Should schools abandon the practice of ranking in class?
47% No
53% Yes

Total Votes: 249

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The formula for college admission back in the day was clear: high grades, high SATs, leadership positions in student activities, and high class rank. The combination wouldn't guarantee admission, of course, but a deficiency would often shut the door to your first-choice school. Now it seems college admissions offices and high schools are taking another look at the traditional practice of class ranking. School officials recognize that, as a recent Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel article reports, class rank sometimes distorts a student's complete profile and, as a result, colleges are de-emphasizing the statistic and some high schools are abandoning the practice altogether.

Is class ranking a practice that has outlived its utility? Pleae respond to this week's Principal's Poll at www.principals.org and leave your comments below. (Poll is now closed.)

Posted by Bob Farrace at 10:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) issued guidance on September 16 that could leave many students in urban and suburban areas without a means of getting to and from school.

The final policy statement seeks to clarify interpretation of the FTA’s school bus operation regulations regarding “tripper service,” which is regularly scheduled mass transportation service that is designed or modified to accommodate the needs of school students and personnel. At issue is a court case in Rochester, NY, where the mass transit system created 240 new express school bus routes proposed to serve the Rochester City School District and its students. The FTA felt that the city transit system went too far in restructuring its system, and expressed concern that another transit system “could conclude that it would be permitted to restructure its public transportation operation dramatically to accommodate the needs of a local school district and its students, thereby displacing private school bus operators and their employees.”

Under the policy, “tripper service” would be narrowly defined to include:

• Modifications to fare collection or subsidy systems;
• Modifications to the frequency of service; and
• De minimus route alterations from route paths in the immediate vicinity of schools to stops located at or in close proximity to the schools.

When the proposed policy statement was announced in May, NASSP, the American Association of School Administrators, the National School Boards Association, the Council of the Great City Schools, and the American Public Transportation Association sent joint comments expressing our concern with the position taken by the FTA. Our organizations argued that the proposal “would add unplanned costs to local school districts budgets and disrupt schedules for high schools and some middle schools based on planned bus schedules so late in the summer that school districts would be hard pressed to make alternative transportation plans.” In addition, there was no evidence presented by FTA regarding the effect on the quality or safety of transportation for students, which we felt should be given the highest consideration.

Although the FTA guidance went into immediate effect, there is a slim possibility that Congress may take legislative action on this issue next year. NASSP would like to hear from any members whose students have been personally affected by the new policy so we can share that information with federal policymakers. Please contact Amanda Karhuse, NASSP director of government relations, at karhusea@principals.org or 703-860-7241.

Posted by Amanda Karhuse at 03:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

On September 17 the House of Representatives passed a bill that would allow more funds to flow to low-income schools to improve school safety.

The School Safety Enhancements Act (H.R. 2352) would allow more low-income schools to participate in the Secure Our Schools (SOS) program by lowering the local matching grant requirement to 20%, and increasing the federal share to a maximum of 80%. The bill would also authorize $50 million annually for SOS grants. In addition, the bill would add to the list of allowable uses of grant funds by including a hotline for students and others to report dangerous incidents. Currently funds may be used to help schools pay for metal detectors, lighting, locks, security assessments, training for administrators, students, and teachers, coordination with law enforcement, and other measures designed to improve school safety.

For more information and to apply for SOS grants, visit http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/Default.asp?Item=240.

“Whether it is fighting terrorism or working to keep our schools free of violence, I have always believed that the government's first responsibility is to protect the people. Our government must help to ensure that our children are safe and protected from violence of any kind in school. I am proud to report that this Congress has taken another step to ensure a safe learning environment for our children by passing my School Safety Enhancements Act,” said Rep. Steven Rothman (D-NJ), the bill’s sponsor.

The bill now goes to the Senate where it awaits consideration. Information on when the bill might be voted on is not yet available.

Interested in school safety issues? Visit www.principals.org/safety for a host of resources on school climate, crisis prevention and management, harassment and bullying prevention, and substance and drug abuse prevention.

Posted by Mark Ames, NASSP Gov't Relations Mgr at 12:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Environmental education advocates have long argued that the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act has pushed environmental education out of the classrooms—and now a federal bill plans to put it back into schools. The No Child Left Inside (NCLI) Act (H.R. 3036) would authorize $500 million over five years to nonprofits and state departments of education to support outdoor learning activities both at school and in non-formal environmental education centers. The bill would also support teacher training and the creation of state environmental literacy plans. As part of the package, NCLI would reauthorize $14 million in FY 2009 for the National Environmental Education Act.

NCLI was created to not only get students more acquainted with nature and the complexities of issues like global warming, but to also get them moving. "I think it's responding to a number of anxieties out there, especially childhood obesity and the environment,” said the bill’s sponsor Rep. John Sarbanes (D-MD). “The next generation is the one that's going to make or break us as a planet.”

The bill supports developing state environmental literacy plans for the purpose of aligning environmental education activities with graduation requirements; ensuring smooth integration of environmental literacy across the curriculum; ensuring consistency in promoting content knowledge; and engaging underserved communities for equal opportunity. However, states would not be mandated to develop such plans; instead, the bill would provide expanded environmental education opportunities in school systems nationwide, according to the NCLI Coalition. Some states, like Maryland and Oregon, aren’t waiting for the bill to pass—they’ve already begun developing environmental literacy programs of their own.

NCLI grants could be used to do the following:
• Develop and implement challenging state academic content standards, student academic achievement standards, and state curriculum frameworks in environmental education
• Provide instruction on waste reduction, reuse, recycling, and compost programs
• Create middle school and high school curricula to address issues of environmental justice in which low-income communities are disproportionately affected by certain environmental problems
• Develop state environmental literacy plans
• Devise ways to increase the number of elementary and secondary environmental educators.

In mid-September the bill was passed in the House of Representatives with strong bipartisan support. The bill now goes to the Senate, where it awaits action.

School leaders can get involved now by hosting No Child Left Inside Days in their schools and districts. Visit www.cbf.org/ncli to download an action packet with suggested outdoor activities, and to track the bill in Congress.

Written by Sarah McKibben, NASSP NewsLeader editor.

Posted by Mark Ames, NASSP Gov't Relations Mgr at 01:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

What is the best indicator of readiness for college? (Final results)

13% High school GPA
61% Performance in high-level high school classes
13% SAT or ACT scores
  3% Middle level GPA
  9% Other (please comment)

Total Votes: 150

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Who is ready for college--and how can we know? A few releases in the past couple of weeks have examined the question. An Ed in '08 study highlights the amount of remediation incoming college freshmen require--an assessment that's riddled with challenging issues. And more recently, a group of college admissions officers gathered to encourage a heavier reliance on high school curriculum tests and a lesser reliance on SAT and ACT scores.

Oddly, no one has asked educators--who are in the best position to judge--what the best indicators are for college success. So we'll ask. If you haven't taken this week's Principal's Poll at www.principals.org, please visit and leave your preferred indicator as a comment if you don't see it in the list. (The poll in now closed, but please leave your comments on the results.)

Posted by Bob Farrace at 12:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

The American School Health Association (ASHA), National School Boards Association (NSBA), National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP), and the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) today joined together to create one voice to urge Senator Harry Reid to schedule time for a vote on the Senate floor for S. 625, the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which would give the FDA authority to regulate the tobacco industry.

These associations agree that S. 625’s restrictions on advertising, marketing and sales of tobacco products to children would dramatically improve the protection of our youth’s health.

“Children are the most vulnerable and susceptible to advertising gimmicks,” said Anne L. Bryant, executive director of NSBA. “Each day at our nation’s schools, there are 4,000 young people under the age of 18 who try smoking for the first time simply because tobacco companies continue to send them the message that smoking is okay.”

“Congress has the power right now to stop those messages,” said Dr. Gerald N. Tirozzi, executive director of NASSP. “NSBA and NAESP are encouraging the U.S. Senate to pass S. 625 because we cannot wait for Congress to act while more and more children and young adults try tobacco products.”

The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed H.R. 1108 and the organizations are hoping that the Senate will pass S. 625 now that they have returned from recess. The legislation would provide a national approach to insulating children from the $36-million-a-day advertising initiatives of the tobacco industry by:

· Limiting advertising, marketing and sales of tobacco products to children;

· Banning the sale of flavored cigarette varieties;

· Requiring more meaningful warning labels;

· Mandating disclosure of the ingredients in tobacco products and providing authority for the FDA to remove harmful ingredients;

· Banning use of descriptive items on cigarette packs such as “Mild” or “Low Tar”.

For more information on each of these associations please visit www.ashaweb.org, www.naesp.org, www.principals.org, and www.schoolhealth.nsba.org.

Posted by Amanda Karhuse at 01:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Is hiring teachers from overseas good for U.S. schools?
Final results

35% Yes
65% No

Total votes 258

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To fill teacher shortages, particularly in areas like science, math, and special ed, districts are looking more and more to countries like the Phillipines and India to staff schools with skilled instructors, reports USA Today. Some critics, however, believe that turning to international hires is a "quick fix" and without the proper support and mentoring, these new teachers may not stay.

So which is it? If you have not already done so, please take this week's Principal's Poll at www.principals.org and leave your thoughts below on the impact on schools you believe hiring overseas teachers will have. (The poll is now closed, but please leave your comments below.)

Posted by Bob Farrace at 01:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

Final Results 
What's your biggest resolution for the new school year?

63% To spend more time observing teachers
10% To make more time for my own professional growth
21% To spend more time with beginning teachers
  4% To attend more school activities
  3% Other (please comment)

Total Votes: 126

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The new school year is here, and everyone--including the principal--benefits from the atmosphere of renewal. You get a do-over, after all. All those things you wanted to try at the beginning of the last school year cn drop right into place now, and you resolve that this will be the year X happens. I resolve to spend more time on what's important, not urgent. To spend more time in classrooms. To attend more school activities. To mentor beginning teachers. To network more actively with principals of feeder schools. And on. And on.

If you haven't taken this week's Principal's Poll at www.principals.org, please take a moment to do so and let us know which resolution is at the top of your list. If you don't see your resolution listed, please include it as a comment below.

Posted by Bob Farrace at 02:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)