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Here are news and opinion stories educators, advocates, policy wonks and makers are talking about today:
News and Analysis:
A Long Struggle for Equality in Schools
Looking back at the school desegregation case he took as a young lawyer, Rubin Salter Jr. sees a pile of wasted money and squandered opportunities. After almost four decades in court and nearly $1 billion in public spending, little has changed for the black children whose right to a good education he had labored to defend. (New York Times)
Arne Duncan Unveils Plans for Principal Ambassador Program
Acknowledging the need to get more input from school leaders on education policy, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced plans to create a principal ambassador fellowship in a speech at the National Association of Secondary School Principals conference Feb. 28. (Education Week – College Bound)
White House Demands Quicker Public Access to Education Research
Education research, like most publicly funded research, is likely to take a hit in the across-the-board budget cuts that start to take effect today. But while districts and researchers cut back, President Obama is pushing researchers to get the studies that are funded in the hands of educators faster. (Education Week – Inside School Research)
National Attention and Cash in Los Angeles School Vote
On Tuesday, voters in Los Angeles will go to the polls for a mayoral primary. But much of the attention will also be on the three races for the school board, a battle that involves the mayor, the teachers’ union and a host of advocates from across the country — including New York City’s billionaire mayor — who have poured millions of dollars into the races. (New York Times)
K-12 student database jazzes tech startups, spooks parents
An education technology conference this week in Austin, Texas, will clang with bells and whistles as startups eagerly show off their latest wares. But the most influential new product may be the least flashy: a $100 million database built to chart the academic paths of public school students from kindergarten through high school. (Chicago Tribune)
Pennsylvania:
Report: Poor U.S. Students Receive Developing-World Educations
Poor students in the U.S. often receive educations comparable to those of children in the developing world, according to a report presented last week to the U.S. Department of Education. (Next City)