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<div>December 10, 2014 - In This Issue:</div>
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<tbody><tr><td style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;border-bottom:2px dotted #8c8d8d;border-color:#8c8d8d;padding:7px 0px 7px 0px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div><a style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;" shape="rect" href="https://mail.aol.com/38865-418/cs_com-6/en-us/Lite/MsgRead.aspx?folder=NewMail&uid=27722685&seq=4&searchIn=none&searchQuery=&start=0&sort=received&sortDir=descending#aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK17">The case, or not, for single-sex education</a></div>
</td></tr><tr><td style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;border-bottom:2px dotted #8c8d8d;border-color:#8c8d8d;padding:7px 0px 7px 0px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div><a style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;" shape="rect" href="https://mail.aol.com/38865-418/cs_com-6/en-us/Lite/MsgRead.aspx?folder=NewMail&uid=27722685&seq=4&searchIn=none&searchQuery=&start=0&sort=received&sortDir=descending#aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK45">Still want single-sex classes?</a></div>
</td></tr><tr><td style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;border-bottom:2px dotted #8c8d8d;border-color:#8c8d8d;padding:7px 0px 7px 0px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div><a style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;" shape="rect" href="https://mail.aol.com/38865-418/cs_com-6/en-us/Lite/MsgRead.aspx?folder=NewMail&uid=27722685&seq=4&searchIn=none&searchQuery=&start=0&sort=received&sortDir=descending#aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK44">The mighty impact of peer pressure</a></div>
</td></tr><tr><td style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;border-bottom:2px dotted #8c8d8d;border-color:#8c8d8d;padding:7px 0px 7px 0px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div><a style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;" shape="rect" href="https://mail.aol.com/38865-418/cs_com-6/en-us/Lite/MsgRead.aspx?folder=NewMail&uid=27722685&seq=4&searchIn=none&searchQuery=&start=0&sort=received&sortDir=descending#aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK43">What's at risk with high school MOOCs </a></div>
</td></tr><tr><td style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;border-bottom:2px dotted #8c8d8d;border-color:#8c8d8d;padding:7px 0px 7px 0px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div><a style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;" shape="rect" href="https://mail.aol.com/38865-418/cs_com-6/en-us/Lite/MsgRead.aspx?folder=NewMail&uid=27722685&seq=4&searchIn=none&searchQuery=&start=0&sort=received&sortDir=descending#aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK42">The vendor pushback revolution</a></div>
</td></tr><tr><td style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;border-bottom:2px dotted #8c8d8d;border-color:#8c8d8d;padding:7px 0px 7px 0px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div><a style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;" shape="rect" href="https://mail.aol.com/38865-418/cs_com-6/en-us/Lite/MsgRead.aspx?folder=NewMail&uid=27722685&seq=4&searchIn=none&searchQuery=&start=0&sort=received&sortDir=descending#aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK53">Where the money is</a></div>
</td></tr><tr><td style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;border-bottom:2px dotted #8c8d8d;border-color:#8c8d8d;padding:7px 0px 7px 0px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div><a style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;" shape="rect" href="https://mail.aol.com/38865-418/cs_com-6/en-us/Lite/MsgRead.aspx?folder=NewMail&uid=27722685&seq=4&searchIn=none&searchQuery=&start=0&sort=received&sortDir=descending#aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK54">Toward progressive Progressives</a></div>
</td></tr><tr><td style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;border-bottom:2px dotted #8c8d8d;border-color:#8c8d8d;padding:7px 0px 7px 0px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div><a style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;" shape="rect" href="https://mail.aol.com/38865-418/cs_com-6/en-us/Lite/MsgRead.aspx?folder=NewMail&uid=27722685&seq=4&searchIn=none&searchQuery=&start=0&sort=received&sortDir=descending#aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK46">BRIEFLY NOTED CALIFORNIA</a></div>
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<div><a style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;" shape="rect" href="https://mail.aol.com/38865-418/cs_com-6/en-us/Lite/MsgRead.aspx?folder=NewMail&uid=27722685&seq=4&searchIn=none&searchQuery=&start=0&sort=received&sortDir=descending#aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK56">BRIEFLY NOTED</a></div>
</td></tr><tr><td style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;border-bottom:2px dotted #8c8d8d;border-color:#8c8d8d;padding:7px 0px 7px 0px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div><a style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt;" shape="rect" href="https://mail.aol.com/38865-418/cs_com-6/en-us/Lite/MsgRead.aspx?folder=NewMail&uid=27722685&seq=4&searchIn=none&searchQuery=&start=0&sort=received&sortDir=descending#aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK19">GRANTS AND FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES</a></div>
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<a name="aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK17"></a><table style="display: table;" id="aolmail_content_LETTER.BLOCK17" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td style="color:#454545;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:10pt;padding:8px 25px 9px 25px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff6600;"><strong>The case, or not, for single-sex education</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">Single-sex education is
on the rise in public schools, as educators seek to improve academic
performance among poorer students, reports Motoko Rich for The New York
Times. The theory that girls learn differently from boys is held in low
regard by most social scientists; however, some districts have seen
improvement in low-income-student outcomes when trying the approach.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, 750 public schools around
the country have at least one single-sex class, and 850 schools are
entirely single-sex. Critics cite scant evidence of substantial
differences in brain development between boys and girls, and warn that
dividing children by gender reinforces entrenched stereotypes. Advocates
of single-sex classes cite the struggles of boys, who lag behind girls
in national tests of reading comprehension, and are more likely to face
disciplinary problems and drop out of school. Educators also argue that
girls underperform in science compared with boys, and benefit learning
with other girls. This year, the ACLU has filed complaints against four
Florida districts, accusing them of using "overly broad stereotypes" to
justify separating girls and boys into different classrooms. The ACLU
also filed a complaint in Austin, Texas against two new single-sex
middle schools, and has pending complaints in Idaho and Wisconsin.
Lawsuits in Louisiana and West Virginia have resulted in single-sex
classes reverting to coeducation. <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zez4cGrCcd39megCCSscs8qOXDMsGjqtDBhiW7l-mJjl6C8oFo_ng5m9CzXvvy1gEBlgLLWw2AAT6ZYmq7vgSh8_5KV8fkL2Eolg0t-1jmVqv6en2l7htj65sGQ47Xqt87DYpMev1uRhL7b1dnRg4ppoqvCUDULG8-JnOQX6ete-DXq4U9traGgAPndEdTrmsqR5GHMZ0rFU2JDQEp2Oc_bNDyyggSV1QyxWB_Zvx75WHQ-YF81-NiOaw==&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==" shape="rect">More</a></div>
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<a name="aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK45"></a><table id="aolmail_content_LETTER.BLOCK45" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td style="color:#454545;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:10pt;padding:8px 25px 9px 25px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff6600;"><strong>Still want single-sex classes?</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">Schools that would offer
single-sex classes in mixed-gender schools must make a clear case that
these will lead to increases in student achievement, must give parents a
chance to "opt-in" to the single-sex model, and must offer a co-ed
option on the same subject, according to guidance released by the U.S.
Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR), writes Alyson
Klein in Education Week. Schools must also steer clear of gender
stereotypes, and avoid considering gender when selecting faculty members
to lead these classes. Regular reviews must ensure compliance with
Title IX regulations, and schools must treat transgender students in a
manner consistent with their chosen gender identity. Importantly, the
guidance doesn't apply to public single-sex schools, which have separate
regulations. The guidance marks the first time that OCR has weighed in
on single-sex schooling since 2006, and perhaps addresses concerns
raised by the American Civil Liberties Union, which is questioning
single-sex classes in Alabama, Maine, Mississippi, Virginia, and West
Virginia. Much advocacy, but little evidence, supports the claim that an
all-boys or all-girls class boosts performance more than a comparable
mixed class; some studies suggest keeping boys and girls segregated can
lead to other behavior issues. <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezCcssiHwU0ao1zVUe4nN-YxLdVDZW76j_CYhOgeoUngsGq3bL5cym6Riiq2Lj-I2vP0YXlw5wYdP8WVcMgFMeQp4qkVdqT4IB7UIuBn6yfXlfOCofj2kfkAgRqTKP6oDM4Ml9Rs6gRHhkLVU7te00ECjnIgfIGug3y29htxV9XlBP9m7OnTESwbu0BHkv96-KbuHPnVu7oT0=&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==" shape="rect">More</a></div>
</td></tr></tbody></table><a name="aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK44"></a><table id="aolmail_content_LETTER.BLOCK44" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td style="color:#454545;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:10pt;padding:8px 25px 9px 25px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff6600;"><strong>The mighty impact of peer pressure</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">Depending on context,
the rate at which students sign up for SAT prep can dramatically differ,
according to a new National Bureau of Economic Research working paper,
reports Max Nisen for The Atlantic. Researchers offered free access to
an online SAT prep course (normal cost: $200) to juniors at large,
predominantly low-income, low-performing Los Angeles high schools. In
non-honors classes when sign-ups were made public, participation dropped
by 11 percent. The publicity had no effect on students in honors
classes. To net out the possibility that honors and non-honors students
might have different characteristics or priorities, researchers limited
part of the study to students who take only some honors classes so that
researchers would encounter them in non-honors classes as well. In this
case, students presented with the choice to sign up in the honors class
were 25 percent more likely to do so if the decision was public those in
a non-honors class were 25 percent less likely. The data suggest social
pressure is dramatically different depending on type of class, and that
pupils' decisions to enroll are contingent on the kind of class they
are in at the time of offer. <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zez4MX4Yh86YZnZnjk_sXITw3QM67gRGMRwFVQ4Qcc9zwABnYwnhoHAuy2gOo4eOw5H-g2LXi0SGJTf6GETzTjLheHnS4shavhWRhYdTqp5o5Kg1gVNPBCIb0pPbe5ObZzek7RXZevygT37YP840GyRFE7wz_tas8AXUSnUnUdXTFvkfg9HGrZqAUmB8cWomho9JewZxVYQTHI5B2j4yaHBxA==&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==">More</a></div>
</td></tr></tbody></table><a name="aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK43"></a><table id="aolmail_content_LETTER.BLOCK43" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td style="color:#454545;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:10pt;padding:8px 25px 9px 25px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff6600;"><strong>What's at risk with high school MOOCs</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">Massive open online
courses (MOOCs) have made their way into high schools, and loopholes in
federal privacy laws allow a flood of personal data about students to
flow to private companies, reports Caitlin Emma for Politico.com. The
slew of free, open-access online courses have been presented to students
as a way to supplement Advanced Placement coursework or earn a
certificate of completion for college-level classes. When students
participate, they unwittingly transmit a torrent of data about their
academic strengths and weaknesses, learning styles, and thought
processes. They may also hand over birth dates, addresses, even drivers
license information. Their IP addresses, attendance, and participation
in public forums are all logged by providers of the courses. With little
federal guidance, key decisions on how to handle student data --
including how widely to share them and whether to mine them for
commercial gain -- are left up to the company hosting the MOOC or its
business partners. Student data are less protected by federal law since a
2012 update by the Education Department that allows even greater
disclosure of students' personal identifying information. Congress is
divided on how to tackle privacy laws. Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and
Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) proposed a bill in July that would prohibit the use
of personally identifiable information to target advertising to
students.</div>
<span><br>
<a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezrBdud48xgo9LE6cLHYfsmdcgE1a2u0hC9R46jkPFjg9TFY9xYYbahgbHP2sRN9dzrgiHm8ftcplFAIcuFJ306t3ajzcaaspJw6uqa5VFDdjW7wqsvKhpNXQDLkZBaTRB8CW7cPt_v4HqJOXYaPMdpX2op90qumzr3aZCW0ic3TqrNukN7A35NrwUrxZ_BbM2v2tqrxSZWRo=&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==">Read more:</a></span></td></tr></tbody></table><a name="aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK42"></a><table style="display: table;" id="aolmail_content_LETTER.BLOCK42" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td style="color:#454545;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:10pt;padding:8px 25px 9px 25px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff6600;"><strong>The vendor pushback revolution</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">A handful of large
districts are aggressively pushing big publishers and other providers of
digital content to overhaul delivery of instructional materials, a
move that could upend long-established purchasing patterns and help
educators more easily access materials from multiple vendors, reports
Benjamin Herold for Education Week. The movement is led by the
215,000-student Houston district and the 187,000-student Orange County,
Florida schools, which have declared they will no longer do business
with vendors that do not adopt "interoperability standards" put forth by
the IMS Global Learning Consortium. Shared interoperability standards
would free districts from being locked into the product ecosystem of an
individual vendor or left to navigate a thicket of proprietary
content-delivery systems that don't mesh with one another. This could
also transform how schools purchase and consume digital content: The
standards could allow districts to procure small "chunks" (individual
chapters, lessons, or videos) from multiple vendors, perhaps through
licensing agreements, rather than rely on big buys of yearlong or
grade-span textbook series from a single publisher. The goal is easier
choice and access for teachers to an array of materials, saving time and
helping personalize instruction. Other prominent districts -- including
Denver; Gwinnett County, Georgia; and Nashville, Tennessee -- may
follow suit. Already, Discovery Education, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt,
and Pearson have begun to meet the districts' terms. <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezmCXqbLoxF3uonC2-ms2eJ6ZYfYRsGIfKSjvkNg1q-Eh_ZAlrKOp7tsA-gcbFLmz_Xwz--9nqH6ONIfYeccw6I6D7mbFqgbebn5lwx9CyAMCdaPVLWEI0mHqHGZNLRKA5GDGctGwd1BePp-ltNIDudz3woLsOzkL9UNMgzjca21lBVNALCTKk6g==&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==">More</a></div>
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<a name="aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK53"></a><table class="aolmail_" id="aolmail_content_LETTER.BLOCK53" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td style="color:#454545;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:10pt;padding:8px 25px 9px 25px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff6600;"><span><strong>Where the (teaching) money is</strong></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">A new report from the
National Council on Teacher Quality examines salaries of teachers in 113
districts employing 20 percent of the nation's public school teachers,
finding that teachers' lifetime earnings vary greatly from district to
district, due largely to the time it takes to climb the salary ladder.
It takes an average of 24 years for teachers to reach a common salary of
$75,000, but in some districts, like Boston, it takes only seven, while
in other districts, like Wichita, it takes 30. The disparities remain
even after adjusting for cost of living. Teachers in Albuquerque work
over 30 years to reach the same adjusted salary that teachers in Shelby
County in Tennessee make in 10 years. The report ranks districts by
available lifetime earnings adjusted by cost of living, and accommodates
performance-pay districts by three rankings based on likely lifetime
earnings of a teacher with average, above-average, and exemplary
ratings. The top districts are Pittsburgh and the District of Columbia
for highly effective teachers, and Columbus, Ohio; Atlanta; and Shelby
County, Tennessee for all teachers. Districts with the lowest adjusted
earnings all have uncommonly high costs of living, depressing what
initially appear to be relatively generous salaries: Newark, Hawaii, San
Francisco, and Orleans and Jefferson parishes in Louisiana. <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezNQ6vLCZJN6aNfKwMcVzuPRClQtr1-c07rmpraMFiSw8t5Oom0wjAlMDITOmBnvPxrDyoTINZultc_7CmnrOqgBFgBAqRwk1laa7W7f8Ck099kFpZZuRkB8GRKjoeIrU7&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==" shape="rect">More</a></div>
</td></tr></tbody></table><a name="aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK54"></a><table id="aolmail_content_LETTER.BLOCK54" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td style="color:#454545;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:10pt;padding:8px 25px 9px 25px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff6600;"><strong>Toward progressive Progressives</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">At its core, to be
"progressive" is to fight for the little guy against powerful forces of
self-interest, writes Peter Cunningham in The Hechinger Report.
Historically, the teacher has been the "little guy," and many reforms
have protected him: higher pay, health care and retirement benefits,
tenure, and seniority. Yet it is also apparent that an even littler guy
needs protection: the student. Some say recent reforms are at odds with
the progressive traditions of the Democratic Party, and that charter
schools, accountability, and competitive grant programs are essentially
Republican. They feel these put the Democratic Party at war with its
base -- specifically, teacher unions. Yet Cunningham points to the
pro-reform Obama administration providing $60 billion to save 400,000
teacher jobs during the recession, money with no strings attached that
dwarfed the administration's other education initiatives. Both national
unions support higher academic standards, and both unions and some state
and local affiliates at first embraced the competitive grants they now
oppose. Some unions have piloted programs that factor performance into
compensation. Most reformers, including those behind lawsuits in
California and New York, want to raise the bar on tenure, not eliminate
it. The littlest guys of all, students, are most at risk from low
standards, weak accountability, and lack of educational options.
Therefore, knee-jerk opposition to reform is not progressive, Cunningham
says. <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezOqmvQkGOQzao_bNMFMq5hylAGQwC26_JphC-myxmuiwOZilBGzrnxnmapeW9I9GexykoXrcgNpehIhFufFsZEWZYmlEhFkfPQnQWSalBv3oSqpyvmuF1RUgUd3UF6hU-b_ZIkx1TSWtnQhsz6Y1p9iwh_Y-JGxAhco-mmudGgqw=&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==" shape="rect">More</a></div>
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</tbody></table><a name="aolmail_LETTER.BLOCK46"></a><table style="background-color:#ebf5f6;display: table;" id="aolmail_content_LETTER.BLOCK46" bgcolor="#ebf5f6" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td style="padding:25px 25px 0px 25px;font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(255, 102, 0);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div><b>BRIEFLY NOTED CALIFORNIA</b></div>
</td></tr><tr><td style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:10pt;padding:8px 25px 18px 25px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ee5624;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ee5624;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>The next change on the horizon</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">California policymakers
intend to create a different system for reporting results of upcoming
tests aligning with the Common Core Standards than were used in the era
of NCLB. <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zez1LfR02bWYH8EqVD4rnrxkEXFjTjXQigyS3-tjmUAOed3RASGV0797bauWzNWBP_OIf7mY6o_VaoGv5NlIE9nbXYvsy7MoXHd5SSjei6nlaF_4il9EogLacnbiwMgyd3vhNbSDy1iYQmn6FkCQtGkjU7GPjYkmd3fOr08FFp70cYe-vgGApBzPbPEzZ4xMupxPPmLfSoDLpk=&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==" shape="rect">More</a></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>Give them the hook</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">California's statewide
charter school association is calling on authorizers to not renew
charter contracts of five of the state's lowest-performing schools,
which are located in Los Angeles, San Diego, Sutter, Contra Costa, and
Monterey counties.<span> <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezBmrZTMoqDf5f_QK5r1Ob_ZZo-Pbzd7BtcJJYumbVNkUplorWf0IKToiHMHQnjM3iHtAcj4TL71ZAggOmWhCCcfEUopFlVkAXxNTAQ5HlTIIRJiXWGf4oU3M6NxLtzlCgAlY3Otz8CMPAofZZgEk6eDBuCejr8uim6aLbMxh5EUsJUn8dW5xvbT3NqjArMV_0vEXLy83ZoqXuLKwsYxn0kHvLPhMW3UkvV69kEeCW_Uc=&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==" shape="rect">More</a></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>Teamwork</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">Stanford University is
joining with the state's largest teachers union to prepare schools for
new learning goals that will change the way California students are
taught and tested.<span> <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezus133DCFuvhbbAeHjsExxoKn9_Z-Od-r83Lvg4YIkGojJ2aQNWqz4zaFQcR_E3lQ09zQsFZzIG9q-xGmbt959P_hMb1Gr04CGF4HdD-Y783APSkOeQV7gfmfNzqoazdYpwBx0vIIAz0bchA8F4AQuYfw0hsTER3Z6TgIyd7V5CJEFYxLP8wR5w==&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==" shape="rect">More</a></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>Windfall</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">California organizations
and individuals landed more than $4 million in funding from the
National Endowment for the Arts in the latest round of grant awards.<span> <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezxnwnQbwC54AeyMHGnX-KnA8ucssBLYvwRkJSEWyKrkV4KTlT0BSHzLGtxmhxfaZI7jYXeyizHPqqDSmgpuo9vr8tKQkCL-pW1a3jOcN7haGO6t_Uw60RsRRW14-rHKKPa8Ci-OT21ETAbv0Eiyvjc61EDIxMq7NCRMPHOL8IBC8h101ppWeUt1dqBMXBO2l3UcGqe8NJPpKIt5LUn1KsG3Fg1Arjr_7ivkYnstV2AKc=&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==" shape="rect">More</a></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>Alternatives</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">Under a new plan, 27 Los
Angeles schools originally set to receive iPads now will have the
choice of less-expensive Chromebooks, which use a Google operating
system.<span> <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zeztqS8EYvupdMjuq-bXpJNr32h8mVav7t_4dfZ8sdegHvw5H4wa85DQ1F7vxMInfGVKhQLjsMlgey6AeR_oY2ClyH2HV9rw4FGx99ipe89pSuxp48qEiO9f52Hg5YhnCKaAaTPMi9AaApwxppR4Y2606UqOKaDdtc5rnoogsKFC6FMdPCjo9GYww==&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==" shape="rect">More</a></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>The plot thickens</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">FBI agents paid a
surprise visit to the Los Angeles Unified School District, taking away
20 boxes of documents related to the district's troubled iPad project.<span> <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezZ48B1Dfutdat_9LzoaTzQkgsMp-BrAvGPPcI6EODHolqu_iQk5j_FKMvbiNByLfe-Xbgy-ZMNs47nZHddkN4dhqG-YIJasae33lJV9f9TgUEmwoItvCjkKieNsRaPdGNJ3OGN73YXYm3a0iYnRvFQ90T3HzelTPsUn1E_nriZf6epoUpn4PpjsFH4tPqjh9EaVl_cyN3HeooHfDxlfa_sx5fJaefImR45yYlbjN6z3qxU28TUSggxw==&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==" shape="rect">More</a></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>A jumping-off point for district transformation</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">Education Resource
Strategies has introduced a California-oriented version of their School
Budget Hold 'Em, a self-assessment tool for districts that allows
administrators to gauge whether their people, time, and money are
serving student needs, and what other strategic options are available;
this version incorporates California's priorities for the Local Control
Accountability Plan (LCAP).<span> <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezZAHQcrrHb-4MWLvwNHW_4rF-93uWatpKflya8p0y1nMx528aeyl03oWCMslKOzkncskAeHjasrpK_TDAFjAwanPWw3eJ03y5wL6JOU-2ZlKuWijW_bFeTWQ0FMyUgWgdQlbxwQfKLsMM_EF-7Wk0nAstXAa6dJOZPXQ4XDJuklPew9z5vrcEKGtDmurhfpagY-HOX3DcYAy6ACgSxauQlin7DuEfs0R8u9npM3AGoHAbDrzA_ntxhy8J_qkTBV6FM5eHh-icTS7kbPwP-2NjIp8VYR5uBNK9gxqPHF3Mvd-Z2oB-jf4NEalpTCoik6CV0a6rErcGkKNKpRt23ucmJg==&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==" shape="rect">More</a></span></div>
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<div><b>BRIEFLY NOTED </b></div>
</td></tr><tr><td style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:10pt;padding:8px 25px 18px 25px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="left" valign="top">
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<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ee5624;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>The fun begins</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">The rollout of tests
aligned with the Common Core Standards developed by the Partnership for
Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers begins this month for
students in Arkansas, Illinois, Maryland, Mississippi, Ohio, and Rhode
Island. <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezaVX88rdtaQR6TJULFC4QIR3HNi7ZVNdSZrRvqeS12Sapzmiw0hq6Em6ndrjUWShVHXN0w9EOARcB3-sIW2WaD_pLPNE9BQtnnAtJAixjpQd9pg6vkxs1awj529o8eHUAeV9srtJECWXBsdtEDdACVlu1jq9WQ7cm11MPrFyKjOdmH3LiOytO-Cw__e3X90sucHlbHre_p9g=&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==">More</a></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>They want results</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">A policy adopted by the
Tennessee State Board of Education in October will make programs that
develop and train teachers in Tennessee the subject of annual reports
that measure the outcomes of graduates; those failing to produce
teachers who are meeting performance expectations could eventually lose
accreditation.<span> <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezH1tt7lXZZp1auQgmtnHYZpBNpbOhuCYaLD2q1Rk8240wcUzx28ZUJWUieGdZs-p8nnDVWvMcZeOyiKFxtZiBGXE-L_QywQ0POPRvygr324voXkxp4hMTb5xnAdbjnuWlm59jnO4LS6ytHR8JO2NQJxpzNzSaRS3nfHfq-E6ASbYJaSmVhFQ_gxBYtngY9kDZa-kA31sxCPUFgIOatoRLwyVlWgX_jPUq0AJ3-OKBo3TY_p-fPeck9zSDVQczV0Uo&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==">More</a></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>A critical measure</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">The D.C. Council
approved $80 million to serve the needs of 36,000 students who are in
foster care or are homeless, who are receiving welfare benefits or food
stamps, or who are performing at least a year behind in high school,
about 40 percent of all of the city's public school students.<span> <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezMgrG_W_SB7_F8uaJjLXw6r9hall6A3D2MiyxArseKGZQK98gjGiZXH0fTgtokxqS0qO8pz8toyyWAYnftXjpicO0hYKkvzppTAoaIVIKM1-d8t730wBM7rvP7lQc702TGHbD77kEf6gWfizEk-Uzc1WZ7-HZwirP7dczqguOFlYJEKHqyQqhJ4bKZH1HxD6QrCJDz3ebPoUkP4eWaRlCZHBZpzg6LJO7NuLYZuMvmRVKYZng541vqxu5a16rdGNxnZC3jJJIRfJz8wbJmcYkDF5fF1GxcnLThPTvM9HIywJDRhkdfUnR_irdnZlxh33H&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==">More</a></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>The long reach of the Kochs</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">North Carolina high
school Social Studies teachers would be encouraged to use curriculum
materials prepared by an institute funded by the Koch family under a
proposal presented by the state Department of Public Instruction.<span> <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezSiq7S8AILpCNMKN_NH3SU1tXl_eutDgFT80JgCRWpn7krPzJSeTTW33HQjZqlJKHc9P9ps6xqVd_k_YVPwipbww0_zfyzZ4ojzAgxOMjmkmxlHAJ6x-zjNaMGTE2CROUWKCRLt_-jvUAni26dPrzOJQvaHuetlZJymVo1NiU-_HtJ0_Vuuzep3K1qfJEeDc7KhhYmC3YnQLQLWmI7aQlOLyAfka_dW-MC9acpHQyo60LvNGCh9hfyIeQv9YQjeECiNH98RWfzbM=&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==">More</a></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"><span><br>
</span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>Not kosher</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">Delaware's charter
policies contribute to racial segregation and violate federal law,
according to a complaint that has been filed with the U.S. Department of
Education by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Community Legal
Aid Society.<span> <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezxGptlg-j1kHV2_QifITHZQYi7BwljLeTQ8UdL91gHeaMtpLxNI5yHcM5hpxUPUHF7k1zPv_YjZbWWXrVdWzgfI-TZ8VbyP_spxTWz6D4mk-HXYk3M-RFq7CqK0DBTzI_VBzPDf5Wq21q8hvKPWopT2LpjGKG__wZ&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==">More</a></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>They're welcome</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">The Minnesota State High
School League has voted to approve a policy regarding transgender
student athletes on high school sports teams, which will take effect for
2015-2016 and allow transgender students to participate in activities
in line with their gender identity after turning in a confidential
written request to their school.<span> <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezQQfRWbDsz1V71ppVA7fPPRb1z1GZnOJUTSlu3QXsY2-bU7Vwo0SxT2XsxvJdaPyL3GTt2H31sEmnrd2TvoDd-7CP7INM9WX-_eNskRlYU28brPaGsnpFLdI-lEmD0dcrEyfr1tZ6Ld2u4uMUwwFf3CI-ZhM7Un_zwOzotUsd6Yh1IQK6ksBZK4-Hi7yQSMKoxF8aPjM7ymLQYOJ42A2J_Kw89BX8Q47K&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==">More</a></span></div>
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<div><br>
<div style="color:#ee5624;font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:14pt;"><span style="color: #ff6600;"><b>GRANTS AND FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES</b></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>Dupont: The DuPont Challenge Science Essay Competiton</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">The DuPont Challenge
encourages students to delve deep into their interests in science,
technology, engineering, and math and express themselves with creativity
and purpose. Ours is a growing world that faces new challenges each
day, and DuPont wants students to share their ideas for how science can
help keep our global population supplied with food, safety, and clean
energy. Essays must be between 700 to 1,000 words in length, include a
list of research sources, and fall under one of four categories:
Together, we can feed the world; together, we can build a secure energy
future; together, we can protect people and the environment; or
together, we can be innovative anywhere. Maximum award: U.S. Savings
Bond of $5,000 at maturity; expenses-paid Orlando trip; Britannica
Digital Learning E-book collection, including Britannica Illustrated
Science Library (67 E-book volumes total); and Britannica's 5 iOS
science apps. Eligibility: students currently enrolled in grades 6
through 12 in public, private, or home schools in the United States,
Canada, or their territories. Deadline: January 31, 2015. <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezc4nbcX7Vlzvplhpi9gWdw7hZeYUKsBNyugnHKUeGfblY01HgboCBPnUnSY6gUqpklIQZrROgcw3e9ldGbPhHwfAk9gmb7NMznG_tuk67U6xRrrU3x_s-wQ24cTpdXqEkGuQb8qZKecjZXo6j98jme3qWHlhVf9XIPXx_LSphLT0=&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==">More</a></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600;"><strong>United States-Japan Foundation: Elgin Heinz Outstanding Teacher Award</strong></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">The United States-Japan
Foundation Elgin Heinz Outstanding Teacher Award recognizes exceptional
teachers who further mutual understanding between Americans and
Japanese. The award is presented annually to two pre-college teachers in
two categories, humanities and Japanese language. Maximum award: $7,500
($2,500 monetary award, $5,000 in project funds). Eligibility: current
full-time K-12 classroom teachers of any relevant subject in the United
States who have been teaching for at least five years. Deadline:
February 5, 2015. <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezVr9zpCKXWc8R5lUnslWFgbUo0VoIGxKIHN0uuZe44Gfeui09IvVl9SU7pUGUn_itxcUKyOIl6Bgn_-XVxmYBJbEk470G0oSg3cZUxWItutuEc3DWjEW6fNgCgl0mgwWD5Tq7UGz83kEmNjxxkTcPkve-sWlwDusWBbKWe6JmVM_R4f3wZPAc6QxqAoI7_xAPmJ-jD5YOwq8y9JKu7ldGTIS5DFhgiAuF&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==">More</a></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #ff6600; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Quote of the Week:</strong></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">"On the surface, the
tragic events in Ferguson concerned the police and the local community.
But ultimately, this is a case about how America's institutions,
including our schools, respect the rights, well-being and futures of all
our young people. This broader reading of Ferguson extends to how our
schools define and mete out justice and ensure that all students have
access to the highest standards and opportunities." <span style="color: #ff6600;"><strong>-- Michael Casserly, executive director of the Council of the Great City Schools.</strong></span> <a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); text-decoration: underline;" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xiceuoJ5so1w85Nqr3F8T3LPkx1lSId9KOLc8kpWTlnGyJkVeCk3-V4jasUW_zezUeu3ONPXEU4MVfA9orpD_AibCUP3B0k6TVHpCyXS6uC8wEY-7x4mf8XNb_TUCVZs3sNXGLGOvTCMmKJ13eNOVGJGdOqlvw0S5Hoac5Au_zCuKazp3-1JNvHZlEBEAoVZqS1OUdepLbIm1hNgY2rQ29xd79FgjvdeOBaPPp95Se_6dZ3Bhow0hB9QIzUP7kydYzgkMmigqKQwKN6hth4IUA==&c=dbwMwG7sy9oZATTODxSGb-Ya4uHAbF9EaqGkHls_cwgGW6__4cEc7g==&ch=C4_KHIk9wj_tk-0sMLe3Y_ffniWXf9IQSuot8zcpnHgkx-zXOrLZ6w==">More</a></div>
</div>
</div>
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