CONNECTICUT SUPREME COURT OVERTURNS STATE’S TAKEOVER OF BRIDGEPORT SCHOOL DISTRICT — The Connecticut State Board of Education’s vote last July to take over the Bridgeport Board of Education was nullified this week in a ruling by the state Supreme Court. Bridgeport’s mayor and a majority of the city’s education board approached the state board last summer and asked to be taken over, citing the district’s inability to move forward on its own. The state board approved the action on a 5-4 vote, after which the acting education commissioner appointed a new five-person board, and noted Superintendent Paul Vallas was brought in to run the operations. However, a number of people brought suit, including some of the local board members who disagreed with the takeover and others who were planning to run for a board seat in last November’s election. The court’s decision was based largely on the state’s bypassing a section of the law that requires a local board to receive training before a takeover is undertaken. “Most importantly, the state board does not have the authority to authorize reconstitution until it first requires the local board to undergo and complete training,” the majority opinion stated. Legislators appeared to have little appetite for making a retroactive fix to the law. Source: Connecticut Mirror (2/28/12)

LOUISIANA STATE BOARD APPROVES PUBLIC FUNDING FOR PRIVATE SCHOOL VOUCHERS — The Louisiana State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education approved a plan to use public financing to fund private school vouchers in New Orleans. Public monies will be used to fund a pilot program in New Orleans to provide additional educational opportunities for low-income students there and to provide parents more choices. The pilot program is part of Gov. Bobby Jindal’s plan to implement a statewide school voucher plan. The legislature already approved a $9.5 million special appropriation for the pilot program this year, but future appropriations would pull funding from regular state education appropriations. Source: New Orleans Times-Picayune (2/27/12)

FLORIDA STATE BOARD ADOPTS CHANGES TO SCHOOL GRADING SYSTEM — To satisfy the requirements of a waiver from the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), the Florida State Board of Education approved a revised school grading system to replace NCLB’s adequate yearly progress mandate. The new system will include all disabled students and English language learners who have been in the U.S. for more than a year in the school calculations, making it more difficult for a school to get an “A.” While not a final rule, the changes approved include a provision to drop a school’s rating by a single letter grade rather than all the way to an “F” if its students do not score high enough on state reading exams. The board also authorized the creation of a stakeholder task force to draft the rule’s final details. Source: Tampa Bay Online (2/28/12)

FLORIDA SBOE OVERTURNS CHARTER REJECTIONS BY LOCAL BOARDS —The Florida State Board of Education approved three new charter schools after those proposals were rejected by local school boards and the state Charter School Appeal Commission. Two of the schools will be virtual charters run by private companies, while the third is a traditional model school. State board members contended that the requirements for virtual schools should not be the same as the ones for “brick and mortar” schools. Source: ClickOrlando.com (2/28/12)

NORTH CAROLINA BOARD APPROVES NINE NEW CHARTER SCHOOLS FOR “FAST TRACK” — The North Carolina State Board of Education approved the applications of nine new charter schools to open through its “fast track” process.  Fast track charters receive four months of planning time instead of the 12 months that schools in the regular application process must take, enabling this group to open in August 2012. “Charter schools are an important part of our system of public education and offer families another choice in school structure, setting and focus,” said state board of education Chairman Bill Harrison. “I commend the NC Public Charter Schools Advisory Council members for their efforts to identify the most promising ‘fast track’ applicants.” The Advisory Council recommended nine out of the 27 applications for fast track status. Source: North Carolina Department of Public Instruction press release (3/1/12)

MARYLAND STATE BOARD OFFERS SCHOOL DISCIPLINE PLAN — A plan to move away from the existing zero-tolerance school discipline standards was brought to the public by the Maryland State Board of Education. The board endorsed a 36-page proposal to reduce the number of out-of-school suspensions for nonviolent offenses and offered the draft, which required a year of study before it reached this point, for public comment until March 30. In the document, the board noted that almost 10,000 students were suspended at least three times each statewide during the last school year and linked missed school time to low academic performance and dropouts. The proposal calls for new suspension definitions, as well as new codes for nonviolent wrongdoings. “What we’re trying to do is to prompt people to think differently about discipline, with an eye toward achievement for all students,” said board President James DeGraffenreidt. The panel is expected to take final action on new discipline rules at its April meeting. Sources: Baltimore Sun (2/28/12), Washington Post (2/28/12)

MARYLAND STATE BOARD ADOPTS GIFTED EDUCATION POLICY — The Maryland State Board of Education approved a new set of standards to cover gifted and talented education. The new regulations set minimum standards for identifying gifted students, designing programs, and reporting progress. The rules will also allow schools to label a student as gifted as young as three years old. Under the new regulations, local districts will be required to report back to the state on the progress of their programs. Source: Washington Post (2/28/12)

FEDERAL UPDATE: Senate Education Policy Committee Plans Hearing on Global Competitiveness — The Senate Health, Education, Labor, Pensions (HELP) Committee scheduled a hearing on the link between education and global competitiveness for March 8. The committee has not yet announced the hearing witnesses. The HELP Committee passed bi-partisan, comprehensive legislation to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act–last reauthorized as the No Child Left behind Act in 2001–in October 2011. The legislation goes now to the full Senate for action but has not yet been scheduled for action. The bill would require states to develop college- and career-ready standards in math, reading, and science and maintains current law to require annual testing in grades 3-8 and once in high school. The bill would also eliminate annual yearly progress requirements. Further information about the March 8 hearing can be found at on the committee website. Source: U.S. Senate HELP Committee (3/1/12)

26 STATES AND DC APPLY FOR SECOND ROUND OF WAIVERS — Twenty-six states—AR, AZ, CT, DE, IA, ID, IL, KS, LA, MD, MI, MO, MS, NC, NV, NY, OH, OR, RI, SC, SD, UT, VT, VA, WA, and WI—and DC applied for the second round of waivers to release themselves from portions of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, currently known as the No Child Left Behind Act, in return for making certain reforms. The reforms include implementing college- and career-readiness standards, differentiated accountability systems, and evaluation systems that support teachers. State applicants would be released from annual yearly progress requirements and receive more program and spending flexibility under current law. The Education Department will announce approvals for the second round sometime during the spring. The Department set September 6 as the deadline for applying for the third round of waivers. States also have the option of applying for a one-year waiver to freeze student achievement targets at current rates. Further information can be found on the Department’s website. Source: U.S. Department of Education press release (3/1/12)

INDIANA STATE LEGISLATURE APPROVES BILL TO FUND FULL-DAY KINDERGARTEN — The Indiana State Senate approved House-passed legislation to provide $80 million in additional funding to provide full-day kindergarten. The bill will prohibit school districts from charging additional fees to families due to the prior shortfalls in funding. The funding would provide $2,400 more per pupil from the current expenditure of $2,750. According to the Indiana State Board of Education, the additional funding would help 11,700 children enrolled in half-day programs. There are currently 66,500 students in full-day kindergarten statewide. Sources: Evansville Courier and Press (2/29/12), Indianapolis Star (2/26/2012)