The US Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, called for a six-day school week. He also wants year-round classes, higher pay for teachers, better paid for better teachers and more choices for parents to send their kids to any school so long as the parents are handing their kids over to the schools.
There are many days when I do a better job teaching my kids and their friends than the schools. Those days are often on the weekends and summers.
I understand that I'm not a typical parent. But come on. What do you think the education secretary is going to say.
He wants more, more, more.
I want better, better, better.
We need responsible, motivated, engaged, and thoughtful.
The quote in the paper, Page A3, Trib, April 8, says, "I will do absolutely everything to get myself in the middle of that conversation."
Bingo. That is the key. The education secretary, Duncan, should get in the middle of the conversation rather than getting onto one side of it so as to tug the kids out of extra experiences and into more school time.
Meanwhile, we've got for the first time (perhaps ever) in Pittsburgh Public Schools a week-long spring break. No school this week. None.
I wonder when my wife, kids and a couple of their buddies are going to be back from the Science Center? We've got to go to the gym and pool this afternoon.
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
Common Sense for Mayoral Candidates: Education Policy
Policy Brief
An electronic publication of
The Allegheny Institute for Public Policy
April 8, 2009 Volume 9, Number 20
A good public school system can be, and often is, an important factor in the overall economic success of a city. At the same time, one thing is certain; bad school systems chase people with school age children away. If Pittsburgh is to reverse the decades’ long trend of population loss, the City’s poorly performing grotesquely expensive school district must stop being a deterrent to the City’s prosperity. However, unlike other City issues, education does not fall under the Mayor’s purview and there is little the Mayor can do directly to control or affect the schools since the District is a creature of the Commonwealth and has an elected Board to govern it. Nonetheless, the Mayor can use the “bully pulpit” powers of his office to lead the charge for changes that can redound positively to the education of Pittsburgh’s children.
We have described and analyzed the Pittsburgh Public School District and its problems on numerous occasions. The District is plagued by rising expenses, poor performance, and declining enrollment. On a per pupil basis the District’s general fund expenditures are currently above $20,000 a year, among the very highest levels in the state. Philadelphia spends less than Pittsburgh at $15,000 per pupil while the state average is just over $13,400. Pittsburgh’s per pupil expenditures are even further out of line when compared to other cities around the country such as Charlotte ($9,000), Houston ($8,000), and Omaha ($9,000).
Latest scores on the state achievement test (PSSA) revealed that only 53 percent of 11th grade students scored at the proficient level on state reading levels and only 44 percent scored at grade level in math. At several of the District’s high schools the fraction of 11th grade students reaching proficiency falls below 20 percent. With scores this low, very few families with school-aged children will consider moving into the City unless they can afford private school tuition.
In an attempt to combat the problem of declining enrollment and to raise the academic achievement of students, the current administration in 2006 unveiled the Pittsburgh Promise, a college scholarship program for graduates of Pittsburgh Public Schools. Again, as we have documented, the Promise has not lived up to expectations for stopping the decline in enrollment or boosting lackluster academic performance.
In a situation this dire with all the negative effects the schools are having on the City, it is incumbent on Pittsburgh’s Mayor to offer a dramatic departure for improving education opportunities for the City’s children. And make no mistake, that should be the priority—not the teachers’ union, not the school board and not the superintendent.
Common Sense Recommendation for Mayoral Candidates:Work to bring choice to Pittsburgh’s education system.
The mayor could push the Board to adopt the No Excuses approach to education and push for more charter schools. No Excuses programs emphasize decision making latitude for principals in personnel decisions and accountability for performance; a belief that all students can and will learn; and an academic program that is constantly evaluated and rigorously tested. This approach has been successful in other urban school districts around the country.
The mayor can also learn from the Milwaukee model and begin a program to provide scholarships for students to attend private or parochial schools of their choice such as the Extra Mile schools run by the Catholic Diocese and the Extra Mile Foundation. The Mayor should go to the business and foundation community and raise financial and moral support for such a program. The Mayor should also invite other education organizations such as Knowledge is Power to bring their highly successful programs to Pittsburgh. The introduction of meaningful competition could be the step needed to spur significant and positive changes to public education in Pittsburgh.
All the spending, all the programs, all the efforts of many years have been unable to turn the Pittsburgh schools around. And, there is little indication that a major turn for the better is waiting around the corner. Action is needed now. The Mayor can lead the charge to bring real change to education in Pittsburgh. The parents who truly want their kids to have a shot at a good education deserve better than the current system can offer. The moral and the wise thing to do is to break the stranglehold of the public education establishment and focus on true educational reforms by providing real choices.
After all, the primary obligation of the Mayor is to the welfare of the citizens of the City, including its children. Kowtowing to the powerful special interests that waste money and cheat kids out of a chance to learn must end. The taxpayers will be grateful as will thousands of parents who currently have no choice but to put up with the status quo or move out of the City.
Jake Haulk, Ph.D., President Frank Gamrat, Ph.D., Sr. Research Assoc.
Please visit our blog at alleghenyinstitute.org/blog.
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For more information on this and other topics, please visit our web site: alleghenyinstitute.org
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Thank you for your support.
I do not think that all charter schools are evil. That has been the feeling with many in the school district and the teachers union.
But, there are more items to mention in the content above and to explain my feelings -- often a bit different than what is promoted by the Allegheny Institute. Even along the lines of 'choice' -- there are things that the mayor and school district can do not mentioned above.
Reactions welcomed, as always, in the comments.
Details
It is a great idea to use the busway in moving from Downtown to Oakland.
Fifth Ave:
* Will be used as the staging area for all marked police and public safety vehicles.
* The staging area on Fifth will be starting at Bellefield Ave and proceeding west until at least Craft Ave if not further.
* Fifth Ave will be closed starting at 10:00AM till 12:30 PM at which time the west bound curb lane will be open for traffic until 15:00 hours, at which time the funeral processions will begin.
* Allegheny County Port Authority will close outbound bus traffic on Fifth Avenue and move bus operations to Forbes Avenue outbound at 09:30 AM.
* Inbound bus traffic will turn right on Bellefield, then left on Bayard, then left onto Bigelow, crossing Fifth and Forbes and accessing The Boulevard of the Allies through Schenley Park.
* Cross over streets for Fifth Avenue are: Fifth Avenue and Bigelow Boulevard; Fifth and Meyran Avenues; and Fifth Avenue and McKee Place.
Funeral Procession Route
• Leave City-County Building on Grant Street
• Take Grant to Martin Luther King Jr. East Busway
• Exit busway at Neville Street ramp
• Neville Street to Fifth Avenue
• Right onto Fifth Avenue
• Right onto DeSoto Street
• Left onto Terrace Street
• Right onto Sutherland Drive, to the Petersen Center
* All three processions will stage on Sutherland Drive
Petersen Event Center
* The Honor Guard will bear the fallen Officers across the patio to Concourse A entrance.
* All uniformed officers attending the funeral will stage on the patio of the Petersen Event Center on Allequippa from Sutherland Drive to the driveway of Sutherland Hall and also in F Lot.
* City of Pittsburgh Police Mobile Command Post will be staged in the loading dock area.
Allequippa Street
* Closed from entrance of OC Lot, east to University Drive at 08:00 AM.
Robinson Street
* From Wadsworth to Center Avenue, both sides of the street will be used as the staging area for buses that will bring Pipe Bands, Color Guards, and transportation for out of town Officers.
Pitt Police Traffic Posts
* Darragh at Victoria
* Darragh at Terrace
* Darragh at Allequippa
* Entrance to OC Lot at Allequippa
* Top of OC Lot driveway (Officer will stage family vehicles)
* Allequippa and University Drive
* Terrace and Sutherland
* Allequippa and Center
* O'Hara and Desoto
* Six Motor Cycles for escorts
I expect that the events at the Pete will be carried on local TV or cable, right?
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Allegheny presses to restrict where people live
Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to court we go.
The lawyers win. The taxpayers loose. And, in the end, the lawyers win as enforcement won't happen anyway.
The lawyers win. The taxpayers loose. And, in the end, the lawyers win as enforcement won't happen anyway.
Allegheny presses to restrict where sex offenders live - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review State laws limiting where sex offenders can live have withstood legal challenges, but Allegheny County's law is unlikely to survive legal scrutiny, several experts say.
The county plans to appeal a federal judge's March ruling striking down the law that prohibited sex offenders from living near schools and other places children gather. But the District Attorney's Office, Sen. Jane C. Orie and the State Association of Township Supervisors have advised county officials that the chances of a reversal are slim.
Election Crimes are happening. The voting machines are failing us.
This is just a snip of the PDF file.
Pointer from Dave Eckhardt.
Pointer from Dave Eckhardt.
Once again, the harder you look at them the worse they look.
http://coalition.eckhardt.net/press-2009-04-06.pdf
Monday, April 06, 2009
The Boston Globe has 450 employees with Lifetime-employment contracts
No wonder that company expects to be $85 million in the hole for this year.
University of Memphis English Department Chairman Heads to Kentucky | Carbolic Smoke Ball
University of Memphis English Department Chairman Heads to Kentucky | Carbolic Smoke Ball: "It’s official: Eric Link, the high-profile, charismatic chairman of the University of Memphis English Department has left the school to lead the English Department at the University of Kentucky.I want to know about his supplemental contracts, like for sneakers, tv shows, radio shows, and country club options.
Grants with Port of Pittsburgh Commission
Welcome to the Port of Pittsburgh Commission - Grants: "DEADLINE FOR SUBMITTING APPLICATIONS FOR THE NEXT ROUND OF GRANTS IS MAY 7, 2009 3:00PM
Beginning in 2009, the Port of Pittsburgh Commission has created a small grants program, of $5,000 to $20,000, for non-profits and local units of government in southwestern Pennsylvania. The grants may be used for sustainable, port-related economic development projects. Projects may be educational, recreational, environmental or touristic in nature or support some other economic development activities related to the rivers or streams of the 12-county Port of Pittsburgh district. The 12-counties in the PPC district are: Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Blair, Butler, Clarion, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Washington and Westmoreland.
Olympic Sports: Women's Softball divorces Men's Baseball -- now with new dates
Women's softball has been hitched to men's baseball in terms of Olympic sports for some time. However, baseball, with the steroid scandals and the less than highest quality players on the teams for the Olympics, soured relations have developed. The International Olympic Committee said that baseball's time in the games is finished. The sport, (baseball) got ejected.
Meanwhile, women's softball got the shaft as well from the Olympics.
Now, the two different sports are hitching up with new opposite sex partners.
Baseball wants in the games again -- with men's baseball and women's baseball.
Softball wants in the games again -- with women's softball and men's softball.
Frankly, I don't think it makes sense to exclude women's softball from the Olympics only because Team USA won every year -- until 2008. Women's softball should stay in the Olympics.
Furthermore, I don't think it makes sense to allow for women's baseball nor men's softball to become Olympic sports. I'd rather see canoe water polo. Furthermore, it is a crying shame if we don't have women's ski jumping in the 2010 winter Olympics. But, that's a different matter.
Meanwhile, women's softball got the shaft as well from the Olympics.
Now, the two different sports are hitching up with new opposite sex partners.
Baseball wants in the games again -- with men's baseball and women's baseball.
Softball wants in the games again -- with women's softball and men's softball.
Frankly, I don't think it makes sense to exclude women's softball from the Olympics only because Team USA won every year -- until 2008. Women's softball should stay in the Olympics.
Furthermore, I don't think it makes sense to allow for women's baseball nor men's softball to become Olympic sports. I'd rather see canoe water polo. Furthermore, it is a crying shame if we don't have women's ski jumping in the 2010 winter Olympics. But, that's a different matter.
Baseball to add women's sport to bid
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Baseball will be adding a women's component to its bid to be reinstated for the 2016 Summer Games.
Harvey Schiller, the president of the International Baseball Federation, tells The Associated Press the change will be made in the next few days.
The move comes a few weeks after women's softball rejected baseball's proposal for a joint baseball-softball bid. The two sports are among seven competing for two openings for new sports at the 2016 Olympics. The International Olympic Committee will vote in October on which sports to add.
Schiller says women's baseball is a growing sport. He estimates that between 300,000 and 500,000 women play baseball worldwide. Meanwhile, women's softball has given the IOC an option of adding men's softball.
Tragedy postpones mayoral debate and more
To be clear, the tragedy did not postpone the debate, Luke Ravenstahl did.
Has Luke done his homework -- or not?
I'm sure he has been busy. But, he should be busy. That is expected.
Holding a debate could be a perfect time to just what he wishes to do. With a one hour TV presentation, salted for tonight, attention could given to obligations of comfort for the family, friends and colleagues of the police officers.
Rather than scratch the debate, this is a great time to hold an extra meeting / debate. Use the time slot with the candidates to get their views out for others to hear, as life marches on. Stretch the opening statement to five minutes, rather than the typical 90 seconds or so.
But, the problem for Luke Ravenstahl is the fact that one of the other candidates that he'd have to share the stage with is a former police officer. She walked miles in those shoes in the past. She might have known the one officer and his family.
I remember September 2001's political climate. In the 2001 primary, I had tossed my hat into the ring, so to speak, as an opposition candidate to what Tom Murphy was doing to Pittsburgh. I wasn't in the race in the fall of 2001 when 9-11 hit, but James Carmine, Ph.D., professor of philosophy, smooth talker, was.
We had been asking for debates in August.
Later that fall, I even staged one with others at the Carneigie Library Lecture Hall -- and Tom Murphy didn't show up.
After 9-11 there were no political debates -- but -- they election in November still happened, of course, as they should have.
What didn't happen in 2001 was voter education. Those in power love it when that occurs. Accountability evaporates. Watchdogs slumber.
The bottom line, or, at the end of the day, -- there was one debate in the fall of 2001 with the Democrat Mayor. One. That debate was on TV -- but it was held on Sunday night before the polls opened on Tuesday. Good grief.
No clue here as to how those meetings unfolded.
Tragedy postpones mayoral debate A mayoral debate scheduled for tonight has been postponed.Of course, neither of the challengers can object to this request. So, I will.
City Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, City Councilman Patrick Dowd and attorney Carmen Robinson were scheduled to debate at 7 p.m.
However, Mr. Ravenstahl sent his challengers an e-mail yesterday asking that they reschedule.
'The tragic deaths of three Pittsburgh police officers on Saturday, April 4th, has shaken our city to its core,' he wrote. 'The impact of the ultimate sacrifice paid by Officers Eric Kelly, Paul J. Sciullo III and Stephen J. Mayhle continues to reverberate throughout our city, state and country. With that in mind, our scheduled debate should not take place this Monday so that our attention is not diverted from our obligation to comfort the family, friends and colleagues of these fallen heroes.'
The debate was scheduled to be aired live on PCNC, a cable news channel affiliate.
A new date has not yet been set.
Has Luke done his homework -- or not?
I'm sure he has been busy. But, he should be busy. That is expected.
Holding a debate could be a perfect time to just what he wishes to do. With a one hour TV presentation, salted for tonight, attention could given to obligations of comfort for the family, friends and colleagues of the police officers.
Rather than scratch the debate, this is a great time to hold an extra meeting / debate. Use the time slot with the candidates to get their views out for others to hear, as life marches on. Stretch the opening statement to five minutes, rather than the typical 90 seconds or so.
But, the problem for Luke Ravenstahl is the fact that one of the other candidates that he'd have to share the stage with is a former police officer. She walked miles in those shoes in the past. She might have known the one officer and his family.
I remember September 2001's political climate. In the 2001 primary, I had tossed my hat into the ring, so to speak, as an opposition candidate to what Tom Murphy was doing to Pittsburgh. I wasn't in the race in the fall of 2001 when 9-11 hit, but James Carmine, Ph.D., professor of philosophy, smooth talker, was.
We had been asking for debates in August.
Later that fall, I even staged one with others at the Carneigie Library Lecture Hall -- and Tom Murphy didn't show up.
After 9-11 there were no political debates -- but -- they election in November still happened, of course, as they should have.
What didn't happen in 2001 was voter education. Those in power love it when that occurs. Accountability evaporates. Watchdogs slumber.
The bottom line, or, at the end of the day, -- there was one debate in the fall of 2001 with the Democrat Mayor. One. That debate was on TV -- but it was held on Sunday night before the polls opened on Tuesday. Good grief.
Last week, Councilman Bruce Kraus was absent at the Wednesday meeting of council. He was in Erie meeting with the city council there seeking support for a a new law concerning lost-and-stolen guns. That discussion looms large in these times in terms of diminishing Second Amendment Rights.
City Council cancels meetings in wake of shootings: "Pittsburgh City Council has canceled all official business this week in light of the deadly shooting of three police officers Saturday."
No clue here as to how those meetings unfolded.
Coverage
Affidavit outlines shootings that left three Pittsburgh police officers dead Earlier yesterday, she called David Shribman, executive editor of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, to complain about the newspaper's coverage of the shootings and threaten a lawsuit.
She demanded that the newspaper stop publishing information about her and her son, saying the reporting thus far was not factual and should be limited to the officers and their grieving families.
'You're going to have the biggest lawsuit in the history of the city of Pittsburgh,' she later told a reporter.
Sunday, April 05, 2009
IOC officials tour possible Chicago Olympic venues - More Sports - SI.com
Windy City news.
Greg Louganis -- insist that long term facilities be built.
IOC officials tour possible Chicago Olympic venues - More Sports - SI.com: "Earlier, the committee members visited the proposed Olympic Village site on Michael Reese Hospital property on Chicago's near South Side, where they were met by Mayor Richard Daley and former Olympic diver Greg Louganis.Why is there only a temporary facility slated for Chicago's Olympic bid in terms of the aquatic facilities?
Greg Louganis -- insist that long term facilities be built.
Feuding in the South Hills
Open thread. My thoughts soon.
Feuding in the South Hills: "Intense political battle between former allies Motznik, Diven runs much deeper than May 19 district judge race"
Saturday, April 04, 2009
East Liberty TIF is not what Pittsburgh should be doing.
I'm not happy with yet another tax break, a TIF, Tax Increment Finance, that is coming to Pittsburgh. There are lots of reasons for my objection. Here are a few.
The TIF deal was presented by bosses of the URA (Urban Redevelopment Authority) to members of Pittsburgh City Council on Tuesday at a post agenda. The statements from the URA are crazy and way beyond belief. They should be called on the absurd nature of their discussion and presentation -- but all on council seemed to just smile.
A new TARGET store, so the URA said, is not going to take away anything from business in the city council district where it will be built. This is a big development with a big box retailer. They combine three parcels of land for the project and all the money that goes there from customers would not be spent elsewhere in the district. Oh my gosh. Opening a new TARGET in the east end of Pittsburgh is going to impact other business receipts from Ross Park Mall to Monroeville to Homestead's Water Front. It is a regional impact. The URA is right, Target won't offer any detrimental impact to others near by -- such as the ice cream truck that goes around in the summertime.
The TIF comes, but where in the world is the CBA (Citizens Benefit Agreement). Why don't we have one? There was a lot of noise made about CBAs in recent development deals with the hope that they would be a standard point of order. Promises are being made, but they are not being documented in a formal agreement. Rather, the promises are much like campaign pledges -- hot air.
Should we trust in: More than 150 jobs. Most of the employees are going to be residents of city council district 9. Green buildings to certified standards. Better traffic patterns. Pedestrian friendly treatments.
The subject of wage taxes is raised at the table with city council. But the focus of the meeting is about the TIF. What is the topic? Why get hoodwinked? The TIF deal and the other taxes (wage, RAD, parking, etc.) are not to be combined.
Why should the URA pay for sidewalks, street lights and road re-configuration? Is the URA gong to pay for winter-time salting of the streets too? Is the URA going to replace the street lights after they burn out or flip to LED lights? Point being, these basic services are city infrastructure bits that the city should pay for out of its budget -- not the URA's budget. The URA should be doing development deals -- not running public works.
Of course taxes are not to be spent on one's self. They make it sound like the TIF money is going to be spent on other bits of infrastructure elsewhere -- within the same general neighborhood. Hello. That's the way all taxes work, generally. You don't pay taxes to fix your own roof. Covering costs that your create is called investment. Taxes are paid so that the money can go to fund government and areas where there are public rights of way. Duhh. The uptick in taxes should be collected by the city and then spent as the city sees fit. That's ideal government.
What are the pay to play implications of this TIF deal? Research? Where is that database? Mossites (sp?) is the developer.
If the East Liberty area is booming now with all sorts of new biz springing to life there, then the last thing that East Liberty should want is more government money in the mix with an additional layer of red tape. Government needs to get out of the way. New development needs to be sustained on its own with private money.
Fix the traffic circle. Do that as part of everyday government -- not a TIF tied to a TARGET store.
City council and the URA have a role. But it isn't with tax breaks. City council wants to have a bigger role. I want them to get out of the way. And, it takes work to get out of the way at times.
In the end, the TIF is a way to rob the school district. That tax break robs the kids of today. Why not just have the developer pay what is due?
I said that the tax break should not be given so as to cut the income for the school district. Then City Council President, Doug Shields, the man who won't shut up and won't let me talk in public comment, said he wants to short change the school district. Doug thinks that the school district needs to give up money with the TIF if it wants to get the increase in taxes later. Wrong Doug. Why should the school district give up income when it is needed? Why not do public investment into the school instead of undoing the goffy things that the city did wrong in the past? The public investment going to street lights and roads is not going to help our kids be more competitive in the classroom. Doug Shields is double trouble for the school kids of today: He robs what is due to them now. And, what is to come later he skims from the top to spend with the URA.
Why not have the URA have a school investment fund?
The TIF deal was presented by bosses of the URA (Urban Redevelopment Authority) to members of Pittsburgh City Council on Tuesday at a post agenda. The statements from the URA are crazy and way beyond belief. They should be called on the absurd nature of their discussion and presentation -- but all on council seemed to just smile.
A new TARGET store, so the URA said, is not going to take away anything from business in the city council district where it will be built. This is a big development with a big box retailer. They combine three parcels of land for the project and all the money that goes there from customers would not be spent elsewhere in the district. Oh my gosh. Opening a new TARGET in the east end of Pittsburgh is going to impact other business receipts from Ross Park Mall to Monroeville to Homestead's Water Front. It is a regional impact. The URA is right, Target won't offer any detrimental impact to others near by -- such as the ice cream truck that goes around in the summertime.
The TIF comes, but where in the world is the CBA (Citizens Benefit Agreement). Why don't we have one? There was a lot of noise made about CBAs in recent development deals with the hope that they would be a standard point of order. Promises are being made, but they are not being documented in a formal agreement. Rather, the promises are much like campaign pledges -- hot air.
Should we trust in: More than 150 jobs. Most of the employees are going to be residents of city council district 9. Green buildings to certified standards. Better traffic patterns. Pedestrian friendly treatments.
The subject of wage taxes is raised at the table with city council. But the focus of the meeting is about the TIF. What is the topic? Why get hoodwinked? The TIF deal and the other taxes (wage, RAD, parking, etc.) are not to be combined.
Why should the URA pay for sidewalks, street lights and road re-configuration? Is the URA gong to pay for winter-time salting of the streets too? Is the URA going to replace the street lights after they burn out or flip to LED lights? Point being, these basic services are city infrastructure bits that the city should pay for out of its budget -- not the URA's budget. The URA should be doing development deals -- not running public works.
Of course taxes are not to be spent on one's self. They make it sound like the TIF money is going to be spent on other bits of infrastructure elsewhere -- within the same general neighborhood. Hello. That's the way all taxes work, generally. You don't pay taxes to fix your own roof. Covering costs that your create is called investment. Taxes are paid so that the money can go to fund government and areas where there are public rights of way. Duhh. The uptick in taxes should be collected by the city and then spent as the city sees fit. That's ideal government.
What are the pay to play implications of this TIF deal? Research? Where is that database? Mossites (sp?) is the developer.
If the East Liberty area is booming now with all sorts of new biz springing to life there, then the last thing that East Liberty should want is more government money in the mix with an additional layer of red tape. Government needs to get out of the way. New development needs to be sustained on its own with private money.
Fix the traffic circle. Do that as part of everyday government -- not a TIF tied to a TARGET store.
City council and the URA have a role. But it isn't with tax breaks. City council wants to have a bigger role. I want them to get out of the way. And, it takes work to get out of the way at times.
In the end, the TIF is a way to rob the school district. That tax break robs the kids of today. Why not just have the developer pay what is due?
I said that the tax break should not be given so as to cut the income for the school district. Then City Council President, Doug Shields, the man who won't shut up and won't let me talk in public comment, said he wants to short change the school district. Doug thinks that the school district needs to give up money with the TIF if it wants to get the increase in taxes later. Wrong Doug. Why should the school district give up income when it is needed? Why not do public investment into the school instead of undoing the goffy things that the city did wrong in the past? The public investment going to street lights and roads is not going to help our kids be more competitive in the classroom. Doug Shields is double trouble for the school kids of today: He robs what is due to them now. And, what is to come later he skims from the top to spend with the URA.
Why not have the URA have a school investment fund?
Friday, April 03, 2009
YouTube - ChathamChannel's Channel
YouTube - ChathamChannel's Channel: "Subscribe
Unsubscribe
The Chatham University Channel"
Spring break is here. Time for a break, of sorts. Enjoy. Refresh.
Unsubscribe
The Chatham University Channel"
Spring break is here. Time for a break, of sorts. Enjoy. Refresh.
Woodland Hills Aquatic Team : Job Openings
Woodland Hills Aquatic Team : Job Openings: "Woodland Hills Aquatic Club (WHAT) is seeking to immediately fill their head coaching position."
Pittsburgh Peabody
My $.02.
I posted my initial thoughts at the PURE Reform blog. Here they are again with numbers and a few extra points.
#1 I think that the plan A should be for 150 IB kids per class, for a total of 600 students, not 500.
#2 Furthermore, I think that we can fit in 50 extra seats for a 13th Grade Option as well. So, round that to 650.
#3 The traditional Frick school (grades 6, 7 and 8) would need to stay at Rise&Shine Middle School. Frick's building is being used as a 6-12 Sci Tech High School. This should be part of the counter plans. What about middle school for IB track? Missing element must be proposed.
#4 Idea: Put 600 at IB Jr. High (Reiz), 200 in each grade (6, 7 and 8). Figure at the leap to HS, 20 kids go each to CAPA & Dice and some to other HSs and even CTE.
#5 By all means, the IB Middle School is NECESSARY to making the IB High -- work. Would 600 in that building be okay with the economics?
#6 Furthermore, the CTE students in certain grades would be able to have half-days at school and half-days at other sites / jobs, etc. The student load with half days could be greater on the CTE side? I know that the kids at South Vo Tech often were out of the building but still in 'school time' as they were on the job.
#7 I don't like the CISCO option. It is a dead technology. It is too much like that offered at computers at Brashear and the Sci Tech too.
#8 All our efforts in networks and tech should be with an open-source approach. Perhaps a computer programming / languages model -- to rely upon the thrust of writing and languages (foreign, PERL, JAVA, etc.) would fit.
I reserve judgment if the idea of a mixed IB / CTE school at Peabody makes the most sense. It is a worthy investigation, for sure.
The boutique option of only IB is something that Mark Roosevelt wanted, I dare guess. That isn't a priority of mine.
#9 How about an IB Jr. Sr High School with one or two CTE options -- such as Robotics and Open Source Programming. Don't get all overboard on new programs that would fill the CTE menu and eat up a lot of space.
#10 I think we should still demand a FULL CTE school to be built. State of the art, etc. Wonderful for the trades. That would be, I dare say, in a new site.
#11 I would like to see single gender, city-wide magnets for public high schools put onto the table. These could also include smaller single gender middle schools too. Perhaps there is a push for 6-12 schools. It might be present as an option.
#12 Put a boys high school at Westinghouse and a girls high school at Reizenstein. Or, do it the other way around. Or, flip the gender at the schools every three or four or five years. The other option would be to use OLIVER HS for one gender and Westinghouse for the other.
Put 75 kids in each grade, 6, 7, an 8. Put 100 or more in grades 9, 10, 11, and 12.
The single gender option would be cheap to implement.
The single gender option would sink or soar on its own merits. If they get a good program and good teachers, more will want to go there.
The single gender public option could and should compete for students with Oakland Catholic and Central Catholic.
#13 When I've sent email to the BGC in the past about ideas and schools -- they've never had a reply or even notice that the messages were read. A simple note in reply would be welcomed.
Sorry I could not attend the most recent meeting at the end of March. Had a conflict that could not be avoided. When is the next meeting? Keep us posted.
I posted my initial thoughts at the PURE Reform blog. Here they are again with numbers and a few extra points.
PURE Reform: Proposed options for future uses of Peabody HS: "Proposed options for future uses of Peabody HS"
#1 I think that the plan A should be for 150 IB kids per class, for a total of 600 students, not 500.
#2 Furthermore, I think that we can fit in 50 extra seats for a 13th Grade Option as well. So, round that to 650.
#3 The traditional Frick school (grades 6, 7 and 8) would need to stay at Rise&Shine Middle School. Frick's building is being used as a 6-12 Sci Tech High School. This should be part of the counter plans. What about middle school for IB track? Missing element must be proposed.
#4 Idea: Put 600 at IB Jr. High (Reiz), 200 in each grade (6, 7 and 8). Figure at the leap to HS, 20 kids go each to CAPA & Dice and some to other HSs and even CTE.
#5 By all means, the IB Middle School is NECESSARY to making the IB High -- work. Would 600 in that building be okay with the economics?
#6 Furthermore, the CTE students in certain grades would be able to have half-days at school and half-days at other sites / jobs, etc. The student load with half days could be greater on the CTE side? I know that the kids at South Vo Tech often were out of the building but still in 'school time' as they were on the job.
#7 I don't like the CISCO option. It is a dead technology. It is too much like that offered at computers at Brashear and the Sci Tech too.
#8 All our efforts in networks and tech should be with an open-source approach. Perhaps a computer programming / languages model -- to rely upon the thrust of writing and languages (foreign, PERL, JAVA, etc.) would fit.
I reserve judgment if the idea of a mixed IB / CTE school at Peabody makes the most sense. It is a worthy investigation, for sure.
The boutique option of only IB is something that Mark Roosevelt wanted, I dare guess. That isn't a priority of mine.
#9 How about an IB Jr. Sr High School with one or two CTE options -- such as Robotics and Open Source Programming. Don't get all overboard on new programs that would fill the CTE menu and eat up a lot of space.
#10 I think we should still demand a FULL CTE school to be built. State of the art, etc. Wonderful for the trades. That would be, I dare say, in a new site.
#11 I would like to see single gender, city-wide magnets for public high schools put onto the table. These could also include smaller single gender middle schools too. Perhaps there is a push for 6-12 schools. It might be present as an option.
#12 Put a boys high school at Westinghouse and a girls high school at Reizenstein. Or, do it the other way around. Or, flip the gender at the schools every three or four or five years. The other option would be to use OLIVER HS for one gender and Westinghouse for the other.
Put 75 kids in each grade, 6, 7, an 8. Put 100 or more in grades 9, 10, 11, and 12.
The single gender option would be cheap to implement.
The single gender option would sink or soar on its own merits. If they get a good program and good teachers, more will want to go there.
The single gender public option could and should compete for students with Oakland Catholic and Central Catholic.
#13 When I've sent email to the BGC in the past about ideas and schools -- they've never had a reply or even notice that the messages were read. A simple note in reply would be welcomed.
Sorry I could not attend the most recent meeting at the end of March. Had a conflict that could not be avoided. When is the next meeting? Keep us posted.
Pittsburgh's 3 mayoral candidates agree to debates
Pittsburgh's 3 mayoral candidates agree to debates: Three Democrats have agreed to appear in three televised debates before Pittsburgh's mayoral primary on May 19.Where is the P-G sponsored event? What about QED's event?
Incumbent Luke Ravenstahl and his challengers, City Councilman Patrick Dowd and attorney Carmen Robinson, will debate live on April 6 on PCNC, the cable news channel affiliated with WPXI-TV, the city's NBC affiliate.
KDKA-TV, the CBS affiliate, will air a taped debate April 15. And ABC affiliate WTAE-TV will broadcast a live, in-studio debate April 20.
All the debates will last an hour and air at 7 p.m.
I think that the Jewish Foundation is also going to host an event, but it might be more of a candidate talk and less of a full-fledged debate.
Neighborhood groups, nonprofits, Sustainable Pittsburgh, -- time to step up!
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