Welcome to Cashing in on Kids, a newsletter for people who think public education should be truly, absolutely, authentically public—produced by In the Public Interest.
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Is there peril or promise in online learning? On June 11, In the Public Interest will host a webinar on the limitations and possibilities of online learning in public education during and after the coronavirus pandemic. Speakers include education professor Gary Miron, information science professor Daniela Kruel DiGiacomo, Clayton County (Georgia) Superintendent Morcease Beasley, and high school teacher and parent Kiki Ochoa.
In the Public Interest is joined in sponsoring the event by the National Education Policy Center, the National Superintendents Roundtable, the Network for Public Education, Local Progress, and the Schott Foundation. Register here
Putting schools online won’t save money. Former teacher and blogger Peter Greene lays out ideas for saving public education dollars, like ending high-stakes testing and redrawing district lines. “Anyone who imagines that the district can just buy some curriculum software, lay off 80 percent of the teaching staff, and that will fix everything, is dreaming.” The Progressive
More charter schools double dip in federal coronavirus relief funding. Carol Burris and Marla Kilfoyle of the Network for Public Education look at charter schools that have applied for money from the Cares Act, including Pine Springs Preparatory Academy in Holly Springs, North Carolina. The Washington Post
Have some extra time on your hands? Check the board minutes of your local charter schools during April and May and see if the board approved applying for and accepting Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds. If you find any, send the name of the school, the amount, and a link to the board minutes to marlakilfoyle@networkforpubliceducation.org.
DeVos directs COVID-19 relief funds to private and charter schools. Billionaire Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has found another way to exploit a national public health crisis to promote her agenda of privatizing public education. Capital & Main
No new charter or voucher initiatives. Zakiyah Ansari, advocacy director of the Alliance for Quality Education, unveiled national education justice demands during a webinar hosted by the Schott Foundation. Included was a demand for a “federal mandate to stop school boards from closing schools and approving new charter or voucher initiatives and a national moratorium on new charter schools.” The Schott Foundation
“Just stop.” The National Superintendents Roundtable surveyed its 97 members after one of them took to Twitter to tell marketers to “just stop.” Their answers reveal a deep vein of irritation with marketing campaigns aimed at schools during the COVID-19 pandemic. National Superintendents Roundtable
Diane Ravitch and Jitu Brown to speak. On June 3, the Network for Public Education will hold a video conference about race, equity, and civil rights with education historian Diane Ravitch and Journey for Justice National Director Jitu Brown. Network for Public Education