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Here are news and opinion stories educators, advocates, policy wonks and makers are talking about today:
News and Analysis
Pesident Obama, deciding that Acting Education Secretary John King should drop the “acting” from his title, has nominated him to officially lead the department for the last year of the Obama administration. King took control of the Education Department early this year following the departure of longtime secretary Arne Duncan, and he is now set to testify at Senate confirmation hearings starting Thursday. Sen. Lamar Alexander, the Republican from Tennessee who heads the Senate education committee, said King’s nomination will be considered quickly, and confirmation is expected. (The Washington Post)
Bill and Melinda Gates regularly challenge global leaders and policy makers to help them solve the world’s biggest development problems. Now they’re out to mobilize the next generation, too. (The Wall Street Journal)
At 7 p.m. on a recent Wednesday, Isabella and Tony Ruiz were standing in their usual homework spot, on a crumbling sidewalk across the street from the elementary school nearest to their home. (The New York Times)
If community colleges are going to be the new pathway to the middle class, they have a lot of work to do, according to a new study. (The Hechinger Report)
New York
Come September, Satellite West Middle School, a small, troubled school in New York City, will have moved from its shared brick building in Vinegar Hill, Brooklyn, into a sparkling glass condominium building at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge. Nestled in the heart of the chic Dumbo neighborhood, the redesigned school will focus on science and art, enlist local tech workers as mentors, and go by a new name, The Dock Street School for STEAM Studies. The admissions process will also change: Instead of using a lottery, the school will begin handpicking its students. (The Atlantic)