A Rhode Island Proposal

According to a 66-page report released Monday by the business-backed Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council, which analyzes government spending.

• Continue to focus on improving elementary and secondary schools, using as a guide the state’s new Basic Education Plan

• Cut costs. This could include regional collaborations, cost-sharing and controlling growth in teachers’ benefits.

• Implement a statewide school financing formula.

• Use data to raise student achievement and ensure districts are spending money wisely and getting results.

Rhode Island ranks fifth nationally in per-pupil expenditure while yielding mediocre test results and achievements levels significantly lower than the rest of New England.

Filed under: Contingency Plans, EDUCATION

To Be or Not to Be

The marriage edition, by way of Charles Darwin.

To marry: Children — (if it Please God) — Constant companion, (& friend in old age) who will feel interested in one, — object to be beloved & played with. — —better than a dog anyhow.— Home, & someone to take care of house — Charms of music & female chit-chat. — These things good for one’s health.

Not to marry: Freedom to go where one liked — choice of Society & little of it. — Conversation of clever men at clubs — Not forced to visit relatives, & to bend in every trifle. — to have the expense & anxiety of children — perhaps quarelling — Loss of time. — cannot read in the Evenings — fatness & idleness — Anxiety & responsibility — less money for books &c — if many children forced to gain one’s bread. — (But then it is very bad for ones health to work too much)

Filed under: Contingency Plans, HISTORY

Detroit Public Schools Partner with Walmart

11 weeks of job-readiness training for 60 students in 4 Detroit public high schools. Students receive 10 credits and a guaranteed after school job at Walmart. Walmart is one of 20 other participating companies linking 240 students to jobs.

Knowing that the partner here is Walmart has sent this into controversy sooner than probably any other partnership of this kind:

You live in poverty, and you will stay there while Walmart continues to gobble up everything in its path.

Do you see this more as an exploitation of the poor or a necessary evil to keep schools running during hard times?

Do kids leave high school feeling motivated to invent the next Google? Or, do they just want a job.

Unemployment rate in Detroit is 30% officially, 50% unofficially.

Detroit teachers have been forced to make long-term, interest-free and unsecured loans to the district out of their paychecks. 29 Detroit public schools have been closed to cut costs. The 84,000-student system could face additional layoffs and about 40 more school closings.

The entire situation neatly sums up the challenges facing many urban districts today while also questioning the future and foundations of modern public education.Cover more needs with less resources. Make tough trade-offs for tough times.

Filed under: Contingency Plans, EDUCATION

Getting STARTED

The hardest part, right?

I don’t want this to get into over-share territory but it’s obvious that my first and last post was in January. Excuses aside! – here are some people who delivered me the open-handed smack down.

Write at least 300 words a day
Capture your ideas
Group them
Why this important (spanks giselle!)

Filed under: Contingency Plans