Alexander Russo

Kudos to LA Times education reporter Howard Blume for getting a hold of a 44-page memo outlining a massive $490 million charter school expansion plan being floated by the Broad Foundation and others. LA is a competitive market when it comes to education coverage, and scoops like these are increasingly hard to come by. Far […]

Group Led By Billionaire Proposes Overhaul Of LA Public Schools NPR: A memo obtained by the Los Angeles Times reveals a controversial plan to put half of the city’s public school kids in charter schools. Renee Montagne talks with Times education reporter Howard Blume. See also LA Times, KPCC LA. Brown signs $500m teacher training bill SI&A Cabinet Reoprt: Brown signed legislation Tuesday […]

In case you missed it at first (as I did), Jane Williams’ weekly education news radio show Bloomberg EDU isn’t back for another year. Launched in 2011, the show wrapped up this past spring.   It’s not that there aren’t lots of other things to listen to about schools these days. Christine Schneider from Education Cities […]

Scott Walker Suspends Presidential Campaign After Late Anti-Union Push PK12: In what turned out to be his last major campaign push, Walker this month had once again played up his opposition to unions. See also State EdWatch. $490-million plan would put half of LAUSD students in charter schools LA Times: The timing of the charter plan is troubling, said Randi […]

Politico New York is reporting that The Seventy Four, Campbell Brown’s new education news and advocacy site, is paying editors and reporters from $90-200,000 per year, based on tax filings it obtained. I don’t know what fulltime education journalism staff positions pay these days, but that seems like a lot of money. It’s also reminder […]

It was easy to look past Larry McQuillan these past few years. He’d smile at you at a conference but he wasn’t pushy about talking or getting attention. His ten years in education communications were for AERA and AIR not a hotshot new organization.  He wasn’t even a working journalist — any more. But his […]

Why Aren’t Democratic Presidential Contenders Talking About K-12 Policy? PK12: Democratic contenders for the White House have focused on early-childhood education and college access, but not said much about K-12 policy. Seattle teachers ratify contract Seattle Times: With approval of the contract with Seattle Public Schools, the strike, which was suspended, now officially ends. Homework: A New User’s […]

BEST OF THE WEEK Chicago Public Radio: The Education of Jose Garcia: Part 1 http://ow.ly/ShHDT  Slate: How the juvenile justice system eats kids for breakfast. http://ow.ly/SiZSp  Hechinger Report: can u fix education w/ txts? http://ow.ly/ShHoS The Atlantic: Will School Discipline Reform Change Anything? http://ow.ly/SpdT7 New Yorker: When A Neighborhood School Goes Away http://n.pr/1M1vzRe School Choice and the Chaotic […]

The Boston Globe’s new, expanded education team is now complete: The first story out of the gate is this piece about a Boston teacher’s attempt to get to know his Haitian students by traveling to their home country. The new team includes Jeremy Fox (covering education since April), James Vaznis (who’s been on the beat […]

School Begins in Seattle NYT: Thousands of Seattle students started the school year Thursday after it was delayed by a weeklong teachers strike. See also Seattle Times, Seattle Public Radio. Illinois test results plummet under new Common Core exams WBEZ Chicago: In elementary school, where students are tested in grades 3 through 8, between 33 percent and 38 […]