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| Litigation
Update: Missouri Plaintiffs Testify; Motions
in Kentucky, Indiana, Nebraska, and Oklahoma
Testimony
is continuing in Missouri’s school
funding lawsuit, at least through February.
Meanwhile, trial courts in Kentucky and
Indiana dismissed lawsuits this month, and
plaintiffs in Nebraska and Oklahoma are
in the process of appealing similar rulings.
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Grassroots
Advocates Push to Save Schools in Maine
and Mississippi
In
energetic campaigns to save local schools,
advocacy groups in Maine and Mississippi
have been making headlines in the past month.
In Maine, Governor John Baldacci’s
proposal to consolidate school districts
has prompted opposition from organizations
and citizens across the state, particularly
in rural areas. In Mississippi, grassroots
organizing has been instrumental in pushing
both lawmakers and Governor Haley Barbour
to support substantial increases in school
funding.
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| New
York Governor Spitzer Proposes Major Education
Policy and Funding Reforms
Governor
Eliot Spitzer has proposed an overhaul of
New York’s education finance system
that will tie far-reaching accountability
reforms to the “the largest infusion
of resources” in state history and
change the entire funding formula in a way
that aligns dollars with the needs of children.
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| School
Beyond the Four Walls
Children
need to spend more time learning, but that
time should not necessarily be in a classroom,
says a new report from the Time, Learning,
and Afterschool Task Force. In the report,
entitled “A New Day For Learning,”
the Task Force argues that the current model
of education no longer works for students
in the twenty-first century. “Without
a broader view of learning,” the report
warns, “children will be denied access
to experiences that will help them be successful
lifelong learners.” Improving education
and ensuring that children stay in school,
the Task Force claims, lies in placing more
emphasis on interdisciplinary and applied
knowledge and by expanding our notion of
education to include after-school programs,
internships, and other community activities.
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Public
Schools: Of the People, By the People, and
For the People
In
an age when public schools face criticism
by the press and by elected officials, reminders
of the importance of public education are
hard to find. A recent reminder, however,
comes from the Center on Education Policy
(CEP), in their new report, “Why We
Still Need Public Schools: Public Education
for the Common Good.” The CEP report
describes the missions of public education
and explains why public education is provided
not only by the public but also for the
public. To treat education as a “private
consumer good,” the report emphasizes,
is to miss the point of public education
and to lose out on its benefits. Read
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