Education
Book about Center School District chronicles academic transformation
In 2006, Center School District was a struggling urban school district. The district was provisionally accredited and met only six of Missouri’s 14 education standards. Eight years later Center School District has earned state accreditation with distinction and is meeting all 14 education standards on its annual performance review. “Parents and Schools Together” chronicles Center…
Kansas training educators to protect student privacy
A Kansas program that trains educators how to safeguard students’ digital records received national recognition last week during U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan’s remarks at the Common Sense Media Privacy Zone Conference. “As you know, though, many of our school systems have work to do to bring (privacy) policy into line with fast-changing technologies….
Kansas City Public Schools work to involve community in middle school project
As the Kansas City school district prepares to reopen two middle schools next fall, Lead Middle School Principal and Project Leader Dr. Cynthia Johnson is seeking community input on everything from uniform colors to school boundaries to supportive services, like social workers, for students. One way Johnson is reaching out is through a series of…
Kansas Legislature considering charter school bill
A bill before the Kansas Legislature would encourage the growth of charter schools in the state by expanding the types of public entities that oversee charter schools. Currently, Kansas has 11 charter schools across the state all of which are authorized by school districts. “While the Kansas State Board of Education is the final authorizer…
Profile: Mike English, executive director of Turn the Page KC
It’s been nearly two years since Kansas City, Mo., Mayor Sly James launched Turn the Page KC, a community initiative to get students reading on grade level by third grade. Today the initiative announced its first dedicated staff member, Mike English. English accepted the position as the initiative’s first executive director this month. “Between (The…
Missouri Department of Education recommends a tiered approach to district intervention
The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education released the first draft of a state plan to address unaccredited districts in the state and implement supports to prevent the loss of accreditation on Tuesday. The proposed plan moves away from a one-size-fits-all intervention model and prescribes five levels of state intervention, which depend on a…
KU offers reduced tuition for educators returning to school
Beginning this summer, teachers and administrators living in Kansas can continue their education for less. The School of Education at the University of Kansas announced this week that educators from public and private schools will be eligible for a “practicing educator rate” at both the Lawrence Campus and Edwards Campus in Overland Park, Kan. “There’s…
Union Station Massacre paper trail lives on at National Archives
As an archivist, Jake Ersland gets a firsthand look at many of the 70,000 cubic feet of federal records maintained by the National Archives at Kansas City. “I love that I work with original documents that capture history as it happened,” Ersland said. “When a person studies history in books, they are presented with an…
Education Q&A: Elyse Max, Adult Education Administrator
Elyse Max is the adult education enrollment manager at Kansas City Kansas Community College, where every year about 1,000 students are enrolled in college-preparation, English as a Second Language, Pre-GED and GED classes. Max says adult education involves working with students at all levels, from pre-literacy all the way to college preparation. Each year about 150…
Board hopes growing library of college courses will simplify student transfers
The Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education wants to make it easier for students to transfer between the state’s two-year and four-year colleges and universities. Last Thursday, the Board added 16 courses to a new statewide “transfer course library,” which guarantees equivalent credit at any of the state’s 26 public two- and four-year institutions. “There…