Association of Alaska School Boards

E-NEWS

...your dues at work.

 

A weekly digest of education news for Alaska's School Board Members.

Association of Alaska School Boards, 1111 West 9th St., Juneau, AK 99801. Tel.

907-586-1083, Fax 907-586-2995. Carl Rose, Executive Director,

crose@aasb.org:    John Greely, Editor, jgreely@aasb.org. Review past issues of

the E-News on the AASB Website at <http://www.aasb.org>. To unsubscribe send an email stating the same to jgreely@aasb.org.

 

**********************************

Sponsored by Alaska Public Entity Insurance Co. <http://www.akpei.com>

**********************************

AASB E-News                                                                                        

July 26, 2007

 

 

--STANDING UP TO BULLIES, FAIRBANKS STYLE

--EX-JUSTICE: KIDS LACK PROPER CIVICS EDUCATION

--BUSH PILOT PROGRAM TAKES OFF IN HOOPER BAY

--WHEN SCHOOLS FAIL, LET KIDS TRANSFER OUT (EDITORIAL)

--WHEN SCHOOLS FAIL, A REPLY FROM NORM WOOTEN (EDITORIAL)

--MURKOWSKI SUPPORTS HIGHER EDUCATION ACT AMENDMENTS

--STEVENS CO-SPONSORS NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE DAY

 

STANDING UP TO BULLIES, FAIRBANKS STYLE

 The Fairbanks North Star Borough School District held a three-day conference focused on bullying in school. One of the best ways to combat the problem, experts agree, is to create a strong support network of peers and adults to stand with the victims of bullying.  That, and to have strong and consistent punishment. See full story here:

http://newsminer.com/2007/07/24/8075

 

*************************************************

EX-JUSTICE: KIDS LACK PROPER CIVICS EDUCATION

 Public education, criticized roundly throughout the four-day National Governors Association conference, took another punch on the chin, this time from retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day OÕConnor. OÕConner said growing disrespect for judges and erosion of independence of the judicial branch are partly due to students not learning much about American government in school. See full story here:

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070724/POLITICS/707240361/1022

 

*****************************************************

BUSH PILOT PROGRAM TAKES OFF IN HOOPER BAY

 Hooper Bay High School students are building an airplane for an experimental class that federal aviation officials hope eventually will address a shortage of home-grown pilots in rural Alaska. See full story here:

http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/rural/story/9155264p-9071813c.html

 

****************************************************

WHEN SCHOOLS FAIL, LET KIDS TRANSFER OUT (EDITORIAL)

 As the result of a desegregation order, some 8,000 urban school students in St. Louis have been transferred to suburban schools. Why canÕt the children in chronically failing urban schools elsewhere – a core target of the No Child Left Behind Act – have similar transfer options.  See full editorial here:

http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2007/07/our-view-on-whe.html

 

WHEN SCHOOLS FAIL: A REPLY FROM NORM WOOTEN (EDITORIAL)

 Giving parents a chance to ditch their schools for greener pastures probably sounds like a good idea to those who prefer simple solutions to complex problems. Today, the No Child Left Behind law requires school districts to offer students the option of transferring to another public school within their district if enough students within a school do not score proficiently on state tests for two years in a row. But after five years, this transfer option has not worked well. See full editorial here:

http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2007/07/opposing-view-n.html

 

****************************************************

MURKOWSKI SUPPORTS HIGHER EDUCATION ACT AMENDMENTS

 Senator Lisa Murkowski joined her colleagues in passing the Higher Education Amendments of 2007. The bill includes language to make college more affordable for military service members and spouses, authorizes the Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program and helps inform students and parents on the costs of college. See full news release here:

http://murkowski.senate.gov/pressapp/record.cfm?id=279613

 

***************************************************

STEVENS CO-SPONSORS NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE DAY BILL 

  Senator Ted Stevens has joined Senator Daniel K. Inouye in introducing legislation to designate the Friday after Thanksgiving each year as ÒNative American Heritage Day.Ó See full news release here:

http://stevens.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=NewsRoom.PressReleases&ContentRecord_id=fe30ae81-1321-0e36-badf-cf92c0237d63

 

*******************************************************************************************

 

Association of Alaska School Boards

 ...promoting BOARD STANDARDS through...

Vision Structure Accountability Advocacy Conduct-Ethics

Association of Alaska School Boards

 

1111 West 9th Street, Juneau, Alaska 99801-1510 Tel. 907-586-1083

Fax 907-586-2995 Email: aasb@aasb.org

Website: http://www.aasb.org