Diane Zook, the state Board of Education member who's drawn criticism here before and will again for her zeal for charter schools and just about anything damaging to the Little Rock School District, distinguished herself at yesterday's Board meeting with questions about a new voucher program that will send taxpayer money to private, mostly religious schools.
Outgoing Little Rock School Superintendent Baker Kurrus has raised some pointed questions about a committee appointed to consider collaboration of true public school districts and charter schools in Pulaski County. In short: What's the point if the outcome is pre-determined?
Districts and charters reported about 5,400 students received dyslexia interventions, out of a statewide student population of around 476,000. But statistics show 10 to 20 percent of the population is dyslexic — meaning from 47,000 to 95,000 kids should be receiving services.
The smell ripens. In the midst of heated criticism of the state Education Department for hurrying up and waiving rules to allow an expansion request from the academically deficient Little Rock Preparatory Academy, Board member Diane Zook dropped a small bombshell: It has pulled back its expansion request.
Mike Poore, the incoming Little Rock school superintendent, isn't ready to express an opinion on the latest charter school expansion in Little Rock. The deal looks pre-baked. Work has already begun on the school despite lack of state Board of Education approval.
The Hutchinson administration continues to press for speedy charter school expansions in the Little Rock School District, despite the current superintendent's belief that they are harmful to the state-run district. The latest one has financial support from the Walton fortune in the background, as usual when it comes to charter schools.
Education Week reports on a new database on racial achievement gaps in U.S. schools. I'll boil it down: The best predictor of an achievement gap is concentration of kids in high poverty schools.
Michael Poore, the future Little Rock school superintendent, has been dodging the press, with the exception of one chat with the friendly Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. The list of questions to be answered is long.
Little Rock's new school leader has both admirers and detractors in his current job in Bentovnille. Significantly, he joined religious forces in opposing an employment policy specifically protecting LGBT workers.
Baker Kurrus superintendent of the Little Rock School District, has been told by state Education Commissioner Johnny Key that he will be replaced. He is to work through June 30.
Eureka! A Walton school choice agenda acolyte, state Education Commissioner Johnny Key, has discovered that some things like poverty should be taken into account in judging whether a school is failing or not. At least he believes it for charter schools.
Speaker Jeremy Gillam's hypothetical life-without-Medicaid-expansion budget detailed around $30 million in cuts to public schools, and more to higher education. Here's what that means.
The ACLU is looking into an incident in which a portion of the R-rated "The Passion of the Christ" was shown during a U.S. History class at Wilbur Mills High School, with the teacher of the course later going on a rant against liberals and political correctness when a student complaint to the school resulted in the rest of the film not being shown. Audio of the teacher's diatribe was recorded and forwarded to ACLU-Arkansas and, later, Arkansas Times. The teacher has been suspended.
In a surprise move, the state Board of Education may reverse its decision to hold a public hearing on the question of allowing two Little Rock charter schools to significantly expand their operations in the city.
The decision was made with the best of intentions, as far as I could tell. But the result was a haphazard amalgam of carveouts that could set a dangerous precedent and weaken the rule of law in education policy.
The state Board of Education voted today to review applications to expand eStem and LISA Academy, two charter schools that operate in the Little Rock School District.
For today's holiday, the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation prepared a 20-question quiz on American history. 60 percent flunked and Arkansas responses put us in the bottom five states.
Fiddler's Green, the top scoring dispensary in North Arkansas's Zone 2, will be renovating an existing facility for its new storefront on Highway 9 in Mountain View. Lisa Murphy, CEO of Fiddler's Green, said the dispensary hopes to complete renovations and open for business in May.
Still more legal paperwork today from Jon Woods, the former Arkansas senator doing 18 years in federal prison for bribery. The government has indicated, incidentally, that what he wants to see might implicate some unindicted people.
Arkansas Business Publishing Group breaks the news today of its sale to current president Mitch Bettis by a group led by long-time CEO Olivia Myers Farrell. Financial terms weren't disclosed
Take note: The Republican Party is making moves nationwide, including in Arkansas, to extend one-party political control from the legislative and executive to the judicial branch.