Charter School News Roundup

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December 1, 2011
Charter School News Roundup

Seven states, including Arizona, have submitted complete applications for Round 3 of the federal Race to the Top competition. They are part of a group of nine runner-up states invited to submit applications. The seven states will compete for a share of $200 million to help drive education reform. By submitting applications Arizona and...
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Two Looks at Per-Unit Cost Budgeting

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December 1, 2011
Two Looks at Per-Unit Cost Budgeting

Per-Unit Costs Make Stakeholders Examine Tradeoffs By: Daniel H. Bowen While charter schools are supposed to have greater autonomy in their operations, providing opportunities for innovation, charters often just replicate some of the same dysfunctional practices found in district schools. One area ripe for more innovative reform is school budgeting. The current financial crisis...
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Second Page: Educational Reform

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December 1, 2011
Second Page: Educational Reform

My fellow charter operators, lend me your ear!! I have been writing this column now since 2004. Just when I think that I have run out of things to say, another issue, idea, situation, or incident pops up to save my bacon. Today I want to talk about two of them. But before I...
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Superintendent Views

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December 1, 2011
Superintendent Views

In November the 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Reading and Mathematics assessments were released. I was very happy with Arizona’s progress. The 2011 results show that Arizona Grade 4 and Grade 8 students continue to show an upward trend in NAEP scores for Mathematics and Reading – with fourth-grade students showing the...
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A Necessary Ingredient

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December 1, 2011
A Necessary Ingredient

No doubt about it, successful people are hardworking people. This is true of the landscaper, the banker, or the teacher. It is also true that successful, hardworking people need some hobby or pastime to rest and recreate their mind. Repetition, sameness, and boredom have a way of numbing our mental faculties. Without a break...
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Learning Within Learning Communities

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December 1, 2011
Learning Within Learning Communities

Being educators working within a Montessori charter public school, my colleagues and I strive to provide learning environments for children that are different from the familiar, traditional, graded classrooms of their neighborhood schools. Because of such purposed uniqueness, I think it might be helpful if I shared the values that make our learning environments...
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Association Update

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December 1, 2011
Association Update

All public school students — district or charter — are entitled to the same educational privileges afforded by Arizona’s Constitution. A recent ruling by the Maricopa County Superior Court in the lawsuit Craven et al. v. State of Arizona et al. confirmed just that. This lawsuit, filed by an 18-year-old Lake Havasu High School...
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An Educator’s Obligation to Report Child Abuse

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December 1, 2011
An Educator’s Obligation to Report Child Abuse

Child abuse is a problem that has reached epidemic proportions. More than three million cases of child abuse are reported in the United States each year; it is estimated that many more cases go unreported. Despite nearly a decade of highly publicized incidents of child sexual abuse among members of the Roman Catholic clergy,...
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Alternatively Speaking: Excellent Educators at Alternative Schools

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December 1, 2011
Alternatively Speaking: Excellent Educators at Alternative Schools

Lisa Wasko-Cothrun. Jessica Melrose. John Sills. At its 2011 state conference in November the Arizona Charter Schools Association (ACSA) recognized these three alternative school educators for the quality education they provide to students and their families. School Leader of the Year Lisa Wasko-Cothrun is Assistant Superintendent at the Rose Academies.  She was one of...
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