poem Is Shameful

From Diane Ravitch

At this point, it should be obvious that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s culture-war directives are designed to encourage parents to indulge in book purges for sport. Precisely because removals have become so easy, lone right-wing actors are feverishly hunting for offending titles, getting them pulled from school libraries on absurdly flimsy grounds, sometimes by the dozens.

A new turn in the explosive saga involving the poem that Amanda Gorman read at President Biden’s inauguration underscores the point. DeSantis is now defending a Florida school’s decision to restrict access to “The Hill We Climb” — a move that has become a national controversy.

Book-Banning in Florida Is Contagious in Other Red States

From Diane Ravitch

...While efforts to ban books or censor education material have come up sporadically over the years, critics and supporters credit DeSantis with inspiring a new wave of legislation in other conservative states to regulate the books available in schools — and sometimes even in public libraries.

The number of attempts to ban or restrict books across the U.S. last year was the highest in the 20 years the American Library Association has been tracking such efforts.

EveryLibrary, a national political action committee, said it’s tracking at least 121 proposals introduced in state legislatures this year targeting libraries, librarians, educators and access to materials. The group said 39 of those proposals would allow for criminal prosecution.

STATE TAKEOVERS DON'T WORK

State Takeovers Don’t Work. How About Radically Increasing Support for Communities and Kids Instead?

Last week we learned that full funding is important for schools to be successful.

This week, another aspect of failed (so-called) "reform" falls by the wayside...state takeover of schools.

It turns out that those Republicans who, in the 80s and 90s, called for "local control" were right. Local schools work better when states fully fund the state's school systems and let the local school boards do their job.

From Public Voices for Public Schools

When the state of Rhode Island took over the Providence Public School District in 2019, there was little reason to believe that outcomes for the struggling school district would meaningfully improve. In Detroit, student proficiency in both math and English dropped after the state took charge of the schools. Schools under state control in Memphis showed significantly less improvement than schools over which the city retained control. And in New Orleans, often touted as an example of a state takeover that worked, more than half of schools in the all-charter district earned D or F ratings in 2022.

The evidence that state takeovers don’t work keeps mounting. The most comprehensive study to date, published in 2021, found that, on average, state takeovers had no observable positive impact on student achievement. In fact, state takeovers are correlated with a drop in student ELA scores.

FWCS TEACHER HONOR ROLL

Teacher Honor Roll: Fort Wayne elementary school educator attuned to students' needs

From the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette**

A Fort Wayne Community Schools teacher has been nominated for Teacher Honor Roll in recognition of her caring and attentiveness. Her profile follows.

Sarah Schoolman
School: Lincoln Elementary

Grade teaching: Fourth grade...

What advice would you give to your students as they plan for their future? One piece of our classroom mission statement is “Learn all we can!” I challenge my students to become lifelong learners and to never turn down an opportunity for learning. Whether that’s reading a book, taking a class, or spending time with someone whom you can learn from – take advantage of every bit of learning you can!

**Note: The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette is behind a paywall. Digital access, home delivery, or both are available with a subscription. Staying informed is important, and one way to do that is to support your local newspaper. For subscription information, go to fortwayne.com/subscriptions/ [NOTE: NEIFPE has no financial ties to the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette]

^†Note: NEIFPE's In Case You Missed It is posted by the end of the day every Monday except after holiday weekends or as otherwise noted.

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