Indiana has just given every state that agreed to adopt Common Core national education standards and tests a lesson in prudent governance. On Saturday, Governor Mike Pence (R) signed the Common Core “Pause” bill into law, halting implementation of Common Core until state agencies, teachers, and taxpayers better understand the …
Thin Mints and Tagalongs might be a little hard to swallow now for those concerned with centralization of education—and now, civil society institutions. The Girl Scouts of America now boasts that every merit badge is fully aligned with the Common Core State Standards Initiative—an effort to nationalize the content taught …
Alabama has the opportunity to reclaim its education decision-making authority. It took the first steps toward doing so last week, when the Senate Education Committee approved a measure that would withdraw the Yellowhammer State from the Common Core State Standards Initiative—a push to nationalize standards and assessments across the country. …
Yesterday, Education Secretary Arne Duncan testified before the House Appropriations Committee about Obama’s fiscal year (FY) 2014 budget request for the Department of Education. Congressman Andy Harris (R–MD) took the opportunity to question Duncan about a glaring omission from the budget: funding for the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program (DCOSP). The …
MSNBC host Melissa Harris-Perry’s words in a new “Lean Forward” ad are breathtaking: We have to break through our kind of private idea that kids belong to their parents or kids belong to their families and recognize that kids belong to whole communities. Once it’s everybody’s responsibility, and not just …
It’s hard to overstate what an outstanding victory for school choice Indiana’s Supreme Court issued yesterday. Indiana’s highest court ruled unanimously in Meredith v. Pence that the Choice Scholarship Program (CSP), which provides vouchers to low-income and middle-income families in the Hoosier State, is constitutional. The suit, brought by the …
The Lone Star State is considering significantly expanding educational choice options for children. Under consideration: an elimination of the cap on charter schools (only 215 are currently allowed to operate), creation of special needs scholarships to allow children with disabilities to attend private schools of choice, and a tuition tax …
What pain has sequester wrought at the federal Department of Education? Apparently, not much. The 4,200-person agency has just hired a new “executive director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans.” Fox News reports that the position apparently commands a six-figure salary, as the new director—a …
The U.S. public education system has seen an enormous increase in staff over the past few decades. But unlike private companies, which base staffing decisions on product demand, the number of school staff positions has increased rapidly without a commensurate increase in the number of students served by the system. …
