New White House Rural Council Intended to Coordinate support for Rural Communities
The first White House Rural Council was created to build on the Obama Administration’s rural economic strategy and improve the implementation of that strategy. This council will coordinate programs across various federal agencies to encourage public-private partnerships to promote further economic prosperity and quality of life in rural communities nationwide. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan … Continue reading
eSchoolNews has a clear (and discouraging) story about Educational Finance
http://www.eschoolnews.com/2011/05/26/schools-struggle-to-recover-amid-years-of-cuts/ Among other things… Around the country, states are cutting education spending to close gaping budget holes, while school districts are running out of federal stimulus money that had prevented widespread job losses over the past two years. As budgets shrink and expenses grow, districts are laying off large numbers of teachers, raising class sizes, … Continue reading
The Condition of Education 2011 … How do you measure up?
Grant proposals need to be substantiated with data, preferably data that illustrates the gap between your beneficiary and a recognized norm or standard. The National Center for Education Statistics releases data annually regarding the condition of education nationwide. This can sometimes be useful data, although it is a bit dated by the time of release. … Continue reading
New Research Report: The National Institute for Early Education: The State of Preschool 2010
From the Executive Summary: Total state funding for pre-K decreased by nearly $30 million and would have fallen by at least an additional $49.3 million if not for funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). This is the first time since NIEER began tracking spending that total spending decreased from the previous year. … Continue reading
What if America’s largest Minority Group Had the Lowest Educational Attainment Levels?
Texas recently joined other states for which the “minority” groups represent the majority of its population. Hispanics are the largest minority group in public schools, numbering more than 12.4 million in the country’s elementary, middle and high schools. More than 1 in 5, of all pre‐K-12 students is Hispanic. We must identify and implement … Continue reading
Why you need to know about “The Florida Formula”
Because it will likely be the education policy in your state, if not in the nation. The Florida Formula for Student Achievement promotes state level educational reforms that include grading schools on an A-F scale based on annual standardized test scores, ending social promotion in the third grade for students who can’t read, creating a … Continue reading
It’s not the 70’s any more. Ignore Hybrid Courses at your own risk.
One of our colleague/friends has been hired by a regional university to support the development of hybrid courses. Hybrid courses blend face-to-face interaction such as in-class discussions, active group work, and live lectures with typically web-based educational technologies such as online course cartridges, assignments, discussion boards, and other web-assisted learning tools (Wikipedia). She has met … Continue reading
Federal Budget Cuts – This really hurts
Well, the legislature is sweeping right behind me, eliminating programs within days of the submission. Honestly, this is the most demoralizing experience of my grant writing career. Our districts are working so fearlessly and creatively to design competitive projects for the grant proposals. All of their work and dreams have been slashed with these cuts. You … Continue reading
U.S. Department of Education Small, Rural School Achievement Program Formula Grants
Please note: This is a formula-based grant. However, certain districts must apply. I noted several districts in my area that will be eligible and will need to apply for these funds. U. S. Department of Education: Small, Rural School Achievement Program Program Office: Office of School Support and Technology Programs CFDA Number: 84.358A Program Type: … Continue reading
New Report regarding high course taking and grades: STEM, credit acceleration, students with disabilities and ELL.
New NCES report: America’s High School Graduates: Results of the 2009 NAEP High School Transcript Study The National Center for Education Statistics has just released the results of the 2009 High School Transcript Study, performed by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The Study presents information about the types of courses that high school graduates in … Continue reading
The Grant Coaches 