Student Data in State Systems At Risk, Study Says (school law blog)

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/school_law/2009/10/student_data_in_state_systems.html

A review of how states gather and manage databases containing individualized student information shows that many do so in ways that threaten the privacy of students, including using procedures that violate federal mandates on storing data about mental health, pregnancies, and juvenile crime. The 87-page study by the Center on Law and Information Privacy at Fordham University Law School found that about one-third of states warehouse children’s Social Security numbers, and nearly half track the mental health and jail sentences of students in their databases. The center examined states’ practices in light of greater data-collection requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind Act. But many states go beyond what the NCLB law requires, the report says, and some practices violate the Federal Educational Rights and Privacy Act, it adds. The report, “Children’s Educational Rights and Privacy: A Study of Elementary and Secondary School State Reporting Systems,” recommends that student data maintained at the state level be made anonymous through the use of “dual-database architecture.” Third-party data processors, such as private firms, should be made to sign agreements that address privacy obligations, the report says. And state education departments should each have a chief privacy officer to protect data, the report says. The full report is linked above, and a press release is here, and a Washington Post story about the report is here.

 

A moment to refresh our perspective…

 

Investing in community colleges

President Obama today proposed a $12 billion investment in the nation’s community colleges today, dubbing it the American Graduation Initiative. The President argued that the money will drive expansions and reforms in the system that are needed to help people get educated in the struggling economy. During a speech in Michigan today, the President promised his proposal would “reform” practices at community colleges around the nation while increasing the number of community college graduates by 5 million over the next 12 years. This new American Graduation Initiative includes $2.5 billion for construction and renovation at the nation’s community colleges, $500 million to develop new online courses and $9 billion for “challenge grants” aimed at spurring innovation at the colleges. The grants will require colleges to compete by designing innovative new programs or revamping their existing curriculum. The grants are similar to the “Race to the Top” funding that Education Secretary Arne Duncan has proposed for the K-12 school systems.

Resource:
Michael D. Shear, “Obama Plans Cash Infusion for Community Colleges,” Washington Post, July 14, 2009.

 

Schools Kill Creativity?

 

OMB guidance and webinars (ARRA)

OMB has released information on their webinar series regarding ARRA Reporting Requirements. They will take place July 20-23. Follow the link for details.

http://www.recovery.gov/?q=node/658

 

ARRA governor’s application

This week the USED published the draft version of the ARRA application. It’s critical to look at the required assurances because they give us a very clear glimpse into the way Congress is thinking about the reauthorization. If you get a chance, scope out the documents and pay particular attention to the teacher quality issues.

 

China Worried About U.S. Debt

This has been coming for a long time, now its worth tracking houw our national economic health impacts our economic attractiveness.

“We have lent a huge amount of money to the U.S. Of course we are concerned about the safety of our assets,” Wen said. “To be honest, I am definitely a little worried.”China surpassed Japan last year as the largest foreign holder of Treasury bonds. Any indication that it intends to cease those purchases — or, worse, stage a sell-off — could drive up the cost of borrowing for the U.S. government, as well as send mortgage rates higher for millions of Americans.That reality, experts say, has given China more leverage in its dealings with Washington, with some seeing Wen’s comments yesterday as amounting to economic saber-rattling. The words came only days after a confrontation in international waters between a U.S. military ship and five Chinese vessels that sparked recriminations on both sides of the Pacific. Chinese officials have also signaled alarm over a growing “protectionist” sentiment in the U.S. Congress that could further endanger its exports, now in sharp decline as world demand spirals during the global economic crisis.

China Worried About U.S. Debt – washingtonpost.com

 

Stimulus Breakneck

President Obama’s hope for a quick stimulus bill faces a grim reality: politics is still king in Washington. The President proposed a self-imposed deadline of mid February for Congress to send a finished bill to his desk. Unfortunately, political obstacles in the Senate are threatening the majority’s ability to deliver on that deadline. Senators are working furiously to reach a compromise that can win enough support to pass the Senate. It seems that the Senate is close to announcing a tentative deal, and we are awaiting further details.
The Senate began working on the bill on Monday, adopting a number of amendments that add additional tax breaks and funding for specific housing programs. Current reports have the amended Senate bill totaling more than $940 billion. As the overall price of the bill goes up, the likelihood of securing Republican support goes down. In an attempt to cut spending, Senators Ben Nelson (D-NE) and Susan Collins (R-ME) brought together a group of 15-20 Senators from both parties to work on a compromise.

The most recent deal includes cutting a significant portion of the Senate’s education funding, in an attempt to bring the total bill down to around $780 billion. The targeted funding for Title I of the ESEA, IDEA Parts B and C, and Head Start could be cut in half. It would eliminate the $15 billion for State incentive grants, under the State fiscal stabilization portion of the bill. The biggest cut would a $25 billion reduction of the State stabilization title. These are the most recent discussions, but not the most dramatic. There are discussions of proposals that would cut all education funds, including the $79 billion for State fiscal stabilization, except for the $13.5 billion increase for IDEA.

As the Senate considers these measures, the members continue to debate the hundreds of amendments that have been offered. Many of those amendments deal with issues that are critical to the distribution of the education funds, regardless of their funding level. None of the education-related amendments, however, have yet made their way to a vote on the Senate floor.
President Obama increased his own rhetoric in response to the Senate’s troubles. While encouraging members of Congress to reach a consensus, President Obama warned against any drastic cuts to the bill – exactly the kind of cuts now under consideration. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is promising to keep working through the weekend until a package is approved. Things will move quickly. Stay tuned.

Tip of the hat to Steve Spillan

 

Thomas Friedman’s half baked idea

Kevin Carey writes: In the course of composing what sounds like the winning entry in a Thomas Friedman column parody contest, Thomas Friedman wrote the following in his new column:”One of the smartest stimulus moves we could make would be to eliminate federal income taxes on all public schoolteachers so more talented people would choose these careers.

The Quick and the Ed

Is Thomas Friedman’s idea as bad as Kevin Carey makes it out to be?  That the program’s price tag should require a more thoughtful approach to the matter of teacher recruitment? That such a poorly developed idea should not occupy the NYTimes?  Maybe. I get the argument that $20 billion could be better spent, but I also think that the it may not be fair to think of this as a zero sum game.  Why not provide a tax incentive in addition to creating regional teacher/leader/  education ideas incubator or something of the sort.  I find it hard to believe that the lost tax revenue could not be offset though other tax increases (soda tax – or any product loaded in corn syrup tax, perhaps). If that can be done then the opportunity costs is no longer an obstacle and we do not have to shoot down the mediocre ideas in favor of the perfect.  Let’s get multiple ideas running at the same time and as long as education is getting national attention and we are making progress then all ideas are fine with me.

 

New Title I regulations

This is a big week for the education policy community, and practitioners – although practitioners will not have to deal with this until next year. The US Department of Education released long awaited Title I regulations, first issued as proposed regulations in April of this year. The regulations make significant changes to 14 sections of No Child Left Behind and there are two critical changes that will affect high schools and districts. Critically, the regulations create a uniform definition of graduation rate for high schools. According to ED, an accurate method of calculating graduation rates that is uniform across states is necessary to improve high school accountability.

The final regulations define the “four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate” as the number of students who graduate in four years with a regular high school diploma divided by the number of students who entered high school four years earlier.

• Students who graduate in four years include students who earn a regular high school diploma at the end of their fourth year; before the end of their fourth year; and, if a state chooses, during a summer session immediately following their fourth year.
• To remove a student from a cohort, a school or district must confirm in writing that the student has transferred out, emigrated to another country, or is deceased.
• For students who transfer out of a school, the written confirmation must be official and document that the student has enrolled in another school or in an educational program that culminates in a regular high school diploma.

The four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate must be reported at the high school, district, and state levels in the aggregate, as well as disaggregated by subgroups, beginning with report cards providing results of assessments administered in the 2010-11 school year. For AYP decisions, states must use the four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate at the state, district, and school levels, including disaggregated graduation rates for all required subgroups, based on assessments administered in the 2011-12 school year.

These changes are, as you can imagine, very significant. I’ll provide more coverage in the coming days. To learn more about them see: http://www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/reg/title1/index.html