http://blog.asumag.com/schoolhouse_beat Just another WordPress weblog Tue, 22 Jul 2008 16:55:03 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The cost of building schools, like most things lately, is climbing. That’s especially true in Massachusetts, where the escalating cost of the new Newton North High School ($197 million at last report) has drawn plenty of attention. The state’s treasurer, Timothy P. Cahill, who also doubles as chairman of the ... http://blog.asumag.com/schoolhouse_beat/2008/07/18/design-dilemma/ Boston Mayor Thomas Menino wants Boston College to pay the city the $424,000 it will lose in taxes if the college converts a high-rise apartment complex to student housing. School officials say they will discuss the mayor’s request with him, but they point out that the university provides ... http://blog.asumag.com/schoolhouse_beat/2008/07/11/make-good/ When a private management firm takes over operation of a public school, who is responsible for safety on campus? That’s the question that arose recently in a Pennsylvania court, when Edison Schools Inc., contended that it was not responsible for the safety of students at one of the schools it ... http://blog.asumag.com/schoolhouse_beat/2008/07/07/whose-responsibility/ The University of Scranton is trying to block a local pizzeria from opening a dance club and bar in its basement, The Scranton Times-Tribune says. The school has filed an appeal to overturn a city Zoning Board decision allowing the restaurant to expand. The school says it’s concerned the ... http://blog.asumag.com/schoolhouse_beat/2008/06/30/pizza-but-no-dancing/ The Philadelphia School Reform Commission is removing outside managers of six public schools and putting the campuses back under the control of the city sc hool district, The Philadelphia Inquirer says. The six that are returning to district control are Gillespie, Harrity, Potter-Thomas, Stetson, Dunbar and Fitzsimons. The schools have ... http://blog.asumag.com/schoolhouse_beat/2008/06/23/private-failures/ In the Clinton County (Mo.) district 40 miles north of Kansas City, some parents are upset about the district’s plan to use a finger-scanning system to keep track of students’ lunch accounts, The St. Joseph News-Press says. Officials say the biometric system will be more efficient and eliminate the ... http://blog.asumag.com/schoolhouse_beat/2008/06/16/fingered/ Last month, two women from the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Houston gave a presentation on Islam to about 875 seventh and eighth graders at Friendswood (Texas) Junior High School. After many parents objected to the presentation, the district has removed the principal from the school and reassigned to ... http://blog.asumag.com/schoolhouse_beat/2008/06/09/understanding-islam/ UPDATE: Good news for Anjali. The Dallas Morning News reports that The University of Texas has awarded a her Dedman Distinguished Scholarship, which awards $13,000 per academic year for four years. ————————————————————– Many schools choose the valedictorian of their graduating class based on the highest grade point average. In some cases, students ... http://blog.asumag.com/schoolhouse_beat/2008/06/02/150/ In the Orange County (Fla.) district, like many across the country, the daily schedule for schools has been along these lines: High schools start first, elementary schools a little later in the morning, and middle schools later still. Large districts stagger the start times mainly so that buses can be ... http://blog.asumag.com/schoolhouse_beat/2008/05/23/flip-flop/ The Wildcats, as millions of tweens and teens know, are the singing and dancing kids from Disney’s High School Musical and High School Musical 2. Now they’re making High School Musical 3, which means the house they’re in is East High School in Salt Lake City, where filming takes place. Some ... http://blog.asumag.com/schoolhouse_beat/2008/05/14/wildcats-in-the-house/