Teacher Participation School Improvement

Jersey City School District Rebuffs Union, Says it is Moving Forward with ...

“I have no comment, other than to say this application has been written and submitted to the state for a decision,” Epps told JCI following last week’s Board of Education (BOE) meeting.

Epps said nothing from the dais as he heard Lincoln teacher Ronnie Greco reiterate and expand on his complaints.

Greco, who is also a JCEA executive board member, expanded on the union’s initial criticisms first leveled May 25. This time, at least one attorney from the statewide union, the New Jersey Education Association, was on hand to take notes.

Greco complained that evaluation language used in the document Epps endorsed seemed unnecessarily mean-spirited and unfairly disparaged all teachers and students.

He condemned one finding — that “a toxic learning environment” exists within the building — as baseless and demoralizing.

If awarded, the district could receive up to $6 million from the U.S. Department of Education in seeking to radically overhaul the Crescent Avenue site’s academic program through 2013-14.

The feds have identified Lincoln as Title I, a seriously underperforming urban school, using criteria established under the No Child Left Behind Act. The criteria includes Lincoln’s failure to make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) – as defined in the law – for at least the last two years.

The application calls for converting the school into a “Leadership Academy,” adding as many as 300 hours to the schedule and eliminating many of the current staff; only 50 percent of the current staff could be rehired under the new setup.

JCEA president Thomas Favia says the union is still considering filing a grievance, but it is hesitant because it would like to see the district receive the federal money for Lincoln.

“We are still evaluating the possibility of filing a grievance over this matter with the Public Employees Relations Commission,” he tells JCI . “We don’t want to because we agree the money is needed and could be put to good use.”

Even so, Favia insists that the district violated the letter of the law by not giving the school’s teachers and the union a seat at the table.

“The federal law covering the grant requires the teachers’ bargaining agent be appropriately consulted,” he says. “That never happened here. We’re asking the administration to formally meet with us, because the application raises issues affecting our collective bargaining agreement.

Colorado Connections Academy Meets State and Federal ...

Englewood, CO (Vocus) September 23, 2008

Colorado Connections Academy (ColoCA), one of the state’s leading providers of virtual education, has met the federal mandated No Child Left Behind targets in reading, math and overall Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) measures in elementary and middle school for the 2007-08 school year. AYP measures are based on standardized test participation and performance by all categories of students in a school, from low-income students to gifted and talented students to children with disabilities. For the 2007-08 school year, ColoCA served students in K-9 grade. Grades 10-12 have been added for the 2008-09 school year.

“Meeting AYP means we are finding effective ways to use our innovative learning technology to ensure individualized academic success for our diverse body of students,” said ColoCA School Principal Sarah Ault. “Accomplishing our goals for growth and improvement demonstrates our dedication to providing our students and families with the highest quality education. I am proud of our exceptionally qualified teachers and our excellent students.”

Headquartered in Englewood, and contracted through Denver Public Schools, ColoCA is a virtual public school that serves students in grades K-12 across the state. ColoCA offers a unique, high-quality curriculum, which uses technology and more to deliver individualized instruction following a Personalized Learning Plan developed for each student.

ColoCA meets the needs of students who are, for a variety of reasons, better suited to learning outside the traditional classroom, but who can benefit from public school resources such as textbooks, daily assignments, professional teacher support and opportunities for peer interaction and community activities. Because ColoCA is a public school program, there is no tuition or fee to enroll. Students typically learn at home under the guidance of a certified Colorado teacher working closely with a parent or guardian.

ColoCA provides each family with a computer and subsidized Internet and superior technical support to facilitate communication and management of lessons. In addition to the state-of-the-art technology tools, students are provided with text books and work books and have opportunities to interact with other students through ColoCA-organized field trips.

ColoCA is enrolling students for the 2008-2009 school year through September 26th. A limited number of enrollments for 2008-2009 also will be available in January, 2009. Previous restrictions that mandated students must be enrolled in a Colorado public school the prior year have been lifted, and home-schooled students are now eligible for enrollment.

Development planning for school improvement

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