Here's the second suggestion. It's a good idea for all of us.
Goodnight Computer
March 2009 By ZACH PATTON
How to save money by logging off.
Your computer has an off-button. But if you're like most people, you don't use it very often. Maybe you like to leave certain programs or files open so that you can easily pick up working where you last left off. Maybe your computer's start-up process is frustratingly slow. But leaving these devices on all the time is a problem. A typical desktop computer wastes almost half of the energy it draws, mostly in the form of heat. Turning a computer off when you're done for the day — and utilizing built-in "sleep" or "hibernate" modes — can reduce the amount of energy consumed by 60 percent. Still, many employees prefer to leave their computers on all night rather than logging off and shutting down.
More and more states are trying to change that. Faced with volatile energy prices and a growing budget crisis, governments are trying to increase efficiency wherever they can. That goal points quickly to all sorts of "green IT" policies, such as buying more energy-saving computers and servers and using that equipment more efficiently. The notion that these initiatives might be good for the environment seems secondary to most of the people pushing them. Rather, green IT is mostly about the bottom line. At a recent conference of the National Association of State CIOs (NASCIO), 68 percent of the technology officers in attendance said they were implementing green initiatives in order to reduce energy costs — not to combat climate change or reverse environmental damage.
The good news is that there's a lot of low-hanging fruit: Governments have lagged behind the private sector when it comes to technological efficiency. But what CIOs are finding is that there's only so much they can accomplish with leaner and better hardware. A lot of the green IT idea simply comes down to working with employees, changing old habits and, yes, getting people more acquainted with the off-button. "You can only do so much from a central perspective," says Kansas CIO Denise Moore. "But there's so much more you can accomplish when your employees have the mindset that their individual actions really are tied in to the state's overall energy use."
Green computing is not just about desktop hardware. One set of priorities centers around shrinking the total number of electronic devices that need to be working at any one time. Right now, according to NASCIO, more than 35 states are involved in or planning an effort to consolidate some aspect of their IT infrastructure. That can be as simple as eliminating excess machines. Michigan, for example, recently removed 8,000 unnecessary fax machines and printers from its system. Consolidation also can involve streamlining data centers, which are huge facilities that require massive amounts of energy to keep the equipment cool.
Another green IT strategy is called "virtualization." This means getting numerous applications, which might otherwise require their own server, to run on one machine. Virtualization, like data-center consolidation, can dramatically reduce the amount of power required to run IT systems. Moore says Kansas has cut the electricity consumption of its computing resources by over 70 percent through consolidation and virtualization of servers in the past few years.
But state CIOs also are focusing on energy consumption at a desktop-by-desktop level. In Minnesota, that's where technology directors started, with policies aimed at making each computer run more efficiently, says state CIO Gopal Khanna. "In our green IT efforts, Minnesota began with the desktop, realizing immediate savings through energy-efficient standards and through power-usage policies."
Initially, Minnesota's efforts centered around a new policy requiring all executive-branch employees to turn off their computers when they're done for the day. The state estimated it would save about $50 a year per computer. But those savings weren't guaranteed — they would materialize only if employees complied. Enforcement of the new policy was left to agency managers, some of whom took it more seriously than others. "It wasn't a campaign," says Cathy de Moll, a spokeswoman for the state's Office of Enterprise Technology. "It was just, -This is what's happening. This is what you're going to do.'"
The state of Michigan has gone through a similar experience. Two years ago, Governor Jennifer Granholm issued an executive order aimed at decreasing the state's energy consumption. Among other things, the order instructed state employees to power off their desktop computers when not in use. However, short of having someone walk around cubicles after hours, flipping the switch on all 55,000 of Michigan's desktop computers, it's been hard for the state to ensure consistency.
That's about to change. Michigan is implementing a new program that essentially removes the human factor. New technology, which the state hopes to have in place by the end of the year, will allow managers in the central Department of Information Technology to monitor usage of every computer in the state's network — and switch idle computers to sleep mode. This kind of technology is already popular with private-sector companies, but is relatively new in government. "Up until this point, it's been up to agency managers to make sure the policy is being implemented," says Judy Odett, the design and delivery director for the state's Office of Automation Services. "Now, we're taking it to the next step, actually leveraging technology to enforce it."
Environmental concerns may not top the list of reasons why states are pursuing green IT initiatives. But the same policies can play a part in reducing a government's carbon footprint — something that dozens of governors have pledged to do. With that goal in mind, several states have joined a private-sector effort called the Climate Savers Computing Initiative.
Started in 2007 by Google and Intel, Climate Savers is a group of corporations and organizations that is committed to reducing greenhouse-gas emissions through the technology they purchase or produce. Members commit to buy only power-saving computer products and to employ power-management strategies to use those devices more efficiently. The organization's ambitious goal is to reduce global CO2 emissions from computers by 54 million tons annually by 2010. It's quite an aggressive aim — 2010 is, after all, next year. But with 350 corporate affiliates already on board, the group has reason to be optimistic.
Although Climate Savers was conceived as a private-sector venture, Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota and Oregon have signed on, as well. So have a few localities, including Seattle and Riverside, California. Governments can play a crucial role in the effort, says Climate Savers executive director Pat Tiernan. "States can be — and need to be — a model. In terms of how they participate, they're not all that different from private-sector businesses. But because they have such a high profile and a more direct connection to their shareholders, states have more of an opportunity to heighten the awareness of how important a step this is."
Moore, the Kansas CIO, agrees. "It's always important for states to take a lead," she says. Joining Climate Savers was a way for her state to help solidify its commitment to green IT. "There's already an awareness that people have about energy issues. Especially as gas prices went up last year, people personally became more aware of it. We're under pressure to reduce our impact, and this is a big step in that direction."
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Alternate Solutions, Part I
Thanks to the emailer who sent in two suggestions on how to think outside of the box. Here's the first.
Take a look at this and maybe Morrisville can use it to fix our schools. "When an old bridge, road or any piece of infrastructure is so worn out that it must be replaced entirely, should it simply be shut down to make way for the construction crews? The response: Close the roads. Utah followed the advice, which accelerated the project dramatically. "We should be bolder about that sort of thing...The public understands it and they'll adjust."
Minneapolis Speedway
March 2009 By JOSH GOODMAN, GOVERNING.COM
A bridge collapsed. Minnesota’s DOT replaced it in just 13 months. Here’s how they did it.
John Chiglo is looking up from the banks of the Mississippi River at a huge ivory monolith. It's the new I-35W bridge, built on the site in Minneapolis where an old span collapsed suddenly on August 1, 2007, killing 13 people. The four giant support piers on each side of the river curve gently into the superstructure, giving the new bridge a slightly arced appearance when viewed from a distance. But up close, from where Chiglo stands, what's most striking is how polished a brand-new bridge looks, before the rust and grime of age settle in. "That's 50,000 yards of concrete," Chiglo says, sounding like a baseball fan rattling off the slugging percentage of his favorite player. "Seventeen million pounds of steel, 740 miles of post-tension steel strands."
Chiglo served as the Minnesota Department of Transportation's project manager for the I-35W bridge, also known as the St. Anthony Falls Bridge. He has good reason to be proud of it. The new span opened to traffic barely a year after the tragic collapse. Not only did MinnDOT beat an almost ludicrously ambitious deadline by three months, but it did so without any serious injuries to workers. The project came in respectably close to its budget — it went less than 2 percent over.
In the world of bridge construction, this story is a bit unusual. Bridge projects, like other big infrastructure endeavors, have a way of dragging out months or years behind schedule — and blasting through their budgets. It doesn't have to be that way. That's especially important to remember as the federal government hands some $36 billion over to states for road, bridge and transit projects in an effort to get the economy going again. MinnDOT's handling of the I-35W rebuilding demonstrates that states can spend lots of money, put people to work and make something with lasting value — and do those things both quickly and efficiently.
Getting the process right isn't easy, however. For bridge construction to work better, states have to manage delicate relationships with contractors and force different levels of government to work together more cooperatively. And, as the collapse of the old I-35W bridge made all too clear, construction is only half of the nation's infrastructure challenge. Maintenance and inspection of old bridges remains a huge problem in many states, even after the Minneapolis tragedy. The federal government lists 12 percent of all bridges in the United States as structurally deficient, and an additional 13 percent as functionally obsolete. So as states begin spending their stimulus money, they should not be thinking only about how to build bridges quickly and cheaply. They also should be strategizing about how to keep these assets in good condition for decades to come.
How was the new I-35W bridge built so quickly? The short answer is that the state of Minnesota didn't give the construction company in charge of the bridge, Flatiron Construction Corp., much of a choice.
Flatiron's base contract was for $234 million. In addition, the company was offered up to $27 million if it completed the project early — and faced financial penalties if it finished late. That was incentive enough for construction workers to adopt a 24-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week schedule. Says Chiglo: "We worked holidays, weekends, day, night, rain, snow, sleet, ice." Ultimately, Flatiron received a $25 million bonus.
But while Minnesota demanded precisely WHEN the bridge should be built, the state left to Flatiron the details of HOW the bridge should be built. That's not the way state-issued construction contracts typically work. The most common process is what's known in the construction world as "design-bid-build." State employees design what needs to be built, then they put it up for bid and the private sector builds it based on the state's specifications. Those specifications can be exceptionally prescriptive. Often, they don't just stipulate what needs to be built — they also order the contractor to build it using a specific process.
By contrast, the new I-35W span was erected through a method known as "design-build." Under this model, many of the details of a project are left to the contractors, which allows them to put their expertise to work. Design-build isn't universally embraced among DOTs; the results are only as good as the contractors selected. But the big advantage of design-build is that initial construction can begin before the final design decisions are made, often allowing projects to get started swiftly. That's exactly how it worked out in Minneapolis, where construction began, remarkably, just three months after the old bridge fell.
To be sure, some of that urgency came from the emergency nature of the collapse. Bureaucracies moved at record speed, and cooperated across every level of government. Federal permits that normally take months to obtain were ready in days. The City of Minneapolis rapidly gave approval to the design of the new bridge. "Nobody," says Bob French, Flatiron's chief operating officer, "wanted to be the individual or agency that stopped that bridge from getting built." The unusual amount of political momentum that emerged out of the crisis is a big reason why French thinks it would be difficult to replicate this success story elsewhere.
There's another reason, too. Ironically, the collapse itself made it easier to get the new bridgework done quickly. Under less tragic circumstances, one of the big challenges in replacing an old bridge with a new one is keeping the existing span operating while the work goes on. Transportation officials are loathe to shut down a critical artery before the new one is ready, for fear of tying traffic in knots. At the same time, however, the old bridge inevitably gets in the way, complicating the construction process. In Minneapolis, of course, the old bridge was gone.
Unusual as that situation was, it raises an interesting question: When an old bridge, road or any piece of infrastructure is so worn out that it must be replaced entirely, should it simply be shut down to make way for the construction crews? One person who believes that the answer is yes — at least in some cases — is Tom Warne, a former Utah transportation director who now works as a consultant. In the 1990s, when Utah was rebuilding I-15 in and around Salt Lake City, Warne polled drivers on what they would prefer: the acute, if temporary, disruption of widespread road closures, or keeping the roads open and under construction for a longer period of time. The response: Close the roads. Utah followed the advice, which accelerated the project dramatically. "We should be bolder about that sort of thing," Warne says. "The public understands it and they'll adjust."
While the Minneapolis bridge collapse shook up the DOT in Minnesota, the tragedy's impact on the rest of the country has been surprisingly muted. In the immediate aftermath of the collapse, state officials everywhere described the disaster as a wake-up call. Since then, many of them have hit the snooze button.
One year after the collapse, an Associated Press analysis looked at each state's 20 most heavily traveled structurally deficient bridges. Of the bridges analyzed, only one in 10 had been fixed up in the year after the collapse.
People in the industry don't dispute that less has happened since August 2007 than they would have liked. Part of the reason is that the scale of the problem is so enormous. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials estimates that $140 billion is needed to repair more than 150,000 bridges that are structurally deficient or functionally obsolete. That's only a fraction of the $2.2 trillion the American Society of Civil Engineers estimates for the nation's total infrastructure needs. With state revenue foundering and gas taxes in particular drying up, the past year and a half has proven to be a difficult time for states to make new investments.
But the problems run deeper than that. Glacial permitting processes mean that, for large projects, it can take a dozen years for a new bridge to become reality. The construction industry is deeply fragmented, with separate teams of suppliers, engineers and contractors needed just to build a bridge. "It would be a seismic event for the construction industry to change itself in one year," says Barry LePatner, a New York construction lawyer. "It remains a truly inefficient industry."
Nonetheless, there have been gradual signs of change. More and more states are following the Minneapolis model by making a contractor's payments contingent on getting the work done on time. Design-build was considered novel when Warne was using it in Utah a decade ago. Now, it's becoming more commonplace.
And, there's at least some reason to believe that the federal economic stimulus will continue these trends. "Shovel-ready" is the buzzword of the moment — the feds want to fund projects that can put people to work immediately. Since design-build can hasten the start date for projects, it may be the tool of choice for state DOTs in the months ahead.
If there's one state that isn't shy about trying new ideas, it's Missouri. A couple of years ago, Missouri proposed an experiment, known as the Safe and Sound bridge program. The intent was nothing less than to upend most of the basic tenets of bridge building and maintenance in the United States.
The state had 802 bridges, most of them small and in rural areas, which had fallen into poor condition. Normally, a state would bid out repair work on each bridge separately. Instead, Missouri offered them all up in one giant contract. Normally, the state would prescribe how each bridge would be brought into good condition. But Missouri wasn't telling the contractors whether they had to repair the existing bridges or replace them. And, normally, contractors are paid in full when bridgework happens. In Missouri's case, the contractors were to finance all the costs for the first five years. Payment to the team in charge of the bridges was to be contingent on the contractors' keeping them in good shape for an additional 25 years.
Although it was formulated before the I-35W bridge collapsed, Missouri's plan represents a logical extension of the ideas coming out of Minneapolis. You can tell that from its name: "design-build-finance-maintain." Many of the goals — giving contractors more flexibility, but paying them only for getting results — are the same.
That, says Don Hillis, director of System Management for the Missouri Department of Transportation, is a big reason for the state's optimism about the concept. The idea here is that handing hundreds of the bridges over to one team can reap economies of scale — especially when the contractors have free reign to design their own approach. Because of the maintenance component, the pressure is on the contractors to produce work that would stand the test of time. Plus, private funding is seen as a way to speed up work in spite of the limited public money available. The contract required that all 802 bridges be in good shape within five years.
As it turned out, the decision to use private-sector funds was the plan's Achilles' Heel. Missouri selected its team of contractors, but as the availability of credit tightened last fall, they were unable to obtain financing. The plan in its original form had to be scrapped and revised.
Missouri's new plan is still groundbreaking. This spring, it will hand out a single design-build contract for 554 of the original 802 bridges. Government-issued bonds will fund the project, and it won't have the 25-year maintenance component. Nonetheless, the experiment will test whether putting a single team in charge of hundreds of bridges can lead to more efficient construction."We still think it's a good concept," says Hillis. "When the private sector has the ability to muster funds at very good rates, I think it's something that could happen again."
Not everyone is so sure that Missouri has discovered the formula of the future. The state's plan would have greatly expanded the role of the private sector in bridge financing and maintenance, placing public assets in private hands. While private control of infrastructure is common in Europe and Canada, it remains controversial in the United States. But if there's one point that Missouri clearly had right, it's this: States need to focus just as much on bridge maintenance as they do on construction.
That's because maintenance is just as big a problem area as construction. Basic steps are routinely neglected, such as painting bridges regularly to prevent rusting and removing corrosive road salt. The result is that bridges have to be repaired or replaced years earlier than if they were maintained properly.
Some observers fear that the federal stimulus will only make the situation worse, by creating more bridges and roads that need upkeep. "We can't even maintain the size of the infrastructure that we have now," says Michael Pagano, an infrastructure expert at the University of Illinois at Chicago. "We're going to add to it? I think that's insane."
The reasons for the maintenance problem are diverse. One of the most troubling is that there's a built-in disincentive to do the right thing. When bridges fall into disrepair, they become eligible for federal funds to replace them. So there's little motivation for states and localities to be proactive and spend their own money on maintenance up front. Another problem: Bridge inspections remain shockingly rudimentary. Examiners spend most of their time doing a visual once-over. They might tap various bridge parts with a hammer to see if metal has corroded, but these techniques often miss serious problems developing within the bridge structure.
Peter Vanderzee is one of a growing number of people who believe that there is a better way. Vanderzee runs a company that sells sensors that allow for computerized monitoring of bridges. He compares the current inspection regimen to that of a doctor who makes a diagnosis simply by looking at the patient.
The purpose of the sensors isn't primarily to identify an imminent bridge collapse on the order of the one in Minneapolis. Instead, the main purpose is to find subtle stresses and cracks early on, before those problems turn into visible signs of trouble. Plus, Vanderzee sees another benefit to the sensors. He's the rare person who thinks the condition of American bridges is considerably better than is commonly recognized. His argument: With visual inspections, lots of bridges are lumped together as needing repairs. Sensors, he says, can tell which ones need help more than others. "If it's in better shape, we can delay repairs and we can delay replacement," Vanderzee says. "If it's in worse shape, at least we know."
While this technology has been around for quite a while, it hasn't been widely utilized. States are reluctant to pay the upfront costs of installing the sensors based on the promise of long-term savings. (They also aren't eager to go drilling holes into old bridges and perhaps weakening them even more.) One span that does have them, though, is the new I-35W bridge in Minneapolis — it has 323 sensors to be precise. Data from those sensors will be fed to MinnDOT and the University of Minnesota, where staff will be able to monitor the bridge's condition in real time.
The sensors are just one reason that almost everyone in Minnesota views their new bridge as a success. But, as a result, Minnesotans also have higher expectations for the Department of Transportation going forward. "That didn't take long," Chiglo says. "People are already asking why we can't build every bridge so fast.
Take a look at this and maybe Morrisville can use it to fix our schools. "When an old bridge, road or any piece of infrastructure is so worn out that it must be replaced entirely, should it simply be shut down to make way for the construction crews? The response: Close the roads. Utah followed the advice, which accelerated the project dramatically. "We should be bolder about that sort of thing...The public understands it and they'll adjust."
Minneapolis Speedway
March 2009 By JOSH GOODMAN, GOVERNING.COM
A bridge collapsed. Minnesota’s DOT replaced it in just 13 months. Here’s how they did it.
John Chiglo is looking up from the banks of the Mississippi River at a huge ivory monolith. It's the new I-35W bridge, built on the site in Minneapolis where an old span collapsed suddenly on August 1, 2007, killing 13 people. The four giant support piers on each side of the river curve gently into the superstructure, giving the new bridge a slightly arced appearance when viewed from a distance. But up close, from where Chiglo stands, what's most striking is how polished a brand-new bridge looks, before the rust and grime of age settle in. "That's 50,000 yards of concrete," Chiglo says, sounding like a baseball fan rattling off the slugging percentage of his favorite player. "Seventeen million pounds of steel, 740 miles of post-tension steel strands."
Chiglo served as the Minnesota Department of Transportation's project manager for the I-35W bridge, also known as the St. Anthony Falls Bridge. He has good reason to be proud of it. The new span opened to traffic barely a year after the tragic collapse. Not only did MinnDOT beat an almost ludicrously ambitious deadline by three months, but it did so without any serious injuries to workers. The project came in respectably close to its budget — it went less than 2 percent over.
In the world of bridge construction, this story is a bit unusual. Bridge projects, like other big infrastructure endeavors, have a way of dragging out months or years behind schedule — and blasting through their budgets. It doesn't have to be that way. That's especially important to remember as the federal government hands some $36 billion over to states for road, bridge and transit projects in an effort to get the economy going again. MinnDOT's handling of the I-35W rebuilding demonstrates that states can spend lots of money, put people to work and make something with lasting value — and do those things both quickly and efficiently.
Getting the process right isn't easy, however. For bridge construction to work better, states have to manage delicate relationships with contractors and force different levels of government to work together more cooperatively. And, as the collapse of the old I-35W bridge made all too clear, construction is only half of the nation's infrastructure challenge. Maintenance and inspection of old bridges remains a huge problem in many states, even after the Minneapolis tragedy. The federal government lists 12 percent of all bridges in the United States as structurally deficient, and an additional 13 percent as functionally obsolete. So as states begin spending their stimulus money, they should not be thinking only about how to build bridges quickly and cheaply. They also should be strategizing about how to keep these assets in good condition for decades to come.
How was the new I-35W bridge built so quickly? The short answer is that the state of Minnesota didn't give the construction company in charge of the bridge, Flatiron Construction Corp., much of a choice.
Flatiron's base contract was for $234 million. In addition, the company was offered up to $27 million if it completed the project early — and faced financial penalties if it finished late. That was incentive enough for construction workers to adopt a 24-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week schedule. Says Chiglo: "We worked holidays, weekends, day, night, rain, snow, sleet, ice." Ultimately, Flatiron received a $25 million bonus.
But while Minnesota demanded precisely WHEN the bridge should be built, the state left to Flatiron the details of HOW the bridge should be built. That's not the way state-issued construction contracts typically work. The most common process is what's known in the construction world as "design-bid-build." State employees design what needs to be built, then they put it up for bid and the private sector builds it based on the state's specifications. Those specifications can be exceptionally prescriptive. Often, they don't just stipulate what needs to be built — they also order the contractor to build it using a specific process.
By contrast, the new I-35W span was erected through a method known as "design-build." Under this model, many of the details of a project are left to the contractors, which allows them to put their expertise to work. Design-build isn't universally embraced among DOTs; the results are only as good as the contractors selected. But the big advantage of design-build is that initial construction can begin before the final design decisions are made, often allowing projects to get started swiftly. That's exactly how it worked out in Minneapolis, where construction began, remarkably, just three months after the old bridge fell.
To be sure, some of that urgency came from the emergency nature of the collapse. Bureaucracies moved at record speed, and cooperated across every level of government. Federal permits that normally take months to obtain were ready in days. The City of Minneapolis rapidly gave approval to the design of the new bridge. "Nobody," says Bob French, Flatiron's chief operating officer, "wanted to be the individual or agency that stopped that bridge from getting built." The unusual amount of political momentum that emerged out of the crisis is a big reason why French thinks it would be difficult to replicate this success story elsewhere.
There's another reason, too. Ironically, the collapse itself made it easier to get the new bridgework done quickly. Under less tragic circumstances, one of the big challenges in replacing an old bridge with a new one is keeping the existing span operating while the work goes on. Transportation officials are loathe to shut down a critical artery before the new one is ready, for fear of tying traffic in knots. At the same time, however, the old bridge inevitably gets in the way, complicating the construction process. In Minneapolis, of course, the old bridge was gone.
Unusual as that situation was, it raises an interesting question: When an old bridge, road or any piece of infrastructure is so worn out that it must be replaced entirely, should it simply be shut down to make way for the construction crews? One person who believes that the answer is yes — at least in some cases — is Tom Warne, a former Utah transportation director who now works as a consultant. In the 1990s, when Utah was rebuilding I-15 in and around Salt Lake City, Warne polled drivers on what they would prefer: the acute, if temporary, disruption of widespread road closures, or keeping the roads open and under construction for a longer period of time. The response: Close the roads. Utah followed the advice, which accelerated the project dramatically. "We should be bolder about that sort of thing," Warne says. "The public understands it and they'll adjust."
While the Minneapolis bridge collapse shook up the DOT in Minnesota, the tragedy's impact on the rest of the country has been surprisingly muted. In the immediate aftermath of the collapse, state officials everywhere described the disaster as a wake-up call. Since then, many of them have hit the snooze button.
One year after the collapse, an Associated Press analysis looked at each state's 20 most heavily traveled structurally deficient bridges. Of the bridges analyzed, only one in 10 had been fixed up in the year after the collapse.
People in the industry don't dispute that less has happened since August 2007 than they would have liked. Part of the reason is that the scale of the problem is so enormous. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials estimates that $140 billion is needed to repair more than 150,000 bridges that are structurally deficient or functionally obsolete. That's only a fraction of the $2.2 trillion the American Society of Civil Engineers estimates for the nation's total infrastructure needs. With state revenue foundering and gas taxes in particular drying up, the past year and a half has proven to be a difficult time for states to make new investments.
But the problems run deeper than that. Glacial permitting processes mean that, for large projects, it can take a dozen years for a new bridge to become reality. The construction industry is deeply fragmented, with separate teams of suppliers, engineers and contractors needed just to build a bridge. "It would be a seismic event for the construction industry to change itself in one year," says Barry LePatner, a New York construction lawyer. "It remains a truly inefficient industry."
Nonetheless, there have been gradual signs of change. More and more states are following the Minneapolis model by making a contractor's payments contingent on getting the work done on time. Design-build was considered novel when Warne was using it in Utah a decade ago. Now, it's becoming more commonplace.
And, there's at least some reason to believe that the federal economic stimulus will continue these trends. "Shovel-ready" is the buzzword of the moment — the feds want to fund projects that can put people to work immediately. Since design-build can hasten the start date for projects, it may be the tool of choice for state DOTs in the months ahead.
If there's one state that isn't shy about trying new ideas, it's Missouri. A couple of years ago, Missouri proposed an experiment, known as the Safe and Sound bridge program. The intent was nothing less than to upend most of the basic tenets of bridge building and maintenance in the United States.
The state had 802 bridges, most of them small and in rural areas, which had fallen into poor condition. Normally, a state would bid out repair work on each bridge separately. Instead, Missouri offered them all up in one giant contract. Normally, the state would prescribe how each bridge would be brought into good condition. But Missouri wasn't telling the contractors whether they had to repair the existing bridges or replace them. And, normally, contractors are paid in full when bridgework happens. In Missouri's case, the contractors were to finance all the costs for the first five years. Payment to the team in charge of the bridges was to be contingent on the contractors' keeping them in good shape for an additional 25 years.
Although it was formulated before the I-35W bridge collapsed, Missouri's plan represents a logical extension of the ideas coming out of Minneapolis. You can tell that from its name: "design-build-finance-maintain." Many of the goals — giving contractors more flexibility, but paying them only for getting results — are the same.
That, says Don Hillis, director of System Management for the Missouri Department of Transportation, is a big reason for the state's optimism about the concept. The idea here is that handing hundreds of the bridges over to one team can reap economies of scale — especially when the contractors have free reign to design their own approach. Because of the maintenance component, the pressure is on the contractors to produce work that would stand the test of time. Plus, private funding is seen as a way to speed up work in spite of the limited public money available. The contract required that all 802 bridges be in good shape within five years.
As it turned out, the decision to use private-sector funds was the plan's Achilles' Heel. Missouri selected its team of contractors, but as the availability of credit tightened last fall, they were unable to obtain financing. The plan in its original form had to be scrapped and revised.
Missouri's new plan is still groundbreaking. This spring, it will hand out a single design-build contract for 554 of the original 802 bridges. Government-issued bonds will fund the project, and it won't have the 25-year maintenance component. Nonetheless, the experiment will test whether putting a single team in charge of hundreds of bridges can lead to more efficient construction."We still think it's a good concept," says Hillis. "When the private sector has the ability to muster funds at very good rates, I think it's something that could happen again."
Not everyone is so sure that Missouri has discovered the formula of the future. The state's plan would have greatly expanded the role of the private sector in bridge financing and maintenance, placing public assets in private hands. While private control of infrastructure is common in Europe and Canada, it remains controversial in the United States. But if there's one point that Missouri clearly had right, it's this: States need to focus just as much on bridge maintenance as they do on construction.
That's because maintenance is just as big a problem area as construction. Basic steps are routinely neglected, such as painting bridges regularly to prevent rusting and removing corrosive road salt. The result is that bridges have to be repaired or replaced years earlier than if they were maintained properly.
Some observers fear that the federal stimulus will only make the situation worse, by creating more bridges and roads that need upkeep. "We can't even maintain the size of the infrastructure that we have now," says Michael Pagano, an infrastructure expert at the University of Illinois at Chicago. "We're going to add to it? I think that's insane."
The reasons for the maintenance problem are diverse. One of the most troubling is that there's a built-in disincentive to do the right thing. When bridges fall into disrepair, they become eligible for federal funds to replace them. So there's little motivation for states and localities to be proactive and spend their own money on maintenance up front. Another problem: Bridge inspections remain shockingly rudimentary. Examiners spend most of their time doing a visual once-over. They might tap various bridge parts with a hammer to see if metal has corroded, but these techniques often miss serious problems developing within the bridge structure.
Peter Vanderzee is one of a growing number of people who believe that there is a better way. Vanderzee runs a company that sells sensors that allow for computerized monitoring of bridges. He compares the current inspection regimen to that of a doctor who makes a diagnosis simply by looking at the patient.
The purpose of the sensors isn't primarily to identify an imminent bridge collapse on the order of the one in Minneapolis. Instead, the main purpose is to find subtle stresses and cracks early on, before those problems turn into visible signs of trouble. Plus, Vanderzee sees another benefit to the sensors. He's the rare person who thinks the condition of American bridges is considerably better than is commonly recognized. His argument: With visual inspections, lots of bridges are lumped together as needing repairs. Sensors, he says, can tell which ones need help more than others. "If it's in better shape, we can delay repairs and we can delay replacement," Vanderzee says. "If it's in worse shape, at least we know."
While this technology has been around for quite a while, it hasn't been widely utilized. States are reluctant to pay the upfront costs of installing the sensors based on the promise of long-term savings. (They also aren't eager to go drilling holes into old bridges and perhaps weakening them even more.) One span that does have them, though, is the new I-35W bridge in Minneapolis — it has 323 sensors to be precise. Data from those sensors will be fed to MinnDOT and the University of Minnesota, where staff will be able to monitor the bridge's condition in real time.
The sensors are just one reason that almost everyone in Minnesota views their new bridge as a success. But, as a result, Minnesotans also have higher expectations for the Department of Transportation going forward. "That didn't take long," Chiglo says. "People are already asking why we can't build every bridge so fast.
Monday, March 2, 2009
The precious beauty of something not perfect
From the BCCT. Some kudos to the BCCT for the editorial note and baby-sized backtracking steps, but I seriously question their editorial bias toward Morrisville and why something so clearly negative toward these hard-working band students ever made it through the editorial process and into print.
Multiple kudos to today's letter writer with no reservations, as well as the late Ed Frankenfield. A year after his death and he's still making a positive impact on the school district. That beats anything we've got going as school board "leadership" today.
The precious beauty of something not perfect
When we first moved to Morrisville, there was no music program or school band, because a previous board had cut the programs.
Fortunately, music instruction and the band were revived. In the beginning, a community band was formed so that burgeoning young musicians could play alongside spirited adults who knew how to play an instrument. Since then, Dr. Scott has built a core of instrumentalists who begin learning and practicing in elementary school.
In sixth grade, though most have had only a year or two of instruction, students become part of the Morrisville Middle/Senior High School band. They practice together many hours each week at school, and put in additional hours at home to learn their individual instruments. They are required to keep a log of their practice hours, and I have witnessed firsthand how these students work with diligence and delight.
For some years, the Morrisville marching band played in matching T-shirts or even themed costumes, making do with what they had and still playing in the cold, at competitions, and community events.
Then along came a wonderful man named Ed Frankenfield, who thought these children deserved the dignity of wearing band uniforms. He fundraised and organized to make that happen. He cheered on the band and remained a faithful supporter. Though Ed has passed away, he left a shining legacy for all — he saw a need and put his energy into supporting, and lifting up the children he served.
Our daughter is small, even for a sixth-grader, but she carries a bass drum practically larger than she is, down Pennsylvania Avenue for community parades, across the football field in all sorts of weather, and she practices with all her heart. This we witness with joy and pride. The older students in the band support and guide their younger peers with kindness, even though the younger members’ skills may not be perfect. These students, Dr. Scott and the adults who work with young people every day to see that they have a bright future are to be commended.
That may seem obvious, but sometimes, something comes along to remind us that we can’t take anything for granted. The writer who attempted to argue for a Pennsbury merger by comparing school bands only succeeded in degrading our students.
I want every opportunity for all our children, and personally, I think Pennsbury would be lucky to have them. Sadly, there are people who can only see the glass half empty and miss the precious beauty of something perhaps not perfect, but soulful. But more importantly, there are those like Ed Frankenfield who leave a lasting mark, through acts of kindness and support.
Patricia Coscia Morrisville
Editor’s note: Our apologies to Dr. Scott, band members and their parents. In retrospect, the letter should have been more heavily edited. We regret that anybody, particularly students, might have been hurt.
Multiple kudos to today's letter writer with no reservations, as well as the late Ed Frankenfield. A year after his death and he's still making a positive impact on the school district. That beats anything we've got going as school board "leadership" today.
The precious beauty of something not perfect
When we first moved to Morrisville, there was no music program or school band, because a previous board had cut the programs.
Fortunately, music instruction and the band were revived. In the beginning, a community band was formed so that burgeoning young musicians could play alongside spirited adults who knew how to play an instrument. Since then, Dr. Scott has built a core of instrumentalists who begin learning and practicing in elementary school.
In sixth grade, though most have had only a year or two of instruction, students become part of the Morrisville Middle/Senior High School band. They practice together many hours each week at school, and put in additional hours at home to learn their individual instruments. They are required to keep a log of their practice hours, and I have witnessed firsthand how these students work with diligence and delight.
For some years, the Morrisville marching band played in matching T-shirts or even themed costumes, making do with what they had and still playing in the cold, at competitions, and community events.
Then along came a wonderful man named Ed Frankenfield, who thought these children deserved the dignity of wearing band uniforms. He fundraised and organized to make that happen. He cheered on the band and remained a faithful supporter. Though Ed has passed away, he left a shining legacy for all — he saw a need and put his energy into supporting, and lifting up the children he served.
Our daughter is small, even for a sixth-grader, but she carries a bass drum practically larger than she is, down Pennsylvania Avenue for community parades, across the football field in all sorts of weather, and she practices with all her heart. This we witness with joy and pride. The older students in the band support and guide their younger peers with kindness, even though the younger members’ skills may not be perfect. These students, Dr. Scott and the adults who work with young people every day to see that they have a bright future are to be commended.
That may seem obvious, but sometimes, something comes along to remind us that we can’t take anything for granted. The writer who attempted to argue for a Pennsbury merger by comparing school bands only succeeded in degrading our students.
I want every opportunity for all our children, and personally, I think Pennsbury would be lucky to have them. Sadly, there are people who can only see the glass half empty and miss the precious beauty of something perhaps not perfect, but soulful. But more importantly, there are those like Ed Frankenfield who leave a lasting mark, through acts of kindness and support.
Patricia Coscia Morrisville
Editor’s note: Our apologies to Dr. Scott, band members and their parents. In retrospect, the letter should have been more heavily edited. We regret that anybody, particularly students, might have been hurt.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Spring or Snow? Details at 11.
For those of you going to enjoy the Philadelphia Flower Show or just enjoying those little green sprouts in the garden that signal spring coming, your spring fever may be put on hold for a few days.
Will it or won't it? I'll tell you my prediction Tuesday morning. For now, join your neighbors at the Acme for the milk, bread, and eggs sellathon.
ALERT 1 - Winter Storm Warning
WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 4 PM EST MONDAY
UNTIL 5:00PM EST
Urgent - Winter Weather Message National Weather Service Mount Holly NJ 530 AM EST Sun Mar 1 2009
Morris-Hunterdon-Somerset-Middlesex-Western Monmouth- Eastern Monmouth-Mercer-Gloucester-Camden-Northwestern Burlington- Ocean-Coastal Ocean-Southeastern Burlington-Chester-Montgomery- Bucks-Delaware-Philadelphia- Including The Cities Of... Morristown... Flemington... Somerville... New Brunswick... Freehold... Sandy Hook... Trenton... Glassboro... Camden... Cherry Hill... Moorestown... Mount Holly... Jackson... Long Beach Island... Wharton State Forest... West Chester... Norristown... Doylestown... Media... Philadelphia
... Winter Storm Warning Remains In Effect From 6 PM This Evening To 4 PM EST Monday...
A Winter Storm Warning Remains In Effect From 600 PM This Evening Until 400 PM On Monday.
More Snow Is Expected To Spread Up Into Our Region From The South This Evening. The Snow May Mix With A Little Sleet At The Onset. The Snow Will Continue Through Tonight And Into Monday, And It Will Become Heavy At Times.
Based On The Latest Forecast Track Of The Storm, It Appears As Though 8 To 14 Inches Of Snow Will Fall In The Pennsylvania Counties Of Chester, Montgomery, Bucks, Delaware And Philadelphia. The Same Amounts Are Expected For The New Jersey Counties Of Morris, Hunterdon, Somerset, Middlesex, Mercer, Monmouth, Ocean, Burlington, Camden And Gloucester. Slightly Lower Amounts Are Anticipated Along The Immediate Coast, However, Even There Totals Should Range From 6 To 12 Inches.
The Steady Snow Is Expected To Taper To Snow Showers On Monday Afternoon.
Travel Will Be Difficult In The Region From This Evening Into Monday.
Will it or won't it? I'll tell you my prediction Tuesday morning. For now, join your neighbors at the Acme for the milk, bread, and eggs sellathon.
ALERT 1 - Winter Storm Warning
WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 4 PM EST MONDAY
UNTIL 5:00PM EST
Urgent - Winter Weather Message National Weather Service Mount Holly NJ 530 AM EST Sun Mar 1 2009
Morris-Hunterdon-Somerset-Middlesex-Western Monmouth- Eastern Monmouth-Mercer-Gloucester-Camden-Northwestern Burlington- Ocean-Coastal Ocean-Southeastern Burlington-Chester-Montgomery- Bucks-Delaware-Philadelphia- Including The Cities Of... Morristown... Flemington... Somerville... New Brunswick... Freehold... Sandy Hook... Trenton... Glassboro... Camden... Cherry Hill... Moorestown... Mount Holly... Jackson... Long Beach Island... Wharton State Forest... West Chester... Norristown... Doylestown... Media... Philadelphia
... Winter Storm Warning Remains In Effect From 6 PM This Evening To 4 PM EST Monday...
A Winter Storm Warning Remains In Effect From 600 PM This Evening Until 400 PM On Monday.
More Snow Is Expected To Spread Up Into Our Region From The South This Evening. The Snow May Mix With A Little Sleet At The Onset. The Snow Will Continue Through Tonight And Into Monday, And It Will Become Heavy At Times.
Based On The Latest Forecast Track Of The Storm, It Appears As Though 8 To 14 Inches Of Snow Will Fall In The Pennsylvania Counties Of Chester, Montgomery, Bucks, Delaware And Philadelphia. The Same Amounts Are Expected For The New Jersey Counties Of Morris, Hunterdon, Somerset, Middlesex, Mercer, Monmouth, Ocean, Burlington, Camden And Gloucester. Slightly Lower Amounts Are Anticipated Along The Immediate Coast, However, Even There Totals Should Range From 6 To 12 Inches.
The Steady Snow Is Expected To Taper To Snow Showers On Monday Afternoon.
Travel Will Be Difficult In The Region From This Evening Into Monday.
PSBA calls to reduce 'unfunded mandates'
From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
School boards group calls to reduce 'unfunded mandates'
Thursday, February 26, 2009
By Eleanor Chute, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pennsylvania School Boards Association is pursuing nearly 20 legislative proposals and action plans aimed at relieving school districts from "state-imposed unfunded and underfunded mandates."
"It is our way of saying to the governor and legislators, if you really want to help school districts, you can ease the burden of state mandates that are driving up the cost of education but not doing anything to improve the quality of instruction," said Thomas J. Gentzel, PSBA executive director.
The package, which was announced yesterday, is called FREE for Focusing Resources in Educational Expenses. The PSBA for years has made efforts to reduce so-called unfunded mandates.
One proposal calls for school districts to be able to lay off teachers for economic reasons. Currently, the number of teachers can be reduced if enrollment declines or if programs are cut, but not for economic necessity.
"School districts, like other employers, should have the ability and flexibility to make changes to the personnel complement when such changes are necessary," a PSBA statement noted.
Wythe Keever, spokesman for the Pennsylvania State Education Association, the state's largest teachers union, said, "The reason they're not currently allowed to do that is because of the negative educational impact. We think that reason is still valid."
The PSBA also is calling for a two-year moratorium on the prevailing wage law to coincide with the completion of projects funded by the federal stimulus package.
A PSBA statement calls prevailing wage "one of the most costly mandates on school construction in Pennsylvania," with the prevailing wage double that of the occupational wage in some counties.
The statement said suspending the prevailing wage would help achieve the "maximum use" of the federal dollars and "give districts the opportunity to evaluate the effect of this mandate on construction projects."
Mr. Keever said, "Prevailing wage makes sure that you have quality construction on public projects, and, in light of all the number of reports that have come out about so-called sick building syndrome, that's especially important for any building associated with public schools."
Some of the other PSBA proposals are:
• Provide disincentives for school employee strikes.
• Remove mandated benefit levels -- such as sick, bereavement and sabbatical leave -- and make them subject to local bargaining.
• Remove the requirement for school nurses to have special school certification.
• Increase the dollar threshold on maintenance and construction projects that can be done by school personnel.
• Take steps to reduce the cost of busing non-public students.
• Increase bid limits.
• Increase state funding for special education by at least 3 percent.
Education writer Eleanor Chute can be reached at echute@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1955.
First published on February 26, 2009 at 12:00 am
School boards group calls to reduce 'unfunded mandates'
Thursday, February 26, 2009
By Eleanor Chute, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pennsylvania School Boards Association is pursuing nearly 20 legislative proposals and action plans aimed at relieving school districts from "state-imposed unfunded and underfunded mandates."
"It is our way of saying to the governor and legislators, if you really want to help school districts, you can ease the burden of state mandates that are driving up the cost of education but not doing anything to improve the quality of instruction," said Thomas J. Gentzel, PSBA executive director.
The package, which was announced yesterday, is called FREE for Focusing Resources in Educational Expenses. The PSBA for years has made efforts to reduce so-called unfunded mandates.
One proposal calls for school districts to be able to lay off teachers for economic reasons. Currently, the number of teachers can be reduced if enrollment declines or if programs are cut, but not for economic necessity.
"School districts, like other employers, should have the ability and flexibility to make changes to the personnel complement when such changes are necessary," a PSBA statement noted.
Wythe Keever, spokesman for the Pennsylvania State Education Association, the state's largest teachers union, said, "The reason they're not currently allowed to do that is because of the negative educational impact. We think that reason is still valid."
The PSBA also is calling for a two-year moratorium on the prevailing wage law to coincide with the completion of projects funded by the federal stimulus package.
A PSBA statement calls prevailing wage "one of the most costly mandates on school construction in Pennsylvania," with the prevailing wage double that of the occupational wage in some counties.
The statement said suspending the prevailing wage would help achieve the "maximum use" of the federal dollars and "give districts the opportunity to evaluate the effect of this mandate on construction projects."
Mr. Keever said, "Prevailing wage makes sure that you have quality construction on public projects, and, in light of all the number of reports that have come out about so-called sick building syndrome, that's especially important for any building associated with public schools."
Some of the other PSBA proposals are:
• Provide disincentives for school employee strikes.
• Remove mandated benefit levels -- such as sick, bereavement and sabbatical leave -- and make them subject to local bargaining.
• Remove the requirement for school nurses to have special school certification.
• Increase the dollar threshold on maintenance and construction projects that can be done by school personnel.
• Take steps to reduce the cost of busing non-public students.
• Increase bid limits.
• Increase state funding for special education by at least 3 percent.
Education writer Eleanor Chute can be reached at echute@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1955.
First published on February 26, 2009 at 12:00 am
Neshaminy Fireworks
From the BCCT.
It’s not ‘about the kids’ — it’s about greed
Were the leaders of the Neshaminy Education Association out getting venti mocha lattes when President Obama spoke about making sacrifices in difficult times? Does NEA president Louise Boyd’s stated unwillingness to communicate through the papers extend to simply not reading the papers?
In case this happens to catch Ms. Boyd’s eye, here’s what’s going on in today’s economy. People are losing jobs, losing investment valuation, even losing their homes. Those who still have work are forgoing raises or even accepting pay cuts, but ultimately are simply grateful to be employed.
For the NEA to be holding fast to demands for 6 percent pay raises and the archaic notion of ZERO contributions to health care is not just unrealistic. It is an absolute insult to all the taxpayers in the district who are pinching pennies wherever they can to make it through the current crisis, and paying for healthcare out of their own pockets.
It would seem that when the NEA says their action “is about the kids,” what they mean is that it is about THEIR kids. There seems to be little concern for the youngsters in the district whose families might be forced to make difficult financial sacrifices, or even move, because they can’t afford the higher taxes that would be mandated by the NEA proposal.
Congratulations to the Neshaminy school board for sticking to its guns. The sound financial discipline the board has shown on this issue is needed by taxpayers now, more than ever.
Paul Schneider Langhorne
------------------------------------------------------
Let them go on strike
Neshaminy teachers — you have to hand it to them. At least that’s what they want us to do. They are not lacking in intestinal fortitude, are they? Six percent (raises) a year and no medical insurance premiums?
At a time when many people are having their salaries frozen and medical insurance is going through the roof? Maybe it’s time to have them work a full year like the rest of us (they’re getting paid to do it) or it’s time to replace all 700. I am sure there are plenty of qualified applicants who would kill for those jobs.
Maybe these teachers have been out of the real world for so long that they have no grip on reality. When is the last time you had a 6 percent raise or didn’t have your medical insurance cost go up?
The country is in a financial mess and the teachers union is in a rush to put us over the edge. Could it be because as the salary for teachers increases the union dues go up?
The union leadership should wear masks when they negotiate and the school board needs to stick to its guns. Make them hit the bricks! People are fed up.
At a time when companies are laying off, freezing salaries and in some cases cutting salaries, maybe it’s time for the taxpayers to do the same.
Jim Anderson Middletown
It’s not ‘about the kids’ — it’s about greed
Were the leaders of the Neshaminy Education Association out getting venti mocha lattes when President Obama spoke about making sacrifices in difficult times? Does NEA president Louise Boyd’s stated unwillingness to communicate through the papers extend to simply not reading the papers?
In case this happens to catch Ms. Boyd’s eye, here’s what’s going on in today’s economy. People are losing jobs, losing investment valuation, even losing their homes. Those who still have work are forgoing raises or even accepting pay cuts, but ultimately are simply grateful to be employed.
For the NEA to be holding fast to demands for 6 percent pay raises and the archaic notion of ZERO contributions to health care is not just unrealistic. It is an absolute insult to all the taxpayers in the district who are pinching pennies wherever they can to make it through the current crisis, and paying for healthcare out of their own pockets.
It would seem that when the NEA says their action “is about the kids,” what they mean is that it is about THEIR kids. There seems to be little concern for the youngsters in the district whose families might be forced to make difficult financial sacrifices, or even move, because they can’t afford the higher taxes that would be mandated by the NEA proposal.
Congratulations to the Neshaminy school board for sticking to its guns. The sound financial discipline the board has shown on this issue is needed by taxpayers now, more than ever.
Paul Schneider Langhorne
------------------------------------------------------
Let them go on strike
Neshaminy teachers — you have to hand it to them. At least that’s what they want us to do. They are not lacking in intestinal fortitude, are they? Six percent (raises) a year and no medical insurance premiums?
At a time when many people are having their salaries frozen and medical insurance is going through the roof? Maybe it’s time to have them work a full year like the rest of us (they’re getting paid to do it) or it’s time to replace all 700. I am sure there are plenty of qualified applicants who would kill for those jobs.
Maybe these teachers have been out of the real world for so long that they have no grip on reality. When is the last time you had a 6 percent raise or didn’t have your medical insurance cost go up?
The country is in a financial mess and the teachers union is in a rush to put us over the edge. Could it be because as the salary for teachers increases the union dues go up?
The union leadership should wear masks when they negotiate and the school board needs to stick to its guns. Make them hit the bricks! People are fed up.
At a time when companies are laying off, freezing salaries and in some cases cutting salaries, maybe it’s time for the taxpayers to do the same.
Jim Anderson Middletown
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Education chief favors longer school year
From CNN.com
Education chief favors longer school year
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Those lazy days of summer may become a thing of the past if the new secretary of education has his way.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan suggests giving incentives to teachers whose students perform well.
Arne Duncan, the Cabinet secretary charged with overhauling America's educational system, is studying programs that keep kids in school longer to boost their academic achievements.
"When I go out and talk about that, that doesn't always make me popular with students. They like the long summers," Duncan said in an interview Wednesday with CNN conducted in the Education Department's library.
But Duncan said American students are "at a competitive disadvantage" because the United States has shorter school years than other countries such as India and China.
"It doesn't matter how poor, how tough the family background, socioeconomic challenges," Duncan said. "Where students have longer days, longer weeks, longer years -- that's making a difference."
More time in school is one of several ideas under consideration as Duncan settles into his new role.
The lanky former college basketball player and father of two speaks quickly, with remarkable energy in the face of daunting challenges.
Thirty percent of high school students drop out before graduation, and another 50 percent won't finish college, according to Education Sector, a nonprofit think tank.
For Latino and African-American students, the numbers are more dramatic. About half of them will graduate from high school, the Washington-based group said.
As school administrators struggle with dropout rates, they also are confronting drastic budget cuts amid national economic uncertainty. Districts are slashing jobs and putting off plans to repair crumbling school buildings.
"What's going on, state after state, due to this tough economy, is devastating educationally. And we can't afford to get worse now. We have to get dramatically better," said Duncan, former chief of Chicago Public Schools.
President Obama and lawmakers have directed billions of dollars to the Department of Education through the stimulus package, and they propose to send more in the 2010 budget Obama announced Thursday.
Duncan said some of that money will provide schools with immediate relief to keep teachers.
"Thanks to the stimulus package, we have the chance to save literally hundreds of thousands of teacher positions. This is a huge, huge deal," he said, citing a University of Washington study that suggests 600,000 teachers could be lost this year without drastic intervention.
"We're going to be able to avert maybe not all of those cuts but a huge percentage of those, and that's very very important," he said.
But the new funds may be only enough to keep a crisis at bay, said Kevin Carey of Education Sector. State and local shortages are forcing schools to make do with much less.
"The economic situation is hurting school budgets," Carey said. "The stimulus package that just passed will help that somewhat, but there still isn't a whole lot of new money to pay teachers more, reduce class sizes, reduce high school dropout rates."
Duncan also suggested giving incentives to teachers whose students perform well, an unpopular idea with teachers' unions. And he said school systems may need to make tough decisions about teachers who don't perform at par.
"If teachers aren't making it, we want to support them and help them develop, but ultimately if it's not working, our children deserve the best," Duncan said. "They probably need to find something else to do."
Duncan also is pushing for new benchmarks that would use international standards to compare American students with those overseas.
He faults No Child Left Behind for standards that he said don't accurately monitor some children's progress.
"When you're told you're meeting those standards, you think you're doing OK. You're really not," Duncan said.
"Our children are not competing for jobs down the block or in the district or in the state -- they're competing against children in India or China, and they need to know how they stack up."
Carey said Duncan's efforts to meet Obama's education goals are an immensely complicated task.
"There are 50 states, there are 14,000 school districts, 90,000 schools, and Secretary Duncan is responsible for every one of them. But they all have their own ideas, their own funding sources, their own local leadership," Carey said.
Duncan said he feels "a real sense of urgency" to implement national education reform.
"Our children in this country have one chance at education. One chance. We can't wait. We can't wait seven or eight years. We'll lose a generation of kids," Duncan said. "And so we have to get better; we have to get better now."
Education chief favors longer school year
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Those lazy days of summer may become a thing of the past if the new secretary of education has his way.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan suggests giving incentives to teachers whose students perform well.
Arne Duncan, the Cabinet secretary charged with overhauling America's educational system, is studying programs that keep kids in school longer to boost their academic achievements.
"When I go out and talk about that, that doesn't always make me popular with students. They like the long summers," Duncan said in an interview Wednesday with CNN conducted in the Education Department's library.
But Duncan said American students are "at a competitive disadvantage" because the United States has shorter school years than other countries such as India and China.
"It doesn't matter how poor, how tough the family background, socioeconomic challenges," Duncan said. "Where students have longer days, longer weeks, longer years -- that's making a difference."
More time in school is one of several ideas under consideration as Duncan settles into his new role.
The lanky former college basketball player and father of two speaks quickly, with remarkable energy in the face of daunting challenges.
Thirty percent of high school students drop out before graduation, and another 50 percent won't finish college, according to Education Sector, a nonprofit think tank.
For Latino and African-American students, the numbers are more dramatic. About half of them will graduate from high school, the Washington-based group said.
As school administrators struggle with dropout rates, they also are confronting drastic budget cuts amid national economic uncertainty. Districts are slashing jobs and putting off plans to repair crumbling school buildings.
"What's going on, state after state, due to this tough economy, is devastating educationally. And we can't afford to get worse now. We have to get dramatically better," said Duncan, former chief of Chicago Public Schools.
President Obama and lawmakers have directed billions of dollars to the Department of Education through the stimulus package, and they propose to send more in the 2010 budget Obama announced Thursday.
Duncan said some of that money will provide schools with immediate relief to keep teachers.
"Thanks to the stimulus package, we have the chance to save literally hundreds of thousands of teacher positions. This is a huge, huge deal," he said, citing a University of Washington study that suggests 600,000 teachers could be lost this year without drastic intervention.
"We're going to be able to avert maybe not all of those cuts but a huge percentage of those, and that's very very important," he said.
But the new funds may be only enough to keep a crisis at bay, said Kevin Carey of Education Sector. State and local shortages are forcing schools to make do with much less.
"The economic situation is hurting school budgets," Carey said. "The stimulus package that just passed will help that somewhat, but there still isn't a whole lot of new money to pay teachers more, reduce class sizes, reduce high school dropout rates."
Duncan also suggested giving incentives to teachers whose students perform well, an unpopular idea with teachers' unions. And he said school systems may need to make tough decisions about teachers who don't perform at par.
"If teachers aren't making it, we want to support them and help them develop, but ultimately if it's not working, our children deserve the best," Duncan said. "They probably need to find something else to do."
Duncan also is pushing for new benchmarks that would use international standards to compare American students with those overseas.
He faults No Child Left Behind for standards that he said don't accurately monitor some children's progress.
"When you're told you're meeting those standards, you think you're doing OK. You're really not," Duncan said.
"Our children are not competing for jobs down the block or in the district or in the state -- they're competing against children in India or China, and they need to know how they stack up."
Carey said Duncan's efforts to meet Obama's education goals are an immensely complicated task.
"There are 50 states, there are 14,000 school districts, 90,000 schools, and Secretary Duncan is responsible for every one of them. But they all have their own ideas, their own funding sources, their own local leadership," Carey said.
Duncan said he feels "a real sense of urgency" to implement national education reform.
"Our children in this country have one chance at education. One chance. We can't wait. We can't wait seven or eight years. We'll lose a generation of kids," Duncan said. "And so we have to get better; we have to get better now."
"If you don't like it, get out,"
From the Intelligencer. It looks like Souderton is running down the same stretch of road as Morrisville. No money and fixed-income retirees combining with the requirement to provide an education to the local children.
Teachers predict 'brain drain' if they don't get pay raises
By LOU SESSINGER
The union is asking for an 8.2 percent increase. The district is offering 2.57 percent.
As they have for several months, Souderton Area School District teachers spoke at Thursday night's school board meeting to express their dismay at the contract impasse between the board and the Souderton Area Education Association, the teachers union.
Six teachers came to the podium during the public comment portion of the meeting. Their common theme was that they and their colleagues deserved pay raises that would put their salaries in line with those of other school districts in the area. If not, some of them warned, the district could suffer a "brain drain" of sorts as the best teachers leave to seek better pay elsewhere.
The members of the Souderton Area Education Association went on strike in early September, delaying the opening of school until Sept. 19. The teachers union and school board then entered non-binding arbitration, which is still going on.
Teachers are seeking a four-year contract with annual salary increases compounded at an average of 8.2 percent a year. The school board is offering a three-year contract with annual salary increases compounded at an average of 2.57 percent a year.
School board President Bernard S. Currie on Thursday night pointed out that an arbitration panel is still conducting closed-door hearings on the last best offers of the board and union, and so contract negotiations are at a standstill until the panel releases its recommendations, which are expected in the spring.
High school science teacher Kenneth Hamilton said he had experienced a "loss of faith" in the school board's willingness to seek a fair settlement.
High school learning support teacher Sandra Campagna said she hoped both sides would be willing to accept the arbitrators' recommendations they could "work on a settlement together."
Janet Smith, a fifth-grade teacher at Salford Hills Elementary, said she wanted to "dispel the myth" that it would be easy for the school district to rebuild the quality of its teaching staff if there were a "mass exodus of teachers" driven away by low pay.
"We are not dime-a-dozen teachers," she said. "We live next door and have close community ties. Shame on this board + we are dedicated teachers and not a dime a dozen."
But two members of the community who addressed the board rejected the teachers' arguments and supported the board's negotiating position.
Charl Wellener said she had lost faith with the teachers and thought their contract demands were not motivated by a desire for fairness but by greed.
If teachers were unhappy with their salaries, she said, they should seek employment elsewhere.
Hugh Donnelly agreed.
"If you don't like it, get out," he said, adding that 20 percent of the district's property taxpayers were age 60 and over.
"They don't have kids in school, but they have to pay taxes. Eight and a half percent (a year pay raise) is obscene."
Teachers predict 'brain drain' if they don't get pay raises
By LOU SESSINGER
The union is asking for an 8.2 percent increase. The district is offering 2.57 percent.
As they have for several months, Souderton Area School District teachers spoke at Thursday night's school board meeting to express their dismay at the contract impasse between the board and the Souderton Area Education Association, the teachers union.
Six teachers came to the podium during the public comment portion of the meeting. Their common theme was that they and their colleagues deserved pay raises that would put their salaries in line with those of other school districts in the area. If not, some of them warned, the district could suffer a "brain drain" of sorts as the best teachers leave to seek better pay elsewhere.
The members of the Souderton Area Education Association went on strike in early September, delaying the opening of school until Sept. 19. The teachers union and school board then entered non-binding arbitration, which is still going on.
Teachers are seeking a four-year contract with annual salary increases compounded at an average of 8.2 percent a year. The school board is offering a three-year contract with annual salary increases compounded at an average of 2.57 percent a year.
School board President Bernard S. Currie on Thursday night pointed out that an arbitration panel is still conducting closed-door hearings on the last best offers of the board and union, and so contract negotiations are at a standstill until the panel releases its recommendations, which are expected in the spring.
High school science teacher Kenneth Hamilton said he had experienced a "loss of faith" in the school board's willingness to seek a fair settlement.
High school learning support teacher Sandra Campagna said she hoped both sides would be willing to accept the arbitrators' recommendations they could "work on a settlement together."
Janet Smith, a fifth-grade teacher at Salford Hills Elementary, said she wanted to "dispel the myth" that it would be easy for the school district to rebuild the quality of its teaching staff if there were a "mass exodus of teachers" driven away by low pay.
"We are not dime-a-dozen teachers," she said. "We live next door and have close community ties. Shame on this board + we are dedicated teachers and not a dime a dozen."
But two members of the community who addressed the board rejected the teachers' arguments and supported the board's negotiating position.
Charl Wellener said she had lost faith with the teachers and thought their contract demands were not motivated by a desire for fairness but by greed.
If teachers were unhappy with their salaries, she said, they should seek employment elsewhere.
Hugh Donnelly agreed.
"If you don't like it, get out," he said, adding that 20 percent of the district's property taxpayers were age 60 and over.
"They don't have kids in school, but they have to pay taxes. Eight and a half percent (a year pay raise) is obscene."
Friday, February 27, 2009
School For Sale
From the BCCT.
Schoolhouse: 100 years old
Vacant: 20 years
Possible messsage: “We are watching you”
Schoolhouse going up for sale
By DANNY ADLER
Northampton officials want to sell a nearly 100-year-old school building in the township’s Richboro section.
The supervisors unanimously voted Wednesday night to transfer the deed of the Richboro Schoolhouse on the 1000 block of Second Street Pike to the Bucks County Redevelopment Authority. The authority will work to find a buyer for the 4,536-square-foot building and the 2-acre lot it sits on.
Any sale of the schoolhouse, which was erected in 1913 and has been vacant since 1989, needs to be approved by supervisors.
Administrators say having the authority work on its behalf may yield a better price than a public bidding process and will give the township more say in the former school’s future.
The supervisors solidified an agreement with the redevelopment authority in October, shortly after an Upper Southampton appraiser estimated the fair market value of the property at $530,000.
The exterior of the schoolhouse was restored in 2007, but the inside is trashed. Photos taken in December show damaged walls and fixtures smashed by vandals. Debris is strewn around, and an old blackboard is covered with messages, like “We are watching you” and “We’re all gonna Die!”
The state’s redevelopment law allows the Bristol-based authority to negotiate the sale price of real estate without seeking public bids, officials said. The October agreement says the authority will forward proceeds to Northampton.
While officials will be able to put limitations on different aspects of the property, from its use to aesthetics, any restrictions are likely to lower the market value, Supervisor George Komelasky said.
“Any time you limit what the purchaser could do with the property, the value would actually come down,” Komelasky said.
Township Manager Bob Pellegrino said 12 people have showed interest in the property.
Supervisor Frank Rothermel had opposed the October agreement, saying he wanted the township to hold onto the property and use the historic structure for educational and nonprofit use. He voted in favor of the deed transfer Wednesday.
Schoolhouse: 100 years old
Vacant: 20 years
Possible messsage: “We are watching you”
Schoolhouse going up for sale
By DANNY ADLER
Northampton officials want to sell a nearly 100-year-old school building in the township’s Richboro section.
The supervisors unanimously voted Wednesday night to transfer the deed of the Richboro Schoolhouse on the 1000 block of Second Street Pike to the Bucks County Redevelopment Authority. The authority will work to find a buyer for the 4,536-square-foot building and the 2-acre lot it sits on.
Any sale of the schoolhouse, which was erected in 1913 and has been vacant since 1989, needs to be approved by supervisors.
Administrators say having the authority work on its behalf may yield a better price than a public bidding process and will give the township more say in the former school’s future.
The supervisors solidified an agreement with the redevelopment authority in October, shortly after an Upper Southampton appraiser estimated the fair market value of the property at $530,000.
The exterior of the schoolhouse was restored in 2007, but the inside is trashed. Photos taken in December show damaged walls and fixtures smashed by vandals. Debris is strewn around, and an old blackboard is covered with messages, like “We are watching you” and “We’re all gonna Die!”
The state’s redevelopment law allows the Bristol-based authority to negotiate the sale price of real estate without seeking public bids, officials said. The October agreement says the authority will forward proceeds to Northampton.
While officials will be able to put limitations on different aspects of the property, from its use to aesthetics, any restrictions are likely to lower the market value, Supervisor George Komelasky said.
“Any time you limit what the purchaser could do with the property, the value would actually come down,” Komelasky said.
Township Manager Bob Pellegrino said 12 people have showed interest in the property.
Supervisor Frank Rothermel had opposed the October agreement, saying he wanted the township to hold onto the property and use the historic structure for educational and nonprofit use. He voted in favor of the deed transfer Wednesday.
"Stop the School" in Pennsbury?
From the BCCT.
‘Throw the bums out!’ It’s time for a taxpayer revolution
Two Democrats and two Republicans face re-election as Pennsbury school board directors this year. All four of them need to be thrown out of office.
If making that statement ruffles feathers in my own party, so be it. Sometimes one just has to say enough is enough. School taxes are roughly 80 percent of property taxes for most Pennsbury residents, and nine elected school board officials have been raising our property taxes above the rate of inflation year after year.
With the current economic crisis causing serious hardship and financial distress for many people, the idea that the school board could even consider raising our property taxes more than 4.1 percent this year is obscene. Yet on Feb. 12, the board voted to approve having that right. Then on Feb. 19, the board voted on a tentative teacher union contract that adds millions of dollars to labor costs next year. Not one penny of this multimillion-dollar additional expenditure on teachers’ salaries and benefits will improve one student’s academic performance.
Let’s remember that Pennsbury’s teachers are already extremely well compensated. Their taxpayer-funded salaries are among the very highest in the state, and their taxpayer-funded benefits are out of this world. All this tentative agreement does is say that teachers who earn a $98,000 salary must wait one year before getting another pay hike. Most other teachers will still get big pay raises and all teachers will get their incredibly low 10 percent contributions to health care premiums locked in for another year.
Are the people expected to pay higher property taxes to give away such freebies? That would be us — the people who are losing their jobs and homes in a recession. And that’s why the four incumbents need to be thrown out of office. Much like those unethical opportunists in the state Legislature who pander to the teachers union to get elected, our local school officials are doing the same thing.
We read daily reports of job losses, as private employers are cutting labor costs in an effort to survive this recession. But our school board knows it can never go out of business because, whenever there is a revenue shortfall, they just shake down taxpayers.
To add millions of dollars to labor costs shows how out of touch the school board has become. They don’t want to make any decisions that might upset the teachers union. So instead, they spin a pay “freeze” — in name only — proposal onto the public.
Well, it is time for a taxpayer revolution. If you haven’t yet marked your calendar for May 19, please do it now. That’s when school board elections occur and they are typically low voter turnout affairs. Low voter turnout allows union-backed candidates a chance to get elected, to inflict even more pain upon taxpayers. So I put it to readers that voting on May 19 is as important as voting last November.
The Pennsbury school board should have voted against raising property taxes more than 4.1 percent this year. And they should have voted down this union-pandering, tax-hiking, multimillion-dollar increase in labor costs agreement with the teachers union. Then, the board should have voted to negotiate more realistic concessions.
If teachers don’t want to make realistic contract concessions, then we need to start firing them. They should be thankful for being protected with a job for life in today’s economy. Because how many families are dealing with a job loss? How many seniors are dealing with the possibility of losing their home?
Enough is enough. The incumbents on the Pennsbury school board have failed us. Make a note on May 19 to throw them out of office. Taxpayers hit hard by this recession are at breaking point. The American people have always had a revolutionary spirit, and the rallying cry “Throw the bums out!” has swept across many prior elections. It now needs to sweep across the Pennsbury School District in 2009.
‘Throw the bums out!’ It’s time for a taxpayer revolution
Two Democrats and two Republicans face re-election as Pennsbury school board directors this year. All four of them need to be thrown out of office.
If making that statement ruffles feathers in my own party, so be it. Sometimes one just has to say enough is enough. School taxes are roughly 80 percent of property taxes for most Pennsbury residents, and nine elected school board officials have been raising our property taxes above the rate of inflation year after year.
With the current economic crisis causing serious hardship and financial distress for many people, the idea that the school board could even consider raising our property taxes more than 4.1 percent this year is obscene. Yet on Feb. 12, the board voted to approve having that right. Then on Feb. 19, the board voted on a tentative teacher union contract that adds millions of dollars to labor costs next year. Not one penny of this multimillion-dollar additional expenditure on teachers’ salaries and benefits will improve one student’s academic performance.
Let’s remember that Pennsbury’s teachers are already extremely well compensated. Their taxpayer-funded salaries are among the very highest in the state, and their taxpayer-funded benefits are out of this world. All this tentative agreement does is say that teachers who earn a $98,000 salary must wait one year before getting another pay hike. Most other teachers will still get big pay raises and all teachers will get their incredibly low 10 percent contributions to health care premiums locked in for another year.
Are the people expected to pay higher property taxes to give away such freebies? That would be us — the people who are losing their jobs and homes in a recession. And that’s why the four incumbents need to be thrown out of office. Much like those unethical opportunists in the state Legislature who pander to the teachers union to get elected, our local school officials are doing the same thing.
We read daily reports of job losses, as private employers are cutting labor costs in an effort to survive this recession. But our school board knows it can never go out of business because, whenever there is a revenue shortfall, they just shake down taxpayers.
To add millions of dollars to labor costs shows how out of touch the school board has become. They don’t want to make any decisions that might upset the teachers union. So instead, they spin a pay “freeze” — in name only — proposal onto the public.
Well, it is time for a taxpayer revolution. If you haven’t yet marked your calendar for May 19, please do it now. That’s when school board elections occur and they are typically low voter turnout affairs. Low voter turnout allows union-backed candidates a chance to get elected, to inflict even more pain upon taxpayers. So I put it to readers that voting on May 19 is as important as voting last November.
The Pennsbury school board should have voted against raising property taxes more than 4.1 percent this year. And they should have voted down this union-pandering, tax-hiking, multimillion-dollar increase in labor costs agreement with the teachers union. Then, the board should have voted to negotiate more realistic concessions.
If teachers don’t want to make realistic contract concessions, then we need to start firing them. They should be thankful for being protected with a job for life in today’s economy. Because how many families are dealing with a job loss? How many seniors are dealing with the possibility of losing their home?
Enough is enough. The incumbents on the Pennsbury school board have failed us. Make a note on May 19 to throw them out of office. Taxpayers hit hard by this recession are at breaking point. The American people have always had a revolutionary spirit, and the rallying cry “Throw the bums out!” has swept across many prior elections. It now needs to sweep across the Pennsbury School District in 2009.
Right to Know Law Update
The first group of rulings on records sought under the new law have been made. The York Daily Record has a great website that covers the new PA State Right to Know law.
The Office of Open Records also has their website where rulings and final determinations made will be posted.
The Office of Open Records also has their website where rulings and final determinations made will be posted.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
The windows are coming
The windows are coming.
NOTICE TO BIDDERS MORRISVILLE BOROUGH SCHOOL DISTRICT
Public Notice is hereby given that sealed bids for the Window Replacement at
Morrisville Middle/Senior High School, located at 550 West Palmer Street,
Morrisville, Pennsylvania 19067, will be received by the Morrisville School District Business Office located at 550 West Palmer Street,Morrisville, Pennsylvania 19067 until 1:00 PM on Monday, March 23, 2009 at which time the bids will be publicly opened, read aloud and recorded for presentation to the Board of Education. Bids will be received and contracts awarded on the basis of separate proposals, which shall include all the work required in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and all other laws and regulations pertaining to public contracts. The bid opening will be held in Conference Room F-10 of the Middle/Senior High School.
Sealed bids will be received for the following: CONTRACT NO. 1 - GENERAL CONSTRUCTION
The Bidding Documents may be examined at the Office of the Architect, VITETTA, 4747 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19112; Telephone (215) 218-4747. Copies of the bid documents may be obtained at the office of the Architect upon receipt of a non-refundable document charge of Fifty Dollars ($50.00) in the form of a CHECK OR MONEY ORDER made payable to VIETTA. NO CASH will accepted. A $25.00 shipping charge is required if a mailing of the documents is desired. Express mail charges will be additional. Only prime bidders will be issued bidding documents. No partial sets will be issued to Subcontractors, Suppliers, or Manufacturers. Bidders are advised to telephone the Architect's Office in advance to confirm the availability of documents.
Documents are also available for examination at the, Northeastern Pennsylvania Contractors' Association (NEPCA), Reed Construction Data, F. W. Dodge Corporation and Harrisburg Builders Exchange.
A pre-bid tour of the existing facility is scheduled for Thursday, March 5, 2009 at 3:00 pm. Contact Tim Lastichen, Director of Buildings and Grounds (267) 228-5663 between the hours of 8:30 AM and 2:30 PM to schedule visits to the site at times other than the pre-bid tour. Bidder, afforded the opportunity to visit the Project site, shall be held responsible for cognizance and knowledge of existing features and conditions ascertainable by such site visit, and costs of the Work associated therewith.
Bids shall be submitted to the Owner as identified above and shall be mailed or delivered to Owner to be received not later than time as stated above. Oral, telephonic (facsimile or telex), or telegraphic bids are invalid and will not receive consideration.
All proposals shall be irrevocable for sixty (60) days after bid opening date, unless delayed due to required approvals of another governmental agency, sale of bonds, or the award of a grant or grants, in which case bids shall be irrevocable for one hundred twenty (120) days in compliance with Pennsylvania Act #317 of 1978, approved November 26, 1978, and as amended December 12, 1994. Bids shall be accompanied by a bid guarantee, in the form of a Bid Bond, Cashier's Check or Certified Check in the amount of ten percent (10%) of the Bid Sum, payable to the Owner.
Notice is given that the project for which construction bids are being solicited hereby is a project constituting a public works project and is subject to applicable provisions of the Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage Act, the Act of August 15, 1961, P.L. 987, as amended and supplemented, and appropriate prevailing minimum rate as promulgated under provisions of said Act must be paid by contractors in connection with performance of the necessary work.. Notice is also given that the project for which construction bids are being received is subject to the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, the Act of October 27, 1955, P.L. 744, as amended and supplemented.
The Owner reserves the right to reject any or all bids and to waive, at his discretion, any or all irregularities, mistakes, omissions, or informalities relative thereto.
Marlys Mihok
School Board Secretary
NOTICE TO BIDDERS MORRISVILLE BOROUGH SCHOOL DISTRICT
Public Notice is hereby given that sealed bids for the Window Replacement at
Morrisville Middle/Senior High School, located at 550 West Palmer Street,
Morrisville, Pennsylvania 19067, will be received by the Morrisville School District Business Office located at 550 West Palmer Street,Morrisville, Pennsylvania 19067 until 1:00 PM on Monday, March 23, 2009 at which time the bids will be publicly opened, read aloud and recorded for presentation to the Board of Education. Bids will be received and contracts awarded on the basis of separate proposals, which shall include all the work required in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and all other laws and regulations pertaining to public contracts. The bid opening will be held in Conference Room F-10 of the Middle/Senior High School.
Sealed bids will be received for the following: CONTRACT NO. 1 - GENERAL CONSTRUCTION
The Bidding Documents may be examined at the Office of the Architect, VITETTA, 4747 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19112; Telephone (215) 218-4747. Copies of the bid documents may be obtained at the office of the Architect upon receipt of a non-refundable document charge of Fifty Dollars ($50.00) in the form of a CHECK OR MONEY ORDER made payable to VIETTA. NO CASH will accepted. A $25.00 shipping charge is required if a mailing of the documents is desired. Express mail charges will be additional. Only prime bidders will be issued bidding documents. No partial sets will be issued to Subcontractors, Suppliers, or Manufacturers. Bidders are advised to telephone the Architect's Office in advance to confirm the availability of documents.
Documents are also available for examination at the, Northeastern Pennsylvania Contractors' Association (NEPCA), Reed Construction Data, F. W. Dodge Corporation and Harrisburg Builders Exchange.
A pre-bid tour of the existing facility is scheduled for Thursday, March 5, 2009 at 3:00 pm. Contact Tim Lastichen, Director of Buildings and Grounds (267) 228-5663 between the hours of 8:30 AM and 2:30 PM to schedule visits to the site at times other than the pre-bid tour. Bidder, afforded the opportunity to visit the Project site, shall be held responsible for cognizance and knowledge of existing features and conditions ascertainable by such site visit, and costs of the Work associated therewith.
Bids shall be submitted to the Owner as identified above and shall be mailed or delivered to Owner to be received not later than time as stated above. Oral, telephonic (facsimile or telex), or telegraphic bids are invalid and will not receive consideration.
All proposals shall be irrevocable for sixty (60) days after bid opening date, unless delayed due to required approvals of another governmental agency, sale of bonds, or the award of a grant or grants, in which case bids shall be irrevocable for one hundred twenty (120) days in compliance with Pennsylvania Act #317 of 1978, approved November 26, 1978, and as amended December 12, 1994. Bids shall be accompanied by a bid guarantee, in the form of a Bid Bond, Cashier's Check or Certified Check in the amount of ten percent (10%) of the Bid Sum, payable to the Owner.
Notice is given that the project for which construction bids are being solicited hereby is a project constituting a public works project and is subject to applicable provisions of the Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage Act, the Act of August 15, 1961, P.L. 987, as amended and supplemented, and appropriate prevailing minimum rate as promulgated under provisions of said Act must be paid by contractors in connection with performance of the necessary work.. Notice is also given that the project for which construction bids are being received is subject to the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, the Act of October 27, 1955, P.L. 744, as amended and supplemented.
The Owner reserves the right to reject any or all bids and to waive, at his discretion, any or all irregularities, mistakes, omissions, or informalities relative thereto.
Marlys Mihok
School Board Secretary
Morrisville fails to invest in children’s future
From the BCCT.
Morrisville fails to invest in its children’s future
I am a lifelong resident of Morrisville and graduated from Morrisville High School in 1978. My children attend the same school I attended. I have heard these same issues for the entire time my children have been enrolled in Morrisville: that there’s no money to fix the school or to do much else. My boys have often asked why the school board treats them like non-citizens.
Now there is talk about having a school system of K-8 and sending our teenagers to a different school system, possibly Pennsbury, which we’d pay to educate our children.
Would this prevent Pennsbury from raising taxes? Be realistic. We would send fewer than 200 kids to Pennsbury. Pennsbury’s budget will increase due to the added students but will the added income from Morrisville really add sufficient funds to reverse a tax increase? I do not see how the math would help Pennsbury taxpayers.
Another question to consider is how interchangeable the Morrisville curriculum is with that of Pennsbury so that if/when the students transfer they are not hindered? In this day and age, it is difficult for teenagers to adjust, and to take them from a graduating class of 45-55 kids and move them to a graduating class of 800 is a big change. Yes, the majority of the kids would “just deal with it” as school board President Hellman has stated. But why should they?
I moved to Morrisville because it is a small town. I had a great education at Morrisville High School and I have done well for myself. My kids have great teachers and both boys have career goals.
Why can’t today’s school board see that and encourage our kids? Morrisville is not as “transient” as Hellman believes. Morrisville is full of good families doing the best they can to raise their kids and the school board has failed them again.
When are we ever going to do the best for our children? If Morrisville residents of the distant and recent past had been willing to invest in their youth and in the future the problems the district now faces would not exist. When will residents understand that shortterm savings and shortsightedness do not produce long-term growth and prosperity? We need to invest in and plan for the long term.
Regina G. Wallace Morrisville
Morrisville fails to invest in its children’s future
I am a lifelong resident of Morrisville and graduated from Morrisville High School in 1978. My children attend the same school I attended. I have heard these same issues for the entire time my children have been enrolled in Morrisville: that there’s no money to fix the school or to do much else. My boys have often asked why the school board treats them like non-citizens.
Now there is talk about having a school system of K-8 and sending our teenagers to a different school system, possibly Pennsbury, which we’d pay to educate our children.
Would this prevent Pennsbury from raising taxes? Be realistic. We would send fewer than 200 kids to Pennsbury. Pennsbury’s budget will increase due to the added students but will the added income from Morrisville really add sufficient funds to reverse a tax increase? I do not see how the math would help Pennsbury taxpayers.
Another question to consider is how interchangeable the Morrisville curriculum is with that of Pennsbury so that if/when the students transfer they are not hindered? In this day and age, it is difficult for teenagers to adjust, and to take them from a graduating class of 45-55 kids and move them to a graduating class of 800 is a big change. Yes, the majority of the kids would “just deal with it” as school board President Hellman has stated. But why should they?
I moved to Morrisville because it is a small town. I had a great education at Morrisville High School and I have done well for myself. My kids have great teachers and both boys have career goals.
Why can’t today’s school board see that and encourage our kids? Morrisville is not as “transient” as Hellman believes. Morrisville is full of good families doing the best they can to raise their kids and the school board has failed them again.
When are we ever going to do the best for our children? If Morrisville residents of the distant and recent past had been willing to invest in their youth and in the future the problems the district now faces would not exist. When will residents understand that shortterm savings and shortsightedness do not produce long-term growth and prosperity? We need to invest in and plan for the long term.
Regina G. Wallace Morrisville
Grades 4-12 will be in same building
From the BCCT. Anyone else have news from the meeting?
Downsizing the district in 3...2...
Grades 4-12 will be in same building
The restructuring decision is a safeguard against the possibility of Reiter being closed or being too damaged to open for the fall semester, said acting interim Superintendent William Ferrara.
By MANASEE WAGH
Morrisville students in grades four and up will share a building starting next year. The school board voted 6-2 to reconfigure the district Wednesday evening, with members Joseph Kemp and Gloria Heater opposed. Students in grades four to eight would attend an “intermediate school” in the Morrisville Middle/Senior High School, set apart from grades nine to 12, which would continue their schooling in the same building. Grades four to six would be separate from grades seven and eight.
Grandview Elementary would house grades pre-K to three.
Up to $7 million will be invested in renovating the two buildings.
The plan doesn’t call for new construction, but will partly rearrange the use of current spaces, said acting interim Superintendent William Ferrara.
Plans are still preliminary, but he said the administration discussed separating different grade levels in the high school by putting doors in between building sections.
Board member Kemp thought the vote was too premature because neither he nor the public had seen specific and detailed plans for how the facilities would be restructured. He wanted to table the vote and hold it until a later time, but his suggestion was defeated. Board President William Hellmann said he’s pleased with the plan. Community members expressed concern regarding the restructuring before the board has voted on whether or not to close its third school, M.R. Reiter Elementary. Parent John Perry called it “putting the cart before the horse.” About a month ago, the district held a public forum to discuss the possibility of closing Reiter, which was temporarily closed in December after a furnace explosion. The building was damaged badly enough that its students had to be relocated to other district buildings, where they remain. Some will move to modular units on the property of Grandview Elementary this year.
By law, the board has to wait 90 days after the public hearing to vote on closing Reiter.
However, the restructuring proposal is distinct from Reiter, said district solicitor Michael Fitzpatrick.
“The issue came up under the initiative of the superintendent. It’s a separate issue from Reiter,” he said.
If the district ends up keeping Reiter and it is repaired, students may be moved back there at some point, board members said.
For now, the administration is simply being proactive by planning to move all the students into Grandview and the high school building this fall, Ferrara said.
“If Reiter is not ready, we won’t be scrambling around,” he said. If the board decides to close it permanently, then the restructuring plan gives the district a place to put the 250 Reiter students, he said.
Downsizing the district in 3...2...
Grades 4-12 will be in same building
The restructuring decision is a safeguard against the possibility of Reiter being closed or being too damaged to open for the fall semester, said acting interim Superintendent William Ferrara.
By MANASEE WAGH
Morrisville students in grades four and up will share a building starting next year. The school board voted 6-2 to reconfigure the district Wednesday evening, with members Joseph Kemp and Gloria Heater opposed. Students in grades four to eight would attend an “intermediate school” in the Morrisville Middle/Senior High School, set apart from grades nine to 12, which would continue their schooling in the same building. Grades four to six would be separate from grades seven and eight.
Grandview Elementary would house grades pre-K to three.
Up to $7 million will be invested in renovating the two buildings.
The plan doesn’t call for new construction, but will partly rearrange the use of current spaces, said acting interim Superintendent William Ferrara.
Plans are still preliminary, but he said the administration discussed separating different grade levels in the high school by putting doors in between building sections.
Board member Kemp thought the vote was too premature because neither he nor the public had seen specific and detailed plans for how the facilities would be restructured. He wanted to table the vote and hold it until a later time, but his suggestion was defeated. Board President William Hellmann said he’s pleased with the plan. Community members expressed concern regarding the restructuring before the board has voted on whether or not to close its third school, M.R. Reiter Elementary. Parent John Perry called it “putting the cart before the horse.” About a month ago, the district held a public forum to discuss the possibility of closing Reiter, which was temporarily closed in December after a furnace explosion. The building was damaged badly enough that its students had to be relocated to other district buildings, where they remain. Some will move to modular units on the property of Grandview Elementary this year.
By law, the board has to wait 90 days after the public hearing to vote on closing Reiter.
However, the restructuring proposal is distinct from Reiter, said district solicitor Michael Fitzpatrick.
“The issue came up under the initiative of the superintendent. It’s a separate issue from Reiter,” he said.
If the district ends up keeping Reiter and it is repaired, students may be moved back there at some point, board members said.
For now, the administration is simply being proactive by planning to move all the students into Grandview and the high school building this fall, Ferrara said.
“If Reiter is not ready, we won’t be scrambling around,” he said. If the board decides to close it permanently, then the restructuring plan gives the district a place to put the 250 Reiter students, he said.
PA graduation tests inadequate
From the Centre Daily Times
Study finds many Pa. graduation tests inadequate
By MARK SCOLFORO - Associated Press Writer Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2009
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Many of the graduation tests being used in Pennsylvania schools fail to adequately measure whether students perform at 11th grade levels in math and reading, according to a study released Wednesday.
* Copy of the Study
Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak said the study shows Pennsylvania needs to take steps to ensure its high school graduates are ready for post-secondary education and the workplace.
"It's not a good situation," he said Wednesday. "The data obviously tell the story."
The study by two Penn State University education professors found great variation in the type of tests being used and how they are administered and applied.
The professors called it the most comprehensive look at the tests school districts use as an alternative to the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment, which measures all students at various stages, including 11th grade.
It was commissioned by the state Education Department at a cost of $276,000.
The study found there are districts that measure reading skills in ways that do not involve actual reading - by testing vocabulary, for example. Some districts' graduation assessments give students credit for their attendance, course grades or good citizenship.
Math and reading tests in just 18 of the 418 districts that were evaluated passed muster by fully meeting the study's standards, which compared the local tests with statewide proficiency standards. Unpaid panels of Pennsylvania public school educators examined the local tests.
Panelists described some assessments as thorough and professional, while others evidenced a lack of concern for the purpose of graduation tests, the report said.
As a condition of participation in the study, school districts were promised that their ratings by the panelists would not be disclosed publicly, although superintendents can get their own.
The Pennsylvania State Board of Education has proposed a statewide standard for graduation by 2014 that would include final exams in English, math, science and social studies. But opposition by the state school boards' association and some state lawmakers has stalled it.
In July, the Independent Regulatory Review Commission issued a report saying graduation tests should be tailored to individual districts rather than imposed uniformly across the state.
More than 50,000 students graduated in 2007 based on their local district's alternative test, and the Education Department has concluded that tens of thousands of students are currently allowed to graduate without sufficient skills.
Education Department spokesman Mike Race said the study "raises very serious questions about these local assessments, which is what we've been saying for months."
Study finds many Pa. graduation tests inadequate
By MARK SCOLFORO - Associated Press Writer Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2009
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Many of the graduation tests being used in Pennsylvania schools fail to adequately measure whether students perform at 11th grade levels in math and reading, according to a study released Wednesday.
* Copy of the Study
Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak said the study shows Pennsylvania needs to take steps to ensure its high school graduates are ready for post-secondary education and the workplace.
"It's not a good situation," he said Wednesday. "The data obviously tell the story."
The study by two Penn State University education professors found great variation in the type of tests being used and how they are administered and applied.
The professors called it the most comprehensive look at the tests school districts use as an alternative to the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment, which measures all students at various stages, including 11th grade.
It was commissioned by the state Education Department at a cost of $276,000.
The study found there are districts that measure reading skills in ways that do not involve actual reading - by testing vocabulary, for example. Some districts' graduation assessments give students credit for their attendance, course grades or good citizenship.
Math and reading tests in just 18 of the 418 districts that were evaluated passed muster by fully meeting the study's standards, which compared the local tests with statewide proficiency standards. Unpaid panels of Pennsylvania public school educators examined the local tests.
Panelists described some assessments as thorough and professional, while others evidenced a lack of concern for the purpose of graduation tests, the report said.
As a condition of participation in the study, school districts were promised that their ratings by the panelists would not be disclosed publicly, although superintendents can get their own.
The Pennsylvania State Board of Education has proposed a statewide standard for graduation by 2014 that would include final exams in English, math, science and social studies. But opposition by the state school boards' association and some state lawmakers has stalled it.
In July, the Independent Regulatory Review Commission issued a report saying graduation tests should be tailored to individual districts rather than imposed uniformly across the state.
More than 50,000 students graduated in 2007 based on their local district's alternative test, and the Education Department has concluded that tens of thousands of students are currently allowed to graduate without sufficient skills.
Education Department spokesman Mike Race said the study "raises very serious questions about these local assessments, which is what we've been saying for months."
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Reiter Semi-Officially Closed Tonight
Meeting reminder for the Emperor and the Board of Chosen Accomplices. Tonight at 7:30 in the MHS auditorium, they will magically turn the clocks ahead to April 29 and vote to close M.R. Reiter tonight by adopting a two school plan for the district.
It's what they wanted all along. Remember the Emperor's "Christmas Present" and Kate Fratti's expose on the Emperor's emails?
Don't like it? Then come out and tell them.
Don't understand how this happened? Non Sequitur explains:
It's what they wanted all along. Remember the Emperor's "Christmas Present" and Kate Fratti's expose on the Emperor's emails?
Don't like it? Then come out and tell them.
Don't understand how this happened? Non Sequitur explains:
Merger Talk: Proceed With Caution
From the Elmira (NY) Star-Gazette
Rendell's school merger idea deserves a look
But skeptics who say it must show considerable savings make a strong point
February 23, 2009
Less is more. At least, that's what Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell is thinking in asking his state's Legislature to appoint a commission to study the merger of the state's school districts.
His heart is in the right place. Anywhere the state can save money, even by trimming Pennsylvania's 500 school districts, would sound like a proposal that could make taxpayers happy.
But wait. The governor has a number in mind. It's 100, and that means an ambitious consolidation that is likely to strip some districts of their unique identities as they move in with a larger family of schools. As well-intended as the governor's efforts are, he is asking state officials to tinker with one of the sacred areas that causes anxiety among residents, especially in rural areas where schools are as important to communities as their churches.
Theoretically, fewer districts and more efficiency should yield school systems that can apply their money toward higher quality. But theory doesn't carry as much weight as the political backlash that can hammer local legislators who might have to explain to voters why their district is losing its identity in a larger collection of schools.
Legislators such as Rep. Matt Baker, R-Wellsboro, agree with Wellsboro schools Superintendent Phil Waber that the issue is worth studying. And why wouldn't they say that? There's nothing to lose at this stage of the process, and certainly there's a wealth of information to be gained.
Plus, if the legislatively appointed commission actually produces reliable information that consolidations would save money, then the discussions could go from theory to fact. But as Waber correctly points out, unless any such plan includes school closings, there's not likely to be much savings.
The governor's plan has several steps to take before it even comes close to reality. First, there has to be a study commission that is expected to come up with two plans. Then the public gets a chance to respond before the legislature, called the General Assembly in Pennsylvania, votes on each plan. Disapproval of the plans would throw the merger issue into the laps of the state Board of Education.
For now, the plan is just that. A plan. With further study, it can become a real talking point, and that's where a merger study must lead. But Waber is right. Unless it can save money, lots of it, a merger won't be much use.
Rendell's school merger idea deserves a look
But skeptics who say it must show considerable savings make a strong point
February 23, 2009
Less is more. At least, that's what Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell is thinking in asking his state's Legislature to appoint a commission to study the merger of the state's school districts.
His heart is in the right place. Anywhere the state can save money, even by trimming Pennsylvania's 500 school districts, would sound like a proposal that could make taxpayers happy.
But wait. The governor has a number in mind. It's 100, and that means an ambitious consolidation that is likely to strip some districts of their unique identities as they move in with a larger family of schools. As well-intended as the governor's efforts are, he is asking state officials to tinker with one of the sacred areas that causes anxiety among residents, especially in rural areas where schools are as important to communities as their churches.
Theoretically, fewer districts and more efficiency should yield school systems that can apply their money toward higher quality. But theory doesn't carry as much weight as the political backlash that can hammer local legislators who might have to explain to voters why their district is losing its identity in a larger collection of schools.
Legislators such as Rep. Matt Baker, R-Wellsboro, agree with Wellsboro schools Superintendent Phil Waber that the issue is worth studying. And why wouldn't they say that? There's nothing to lose at this stage of the process, and certainly there's a wealth of information to be gained.
Plus, if the legislatively appointed commission actually produces reliable information that consolidations would save money, then the discussions could go from theory to fact. But as Waber correctly points out, unless any such plan includes school closings, there's not likely to be much savings.
The governor's plan has several steps to take before it even comes close to reality. First, there has to be a study commission that is expected to come up with two plans. Then the public gets a chance to respond before the legislature, called the General Assembly in Pennsylvania, votes on each plan. Disapproval of the plans would throw the merger issue into the laps of the state Board of Education.
For now, the plan is just that. A plan. With further study, it can become a real talking point, and that's where a merger study must lead. But Waber is right. Unless it can save money, lots of it, a merger won't be much use.
Next PTO Meeting: March 9
An email from one of our readers.
Last night, a PTO meeting was held at Grandview School and had the best turn out in years! Among the items discussed were the Move up Ceremony for the fourth and fifth graders and fundraiser ideas. We are bringing Popcorn Days back to children at Grandview starting this Friday the 27th and are planning some great fundraisers that will get more parents and the community involved. With the election of new officers to the PTO it will bring consistency and stability to the meetings and events. The next meeting is on March 9th at 7pm at Grandview.
Could you possibly post something of this to your readers-we would love some more support!
Last night, a PTO meeting was held at Grandview School and had the best turn out in years! Among the items discussed were the Move up Ceremony for the fourth and fifth graders and fundraiser ideas. We are bringing Popcorn Days back to children at Grandview starting this Friday the 27th and are planning some great fundraisers that will get more parents and the community involved. With the election of new officers to the PTO it will bring consistency and stability to the meetings and events. The next meeting is on March 9th at 7pm at Grandview.
Could you possibly post something of this to your readers-we would love some more support!
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
NCLB: The Teach to the Test Act?
From the New York Times
Rename Law? No Wisecrack Is Left Behind
By SAM DILLON Published: February 22, 2009
WASHINGTON — Two years ago, an effort to fix No Child Left Behind, the main federal law on public schools, provoked a grueling slugfest in Congress, leading Representative George Miller, Democrat of California, to say the law had become “the most negative brand in America.”
The little schoolhouse, front and back, at the Education Department building in Washington. A blog contest to rename the No Child Left Behind law has received entries like the Rearranging the Deck Chairs Act and the Teach to the Test Act.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan agrees. “Let’s rebrand it,” he said in an interview. “Give it a new name.”
And before Mr. Duncan has had time to float a single name, scores of educators, policy wonks and assorted rabble-rousers have rushed in with an outpouring of proposals.
The civil rights leader Marian Wright Edelman took the high road, suggesting it be called the Quality Education for All Children Act. But a lot of wise guys have gotten in on the act too, with suggestions like the All American Children Are Above Average Act. Alternatives are popping up every day on the Eduwonk.com blog, where Andrew Rotherham, a former Clinton administration official, is sponsoring a rename-the-law contest.
One entry, alluding to the bank bailout program, suggests that it be called the Mental Asset Recovery Plan. Another proposal: the Act to Help Children Read Gooder.
Part of the problem is that the law, which comes up for reauthorization every five years, became closely associated with President George W. Bush, and as his popularity slid, the law, and its name, came under attack and ridicule.
Jay Leno, for instance, pointed out in 2006 that Mr. Bush’s approval rating had dropped to 35 percent. “You know Bush’s No Child Left Behind program?” Mr. Leno said. “Now even the children left behind are going, ‘You go ahead, we’re fine.’ ”
The law dates to 1965, when Congress passed it to channel federal money to poor children in the war on poverty, calling it the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
By the early 1990s, a school accountability movement was gaining momentum. In the 1994 reauthorization, the Clinton administration required states to develop new math and reading standards, use more tests, and adopt a benchmark for school improvement known as “adequate yearly progress.” And it gave the law a new name: the Improving America’s Schools Act of 1994.
Most people clung to the original name, however, until Mr. Bush signed No Child Left Behind.
The phrase appears to be borrowed from Ms. Edelman, the founder of the Children’s Defense Fund, who throughout the 1990s seasoned speeches with the phrase “leave no child behind.” In 1994, the organization registered “Leave No Child Behind” as a trademark.
But as early as the mid-1990s, Mr. Bush, then the Texas governor, was routinely using similar phrases.
In 2000, the organization reminded the Bush campaign about its trademark, but those complaints were brushed aside. After Mr. Bush’s inauguration as president, he sent Congress a thick packet of education proposals to guide the law’s 2001 rewriting, titled No Child Left Behind.
Sandy Kress, a Texas lawyer who helped compile those proposals, said the phrase nicely summarized the president’s views, especially his provision requiring that authorities publish test scores for all minority groups, shining a spotlight on the low scores of poor students previously hidden by schoolwide averages.
Just about everyone praised that feature of the Bush-era law. But other provisions aroused opposition, including the requirement that every child be brought to proficiency in reading and math by 2014, which many educators said was like requiring law enforcement agencies to end all crime.
Nicknames for the law proliferated: No Child Left Untested, No Child’s Behind Left, No School Board Left Standing.
Since Mr. Rotherham announced his contest last week, Eduwonk has received 41 entries, including: the Double Back Around to Pick Up the Children We Left Behind Act, the Rearranging the Deck Chairs Act, the Teach to the Test Act and the Could We Start Again Please Act.
Rename Law? No Wisecrack Is Left Behind
By SAM DILLON Published: February 22, 2009
WASHINGTON — Two years ago, an effort to fix No Child Left Behind, the main federal law on public schools, provoked a grueling slugfest in Congress, leading Representative George Miller, Democrat of California, to say the law had become “the most negative brand in America.”
The little schoolhouse, front and back, at the Education Department building in Washington. A blog contest to rename the No Child Left Behind law has received entries like the Rearranging the Deck Chairs Act and the Teach to the Test Act.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan agrees. “Let’s rebrand it,” he said in an interview. “Give it a new name.”
And before Mr. Duncan has had time to float a single name, scores of educators, policy wonks and assorted rabble-rousers have rushed in with an outpouring of proposals.
The civil rights leader Marian Wright Edelman took the high road, suggesting it be called the Quality Education for All Children Act. But a lot of wise guys have gotten in on the act too, with suggestions like the All American Children Are Above Average Act. Alternatives are popping up every day on the Eduwonk.com blog, where Andrew Rotherham, a former Clinton administration official, is sponsoring a rename-the-law contest.
One entry, alluding to the bank bailout program, suggests that it be called the Mental Asset Recovery Plan. Another proposal: the Act to Help Children Read Gooder.
Part of the problem is that the law, which comes up for reauthorization every five years, became closely associated with President George W. Bush, and as his popularity slid, the law, and its name, came under attack and ridicule.
Jay Leno, for instance, pointed out in 2006 that Mr. Bush’s approval rating had dropped to 35 percent. “You know Bush’s No Child Left Behind program?” Mr. Leno said. “Now even the children left behind are going, ‘You go ahead, we’re fine.’ ”
The law dates to 1965, when Congress passed it to channel federal money to poor children in the war on poverty, calling it the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
By the early 1990s, a school accountability movement was gaining momentum. In the 1994 reauthorization, the Clinton administration required states to develop new math and reading standards, use more tests, and adopt a benchmark for school improvement known as “adequate yearly progress.” And it gave the law a new name: the Improving America’s Schools Act of 1994.
Most people clung to the original name, however, until Mr. Bush signed No Child Left Behind.
The phrase appears to be borrowed from Ms. Edelman, the founder of the Children’s Defense Fund, who throughout the 1990s seasoned speeches with the phrase “leave no child behind.” In 1994, the organization registered “Leave No Child Behind” as a trademark.
But as early as the mid-1990s, Mr. Bush, then the Texas governor, was routinely using similar phrases.
In 2000, the organization reminded the Bush campaign about its trademark, but those complaints were brushed aside. After Mr. Bush’s inauguration as president, he sent Congress a thick packet of education proposals to guide the law’s 2001 rewriting, titled No Child Left Behind.
Sandy Kress, a Texas lawyer who helped compile those proposals, said the phrase nicely summarized the president’s views, especially his provision requiring that authorities publish test scores for all minority groups, shining a spotlight on the low scores of poor students previously hidden by schoolwide averages.
Just about everyone praised that feature of the Bush-era law. But other provisions aroused opposition, including the requirement that every child be brought to proficiency in reading and math by 2014, which many educators said was like requiring law enforcement agencies to end all crime.
Nicknames for the law proliferated: No Child Left Untested, No Child’s Behind Left, No School Board Left Standing.
Since Mr. Rotherham announced his contest last week, Eduwonk has received 41 entries, including: the Double Back Around to Pick Up the Children We Left Behind Act, the Rearranging the Deck Chairs Act, the Teach to the Test Act and the Could We Start Again Please Act.
Making do with less
Editorial from the BCCT.
If this is editorial policy, how about having the reporters ask the tough questions like:
Why did/didn't you cut this program?
What is/is not affected?
How much does this save/cost?
Then, print the answers. If the answer is "I dunno", print that too. Be accountable all around, not just on the editorial page.
Making do with less
Hit with pay cuts and wage freezes, taxpayers have no choice but to cut back. School boards should follow their example.
It’s kind of like the Stockholm syndrome, that state of mind where a hostage becomes sympathetic to the hostage taker. We have in mind those hefty tax hikes school districts are proposing as part of their preliminary budgets.
Fortunately, preliminary budgets are state-mandated exercises that are frequently revised. So by the time a final budget is passed calling for a lower tax hike than originally proposed, taxpayers are thankful that their captors gave them a break.
In normal times, that sort of thing is almost tolerable. Indeed, taxpayers understand rising costs. But in case school officials haven’t noticed, these are not normal times. They are difficult times. Most taxpayers are feeling the financial pinch; many are hurting.
And so it’s unrealistic if not irresponsible for school districts to be discussing hefty tax increases while jobs are being lost, wages frozen and people generally are making do with a whole lot less.
In this area of the state, we’ve become spoiled by the overall high quality of education and haven’t always demanded that school boards knock off the spending binges.
A big part of the problem is the ever-rising cost of labor and school districts’ willingness to meet the unreasonable demands of teachers unions. Top-heavy administrations, with six-figure salaries, add to the burden — too often with school boards hardly batting an eye.
Act 1 was the state law that was supposed to put the brakes on school spending by requiring districts to seek voter approval for tax increases. But each year, districts can raise taxes a certain amount (this year, it’s 4.1 percent) without consulting the voters. In our view, 4.1 percent is excessive these days. But districts can exceed even that by filing for certain exceptions.
Act 1 has become a bad joke, and the taxpayers are the butt of it. School officials don’t help by piling on higher and higher expenses that they claim are absolutely vital.
There is certainly enough blame to spread around for the crisis in public education funding. The state has danced around the problem for years. And local school officials haven’t worked hard enough to bring their budgets in line with economic reality. That needs to change.
Certain “necessities” have to become “options” and certain “options” have to be scrapped, at least for the time being. In every district, labor agreements have to be scrutinized. Renegotiation shouldn’t be an unheard of practice.
In short, school districts have to get their spending under control before they bleed their taxpayers to death.
If this is editorial policy, how about having the reporters ask the tough questions like:
Why did/didn't you cut this program?
What is/is not affected?
How much does this save/cost?
Then, print the answers. If the answer is "I dunno", print that too. Be accountable all around, not just on the editorial page.
Making do with less
Hit with pay cuts and wage freezes, taxpayers have no choice but to cut back. School boards should follow their example.
It’s kind of like the Stockholm syndrome, that state of mind where a hostage becomes sympathetic to the hostage taker. We have in mind those hefty tax hikes school districts are proposing as part of their preliminary budgets.
Fortunately, preliminary budgets are state-mandated exercises that are frequently revised. So by the time a final budget is passed calling for a lower tax hike than originally proposed, taxpayers are thankful that their captors gave them a break.
In normal times, that sort of thing is almost tolerable. Indeed, taxpayers understand rising costs. But in case school officials haven’t noticed, these are not normal times. They are difficult times. Most taxpayers are feeling the financial pinch; many are hurting.
And so it’s unrealistic if not irresponsible for school districts to be discussing hefty tax increases while jobs are being lost, wages frozen and people generally are making do with a whole lot less.
In this area of the state, we’ve become spoiled by the overall high quality of education and haven’t always demanded that school boards knock off the spending binges.
A big part of the problem is the ever-rising cost of labor and school districts’ willingness to meet the unreasonable demands of teachers unions. Top-heavy administrations, with six-figure salaries, add to the burden — too often with school boards hardly batting an eye.
Act 1 was the state law that was supposed to put the brakes on school spending by requiring districts to seek voter approval for tax increases. But each year, districts can raise taxes a certain amount (this year, it’s 4.1 percent) without consulting the voters. In our view, 4.1 percent is excessive these days. But districts can exceed even that by filing for certain exceptions.
Act 1 has become a bad joke, and the taxpayers are the butt of it. School officials don’t help by piling on higher and higher expenses that they claim are absolutely vital.
There is certainly enough blame to spread around for the crisis in public education funding. The state has danced around the problem for years. And local school officials haven’t worked hard enough to bring their budgets in line with economic reality. That needs to change.
Certain “necessities” have to become “options” and certain “options” have to be scrapped, at least for the time being. In every district, labor agreements have to be scrutinized. Renegotiation shouldn’t be an unheard of practice.
In short, school districts have to get their spending under control before they bleed their taxpayers to death.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)