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Star Ledger--TCNJ receives $91K federal grant to train teachers
EWING -- The College of New Jersey has been awarded a $91,000 federal grant to provide environmental education training to local teachers.
The college was one of about 30 selected for the Environmental Protection Agency's grant nationwide.
Associate professor Lauren Madden says the project team is partnering with the college's Sustainability Institute to create a professional development program for 50 teachers in 10 elementary schools across central New Jersey.
Cristina Rojas| Updated on July 19, 2017 at 1:47 PM Posted on July 19, 2017 at 12:57 PM
The Record-- Editorial: No amount of lead is good
America’s worries about a tainted water supply first came to the forefront a couple of years ago in Flint, Michigan, but they have spread quickly, and now, they have spread to Bergen County.
Lead has been detected in more than half of the water fountains and sinks in 47 school districts tested in Bergen County, according to a report by Environment New Jersey, an advocacy group. As Staff Writer Scott Fallon reported, the majority of districts surveyed had at least one water fountain or sink where lead readings exceeded 15 parts per billion – the level set by the Environmental Protection Agency that requires districts to take action.
NorthJersey| Published 2:41 p.m. ET July 19, 2017 | Updated 4:08 p.m. ET July 19, 2017
The Atlantic--Will Churches Ever Be Allowed to Run Charter Schools?
Some legal scholars say Trinity Lutheran v. Comer could forge a path toward more charter schools overseen by religious groups.
The Reverend Michael Faulkner wanted to start a charter school through his church in Harlem. But there was a problem: New York law bars religious denominations from running charters, even if, as Faulkner promised, the school would teach a secular curriculum.
So Faulkner—a one-time NFL player who ran for Congress in 2010—and his church sued.
“The New York Charter Schools Act is nothing more than an attempt by the State to erect a barrier for those who express their religious beliefs from access to public resources that are generally available to all others,” read the 2007 complaint.
The suit was voluntarily dismissed in 2009, and Faulkner, now running for city comptroller, described it as “dormant.” But a recent Supreme Court decision might mean that suits like that one have a better chance of prevailing.
Trinity Lutheran Church v. Comer invalidated a Missouri rule banning a religious school from participating in a public program, and experts immediately noted it could be used to eliminate legal barriers to private-school voucher programs. The implications for charter schools drew less attention.
https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2017/07/churches-running-charter-schools/534090/
Matt Barnum| Jul 19, 2017
Education Week--Share of Girls Taking AP Computer Science Tests Grew in 2017
Girls' participation in AP Computer Science tests boomed last year—largely thanks to a brand-new, broader course offering with less of an emphasis on programming.
All in all, about 29,700 girls took either the AP Computer Science A test or a new exam that debuted this year, AP Computer Science Principles, according to the data released by Code.org, a nonprofit supporting computer science education. More than 111,000 students took the test in all, twice as many as the previous year.
That means girls have crossed a key milestone: they make up more than a quarter of the students who sat for one of the computer science tests in 2017, at 27 percent. That's up from just 18 percent a decade ago.
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2017/07/twice_as_many_girls_took_ap_computer_science.html
Stephen Sawchuk on July 19, 2017 4:12 PM
