“Particularly Odd” Logic in New Hampshire Ruling Sets Back Tax Credit Choice
At the risk of putting everyone on a neck-jarring roller coaster of education policy emotions, I have to follow up yesterday’s good school choice news from Arizona with a brief account of a New Hampshire disappointment. Whereas the uplift came from an elected state legislature, the downer emerged from the courts. New Hampshire Judge John [...]
“Particularly Odd” Logic in New Hampshire Ruling Sets Back Tax Credit Choice
At the risk of putting everyone on a neck-jarring roller coaster of education policy emotions, I have to follow up yesterday’s good school choice news from Arizona with a brief account of a New Hampshire disappointment. Whereas the uplift came from an elected state legislature, the downer emerged from the courts. New Hampshire Judge John [...]
Good Summer News: Two Arizona Choice Programs on Verge of Expansion
There’s no time like summertime to focus on some good news, even if it comes from some place even hotter than home: Arizona. Thanks to Matt Ladner guest-posting on Jay Greene’s blog, I learned that the Grand Canyon State is a small step away from creating more opportunities for students and families after the legislature [...]
Attacks against Dougco Market-Based Pay Miss Economic Mark, Educational Reality
A few days ago I told you about the national attention attracted to Douglas County School District’s market-based pay system. That was before Choice Media highlighted the story on its Ed Reform Minute, or the Education Intelligence Agency’s Mike Antonucci linked to the Reuters story with the quip: In Douglas County, Colorado, they are actually [...]
Wisconsin Looks at K-12 Tax Deductions: One Better for Colorado?
Governing magazine reports today that Wisconsin wants to join the cadre of states that offer private school tax deductions: Last week, the Wisconsin legislature’s Joint Finance Committee approved new tax deductions for families that put their kids in private school as part of its 2013-2015 budget. The plan allows for families to deduct up to [...]
Dougco’s Market Pay Innovation Draws Attention, Gives Hope of Progress
Education Transformers may get impatient at the pace of progress. Douglas County may be unique among school districts in taking the commonsense approach of differentiating teacher pay based on how hard it is to find someone to fill the position. While the rarity of such policies in K-12 may be frustrating, it’s encouraging to see national attention on the plan, like the new Reuters story.
Numbers Tell Part of the Tale: Drilling into Census Bureau’s Colorado K-12 Data
Mike Antonucci is doing yeoman’s work at the Education Intelligence Agency, going state by state to update K-12 student, employee, and spending data from the U.S. Census Bureau. I’ve called on his helpful charts that show the relationship of pupil enrollment to teacher hiring, and how states (and even districts) are doing financially compared to [...]
Walk Down Colo. Tax Hike Memory Lane Fails to Inspire SB 213 Confidence
Yesterday I took a glance back at how Colorado’s charter school law came to be, a truly fascinating story that’s worth the time to check out. To keep the history kick going, today I’m turning my attention to an Ed News Colorado story by Todd Engdahl about Colorado voters’ “habit” of rejecting education tax increases. [...]
Better Than Dusty Old History: Learn How Colorado Got Its Charter School Law!
Just a short one today. Because it all has to do with things that happened in the way-back long ago dark ages of 1993 (before my time), I defer to my Education Policy Center friends. What better place to start than today’s Denver Post column by Vincent Carroll, who writes about when the good guys [...]
Discrepancies from Dougco Beg Question: How Many Union Members Remain?
Douglas County School District continues to move forward with major system changes that recognize and reward performance in meaningful ways. And the press continues to pump up the controversy while leaving factual disputes unresolved. Today’s Denver Post turns attention to a DCSD elementary school where a principal misapplied the new employee evaluation standards, creating a [...]
