[Ed Note: This is the third installment of a series of tales of missing public education information and active disinformation by a wide variety of city actors (and all before the current pandemic!). To see the first and second in this series, see here and here.] Tale #3: The Mystery Of Taft's Money Let us … Continue reading The Education Mysteries, Tale #3: Taft’s Money

Amid our collective struggle at being adrift without a clear light at the end of this pandemic, thoughtful and excellent recommendations have emerged right here in DC for ways forward for our public schools in terms of re-opening and distance learning. These ideas are all the more important now that our mayor announced on Monday … Continue reading Powerful Ideas For Our Public Schools Moving Forward

[Ed Note: This is the second installment in a new series on this blog, consisting of tales of missing public education information and active disinformation by a wide variety of city actors (and all before the current pandemic!). To see the first in the series, click here.] Tale #2: The Mystery Of Ellington Field Some time … Continue reading The Education Mysteries, Tale #2: Ellington Field

[Ed. Note: This new blog series, consisting of tales of missing public education information and active disinformation, arises at a time when both storytelling and truth are at a premium. Recall that on March 17, one of the first actions of our DC council in the current pandemic was to extend the deadline for responses … Continue reading The Education Mysteries, Tale #1: Friendship’s Lottery & Achievement Prep’s Middle School

Here are a few things of interest for this week, as we await both an update on the budget situation (see C4DC’s recent letter to the mayor, demanding balancing of priorities for DCPS) as well as news of when (and/or if) school will reopen this school year. --Starting this week, DCPS has 10 sites that … Continue reading What’s Happening (And NOT Happening)

As the corona virus devastates billions of people world-wide, budgets everywhere are being similarly devastated--including DC’s proposed public education budgets. To address expected shortfalls in revenue, here in no particular order are 15 revenue-neutral (and even revenue-enhancing!) ways that DC could tomorrow cut public education expenses; provide greater oversight; and ensure better public involvement in … Continue reading 15 Ways To Stop DC Public Ed Budget Implosions And Improve Our Schools–Tomorrow

On Tuesday this past week, Mayor Bowser announced that “DC education leaders” were launching a new “digital equity fund.” A “collaboration” between private organization Education Forward DC, the DC Public Education Fund (the private fundraising arm of DCPS), and the Greater Washington Community Foundation, the fund is intended to increase access to the internet and … Continue reading Privilege, Wealth, & The New Digital Equity Fund

In the face of a strange unknown, so many people are doing their best to cope--and while that may fall short of the/an ideal (whatever that ideal may be--cancelling PARCC, staying healthy, locating a treasure trove of TP, etc.), the old saw that “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself” still remains … Continue reading Our Greatest Strength—And A Few Resources

In less than 10 minutes on February 24, the DC charter board unanimously approved the application of Eagle Academy to abandon its plans to locate at 2345 R St. SE--a property that Eagle bought but never occupied, with a school building that Eagle constructed using DC revenue bonds (approved specifically for that location and paid … Continue reading Muting DC (Public Education Edition)

If proof was needed to show how ill-suited DC's legislative body is for the role of school board (well, beyond the failing closure vote on Wash Met), it came via the February 10 hearing of bill 23-0496, the Fair Access to Selective High Schools Amendment act. The bill outlines how 7th graders will be provided … Continue reading Making Selectivity In Schools An Achievement