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How is this for pushing hard, part 2

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Whitney Tilson passes on additional news from RI. Given that the state department of education certifies schools of education, RI Education Commissioner Gist also raised the minimum score required to get into RI teacher training programs. “cut score” required to enter the teacher training program at all RI colleges. We previously had the lowest cut score in the country, tied with Guam. To set the new cut score, she asked her staff to research who had the highest in the country, and learned it was Virginia. So she set our cut score one point higher than theirs. From Jennifer Jordan’s report in the Providence Journal: It’s going to get harder to become a teacher in Rhode Island. Education Commissioner Deborah […]

How is this for pushing hard to obtain Race to the Top Funds?

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In a recent post, I pointed to the new Commissioner of Education in RI, Deborah Gist, and her moves to remove seniority from decisions about teacher hiring and deployment. (Springfield, MA, is the only other place in the Northeast to be trying hard to address this issue. And while the contract in Springfield is great, I am not at all sure where implementation is.) Take a listen to the Dan Yorke show on WPRO for both Commissioner Gist’s view and NEA-RI Executive Director Bob Walsh’s reaction. Kudos to Dan Yorke for pressing his guests and his civility. Really great stuff. Note to the Chairs of the Education Committee, Marty Walz and Bob O’Leary: Lots of other states (even RI) are […]

Will the Gloucester mess impact the charter cap lift?

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Whether House Education Committee Chair Marty Walz was deflecting yesterday in noting that the decisions on the charter school caps may be further in the future, we can’t know. God knows she has a lot of people offering advice so a little break might be just what the doctor ordered. The discussion of the charter cap lift seems to be premised on what we need to take out of the charters to make a “compromise” palatable to opponents, such as the superintendents (who hate losing control) and the unions (who hate losing market share). Two principles any serious agreement must include are: (1) no loss in the per-pupil education amount, and (2) no weakening of the charter authorization process. And […]

Running the Numbers

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The Herald reports on Governor Patrick’s fundraiser today: the event has raised $600,000 for the governor’s re-election war chest, said Patrick spokesman Steve Crawford. He added 400 contributors are in the ballroom of the Westin Copley Place with about 140 more who donated $6,000 invited into the VIP lounge with Obama. Still, there are some empty seats. Let’s run the numbers. Each of the 400 contributors was supposed to max out to Patrick at $500, so that raises $200k. The 140 VIP contributors donated $6k, which breaks down into $500 for the GOV, $500 for the LG, and $5k for the party. So the VIPs raise $70k for the GOV, $70k for the LG, and a whopping $700k for the […]

Breaking News – RI Ed Commissioner on seniority

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From the Providence Journal: RI education commissioner Deborah Gist orders school districts to abolish seniority Sent: Oct 23, 2009 2:02 PM PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Dropping a bombshell on the state’s teacher unions, state Education Commissioner Deborah Gist announced Friday that districts must abolish seniority as a method of assigning teachers. Gist, in a letter to all superintendents Thursday, said the Board of Regents’ new Basic Education Plan, which takes effect in July, 2010, requires that highly effective educators work with students who have significant achievement gaps. Wow.