{"id":568844,"date":"2010-05-18T15:56:45","date_gmt":"2010-05-18T19:56:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/illinoiseducationassociation.org\/?p=7992"},"modified":"2010-05-18T15:56:45","modified_gmt":"2010-05-18T19:56:45","slug":"in-the-news-may-18","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/568844","title":{"rendered":"In the News ~ May 18"},"content":{"rendered":"

Below are<\/strong>\u00a0links to news stories of interest from\u00a0newspapers that came up during a search\u00a0today.\u00a0\u00a0These links were active at the time of this e-mail, but should you want to save a story, printing it or cutting and pasting the entire article and saving it to\u00a0your computer is recommended<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

State News\u00a0 \"\"<\/em><\/h2>\n

\u00a0Belvidere middle schoolers protest in Springfield<\/a>\u00a0 Seventy Belvidere Central Middle School students went to Springfield on Friday to protest the lack of state payments to Belvidere School District 100. Attending with the backing of parents and support of educators, the students discovered their 12- and 13-year-old voices could be heard, said student Jonathan Coulter.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n

District 204 reaches tentative teacher contract agreement<\/a>
\nChicago Daily Herald – Indian Prairie Unit District 204 and its teachers union have reached a tentative agreement on a two-year contract, officials said Monday. District and Indian Prairie Education Association officials would not discuss details of the proposed pact. But sources familiar with the negotiations said the first year of the contract calls for a freeze on all salary\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

D204, teachers reach tentative agreement :: Fox Valley Villages Sun :: News<\/a>
\nSuburban Chicago News – School District 204 has reached a tentative agreement with its teachers for a new contract. In an e-news message sent to residents Monday afternoon, the Board of Education and the Indian Prairie Education Association announced they reached a tentative agreement on a new two-year contract. District and union officials would not offer specific details of the agreement until they are present\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

D204 approves ‘Plan C’ for music <\/a>
\nSuburban Chicago News – In a 5-2 vote, the board approved Plan C, which calls for each student involved in instrumental activity to pay a $108 fee to help fund the cost of bringing back some of the music staff members that previously had been laid off. Doing so increases the technique class instruction that was cut under the earlier proposals.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Tentative U-46 teachers pact keeps salaries flat, increases class sizes<\/a>
\nChicago Daily Herald – The tentative one-year contract for Elgin Area School District U-46 teachers would keep salaries flat and increase both class sizes and case loads. Teachers, according to a PowerPoint presentation on the Elgin teachers’ Association website, would receive no base salary \u2026\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Parents question district’s expenses, results<\/a>
\nAlton Telegraph –\u00a0 Parents are looking for answers as to why students’ test scores are the lowest in the region and yet the East Alton School District’s operating expenses are the highest. “I’m concerned, because teachers are going to be laid off, yet there are no plans to cut administration costs,” said Brendan McKee, a concerned parent.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

School board\u2019s tentative budget has $4.6M deficit<\/a>
\nSpringfield State Journal Register – Meanwhile, the district has more pressing money matters to attend to. Its projected deficit for the fiscal year that begins July 1 could be worse if state government doesn\u2019t keep education funding at least level with this year, which was propped up with millions of federal stimulus dollars that are no longer available. Although Gov. Pat Quinn has proposed an income tax\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Rockford schools out in cold on state’s vow to pay<\/a>\u00a0 Illinois school districts found out last week that millions of dollars promised in fiscal 2002 are finally on the way, although none of it is coming to the Rock River Valley.\u00a0 The Capital Development Board promised the money as part of school construction in which the state and each district would split the cost of a project.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

State owes Kewanee schools $791,000<\/a>
\nKewanee Star Courier – school breakfast and lunch programs, bilingual services and so on. Sullens noted that the state legislature went home earlier this month without approving a budget. Now, it\u2019s up to Gov. Pat Quinn to come up with a budget, and that might not happen until July. Until then, schools won\u2019t really know where they stand financially, Sullens said.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n

District 65 plan outlines 3 financial scenarios, proposed budget cuts<\/a>
\nEvanston Daily Northwestern –\u00a0 about the district\u2019s financial situation despite a looming budget deficit of up to $5.8 million. Several board members praised the administration for its plan for proposed budget cuts at a school board meeting Monday night. \u201cInitially I was very stressed out and worried about this budget when it first hit,\u201d member Andrew Pigozzi said. \u201cWhere the budget stands today\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Schools prepare for worst<\/a>\u00a0 With the school year winding down in Southern Illinois, many district officials remain unsure of what their financial situation will be when students return in August.\u00a0 Superintendents across the region are waiting for solid numbers in the state budget to materialize.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Naperville Dist. 204 fighting to keep payroll tax<\/a>\u00a0 The State Journal-Register\u00a0– ?The Illinois tax code has proved to be too tough for Indian Prairie Unit District 204 and its president, Curt Bradshaw, so officials are going to fight to …\u00a0<\/p>\n

District 26 may outsource busing<\/a>
\nChicago Daily Herald – may be the next area to feel the effects of the district’s recurring budget deficit. In an effort to balance the district’s budget and get off the state’s financial watch list, the District 26 school board is considering outsourcing transportation. Because the bids have not come back yet, no estimate is available on how much the district could save by hiring a company to bus the district’s\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Let’s hear alternatives to voucher plan<\/a>\u00a0 By The Pantagraph Editorial Board\u00a0 – Legislators who voted against a bill to provide vouchers for students in the worst of Chicago\u2019s public schools cited a variety of reasons for their negative votes. In the end, the voucher plan had too much going against it. Teachers unions were against what they saw as a threat to their jobs. Downstate residents were against what they saw as a gift to Chicago that left out their children.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

High school hoops team wants out of national immigration debate<\/a>\u00a0 The heated debate over a decision not to allow an Illinois high school basketball team to play at a tournament in Arizona is cooling off with word that the girls are going to Florida instead.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

5 vying to lead Chicago teachers<\/a>
\nChicago Sun Times – A packed field of five candidates will vie for the presidency of the Chicago teachers Union later this week amid extraordinarily tense times: a record Board of Education deficit, plans to raise class size to 35 and the prospect of salary concessions.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Salutes in order as regional education office abolished<\/a>
\nChicago Daily Southtown – That’s why it was with particular pride that the SouthtownStar watched as the Suburban Cook County Regional Office of Education was eliminated this week. The now-defunct office oversaw, in theory, teacher certifications, bus driver training, background checks and other services for 144 school districts in suburban Cook County.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Cure could be worse than illness<\/a>
\nChampaign News Gazette – Unfortunately, legislators’ proposed cure ultimately may make things worse.\u00a0 Both the Senate and House passed by overwhelming margins a bill authorizing universities to borrow money to help pay operating costs.\u00a0 Noting the irony, state Sen. Matt Murphy, a Republican from the suburbs, spoke out vehemently against the measure.\u00a0 “Here we are with a ticking time bomb, once again. And what’s the solution? Borrow more money,” he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Loans may help SIUE meet payroll<\/a>
\nBelleville News-Democrat – A bill on Gov. Pat Quinn’s desk may solve SIUE’s problems meeting payroll, but at a cost. \u00a0Last week, the state legislature approved a bill that Southern Illinois University President Glenn Poshard lobbied for,\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gov. Quinn at Harper graduation ceremony:<\/a>\u00a0 Chicago Daily Herald\u00a0– ? Pat Quinn will deliver the commencement address at the Harper College graduation ceremony, at 2 pm Sunday, May 23 on the college’s main campus in Palatine. …<\/p>\n

Political News <\/em><\/h2>\n

Quinn foresees fast budget work in Springfield<\/a>
\nQuad Cities Dispatch Argus Leader – SPRINGFIELD – Illinois lawmakers are going to cut it close, but Gov. Pat Quinn said he’s confident they will have a budget by this month’s deadline. The Illinois General Assembly adjourned May 7 without coming to terms on a state spending plan. On Monday, Quinn said \u00a0<\/p>\n

What’s Left To Debate In Springfield?<\/a>\u00a0 Progress Illinois (blog)\u00a0–\u00a0 \u00a0Yesterday, we offered<\/a> a glimpse of what’s in store for lawmakers when they reconvene next week to hash out a state budget deal. The state’s spending plan, however, isn’t the only issue left on the docket. Both chambers still have some important bills to consider and Gov. Pat Quinn has to decide whether or not to sign some of the big-ticket items that the General Assembly has already passed. Here are a few things to keep an eye on:\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

A taxing debate in the Rhubarb Patch: Where does Illinois go from here?<\/a>\u00a0 We have seen Greece, and it is us.\u00a0 When Greek mobs were rioting over government austerity measures needed to secure sufficient international loans to keep the country afloat, the discussion on CNBC immediately turned to whether the indebtedness contagion would spread to the United States.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Quinn blames prison board for early releases<\/a>
\nSpringfield State Journal Register – Gov. Pat Quinn criticized the Prisoner Review Board over the weekend for the early release of a man now charged with murder, but he ignored a vital fact: While he says the board should have ordered\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

CAPITOL FACTS: Brady TV on the air<\/a>
\nStreator Times-Press – labor unions, which give lots of campaign cash. If he hadn’t backed House Speaker Michael Madigan’s pension reform plan and stuck to the Senate Democrats’ negotiations with the Illinois Federation of teachers instead, he almost assuredly would’ve had the money to be up on the air right now. But those unions are in no mood to give. You can almost sense the panic with the governor,\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Brady begins Chicago campaign assault<\/a>
\nQuad Cities Dispatch Argus –\u00a0 The Republican state senator from Bloomington is taking to the broadcast and cable airwaves to let Chicagoland residents know his plan for Illinois’ economy. The 30-second spot blasts Gov. Pat Quinn’s “big government policies” and takes aim at his proposed 33 percent income tax increase. “(Quinn) thinks government growth is more important than ours,” Brady says\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n

Giannoulias pushes to end ‘don\u2019t ask, don\u2019t tell’<\/a>\u00a0 CHICAGO \u2014 Democrat Alexi Giannoulias, who\u2019s running for President Barack Obama\u2019s old Senate seat, launched a petition drive Monday to repeal the “don\u2019t ask, don\u2019t tell” policy for gays in the military.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n

Blagojevich jurors will be anonymous, says judge<\/a>
\nCrains Chicago Business –\u00a0 was convicted in June 2008 of fraud, money laundering and bribery in connection with an alleged $7 million scheme to shake down a contractor and money managers seeking to do business with a state teachers pension fund. His sentencing has been postponed indefinitely.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

State audit raps Blagojevich for legal costs<\/a>\u00a0 A new report from the state auditor general’s office says former Gov. Rod Blagojevich spent millions to hire outside lawyers, often without seeking bids for the best price. He also charged the legal costs to other state agencies instead of the governor’s office.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Blagojevich knew Rezko was talking, feds say<\/a>\u00a0 CHICAGO — Prosecutors say former Gov. Rod Blagojevich considered naming himself to President Barack Obama’s former Senate seat because he knew convicted fixer Tony Rezko was talking and believed he could find himself under indictment as a result.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Our View: Organ donation shouldn’t be a state mandate<\/a>
\nDeKalb Daily Chronicle – We do not support a bill filed in the state General Assembly that would require Illinoisans to prove that they do not wish to be organ donors. If the bill becomes law, the legislation would mandate that everyone in Illinois is an organ donor upon their death unless they decide to opt out. While well-intentioned, this legislation goes beyond anything that government should mandate.<\/p>\n

National News <\/em><\/h2>\n

White House Blog: Time for Bold Action to Save Teachers<\/em>‘ Jobs<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

?(Melody Barnes, News, National)<\/p>\n

\u201cAs the President has said, we live in a global economy where the greatest job qualification isn’t what you can do but what you know.\u00a0 Our teachers are vital to our nation\u2019s success and if we don\u2019t act now and act boldly, we will not only endanger the future of tens of millions of students but threaten to undermine the recovery of our economy.\u201d<\/p>\n

New York Times: The Teachers<\/em>‘ Unions<\/em>\u2019 Last Stand<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

(Steven Brill, Op-Ed, National)<\/p>\n

\u201cMichael Mulgrew is an affable former Brooklyn vocational-high-school teacher who took over last year as head of New York City\u2019s United Federation of Teachers<\/a> when his predecessor, Randi Weingarten<\/a>, moved to Washington to run the national American Federation of Teachers<\/a>. Over breakfast in March, we talked about a movement spreading across the country to hold public-school teachers accountable by compensating, promoting or even removing them according to the results they produce in class, as measured in part by student test scores.\u201d<\/p>\n

Washington Post: Study says more students struggling with reading at end of pivotal<\/em> <\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

(Michael Alison Chandler, Ed Blog, National)<\/p>\n

\u201cNearly two-thirds of students in Virginia and Maryland do not read proficiently by the time they finish third grade, a pivotal milestone when material becomes more complex and children are more likely to slip behind, according to a national report released Tuesday.\u201d<\/p>\n

The New York Post: Bill raps the cap<\/em> <\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

(Carl Campanile, News, New York)<\/p>\n

\u201cRatcheting up the pressure on Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, former President Bill Clinton <\/a>yesterday urged the state Assembly to pass legislation to lift the cap on charter schools.\u201d<\/p>\n

TIME.com Today’s Top Stories<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Primary Tuesday: Sending the Bums the Right Message<\/a><\/p>\n

Nothing has the potential to cleanse the body politic as fully as the sacking of incumbents and establishment favorites<\/p>\n

Some Success in the Gulf \u2014 and Trouble in Washington<\/a><\/p>\n

On Sunday, BP managed to thread a mile-long tube into the broken oil pipe in the Gulf of Mexico to siphon about 1,000 barrels of oil a day to a drilling ship. But criticism continues to build against the oil company — and in Washington<\/p>\n

A Sunni Awakening: Not So Easy in Afghanistan<\/a><\/p>\n

An attempt to use an Iraqi solution to insurgency backfires when members of a tribe receiving U.S. funding start shooting at each other<\/p>\n

Cell Phones and Cancer: a Study’s Muddled Findings<\/a><\/p>\n

Do cell phones cause brain cancer? A long-awaited study of cancer risk and cell-phone use poses more questions than it answers<\/p>\n

White Dog Rising: Moonshine’s Moment<\/a><\/p>\n

Artisanal moonshine is the liquor of the moment for the same reason absinthe was a few years ago. Because it’s delicious. Because it’s illegal. And because it’s cool\u00a0<\/p>\n

In primaries, a bellwether for November<\/strong><\/a>
\nTuesday’s crucial primary elections in Pennsylvania, Kentucky and Arkansas have drawn extraordinary attention from politicians and strategists in both parties who are eager to read an unsettled electorate.
\n(By Dan Balz, The Washington Post)<\/p>\n

The euro may keep falling even if debt crisis subsides<\/strong><\/a>
\nLONDON — The once-mighty euro, which briefly plunged to a four-year low against the dollar on Monday, may be doomed to keep falling whether or not European leaders can contain the region’s roiling debt crisis.
\n(By Anthony Faiola, The Washington Post)<\/p>\n

Increase in health tests, procedures is raising costs in frugal Utah<\/strong><\/a>
\nPROVO, UTAH — If there is any place that should have medical spending under control, this is it. Residents of Provo, many of them Mormons who don’t smoke or drink, are among the healthiest in the country. The city’s biggest hospital is run by Intermountain Healthcare, which President Obama has l…
\n(By Jordan Rau, The Washington Post)<\/p>\n

Justices restrict life terms for youths<\/strong><\/a>
\nJuveniles may not be sentenced to life in prison without parole for any crime short of homicide, the Supreme Court ruled yesterday, expanding its command that young offenders must be treated differently from adults even for heinous crimes.
\n(By Robert Barnes, The Washington Post)<\/p>\n

The oil rig’s forgotten few<\/strong><\/a>
\nEUNICE, LA. — Keith Jones lingered outside the imposing doors of St. Anthony’s Catholic Church debating whether to step into the memorial service inside. Earlier, back at the funeral home, Jones had introduced himself to the family of Blair Manuel, one of the 11 victims of the oil rig explosion…
\n(By Lonnae O’Neal Parker, The Washington Post)<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Word of the Day for Tuesday, May 18, 2010<\/em><\/h1>\n

tipple<\/strong> \\TIP-uhl\\, verb<\/em>:<\/p>\n

1.<\/strong> To drink intoxicating liquor, esp. habitually or to some excess.
\n2.<\/strong> To drink (intoxicating liquor), esp. repeatedly, in small quantities.<\/p>\n

noun<\/em>:
\n1.<\/strong> Intoxicating liquor.
\n2.<\/strong> A device that tilts or overturns a freight car to dump its contents.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Below are\u00a0links to news stories of interest from\u00a0newspapers that came up during a search\u00a0today.\u00a0\u00a0These links were active at the time of this e-mail, but should you want to save a story, printing it or cutting and pasting the entire article and saving it to\u00a0your computer is recommended\u00a0 State News\u00a0 \u00a0Belvidere middle schoolers protest in Springfield\u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4160,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-568844","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/568844","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4160"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=568844"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/568844\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=568844"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=568844"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=568844"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}