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For-profit cyber-schools company gets more heat
This morning’s Charlotte Observer editorial gets it just about right in its take on K12, Inc. — the big for-profit cyber-schools company. The editorial comes as a follow-up to a recent study by the National Education Policy Center which found that K12 has a generally abysmal record in educating kids: “Online learning does have great value and popularity. The […]
More on the shortcomings of for-profit charter company
The Winston-Salem Journal has a story this morning about the new national report (reported here last week by Sarah Ovaska) that slams the student outcomes produced by K12 Inc., the for-profit corporation that is lobbying hard to run charter schools in North Carolina — including a so-called “virtual charter” in Cabarrus County. (The group currently employs seven registered […]
The Follies
The discrimination document You have read here and elsewhere that top Republicans like House Speaker Thom Tillis and Republican gubernatorial candidate Pat McCrory don’t seem all that interested in talking about the marriage discrimination amendment on the ballot May 8. They both say they will vote for it, McCrory sheepishly and Tillis only after expressing […]
Berger’s education plan: An end to public financing?
State Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger got some media attention yesterday for his new education “reform” plan. Though it may have a good idea or two, the plan appears, as is usually the case with the right-wing establishment, to be mostly about using more threats of sanction in an attempt to extract better results out of teachers and students. Once […]
Virtual charter school company with NC intentions slapped with class-action lawsuit
A NYC-based law firm has filed a class-action lawsuit in a federal court in Virginia against K12, Inc., the for-profit virtual school company, claiming that its top officials intentionally misled the public and investors about its quality of the education. The lawsuit was filed Jan. 30, as reported here by the Washington Post. The claims […]
Virtual charters get critical looks
North Carolina is the newest land of opportunity for charter-school based businesses, now that state legislators have removed the previous 100-school cap on the experimental schools in the state. That comes as, nationally, more attention is being paid to the business behind charter schools, including this excellent (and lengthy) piece the New York Times had […]
‘Nationwide gun emergency’ discussed by U.S. House Democrats at roundtable meeting
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Democrats held a Monday roundtable forum on changing U.S. gun laws following a recent mass shooting in Maine, where 18 people were killed. The top Democrat on the committee, Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, invited witnesses to discuss gun violence solutions, and said that the gun industry lobby, the National Rifle […]
Putting moneyed interests over people
Legislative leaders are knowingly violating the constitutional rights of North Carolina’s 1.5 million public school students in order to help fund tax cuts for the corporations and wealthy North Carolinians who finance their campaigns. North Carolina’s constitution requires the state to provide all students with access to decent schools that provide all students with meaningful […]
A pandemic experiment in universal free school meals gains traction in the states
WASHINGTON — Every public school kid in the United States was eligible for free school meals during the COVID-19 pandemic, regardless of family income, thanks to the federal government. While that’s now ended, a growing number of states across the country are enacting universal school meal laws to bolster child food security and academic equity. […]
Weekend reads: Duke’s rolling blackouts explained, the environmental impacts of a NC electric car factory, and the stories we’ll be closely watching in 2023
In this issue: 1. Several crises, malfunctions at Duke Energy led to rolling blackouts on Christmas Eve, utility officials tell state regulators Three power plants malfunctioned when instrumentation lines froze. Frigid temperatures hampered the operation of several nuclear units. Energy demand forecasts failed. Nearby utilities in other states, struggling to keep their own customers warm, […]
Report details Mark Meadows’ frightening texts surrounding Trump’s effort to overturn the 2020 election
In case you missed it, be sure to check out the new and remarkable reports from the good people at Talking Points Memo detailing former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows’ text messages in and around the events of January 6, 2021 — what one author has dubbed the “roadmap to an insurrection.” Among Meadows’ […]
Monday numbers: A closer look at the effort to get more women into STEM fields
“When I talk to CEOs, the top three issues are workforce, workforce and workforce,” Gov. Roy Cooper recently told a group of business and technology leaders gathered at the SAS headquarters in Cary.
While the state sees advanced manufacturing as a primary driver of its economic future, many wonder if the North Carolina will have the skilled and diverse talent pool to fill those jobs.
It’s estimated that there are currently 800,000 open jobs in the manufacturing sector, according to the National Association of Manufacturers.
Payroll system switch shortchanges hundreds of teachers, leads to finger-pointing by state and local officials
State lawmakers aware of the erroneous deductions in March
Bobbie Cavnar, a Gaston County Schools high school English teacher, was shocked last month when his paystub showed $1,600 worth of unexplained deductions.
Fortunately for the 2016-17 North Carolina Teacher of the Year, his spouse works, and the couple could transfer money from savings to cover monthly bills.
Schools and state health officials should go beyond CDC guidelines to ensure continued access to in-person learning
As students returned to school across North Carolina this week, school leaders are facing a daunting challenge: how to academically support students knocked off track by the pandemic while still navigating an ongoing COVID pandemic that puts student and staff health in jeopardy. This critical challenge is heightened by lack of strong guidance from the […]
A controversial teacher pay plan, the NC treasurer’s love for cash in the pension fund and more: The week’s top stories on Policy Watch
In this issue: 1. State education leaders advance new and controversial teacher compensation proposal Superintendent Catherine Truitt denies plan would introduce “merit pay,” but critics strongly disagree With just a few weeks left before the start of a new school year, districts are scrambling to fill teaching vacancies. North Carolina educators, and those in other […]
Expert: It’s not about masks or freedom, it’s about grandstanding and branding for Cawthorn
Chris Cooper, a distinguished professor of political science at Western Carolina University, offers a must read assessment of Rep. Madison Cawthorn’s visit to the Johnston County School Board meeting this evening. Professor Cooper rightfully questions why the freshman congressman would travel 300 miles outside of his own district to weigh in on a local school […]