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Education Policy Center Newsletter

From The Independence Institute
May 19, 2011
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In this issue
-- Center Sheds Light on Need for Open Union Negotiations in Jeffco
-- Benigno Hosts Blended Learning TV Episode with Michael Horn
-- DeGrow Speaks to State Board about Educator Effectiveness
-- Indiana Takes Big Steps on School Choice, Education Reform
-- DeGrow Deflects Myths, Highlights Innovation in Blog Series

Dear Friends,

We hope you enjoy our latest update from the Education Policy Center. If you
appreciate the work we do and are able to give, we wanted to let you
know about the opportunity to go online and designate a contribution
to the Education Policy Center. Simply go to http://education.i2i.org and
click the “Donate” button in the upper-right hand corner. Thank you for
your interest in our work!

Pamela Benigno, Director

Ben DeGrow, Policy Analyst
Marya DeGrow, Research Associate
Raaki Garcia-Ulam, School Choice Website Outreach Coordinator

Center Sheds Light on Need for Open Union Negotiations in Jeffco

Momentum for promoting transparent union negotiations continues to grow after
Ben DeGrow’s work bringing attention to the closed-door approach of Colorado’s
largest school district: Jeffco Public Schools. An April 27 op-ed for the local Jeffco
newspaper followed by bookend appearances on the Mike Rosen Show (listen
here and here) helped to earn Ben public accolades from the Jeffco teachers
union president. Elsewhere, a lawsuit in Colorado Springs District 11 forced one
bargaining session open for public observation. Ben’s 2010 issue backgrounder
“Colorado Education and Open Negotiations” lays out the issue.

More from Ed Is Watching:

Open Union Negotiations Gets Favorable Attention from Mike Rosen
Is Momentum Growing for Open School Union Negotiations in Colorado?
Have Colo. Springs Union Leaders Given Up Safeguarding “the Future of
Children”?
Benigno Hosts Blended Learning TV Episode with Michael Horn
In case you missed it, you can watch the online replay of the May 6 edition of
The Devil’s Advocate. In this episode, guest-host Pam Benigno discussed the rise
of blended learning with the Innosight Institute’s Michael Horn and Judy
Bauernschmidt, Jeffco Public Schools director of online student learning.

Blended learning is a key facet of the new book Customized Schooling,

highlighted in Ben DeGrow’s recent podcast interview of American Enterprise
Institute education scholar Rick Hess. Ben also wrote a School Reform News
feature on Carpe Diem Collegiate, an Arizona charter school recognized as a
successful blended learning pioneer.

More from Ed Is Watching:

Successful Arizona Blended Learning Charter Shows Colo. Can “Seize the Day”

DeGrow Speaks to State Board about Educator Effectiveness

On May 12 Ben DeGrow offered public testimony to the Colorado State Board of
Education regarding the State Council on Educator Effectiveness’ report on the
implementation of Senate Bill 191. Among the points he made were a call to
ensure ineffective teachers receive appropriate consequences in a timely
manner and a request that the Council make recommendations for
compensation reform—as he highlighted in his recent issue paper on Colorado K-
12 educator pay innovation.

More from Ed Is Watching:

The Implementation of SB 191: A Reason for Little Me to Get Old and Skeptical?
Cincinnati Study, Step Up Colorado, Bolster SB 191 Implementation Success

Indiana Takes Big Steps on School Choice, Education Reform

Colorado has been a slow and steady leader in many areas of K-12 education
reform, but this year Indiana skyrocketed forward with a series of significant
legislative bills. Most notably, the Hoosier State made a positive mark by
adopting the “nation’s most expansive voucher law.”

Additional improvements highlighted in the Education Action Group’s Top 10 list

of Indiana’s 2011 education reforms include limitations on union bargaining
privileges, replacing seniority with performance in many teacher employment
decisions, removing caps on virtual schools, and allowing for more charter school
authorizers.

More from Ed Is Watching:

Hoosier School Reform Daddy?: Voucher Bill Advances, Bargaining Bill Signed
Everybody Else Is Posting the Mitch Daniels Ed Reform Speech: Why Can’t I Do
It?

DeGrow Deflects Myths, Highlights Innovation in Blog Series

You may have seen the recent “School Cuts 101” series on Denver’s local FOX
31 News. Ben DeGrow accepted an invitation to write a three-part response on
the Colorado Peak Politics blog. Part 1 clarified and corrected the use of school
funding information. Part 2 shot down arguments made against Douglas
County’s choice scholarship program. And Part 3 highlighted some overlooked
ideas for local K-12 innovation, including some taking place in Colorado.

Meanwhile, our young blogging prodigy Eddie has covered some other topics
related to education reform in Colorado that you might find interesting:
Falcon 49 Takes Another Noteworthy Bold Step in Following Innovative Path
Please Ask First Before Using Students as Props for a Statewide Tax Hike
Colorado and Michigan Taxpayers Both Still Underwriting Teachers Union
Release Time
Five-Year-Old ProComp Competes for Reform Attention, Awaits Final Evaluation
Hoping Colorado’s New Education Commissioner Will Be a Chief for Change
Not the Time for Education Schools to Resist Transparent Review Process

Contact Information
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email: pam@i2i.org
phone: 303-279-6536
web: http://www.education.i2i.org
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