On Our "Virtual Route 66" This Week: On Education Watch

Our team was on the prowl this week as Campus Protests Surged throughout the United States in support of Palestinians.  As we went to press today, UC Irvine had an encampment to force divestment.  Our team will continue to assess as teachers throughout California continue to be in a state of flux with this snapshot courtesy of the team at EdSource: 

As protests surge across college campuses, student journalists report from the front lines

By Betty Márquez Rosales & Mallika Seshadri, EdSource

Student journalists are central to the reporting of historic national student protests, at times providing round-the-clock coverage and, increasingly, doing so under threats of arrest and violence. Read more

Hundreds of teachers in limbo after spike in pink slips

Almost 2,000 teachers across California received notices they might be laid off this year, a huge increase compared to last year. School districts are facing budget cuts, with federal Covid relief funding expiring, enrollment declining and state funding leveling off. With California experiencing an ongoing teacher shortage, what is the impact of this flood of pink slips on schools and teachers?

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California education news: What's the latest?

Protests at Cal Poly Humboldt led to arrests, suspensions, job insecurity At least 27 campuses have had Pro-Palestinian protests

Upcoming Roundtable Getting California kids to read: What will it take? May 14 at 3:30 p.m.

Fewer than half of California students are reading by third grade. Even fewer Black and Latino students meet that standard. While the state has taken some steps to get all kids to grade level, there is no comprehensive plan. Districts decide how reading is taught and many use instruction deemed ineffective. What’s standing in the way of ensuring all kids, including English learners, read by third grade? SAVE YOUR SPOT

This week’s stories from EdSource

JUVENILE JUSTICE How California's juvenile justice system changed since shutdown of state facilities By Betty Márquez Rosales | Read more COLLEGE & CAREERS Police break up encampment, disperse protesters on UCLA campus By Betty Márquez Rosales | Read more ADULT EDUCATION When you can't read a medicine bottle: California immigrants struggle with low English literacy By Emma Gallegos | Read more INTERACTIVE MAPS AND INFOGRAPHICS Californians without high school education by county By Yuxuan Xie | Read more LESSONS IN HIGHER EDUCATION: CALIFORNIA AND BEYOND Amid Israel-Hamas war, colleges draw lines on faculty free speech By Michael Burke and Corey Mitchell, Center for Public Integrity | Read more CALIFORNIA'S READING DILEMMA Dissent, no funding yet for statewide teacher training in math and reading By John Fensterwald | Read more ADMINISTRATORS West Contra Costa responds to complaints filed over teacher vacancies By Monica Velez | Read more

Our picks from other sources

Police report no serious injuries. But scenes from inside UCLA camp, protesters tell a different story By Connor Sheets, Richard Winton, Jason Armond, Safi Nazzal, and Brittny Mejia, Los Angeles Times, May 3

What’s next for Cal Poly Humboldt students, faculty and administration after campus protest? By Jenavieve Hatch, Sacramento Bee, May 3

College students are protesting schools’ ties to Israel. Here’s why. By Kim Bellware, Washington Post, May 3

College student explores rare mental health condition in award-winning podcast By Elissa Nadworny and Janet W. Lee, NPR, May 2

California Republicans want to take financial aid from protesters if they were violent By Alexei Koseff, Calmatters, May 2

Who were the masked men behind the UCLA camp attack? Online sleuths vow to find out By Brittny Mejia, Jessica Garrison, and Matt Hamilton, Los Angeles Times, May 2

Also of interest

PK-12 Educational Hybrid Employment Fair: The Los Angeles County Office of Education, Tulare Office of Education and California Center on Teaching Careers are holding the PK-12 Educational Employment Fair on May 18, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. This event will feature both in-person and virtual attendance options, with registration required. Be prepared for potential online interviews or onsite interviews at LACOE’s Education Center West Building, located at 12800 Ardis Avenue, Downey, CA 90242. More than 30 education agencies are looking for candidates to fill job openings including Glendale Unified, Los Angeles Unified School District, Orange County Department of Education, Long Beach Unified, San Gabriel Unified and many more. Whether you're seeking a teaching or non-teaching role, inquire about open educational employment positions in Southern California. Find more information and register here. Labor-management conference: June 24-26. The California Labor-Management Initiative invites school districts to send teams to the annual conference in San Diego to hear from experts and exemplar districts, and discuss opportunities to build labor and management teams in difficult times. Teams should include the superintendent, HR director, certificated and classified union leaders and a school board member. School teams also can attend. Go here to register and learn more. UCD Davis C-STEM (Computing-STEM) Professional Development/Computer Science Supplementary Teaching Credential Program: Summer 2024. With over a decade of experience in providing professional development for K-12 teachers, UC Davis C-STEM has been training teachers without any prior coding experience on computer science and integrating the discipline into STEAM education. C-STEM offers fun, hands-on, and project-based PD. In Summer 2024, UCD C-STEM is offering professional development at UC Davis and UCR. More info here.

On Our "Virtual Route 66" (April 2024 M-End Edition): On Leadership & Change

The Top 10 Leadership Posts I Read The Week Of April 22nd Do you want to get better as a leader?  Do you want to get smarter and be better equipped to do with your daily leadership challenges?  Then DO NOT MISS this week's Top 10 list! You will learn from great writers like Ryan Hawk, Seth Godin, Polina Pompliano, Michael Lombardi, and more!!! Click HERE to read The Top 10 Leadership Posts I Read The Week Of April 22nd. Also, I wrote a popular post on the leadership lessons from the top 20 picks of the NFL Draft. Click HERE to read Leadership Lessons From The 2024 NFL Draft. If you missed this site's articles from the last week, here's your chance to catch up.  Read the following: 7 People Your Community Trusts MORE Than Your Church Staff 3 Leadership Lessons From Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham, Soccer’s Fastest Rising Star 10 Ways Veteran Leaders Can Become A Statesmen, Pass The Baton, And Successfully Transition To An Advisory Role 5 Stories Giving Us 5 Lessons About Handling Unexpected Threats

#OutsiderVibes (Special Edition): Mark Felt - The Man Who Brought down the White House

On Our Virtual Route 66 This Week: On Education Watch

 

Anxious California teachers with pink slips await word on jobs next school year

By Diana Lambert, EdSource

Budget shortfalls have led 100 California school districts to issue layoff notices to 1,900 teachers. Read more

COMMENTARY Community college faculty should all be allowed to work full time By Alexis Moore, former visual art professor, and Jack Longmate, former member of the Washington Part-Time Faculty Association Read more

Plagued by delays and errors, California's colleges navigate FAFSA fiasco

Financial aid and admissions officers across California’s colleges and universities are navigating longer hours and more stress, as they deal with unprecedented havoc in this year’s rollout of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid form. Hear from financial aid workers as they help students and their families navigate the application morass. Why has California seen heavier impacts from the FAFSA delays? And what is the state doing to mitigate the fallout?

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California education news: What's the latest?

Group of Latina moms from Sacramento advocate for improved student achievement San Diego Unified approves affordable housing project with 327 rent-restricted units California makes strides toward universal preschool access Are young children suspended from school too often?

Our picks from other sources

During test-optional college admissions, exam-prep companies still thrived By Sam Becker, BBC, April 17

‘Let her speak!’ USC campus reels after valedictorian’s speech is canceled By Caroline Petrow-Cohen, Angie Orellana Hernandez and Jaweed Kaleem, Los Angeles Times, April 18

College is hard enough — try doing it while raising kids By Jon Marcus, The Hechinger Report, April 18

Report: Cost of College, Stress Pushes Students to Consider Stopping Out By Ashley Mowreader, Inside Higher Ed, April 18

Also of interest

How One School District Is Making Equity Work: In the latest Sparking Equity podcast, host Pedro Noguera, dean of USC Rossier School of Education, and Executive Producer Louis Freedberg visit Glen A. Wilson High in Hacienda La Puente School District, outside of Los Angeles. Under Supt. Alfonso Jimenez, a comprehensive equity strategy has close the achievement gap while raising achievement for all students without conflict. Go here for Spotify, here for Apple or wherever you listen to podcasts. Inside California Education: In the latest episode of the Inside California Education TV series produced by PBS KVIE, explore a unique housing program in Los Angeles that serves students previously experiencing homelessness, meet NASA Aerospace scholars in Contra Costa, discover how an organization called Umoja is creating community on campuses, and see how students throughout California can reduce their student loan debt through the volunteer College Corps program. Watch here. California's Teacher Education Program "Deserts": April 23 at noon. The UCLA Center for the Transformation of Schools hosts a webinar on research that profiles nine rural border counties in California that have limited access to Teacher Education Programs (TEPs). These counties, which CTS researchers classify as “TEP deserts”, face unique challenges in recruiting and retaining highly qualified teachers. Register here. Making the Numbers Work: Building a Paid Teacher Residency Program That is Sustainable and Strategic Within Your District Budget: April 24. Learn how strategic teacher residencies models work toward our goals to diversify the future teacher pipeline for our increasingly diverse student populations, work to strengthen the learning experiences of our new teachers, and work within existing district budgets, especially as many are facing shortfalls this year. Go here to register. 2024 Birth to 12th Grade Water Cooler Conference: Join Catalyst California (formerly Advancement Project California) in Sacramento on April 24th and 25th for their Birth to 12th Grade Water Cooler Conference: Bridging Systems to Center Racial Justice for Children and Families. The first in-person Birth to 12th Grade Water Cooler Conference in nearly five years, you will be among other advocates, community leaders, students, and policymakers from across California to discuss the issues impacting early childhood and K-12 education. Register here. Science of Reading & Multilingual Learners: May 7. Research has revealed much about how students learn to read, but the science of reading is not always reflected in literacy materials and classroom practice. This is especially true for multilingual learners (MLLs) who are experiencing a profound literacy opportunity gap. Join the English Learner Success Forum to learn from top researchers, practitioners, and state and local leaders on what they see as the components of a quality literacy curriculum for MLL success. Learn more and register here. Labor-management conference: June 24-26. The California Labor-Management Initiative invites school districts to send teams to the annual conference in San Diego to hear from experts and exemplar districts, and discuss opportunities to build labor and management teams in difficult times. Teams should include the superintendent, HR director, certificated and classified union leaders, and a school board member. School teams also can attend. Go here to register and learn more. Apply To Be State’s Student Board Member: The California State Board of Education is accepting applications for the 2025-26 Student Board Member position. It is open to any California resident enrolled in a public high school who’ll be a senior in  2025-26. The person must commit to at least two consecutive school days every other month for board meetings and sufficient time to review the agenda materials in advance. The state will pay a $100 stipend per day plus travel expenses. To watch a former student board member talk about his experiences, go here. The deadline to apply is Sept. 20. For more information and to apply, go here. THE REVIEW The Antisemitism Hearing Forgot About Academic Freedom By Len Gutkin Plus: On “folx,” and “Ashkenormativity.” BACKGROUNDER How Faculty Discipline Played a Key Role in the Congressional Hearing on Columbia U. By Sarah Brown, Sonel Cutler, and Alecia Taylor In the hearing, on Columbia’s response to alleged antisemitism and pro-Palestinian protests, lawmakers asked its president whether professors would be punished for comments on the war. TEACHING An Overlooked Way Professors Can Be Role Models By Beckie Supiano Revealing unseen parts of their identities could help science instructors show students what’s possible for them, a researcher says. VIDEO What Counts as a Rural College? Watch our explainer to better understand how researchers and policymakers are defining rural colleges, and why it is important to support these institutions. ATTACK ON DEI I Kentucky Governor Signs Bill Eliminating Race From Higher-Ed Funding Model The Republican-backed legislation signed by Gov. Andy Beshear, a Democrat, would bar the state’s Council on Postsecondary Education from considering the student body’s racial makeup at public colleges and universities as part of the council’s performance-based funding model. The new law is part of a surge in anti-DEI legislation in the states. (Lexington Herald-Leader, The Chronicle) ATTACK ON DEI II Kansas’ Higher-Ed Board Adopts Anti-DEI Policy After Pressure From GOP Legislators The Board of Regents prohibited requiring prospective students, potential hires, and employees seeking promotion to disclose their views on diversity, equity, and inclusion, but did not specify penalties. Lawmakers approved a similar policy with a $10,000 fine for violations, and voted to withhold $36 million in funding unless the board dropped such requirements. (Associated Press, The Chronicle) ACCESS All State Prisons in Maryland to Get Higher-Ed Program Through University Partnership The state’s Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services is teaming up with the 12-campus University System of Maryland in a program that will allow incarcerated people to earn bachelor’s degrees and credit-based certificates by using Pell Grants, for which they recently became eligible. (The Baltimore Sun, The Chronicle) NEWSLETTER Sign Up for the Teaching Newsletter Find insights to improve teaching and learning across your campus. Delivered on Thursdays. To read this newsletter as soon as it sends, sign up to receive it in your email inbox. SPECIAL OFFER FOR NEW SUBSCRIBERS Enjoying the newsletter? Subscribe today for as low as $59. Take advantage of our limited- time savings event and get unlimited access to essential reporting, data, and analysis. VIRTUAL EVENTS: TUNE IN LIVE RURAL COLLEGES Building the Rural Work Force UPCOMING: May 1, 2024 | 2 p.m. ET. Learn how rural colleges can team up with small-town employers to provide technical training in manufacturing, health care, engineering, and agriculture. With Support From Ascendium. Register here. STUDENT SUCCESS Making Sure Students Are Prepared for College