Latest news with #English-learner
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Walters: New California school data project fulfills campaign promise Newsom made
Gavin Newsom can — and should — be faulted for making campaign promises six years ago that he must have known were impossible to achieve, such as his vows to create single-payer health care and build 3.5 million new housing units. When reminded of them after becoming governor, he dismissed them as 'aspirational,' a caveat he neglected to attach to his original pledges. Nevertheless, credit is due when one of his promises becomes reality, as it did this week when the state launched the beginnings of a long-needed system of tracking how the state's public school students fare in classrooms and later in life. The Cradle-to-Career project released its first batch of numbers, along with video tutorials on how to access the data. 'With the C2C Student Pathways Dashboard now live, Californians can visualize their futures by seeing disconnected data from across sectors and previously unavailable insights, all in one place,' Newsom said in a statement. 'The Golden State is once again leading the way in innovation, connecting our education system to the workforce to ensure everyone has the freedom to succeed.' However, not everyone in the rarified ranks of education researchers and reformers echoed Newsom's boasts. Alex Barrios, president of the Educational Results Partnership, a business-backed education policy coalition, complained that 'the dashboard fails to do what it promised. It doesn't represent the journeys of all students and how they navigate to and through careers. 'By following the career trajectories of only college graduates, it assumes the only path to success for students is through a four-year college degree,' Barrio alleges. The new data system should include all of the factors that Barrio's organization lists, but its criticism may be premature, since officials say they intend to expand the project's scope as rapidly as it can obtain data. Assuming that the project does widen its reach, C2C, as it's dubbed, not only will be a lasting accomplishment for Newsom, but it will fill a void that's existed far too long. Without reliable data on outcomes, the nation's largest school system operates in an accountability vacuum, which the education establishment seems to prefer. The state Department of Education has a 'dashboard' that purports to give parents, taxpayers and voters a picture of how well schools are doing their job. However, the current system is a mishmash of educational jargon that is difficult to decipher. It also skews the ratings in ways that minimize actual academic achievement, such as in reading, writing and mathematics, and elevates peripheral factors it calls 'multiple measures.' Thus, it downplays the fact that California's students fare very poorly vis-a-vis those in other states and the 'achievement gap' still broadly separates low-income and English-learner students from those with more privileged circumstances. Education reformers have long pushed for obtaining and publishing more objective and complete data, especially after former Gov. Jerry Brown and the Legislature overhauled school finance a decade ago to provide more funds to schools with substantial numbers of what were called 'at-risk' students. Better numbers would, the reformers said, provide a clearer understanding of whether Brown's Local Control Funding Formula was working. Brown, however, backed the education establishment's preference for getting the money without strict accountability for how it was spent and whether it was having a positive effect. He said he trusted that local school officials would spend the extra money wisely, calling it 'subsidiarity,' a secular version of an obscure religious principle. After Newsom succeeded Brown he quickly reversed that position and called for a comprehensive data system to track how students were faring during and after their journeys through the school system. The Legislature responded by authorizing the C2C system. CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California's state Capitol works and why it matters. This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Walters: New California school data site fulfills a Newsom promise made
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
St. Paul Public Schools Board: New superintendent to start May 12
Stacie Stanley will start as St. Paul Public School's next superintendent on May 12, with a first-year salary of $270,000 following contract approvals by the district's board Tuesday night. A short-term contract sets Stanley's start date at May 12 and goes through June 30. A long-term contract begins July 1 and ends June 30, 2028. She will receive an additional salary of $37,384 during the period of her short-term contract. Her second-year salary was set at $275,400 and her third-year salary was set at $280,908, according to district officials. Interim Superintendent John Thein receives a salary of $230,000 a year, according to his employment contract with the district which was approved in April. Thein has been serving as interim superintendent since May after the departure of former superintendent Joe Gothard, who left to lead the school district in Madison, Wis. Thein also served as interim superintendent of St. Paul Public Schools from 2016 to 2017. Gothard's base salary as of 2023 was $256,000. The St. Paul school board unanimously selected Stacie Stanley in December, hiring the Edina superintendent who grew up in St. Paul and attended the city's schools. She is the first SPPS superintendent born, raised and educated in St. Paul in the district's more than 150-year history, Thein said Tuesday. Stanley has been superintendent of Edina Public Schools since July 2021 and previously served as associate superintendent at Eden Prairie Schools. She is the president-elect of the Minnesota Association of School Administrators. Stanley has held leadership roles in the Burnsville-Eagan-Savage School District, Roseville Area Schools and East Metro Integration District. Stanley graduated from Central Senior High School. Before getting into education, Stanley worked in occupational therapy. She then worked as a math teacher. She eventually became director of the office of equity and integration for East Metro Integration District. In her career, she has overseen curriculum assessment instruction and support services and English-learner programs, she said during the virtual meeting. Stanley has a doctorate in educational leadership from Bethel University and a master's degree in education and a bachelor's degree in K-8 elementary education from St. Catherine University in St. Paul. Education | SPPS Board of Education to vote on cell phone policy Tuesday Education | St. Paul, other big districts cancel Tuesday classes because of cold weather Education | St. Paul Public Schools cancels school, after-school activities Tuesday due to weather Education | Confirmed case of pertussis/whooping cough in St. Paul school district Education | St. Paul Public Schools begins open house tours before priority enrollment deadline
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Area schools contribute to record state graduation rate
ELKHART — The 2024 graduating classes for Concord Community Schools and Elkhart Community Schools contributed to the highest graduation rate on record in Indiana. Across the state, 90.23 percent students graduated from high school, which is up from 88.98 percent in 2023. 'Over the past year, we have celebrated a number of successes in K-12 education, and there is urgency to continue this positive momentum for Indiana students,' Indiana Secretary of Education Katie Jenner said in a statement. 'As a state, we have seen literacy rates increase for the third consecutive year, chronic absenteeism rates improve for the second year in a row, and today, the highest state graduation rate on record.' She attributed the improvement in student outcomes to a collaboration of educators, families and communities. 'Together, we must continue to keep our foot on the gas pedal in 2025, ensuring we keep improving our education system in Indiana and increasing opportunities for students,' she said. Indiana students can graduate in one of two ways. One way is with waivers, which are intended to help students in special circumstances, including those who transfer to a new school. The other way is without waivers. Some students, including those who transfer to an Indiana school from another state or non-accredited private school or have other extenuating circumstances are eligible for graduation waivers. But those students must still meet all of the coursework, credit and employability skills requirements. They must also maintain a 'C' average in required courses, an attendance rate of 95 percent, and fulfilling all other state and local graduation requirements. According to the Indiana Department of Education, Elkhart Community Schools' 2024 graduating class had a graduation rate of 94.45 percent with waivers. Concord Community Schools had a graduation rate of 94.09 percent with waivers. The 2024 state graduation rate without waivers is 87.53 percent, which is up from 84.92 percent in 2023. Elkhart Community Schools' 2024 graduation class had a non-waiver graduation rate of 94.45 percent, which is up from 90.15 percent in 2023. Concord Community Schools had a non-waiver graduation rate of 92.80 percent, which is up from 92.75 percent in 2023. 'We're happy with our success the past two years,' said Seth Molnar, Concord High School principal. 'Last year, we were 92 percent … that's the highest graduation rate we've had in 15 years. We beat that this past year, so we're really excited with all the progress we've made in this building, helping our students find paths to graduation. A kudos to our parents, our students and our staff. We worked incredibly hard to increase those numbers.' Across the state, graduation rates increased for Black, Hispanic, White and English-learner students. The state graduation rates also increased for students in special education and students receiving free and reduced-price meals. Cary Anderson, Elkhart High School principal, said he is excited about the 94.45 percent graduation rate for the high school, but that is not the only piece he and his staff are looking at. 'It's not just graduation rates we're looking at,' Anderson said. 'We're looking at everything. We're looking at our college-bound kids, we're looking at our career-bound kids, and doing everything we can to meet their needs.' Anderson said the school is trying to graduate students who come back to the school community and work in the business community to help the community be better at large. He said the school is not just trying to graduate students, but graduate students with a focus, which will prepare the students for their next roles in life.
