GothamSchools — daily independent reporting on NYC public schools

• Opponents of school closings and charter schools are suing to protest outside Bloomberg’s apartment.
• The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools ranks NY 8 out of 50 for charter school laws.
• Beth Fertig has a map of school closures and the charter schools that could replace them.
• If RttT money is doled out for political ends, NY probably won’t fair very well.
• U.S. News’ education package offers four takes on NCLB.
• “Let’s dump it and try something different,” writes Jay Mathews about NCLB.
• Richard Kessler: the quality of in-school art partnerships is better when admins have a vision.
• A Brooklyn College professor defends Maxwell HS against closure to save their partnership.
• A P.S. 187 parent says tests don’t reveal anything about why her child’s school is good.
• James Eterno and Arthur Goldstein argue that closing Jamaica HS would be an “egregious error.”
• Amanda Fairbanks: teachers unions are like print media. Whatever replaces them hasn’t arrived yet.
• Ed in the Apples says Weingarten’s recent speech brings her another step closer to Shanker.
• TNR shifts through Weingarten’s speech and finds many questions went unanswered.
• The NYTimes offers some tips for teaching students about the earthquake in Haiti.
• A teacher contemplates what CA’s parent trigger could really mean for unionized teachers.
• Peter Murphy seeks to correct myths about charter schools some lawmakers are buying into.
• And Texas says “no thanks” to RttT, concluding it’s not enough money to make change worthwhile.

Assembly Democrats are ready to approve a lift to the state’s charter school cap — but only if they get a substantial change to the way charter schools are launched and approved in return.

Under the plan being developed by members of the state Assembly, the power to approve charters would be consolidated under the state Board of Regents, who currently share that authority with the State University of New York and local school districts. (Schools authorized by a school district are also granted final approval by the Regents.) The SUNY office has the strongest reputation and has been praised by the Obama administration as a model for developing charter schools around the country.

The plan would also change who decides when and where a new charter school is needed.

Right now, wannabe school leaders pitch plans to either SUNY or the Regents, who let the school open if the plan is solid and there are spots available under the cap. Under the Assembly proposal, the state education department would determine when and where a new charter school should open, and would then issue a request for proposals from charter school operators to launch the school.

Formal language on the proposal has not yet emerged, but there is consensus on the contours of the plan, sources said.

“It makes sense to have one authority,” said Democratic Assemblyman Alan Maisel. (more…)

Stuck between two party bosses and a union that boosted him, the city’s public advocate has made a best-of-both-worlds choice on the Race to the Top.

Public Advocate Bill de Blasio endorsed raising the state cap on charter schools today, but he stopped short of arguing the cap should be eliminated altogether, as Governor David Paterson has done and the Obama administration has encouraged. De Blasio also amended his endorsement with a list of tweaks he’d like to see in charter school law, including many that resemble recommendations the union made last week.

Like many other local politicians who favor raising the cap, de Blasio gave no other reason for his support other than that raising the cap will boost the state’s Race to the Top application. “I strongly support raising the cap on charter schools and giving New York State the best possible opportunity to compete for much needed federal education funding,” de Blasio said.

De Blasio’s letter, which was co-signed by a majority of City Council members, did not specify how high he wants the cap lifted. (more…)

Jamaica High School is a magnificent building — a beacon on a hill that stands out in a distinctly middle-class neighborhood in Queens. It is majestic and elegant — a literal landmark that exudes history.

Walk the halls and you will see black and white pictures of tweed-suited principals. You can see one of them appearing on “Open End” with David Susskind, discussing some important issue or other. When was the last time you saw a high school principal interviewed on a news show?

Walk further and you will see photos of the doughboys who died in World War I. This one died of malaria. That one perished from pneumonia. Then comes the World War II vets. They’ve all passed through these halls, and why not? Jamaica High School has been an integral part of the community for 118 years.

Alas, Chancellor Joel Klein has passed a writ of execution on Jamaica High School, threatening an abrupt halt to its rich history. (more…)

• Randi Weingarten also called for new “due process” rules for teacher firing. (Times, Washington Post)
• Thomas Carroll says teachers unions are trying to slip “poison pills” into the Race to the Top bill. (Post)
• A sure-to-be-contentious meeting tonight will decide who gets zoned to Tribeca’s PS 234. (Daily News)
• A group protesting against school closures plans to picket outside Mayor Bloomberg’s house. (Post)
• The Village Voice looks at the effects of high-stakes testing on city schools.
• The Albany Times-Union: The state’s Race to the Top plan is hasty and born of procrastination.
• Diane Ravitch: City charter schools should be made to serve the neediest students. (Daily News)
• The newest fad in city schools: A dance style that makes students look like they’re seizing. (Daily News)
• Gov. Paterson’s son’s arrest happened during a lunch-hour Beacon HS gambling game. (Post)

• New York lawmakers don’t expect to vote on the charter cap until the day RttT applications are due.
• “Raising the cap won’t get us there,” Paterson said, pushing an elimination of the charter cap.
• Weingarten doesn’t want students’ results from one year compared to different students the next year.
• The NEA says there’s too little evidence that linking scores to tenure is effective.
• $700 million is a lot of money, but it’s not having much of an effect on NYSUT, Peter Murphy writes.
• Weingarten’s support for linking test scores to tenure could make things awkward for Mulgrew.
• Duncan wants local support and radical change, making it difficult for states to get both.
• Community Board 9 voted to give P.S. 186 landmark status to prevent its demolition.
• Paterson’s son, a student at Beacon HS, was caught and released by the NYPD today.
• A teacher succeeds in getting complaint letters taken out of his file and says he feels “paroled.”
• The city and UFT may have a contract, but its provisions are frequently violated, a blogger writes.
• Corey Bunje Bower compares NYC teachers to their peers in the ‘burbs.
• And the Queens gym teacher who punched a “Jersey Shore” cast member is being fired.

• The 26 states that require high school exit exams have mostly lowered standards over time. (Times)
• Randi Weingarten will back linking test scores and teacher evaluations. (USA Today, Washington Post)
• Bob Herbert says following through on the proposal would boost the union’s credibility. (Times)
• Only two days are left for legislative work before the Race to the Top deadline. (Albany Times-Union)
• The Post praises Albany for possibly being about to approve Gov. Paterson’s education proposals.
• The Boston Globe offers Massachusetts advice for how to get past its school reform impasses.
• The L.A. Times says school districts should be wary of taking private money, even for important projects.