District Administration articles from December 2008

District Administration archives from December 2008

The Broad Prize for Urban Education.(Editor's Letter)
December 1, 2008... It was a treat to attend the 2008 Broad Prize for Urban Education awards ceremony on October 14. This prize, given annually by the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, is the nation's largest K12 public education award and is given to five large...

NCLB gets last makeover under Bush-but is it better?(BRIEFINGS: News Update)
December 1, 2008... SECRETARY OF EDUCATION MARGARET Spellings issued in October the long-awaited final regulations to strengthen the No Child Left Behind law, focusing on improved accountability and transparency, improved parental notification for supplemental...

Promising change.(PEOPLE WATCH)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Barack Obama has been elected the 44th president of the United States. His education agenda includes a universal pre-kindergarten plan, teacher pay raises tied to test scores, and an overhaul of NCLB to better...

High hopes.(PEOPLE WATCH)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Gov. Jon Corzine of New Jersey has launched a campaign to address the state's dropout problem. The plan calls for additional academic requirements and regional conferences to discuss prevention strategies and collect...

Under fire.(PEOPLE WATCH)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Dallas schools superintendent Michael Hinojosa says he has no intention of resigning, despite continued criticism of his administration. The district is struggling to rectify an $84 million budget deficit, which he...

Girls against boys.(PEOPLE WATCH)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Boston schools superintendent Carol R. Johnson's plan for single-gender academies may be illegal under state law. Johnson may consider splitting male and female students into separate classes within schools, a...

Individualized learning.(PEOPLE WATCH)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Clayton Christensen, author and Harvard business professor, has penned a new book, Disrupting Class. The book argues for a more "customized," rather than standardized, approach to teaching.

Vouchers under the radar.(BRIEFINGS: News Update)
December 1, 2008... THERE MAY NOT BE A MORE divisive issue than school vouchers in the public versus private education debate, but a new trend toward something a little more sneaky may be changing the landscape. They're called tax credit vouchers, or...

Stat blast.(BRIEFINGS: News Update)
December 1, 2008... In the United States, 16 percent of children ages 17 and under are in less than optimal health, a rate that varies widely across states from a high of 23 percent in Texas to a low of 7 percent in Vermont. Rates also vary dramatically by income....

ASBO awards honor business officers.(BRIEFINGS: News Update)
December 1, 2008... MORE THAN 1,200 SCHOOL business professionals met in Denver in November for the 94th Annual Association of School Business Officials international (ASBO) Conference. Members were able to share best practices for effectively managing education...

A push for sustainable teacher learning.(BRIEFINGS: News Update)
December 1, 2008... TODAY'S YOUNG STUDENTS ARE getting a little help from some national technology leaders--in particular, a push for more ongoing and relevant professional development for their present and future teachers. The State Educational Technology...

Government law gives new impetus for kids to buckle up.(BRIEFINGS: News Update)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] SMALLER SCHOOL BUSES WILL HAVE TO BE EQUIPPED WITH lap-and-shoulder seat belts for the first time under a new government rule drafted after the deaths of four Alabama students on a bus that nose-dived off an...

California freshmen lose out on college.(BRIEFINGS: College Prep)
December 1, 2008... AS IF BEGINNING FRESHMEN weren't under enough stress already, one thing that should also be on their minds front and center from day one is college, says a new report from the nonprofit research and service agency WestEd. The report, which...

College board to offer new test.(BRIEFINGS: College Prep)
December 1, 2008... THE SAT, PSAT, SAT SUBJECT tests, ACT and Advanced Placement exams represent a formidable battery of tests that many high school students take as they prepare for college. Now the College Board. which owns the SAT and other standardized...

Expecting the unexpected.(BRIEFINGS: Security)
December 1, 2008... YOU CAN'T BE TOO PREPARED for a disaster. That's the message school technology advocacy group Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) is striving to convey with its new IT Crisis Preparedness Initiative, a sustained program that will feature...

Getting a grip on access control.(BRIEFINGS: Security)
December 1, 2008... AS INCIDENCES OF SCHOOL violence and vandalism increase in frequency and intensity, today's administrators and school resource officers (SROs) face more numerous security challenges than ever before. A recent survey sponsored by Wren Solutions,...

Stolen laptops.(BRIEFINGS: Security)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] THE LEADING PROVIDER OF computer theft recovery, data protection and IT asset management services, Absolute Software, has experienced an uptick in the number of reported computer thefts, company reps say. Absolute...

A new test for the 21st century, literally.(BRIEFINGS: Technology)
December 1, 2008... ALL THE EFFORTS TO PROVIDE more emphasis on technology skills in schools may be paying off, as steps have been taken to nationally test, for the first time, students' technology literacy. WestEd, a nonprofit educational research agency, was...

E-rate funding made easy.(BRIEFINGS: Technology)
December 1, 2008... THE NATION'S LEADING E-RATE funding services firm, Funds for Learning, has recently made moves to greatly simplify the E-rate funding process. In an effort to streamline the application process, the firm has introduced the Form 470 Wizard,...

Be careful what you post.(BRIEFINGS: Technology)
December 1, 2008... HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS WHO ARE FRETTING OVER APPLICATIONS, interviews and grades for college have another thing to worry about: Will their Facebook or MySpace pages count against them in the admissions process? A new survey of 500 top colleges...

Excelling against the Cultural Tide.(District Profile: BELLEVUE)
December 1, 2008... MICHAEL SIPSER, THE HEAD OF MIT's math department, said recently in a New York Times article, "There is something about the culture in American society today which doesn't really seem to encourage men or women in mathematics" ("Math Skills...

Superintendent brings financial stability and educational improvement.(Administrator Profile: SUPERINTENDENT SHEILA HARRISON-WILLIAMS)
December 1, 2008... WHEN TWO OF FIVE SCHOOLS in the Hazel Crest (Ill.) School District 152.5 had closed after years of bad decisions Shelia Harrison-Williams was hired to try to revive the almost bankrupt district. The three remaining schools had been placed "In...

Desperately seeking special ed teachers: U.S. school districts seek qualified special educators. Offering supportive principals, strong mentoring programs and inclusive training programs.(HUMAN RESOURCES)(Cover story)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] IT'S NO SECRET THAT THE dearth of special education teachers has created huge headaches for district human resources departments, especially in suburban and rural areas. In addition to insufficient numbers of...

Special education's challenges: isolation and lack of administrative support can challenge special ed teachers.(SPECIAL EDUCATION)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] FEELINGS OF ISOLATION, TOO LITTLE TIME WITH students, lack of administrative support, and increasing demands are challenges facing special education teachers and contributing to teacher shortages. If we are to...

Building the best auditorium: schools bring down the house with new and improved performing arts facilities.(FACILITIES AND CONSTRUCTION)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] BUILDING A QUALITY AUDITORIUM HAS NEVER COME AT A CHEAP PRICE. AND in today's economy, a $750,000 minimum price tag just for sound, lighting, stage rigging and seats can seem exorbitant. "And that's in a low...

Righting the writing process: improving instruction with assessment tools.(ASSESSMENTS)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] PROMPTED BY THE FEDERAL NO Child Left Behind law and state mandates for improved proficiency in writing and other skills, district leaders have intensified their focus on writing in elementary and middle schools....

Sharpening a District's Leadership model: choosing the right governance model will lead to higher student achievement.(LEADERSHIP ASSESSMENT)
December 1, 2008... Second of a Two-Part Series TO CREATE AN INTEGRATED BOARD SELF-ASSESSMENT and superintendent evaluation process, you must develop a school leadership model by adopting a coherent governance model. At the same time, you must also develop...

Dallas' failures can be remedied.
December 1, 2008... THE DALLAS INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT (DISD) IS $64 MILLION in the red, with the possibility of an $84 million deficit by the end of the year. An accounting error resulted from when average teacher salaries were miscalculated in making budget...

Orange County (Fla.) Public Schools: www.ocps.net.(How Well Does This Web Site Work? LEARN WHAT OUR WEB ANALYST SAYS IS RIGHT AND WRONG WITH THIS DISTRICT SITE)
December 1, 2008... THE ORANGE COUNTY (FLA.) Public School District is located in central Florida. It serves over 178,000 students and has approximately 21,500 employees. OCPS boasts 126 "high-performing schools." Design The design and layout of this site...

MobileTrace, portable trace detector: GE Security.(New Products: THE LATEST IN HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, BOOKS & MATERIALS, FACILITIES, AND INTERNET)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Facilities, $32,200 GE Security's MobileTrace is a user-friendly, handheld detection instrument capable of detecting trace elements of explosives and narcotics simultaneously. The unit is suitable for a variety...

Study Island: Internet, pricing varies: Study Island.(New Products: THE LATEST IN HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, BOOKS & MATERIALS, FACILITIES, AND INTERNET)
December 1, 2008... Study Island is an online standards mastery and test preparation program, with customized content built around each of the 50 states' standards. Recently added to the program are materials based on the Criterion-Referenced Tests (CRT), built...

Product spotlight: interactive whiteboards.(New Products: THE LATEST IN HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, BOOKS & MATERIALS, FACILITIES, AND INTERNET)
December 1, 2008... FEW EDUCATIONAL PRODUCTS HA VE REACHED THE LEVEL OF POPULARITY of interactive whiteboards. An estimated 12 percent of American classrooms use the devices, and the numbers continue to grow. In a survey by the NSBA at the 2008 Technology +...

680i: Smart Technologies.(New Products: THE LATEST IN HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, BOOKS & MATERIALS, FACILITIES, AND INTERNET)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 680i, $3,299 SMART's flagship all-in-one integrated package, the 600i system, enables quick and simple setup. The 680i, for example, includes a 77-inch whiteboard and SMART's Unifi 45 short throw projector...

UB-8325EW: Panasonic.(New Products: THE LATEST IN HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, BOOKS & MATERIALS, FACILITIES, AND INTERNET)
December 1, 2008... UB-8325EW, $3,095 Panasonic offers a series of whiteboards called Panaboards. It has a unique partnership with RM Educational Software, providing RM's Easiteach interactive curriculum software with each of three models. The software is...

Starboard FX Duo 88: Hitachi.(New Products: THE LATEST IN HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, BOOKS & MATERIALS, FACILITIES, AND INTERNET)
December 1, 2008... $2,599 For educators in need of a larger display, Hitachi's new StarBoard FX Duo 88 is an interactive whiteboard capable of showing widescreen content. At 88 inches across, it is one of the largest boards on the market. This model also...

One Day Visitor Pass, security badge: Data Management.(New Products: THE LATEST IN HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, BOOKS & MATERIALS, FACILITIES, AND INTERNET)
December 1, 2008... Facilities, from $75 for a book of 500 Data Management's One Day Visitor Pass enables administrators to issue nametag security badges that cannot be used more than once, ideal for settings with a high volume of visitor traffic and low...

Interactive+Capture: Mimio.(Product Spotlight: INTERACTIVE WHITEBOARDS)
December 1, 2008... Interactive+Capture, $899 Mimio's technology converts an existing whiteboard into an interactive whiteboard simply and affordably. The compact mimio infrared sensor is attached to the side of a board, which tracks the included stylus pen...

Interactive display frame: Smart Technologies.(Product Spotlight: INTERACTIVE WHITEBOARDS)
December 1, 2008... Interactive Display Frame, from $2,319 SMART's interactive display frame is another approach, which converts an existing plasma television into a touch-sensitive interactive display--essentially a whiteboard without the board. The frame...

eSuite for Everyday Mathematics, online supplement: Wright Group/McGraw-Hill.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... Books and Materials, $336 annually per class Wright Group/McBraw-Hill has created new online tools for the third edition of Everyday Mathematics, the standards-based elementary math curriculum developed with the University of Chicago School...

MacBook and MacBook pro, laptops: Apple.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Hardware, starting at $1,299 and $1,999 Apple's new MacBook line offers innovative features for high performance with a low environmental impact. The MacBook has a 13-inch screen, is less than an inch thick, and...

M+Archive: Messaging Architects.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... Software, pricing varies M+Archive is a policy-based e-mail archiving and e-discovery solution. It preserves e-mail as federally mandated and empowers districts to defend themselves during litigation, while driving down the cost of...

FirstClass Collaboration Suite 9.0: Open Text.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... Internet, $10 per student license FirstClass 9.0 offers a set of enterprise-class integrated applications that enable district administrators to create collaborative online communities that securely connect students, teachers and parents...

Performance Tracker: Performance Pathways.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... Internet, pricing varies Performance Tracker is an entirely Web-based assessment management solution that tracks and analyzes student achievement and provides a single point of contact for educators to easily access state and local...

Infinite Campus, student information system: Infinite Campus.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... Internet, $6 per student Infinite Campus is a Web-based student information system that provides districts with the integrated tools needed to streamline student administration, enable stakeholder collaboration and individualize...

Developmental Math Assessment, Assessments: Developmental Math Group.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... Books and Materials, $139 The Developmental Math Assessment from Developmental Math 6roup is a classroom-based mathematics tool for educators to use with students in preschool through, grade 2. The DMA helps classroom teachers make...

QPC30, document camera: QOMO Hitevision.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... Hardware, $799 QOMO's new ultraportable document camera utilizes a 1/2-inch CMOS imager with 1.3 megapixel resolution including X6A and SXGA, advanced auto iris, and a lens with 3X optical and 8X digital zoom. The camera's head and arm...

MAP for Primary Grades, assessment program: Northwest Evaluation Association.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... Software, $13.50 per student The NWEA has expanded its successful MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) assessment series with the recent addition of MAP for Primary Grades, intended for K2 students. Features of this computerized assessment...

Pavilion tx2500z, tablet PC: HP.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... Hardware, starting at $899 HP's updated ultraportable notebook offers versatile and unique features useful for education users. Weighing just 4.6 pounds, this unit includes a 12.1-inch high-definition screen, an AMD Turion X2 processor, up to...

LS Test Builder, assessment program: Learningstation.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... Internet, starting at $2 per student LS Test Builder is an online e-learning tool focused on providing standards-based formative assessment and targeted, integrated instruction. The program creates an intuitive online environment for...

P30S, document camera: ELMO.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... Hardware, $2,990 ELMO's new high-end addition to its P30 series of document cameras, the P30S, offers premium features such as full motion, 30-frames-per-second video capture, a choice of XGA, SXGA, or 72gp HD output, and 16X optical zoom. An...

Healthy vending machines: YoNaturals.(New Products)
December 1, 2008... Facilities, leasing starts at $35/week In an effort to promote healthier eating habits in schools, YoNaturals provides vending machines that offer natural, organic, low-sugar snacks and drinks. Under its new leasing program, the company...

Missouri district brings struggling learners up to snuff.(Problem Solution: SUCCESS STORIES FROM DISTRICTS ACROSS THE NATION)
December 1, 2008... PROBLEM WHEN BOSNIAN WAR REFUGEES looked for a safe haven in the United States after fleeing their homeland in the 1990s, many of them settled in St. Louis, Mo. Some of them eventually ended up in nearby Bayless, where they joined refugees...

Under attack: New Jersey has laid out a plan of attack against small districts.(PROFESSIONAL OPINION)
December 1, 2008... IN NEARLY 20 YEARS AS A SMALL district administrator, I have participated in two formal regionalization studies, conducted by the boards of education of two or more school districts considering consolidation. In each of these studies data...

Why hands-on science isn't enough.(Research Center: ESSENTIALS ON EDUCATION DATA AND RESEARCH ANALYSIS)
December 1, 2008... THE SUBJECT OF SCIENCE LENDS itself naturally to lab experiments, field experiences and other "hands-on" activities. If well implemented, such activities can engage students and significantly increase learning. But if science education is to...

Calendar of events.(Calendar)
December 1, 2008... JANUARY 2009 FETC, Florida Educational Technology Conference January 21-24 Orlando, Fla. www.fetc.org TRLD, Technology, Reading & Learning Diversity January 22-24 San Francisco, Calif. www.trld.com ...

Creating student editors: if you're not reading the Web critically, you're not literate.(ONLINE EDGE)
December 1, 2008... HERE'S A QUICK THREE-QUESTION quiz for you to take: 1. How do you find out who owns a particular domain address or Web site? 2. Besides a typical Google search, how might you find more information about the author of an article that...