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Friday Report – November 2, 2018
This week in #nced: Stymied by Questions about Process and Community Backlash, State Takeover of Goldsboro School Delayed; Bullying Preceded Fatal Shooting of Butler High Student, Officials Say
by Forum Admin
The Friday Report
November 2, 2018
Forum News
This Week on Education Matters: How Will the Election Affect Education in NC?
North Carolinians began casting ballots on October 17th at early-voting sites across the state and Election Day is next week. This year’s election in North Carolina is being called a “blue-moon” election because it’s a rare cycle when there’s no statewide race for Governor or the U.S. Senate on the ballot. But every seat in the General Assembly is on the ballot, as well as a Supreme Court seat and 6 proposed amendments to the NC Constitution. This week we’re joined by two respected journalists to discuss the election and what it could mean for education policy and other key issues in North Carolina.
Guests:
Colin Campbell, Editor, The Insider (pictured right, above)
Jeff Tiberii, Capitol Bureau Chief, WUNC Radio (pictured left, above)
When and Where to Watch Education Matters
Saturday at 7:30 PM, WRAL-TV (Raleigh/Durham/Fayetteville)
Sunday at 8:00 AM, FOX 50 (Raleigh/Durham/Fayetteville)
Sunday at 6:30 AM and Wednesday at 9:30 AM, UNC-TV’s North Carolina Channel (Statewide)
The North Carolina Channel can be found on Time Warner Cable/Spectrum Channel 1276 or check your local listings and other providers here.
Stymied by Questions about Process and Community Backlash, State Takeover of Goldsboro School Delayed
Members of the State Board of Education discuss the Innovative School District’s plans for Carver Heights Elementary at Thursday’s meeting. Photo Credit: NC Policy Watch.
Supporters of a controversial takeover program in struggling North Carolina schools hoped for a speedy approval of their latest project Wednesday. Instead, dogged by questions about process and a fiery local backlash surrounding a Goldsboro elementary, they’ll have to wait until at least next month for a resolution.
Members of the State Board of Education voted Thursday to delay a decision on Carver Heights Elementary in Wayne County until next month at the latest
“You don’t have community support there,” board member Tricia Willoughby told leaders of the hotly-debated Innovative School District (ISD), a GOP-spearheaded program that would allow private groups, including for-profit companies, to temporarily seize control of up to five struggling public schools in hopes of boosting performance.
To continue reading the complete article, click here.
To read more about this issue, see the following articles:
Tax Bills, School Spending, Fairness All Factors in Tax Cap Amendment Debate
Photo Creit: Pixabay.
The proposed constitutional amendment on Tuesday’s ballot won’t cut your taxes – or anyone else’s. But it would limit the state’s ability to raise the amount you pay in the future.
North Carolina’s Constitution says the state income tax rate can be no more than 10 percent. The amendment would lower that limit to 7 percent.
Supporters of the change say it would prevent a dramatic increase in the tax rate and thus a big jump in spending by state government. They say it is difficult to imagine a scenario in which the 7 percent cap is not high enough.
The lower limit would be “a reasonable safeguard for taxpayers,” said John Hood, chairman of the board at the conservative John Locke Foundation in Raleigh.
Critics say the amendment would unnecessarily tie legislators’ hands in the event of a natural disaster or recession, or combination of the two, and make it harder to shift the state’s tax burden to make the wealthy pay more or to raise additional revenue for needs like education funding.
“Why create … hurdles when our elected officials are there to serve us and handle whatever conditions are there at the time?” said Keith Poston, president of Public School Forum of North Carolina, a pro-education group. “This is just taking away the power of future legislatures.”
To continue reading the complete article, click here.
Do you know a leader in your community supporting our schools and making a difference in the lives of children both in and out of school? The Public School Forum is seeking nominations for individuals to be highlighted on our weekly statewide TV show, Education Matters. Click herefor an example of a recent spotlight.
Nominees could be principals, superintendents, teachers, teacher assistants, guidance counselors, parents, students, business leaders, community volunteers, afterschool providers, and the list goes on!
To nominate someone, please fill out the form at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/educationmatters.
Bullying Preceded Fatal Shooting of Butler High Student, Officials Say
Parents walked to go pick up their kids outside Butler High School after the scene was considered safe in Matthews, N.C. on October 29, 2018. Photo Credit: Joshua Komer, The Charlotte Observer.
America’s nightmare reached Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Monday morning, as a fight between two students at suburban Butler High turned into a fatal shooting.
The clash in a hallway outside the school cafeteria left 16-year-old sophomore Bobby McKeithen dead and 16-year-old freshman Jatwan Craig Cuffie charged with first-degree murder.
To continue reading the complete article, click here.
CMS Delays Controversial Suburban Schools Report as Shooting Rocks the District
Image Credit: WBTV.
A controversial Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools report on changing school boundaries in four suburban towns has been postponed in the wake of the fatal shooting of a Butler High School student Monday.
In August, the CMS board approved a “Municipal Concerns Act of 2018” that called for the superintendent to report Oct. 30 on the prospect of changing boundaries to relieve crowding and assign students who live in Matthews, Mint Hill and Huntersville to schools within the town boundaries. But the district postponed after a student was shot to death Monday morning at Butler High in Matthews, with another student a suspect in his death.
To continue reading the complete article, click here.
NC Says $688 Million Needed for Schools to Get Enough Nurses, Counselors and Cops
Photo Credit: Travis Long, The News & Observer.
Two days after a student was fatally shot at a North Carolina high school, state education officials say they want $71 million more next year to increase school safety.
Staff at the state Department of Public Instruction said Wednesday that it would require around $688 million more in state funding to hire enough additional nurses, social workers, counselors, psychologists and school resource officers to reach nationally recommended ratios for North Carolina’s public schools.
To continue reading the complete article, click here.
Guilford County Schools Trying New Partnership to Improve Student Attendance
Photo Credit: Pixabay, Pexels.
Guilford County Schools is looking far away — and close to home — for help cutting down on student absences.
The school system recently signed a contract with Attendance Works, a San Francisco-based nonprofit, to study root causes of chronic absenteeism in the school system and make plans to tackle them.
To continue reading the complete article, click here.
A Black Man Was Lynched near Rolesville in 1918. Now Wake Students Are Honoring Him.
The National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Ala., Aug. 31, 2018. Photo Credit: Robert Rausch, The New York Times.
At least 120 African-Americans were lynched in North Carolina after the Civil War, and Wake County was not immune from the racial terror.
On Nov. 5, 1918, George Taylor was lynched near Rolesville after the black man was accused of raping a white woman. With the 100th anniversary approaching, students at Exploris Middle School and Middle Creek and Knightdale high schools want the community to commemorate the lynching as part of a campaign to “remember all those who have been victims of any injustice.”
To continue reading the complete article, click here.
NC School Shooting Spotlights Importance of Family Reunification Plans
The authorities responded to a shooting at Butler High School in Matthews, N.C., on Monday, October, 29, 2018. Photo Credit: Cassie Cope, The Charlotte Observer.
A sophomore boy was shot and killed by a classmate in a crowded hallway at a North Carolina high school Monday morning. The alleged shooter, a freshman boy, has been charged with first-degree murder, authorities said.
The boy’s death marks the 35th this year in a shooting on a school campus during class hours or during a school activity, according to Education Week’s school shooting tracker.
To continue reading the complete article, click here.
More Work, Worse Relationships, and Better Feedback: How Teacher Evaluation Has Changed the Job of the Principal
Principal Melody Smith discusses how students at A.B. Hill Elementary grew significantly in test scores. Photo Credit: Laura Faith Kebede, Chalkbeat.
Teacher evaluation overhauls were supposed to reshape the teaching profession. New research suggests they may have had an even greater impact on what it means to be a school principal.
As policymakers overhauled teacher rating systems in the last decade, principals began spending much more of their time watching teachers in action and talking to them about how to improve. But the shift also overwhelmed them with work, stopped them from fulfilling other responsibilities in their schools, and weakened their relationships with teachers.
To continue reading the complete article, click here.
The Public School Forum of North Carolina is seeking a Policy Analyst. This individual will contribute to policy analysis and research efforts on a number of key educational issues in North Carolina. This position would be an excellent early career opportunity for an individual interested in education policy. Reports to the Senior Director of Policy.
Primary Job Responsibilities:
Monitor, document, and provide analysis of current education policy issues in North Carolina, with a focus on school finance, teacher pipeline, and education data systems.
Conduct and interpret quantitative and qualitative research on K-12 education policy topics.
Attend state legislative convenings and committee meetings.
Contribute to the Forum’s communications efforts including op-eds and guest columns, newsletter articles and social media efforts addressing current policy issues and initiatives impacting education in North Carolina.
To learn more about this position and how to apply, click here.
NC Teaching Fellows Applications Are Now Open
NC Teaching Fellows applications are now open. All applications must be submitted online by 11:59 PM (EST) on Monday, January 7, 2019.
Receive up to $4,125 per semester for up to eight semesters.
Study at a premier educator preparation program in North Carolina.
Benefit from meaningful program activities to enrich your studies.
Teach in a Special Education or STEM field in a North Carolina public school.
A historic storm has devastated parts of North Carolina. In response, a historic, bipartisan coalition of current and former state education leaders presented their effort to aid schools to the State Board of Education, promoting Florence Aid to Students and Teachers (FAST NC) as a drive to help North Carolina’s public schools as students and educators struggle to return to normal.
Hurricane Florence caused at least 1.2 million, or about 80 percent, of North Carolina’s public school students to miss some school. Many school buildings are damaged, and several school districts are still closed due to displacement, flooding and storm-related disruptions. Now, FAST NC has brought together an illustrious steering committee for the effort to help schools recover.
To learn more about FAST NC and how to donate, click here.
Biogen Foundation Spark Video Contest
The Biogen Foundation is inviting middle and high school students in Massachusetts and North Carolina to create videos on the topic of biotechnology in your life. These videos must be between thirty seconds and three minutes, accurate, and creative. We are accepting videos from September 14 through December 17. Work with a teacher at your school to submit your video (up to two submissions per school), because the first 200 schools to submit an eligible video will win $500! See spark.biogenfoundation.com for more information about the contest and to submit your video today!
Submissions are open until December 17th. ALL NC schools are eligible to enter. Teachers MUST be the ones to submit the videos; students and parents are not allowed to submit videos.
Designed to equally educate and appreciate our state’s incredibly teachers, UNC-Chapel Hill’s Carolina K-12, in partnership with the North Caroliniana Society and Wilson Library’s North Carolina Collection, invite 4-12 grade teachers from around the state to join us for an engaging (and FREE!) two and a half day academic retreat in beautiful Chapel Hill, NC, with a special “field-trip” to Historic Hillsborough. Throughout these engaging three days, teachers will enjoy a snapshot of some of North Carolina’s most captivating history, events and people, all the while celebrating each participating teacher and the important work you do!
Check out the agenda here. For additional information and to apply, click here.
Upcoming Professional Development at NCCAT
North Carolina educators have plenty of opportunities throughout the fall to attend the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT), a recognized national leader in professional development programming for teachers. Applicants are encouraged to register as soon as possible to ensure a spot. Programs are available to North Carolina educators at the Cullowhee and Ocracoke campuses, online and with NCCAT faculty visiting school districts. NCCAT provides food, lodging and programming. Teachers and or their districts are responsible for travel to and from the center and the cost of the substitute teacher.
For a complete list of upcoming NCCAT programs, click here.
For more information on how to apply for NCCAT programs, click here.
Synergy Conference 2019
The Friday Report is published weekly by the Public School Forum of NC and is distributed to Forum members, policymakers, donors, media, and Forum subscribers. Archived editions can be found at www.ncforum.org.
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