Public Schools
Commentary
Florida proves what real education stimulus is
Orlando Sentinel (FL), June 1, 2009 Twenty-six years ago this May, the National Commission on Excellence in Education published A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform. It warned that “the educational foundations of our society are presently being eroded by a rising tide of mediocrity that threatens our ...
Commentary
Not As Good As You Think: The Myth of the Middle Class School
Lance Izumi was a guest on Radio America, with host G. Gordon Liddy. Lance discusses the recently released documentary called, Not As Good As You Think: The Myth of the Middle Class School, which exposes the many failing public schools in California and the misallocation of funds by school board ...
Commentary
Report: Milwaukee Voucher Program Serving Students, Taxpayers Well
A new study shows children receiving vouchers from the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program—the nation’s oldest voucher program—are getting at least as good an education as their peers in public schools, at half the cost. “The Comprehensive Longitudinal Evaluation of the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program,” released by the University of Arkansas’ ...
Commentary
Obama’s Voucher Plan Isn’t Enough
In order to head off a public-relations catastrophe, Barack Obama has spun a partial about-face in his opposition to the school-choice voucher program for low-income students in Washington, DC. The president’s move, however, falls far short of truly saving the program and helping the legions of disadvantaged children in the ...
Commentary
Giving Failure a Pass
SACRAMENTO – The Los Angeles Unified School District, the largest in California, spends $10 million a year to “house,” with full pay and benefits, about 160 teachers deemed unsuitable for the classroom, according to “Failure Gets a Pass,” a recent series in the Los Angeles Times. “If I had my ...
Commentary
Options are the Best “Alternative” Education Policy for Parents
(This post was co-authored by Evelyn B. Stacey, Education Studies Policy Fellow at the Pacific Research Institute in Sacramento, California. Located about an hour north of San Francisco, Santa Rosa is a gateway city to California’s renowned Wine Country in the Sonoma and Napa Valleys. This “jewel of Northern California” ...
Commentary
One Last Hope for DC Voucher Program
In early May, President Obama presented a revised 2010 budget that included $12.2 million for the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program. The proposal represented a “compromise” solution to DC’s embattled voucher program, but is hardly a gain for low-income students and their parents. The DC voucher plan currently awards up to ...
Commentary
Film: Capistrano district poster child for ‘broken’ school system
New documentary showcases the problems of one O.C. school district. The Capistrano Unified School District is portrayed in a new, 49-minute documentary film as a case study in what is wrong with the American public school system and how politics, misplaced priorities and lack of oversight can derail what should ...
Commentary
Does Universal Preschool Improve Learning? Lessons from Georgia and Oklahoma
Campaigning for the presidency in 2008, Barack Obama pledged to help states implement taxpayer-funded universal preschool–preschool for all.[1] The President’s early education plan, for which he has advocated spending up to $10 billion annually in federal expenditures, encourages states to provide preschool for every child.[2] As President, Obama reinforced his ...
Commentary
Changing the way our schools are financed
San Diego Union-Tribune, May 10, 2009 California’s fiscal outlook continues to worsen. Concern is now mounting over the impact the state’s budget deficit will have on education funding. The California Teachers Association, along with State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell, claims California’s per-pupil funding now ranks 47th nationally. In ...
Florida proves what real education stimulus is
Orlando Sentinel (FL), June 1, 2009 Twenty-six years ago this May, the National Commission on Excellence in Education published A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform. It warned that “the educational foundations of our society are presently being eroded by a rising tide of mediocrity that threatens our ...
Not As Good As You Think: The Myth of the Middle Class School
Lance Izumi was a guest on Radio America, with host G. Gordon Liddy. Lance discusses the recently released documentary called, Not As Good As You Think: The Myth of the Middle Class School, which exposes the many failing public schools in California and the misallocation of funds by school board ...
Report: Milwaukee Voucher Program Serving Students, Taxpayers Well
A new study shows children receiving vouchers from the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program—the nation’s oldest voucher program—are getting at least as good an education as their peers in public schools, at half the cost. “The Comprehensive Longitudinal Evaluation of the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program,” released by the University of Arkansas’ ...
Obama’s Voucher Plan Isn’t Enough
In order to head off a public-relations catastrophe, Barack Obama has spun a partial about-face in his opposition to the school-choice voucher program for low-income students in Washington, DC. The president’s move, however, falls far short of truly saving the program and helping the legions of disadvantaged children in the ...
Giving Failure a Pass
SACRAMENTO – The Los Angeles Unified School District, the largest in California, spends $10 million a year to “house,” with full pay and benefits, about 160 teachers deemed unsuitable for the classroom, according to “Failure Gets a Pass,” a recent series in the Los Angeles Times. “If I had my ...
Options are the Best “Alternative” Education Policy for Parents
(This post was co-authored by Evelyn B. Stacey, Education Studies Policy Fellow at the Pacific Research Institute in Sacramento, California. Located about an hour north of San Francisco, Santa Rosa is a gateway city to California’s renowned Wine Country in the Sonoma and Napa Valleys. This “jewel of Northern California” ...
One Last Hope for DC Voucher Program
In early May, President Obama presented a revised 2010 budget that included $12.2 million for the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program. The proposal represented a “compromise” solution to DC’s embattled voucher program, but is hardly a gain for low-income students and their parents. The DC voucher plan currently awards up to ...
Film: Capistrano district poster child for ‘broken’ school system
New documentary showcases the problems of one O.C. school district. The Capistrano Unified School District is portrayed in a new, 49-minute documentary film as a case study in what is wrong with the American public school system and how politics, misplaced priorities and lack of oversight can derail what should ...
Does Universal Preschool Improve Learning? Lessons from Georgia and Oklahoma
Campaigning for the presidency in 2008, Barack Obama pledged to help states implement taxpayer-funded universal preschool–preschool for all.[1] The President’s early education plan, for which he has advocated spending up to $10 billion annually in federal expenditures, encourages states to provide preschool for every child.[2] As President, Obama reinforced his ...
Changing the way our schools are financed
San Diego Union-Tribune, May 10, 2009 California’s fiscal outlook continues to worsen. Concern is now mounting over the impact the state’s budget deficit will have on education funding. The California Teachers Association, along with State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell, claims California’s per-pupil funding now ranks 47th nationally. In ...
