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Lawsuit update
There was some slight movement last week in the now year-long lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education, regarding rule changes to the Charter Schools Program (CSP). The federal judge in Michigan, in whose court the suit landed, ruled that plaintiffs from North Carolina, Delaware, and Michigan lacked standing to sue on the issues and dismissed them from the case. The case will continue with plaintiffs from West Virginia and Ohio (including the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation), and will relocate to another venue and another judge.
Also in the courts
This week, a circuit court judge in Franklin County (KY) ruled that Kentucky House Bill 9 is unconstitutional, blocking officials from implementing plans to fund the first charter schools in the state. “This charter school legislation is effectively an attempt to bypass the system of common schools,” Judge Phillip Shepherd wrote, “and establish a separate class of publicly funded but privately controlled schools that have unique autonomy in management and operation of schools.” An appeal is likely.
Trends
The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS) this week released a state-level analysis of public school enrollment trends in the U.S.—both charter and traditional district schools—over the last four years. Overall, charters gained more than 300,000 students in that period, an increase of 9 percent, while traditional districts saw over 1.5 million students leave, a decrease of 3.5 percent. The report looks at which students are leaving, where they are going, and—importantly—why they are moving. You can read the full report here.
Meanwhile, in Ohio…
The state board of education this week chose Paul Craft, the current superintendent of Buckeye Valley Local Schools in Delaware County, to be the next superintendent of public instruction in Ohio. Meanwhile, sitting board member Christina Collins announced she would resign from her seat, effective December 31. She cited the time demands of becoming a new mom and the need to “be a little more protective of my time.”
Student voices
We learned this week that the new Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (DEW) is moving forward with creating the Student Voice Workgroup, a sounding board comprised of the most important education stakeholders who will help advise the department on policies, practices, resource needs, and more. The workgroup will include charter school students, as it should, and we got a look at one member—Ayshia Jackson of Heir Force Community School in Lima—who was recently selected for the panel. Kudos to Ayshia. I, for one, can’t wait to hear what she and her colleagues want DEW leaders to know about schooling in Ohio.
Teaching the value and excitement of math
The video is better than the published story, but take a look at both: A+ Arts Academy in Columbus is celebrating math knowledge and students’ hard work with a school-wide, day-long “math battle”. It looks like a great time, too. “We want it to be fun,” said principal Richard Davis. “We want it to be competitive, and we want them to see the value in it and to see the excitement in math.” Just so.
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