Bright and Early

Take a cue from Patrick Swayze: Instead of giving a goodbye speech, Terry Grier should just get up in front of San Diego Unified and do this. Honestly, Swayze, Michael Jackson and John Hughes in one summer — is mortality declaring war on my childhood?

Oh well. Time to soldier on through your daily newsblitz:

• We blog on two bits of news at San Diego Unified: Deputy Superintendent Chuck Morris is departing along with Terry Grier and the schoobrary plans are still inching along, even if nobody knows who is running the schoobrary.
• Schools will learn today whether they made the grade under No Child Left Behind. We’re sworn to secrecy — embargos and all — but check back here for an update after 9 a.m.
• The North County Times reports that student enrollment dropped in several school districts in the area. It could be the economy, but people are also chalking up enrollment gains to the economy because people may be pulling their kids out of private schools and putting them in public school.
• A tip for the Los Angeles Times: I may be one of the few readers who gets excited about a story headlined “Obscure database is key to U.S. educational funds for California.” Nonetheless, this is an important article about how the way in which the Golden State tracks data on students and their achievement, the political battles over it and how that could impact whether the state gets more school stimulus money. California just passed a law to allow that data to be used to evaluate teachers — but that may not go far enough for the feds.
• A teachers union president takes on the reforms pushed by Obama and his education czar Arne Duncan in the San Francisco Chronicle. He argues that unions aren’t against reform: “What we oppose are reforms based on the latest bright idea that has caught the eye of a politician or pundit with no experience teaching.”
• School boards in Santa Clara County are beginning to respond to grand jury findings on their pay and benefits and they are not amused What could put them on the defensive about a report with the subtle title, “Who Really Benefits From Education Dollars? Hint: It’s not the students”?
• There’s a nice reflection from a longtime teacher on the Oakland Tribune schools blog. Surprise! She says things have gotten a lot better in public schools: fewer middle schoolers smoking, better dental care and the disappearance of “the complete nonreader.”
• The New York Times writes about a teachers union report on school districts hiring teachers from abroad. California is one of the top applicants for foreign teachers, it found. It also noted some worrisome practices used by recruiters. Jay Mathews of the Washington Post gives some more details and says school boards and citizens should pay attention.
• NPR reports on a documentary that followed two school principals for a year. The film airs Tuesday night on PBS — here’s a link to the trailer and more about the documentary.

— EMILY ALPERT