Now, Boston with $400,000 of foundation support will expand their Pilot Schools program by reducing regulations on another series of schools. Schools will be freer to make program changes, alter staffing configuration, control staffing and determine budget allocations. This move long known in the trade as site based decision making often ends up as a tepid non-event because central offices (and often unions) will not support delegation of authority to that degree.

The only hope for new kinds of schools lies with alternatives of various kinds. However, a full blown program of the type Boston proposes has possibilities of bringing reform into a school district. Time will tell whether the bureaucracy smothers another reform.

-Philosophical frameworks
-Legislation
-Litigation
-Policy
-Funding of advocacy
-Working conditions
-Innovations
-Race, class and achievement
-Impact on traditional education

A good summary of the topics. The study provides hope for the future of alternatives but raises cautions.

The focus of the study is on alternative schools and programs that serve students who are at risk of educational failure, as indicated by poor grades, truancy, disruptive behavior, suspension, pregnancy, or similar factors associated with early withdrawal from school. The study presents a snapshot of alternative schools and programs for at-risk students during the 2000–01 school year.

Remember, this is for labeled at-risk students. There are other types of alternative schools. Furthermore, we question the emphasis on the "deficits" of the student and ought to raise questions on the deficits of a system that did not adequately respond to student needs and turned to separating students into programs serving at-risk youth.

The Magnet Schools of American will hold its annual conference in Chattanooga, TN April 28-May 1, 2008.

The Michigan Alternative Education Organization will hold its annual conference April 30-May 2, 2008 in Kalamazoo.

The National Coalition of Alternative Community Schools will hold its annual conference May 15-18, 2008 in Paonia, Colorado.

The National Charter Schools Conference will be June 22-25, 2008 in New Orleans.

AERO will hold its 5th annual conference June 26-29, 2008 in Troy, NY.

The International Democratic Education Conference (IDEC) will hold its annual conference August 11-18, 2008 in Vancouver, Canada.

The Community Day School Network (California) will hold its annual conference Jan. 11-13, 2009 in Fresno, CA.

The Iowa Dept. of Education and the Iowa Association of Alternative Education created the Inventory of Policies & Practices Related to Student Failure and Dropping Out defining over 50 policies and practices that contribute to student failure. This powerful tool helps in the review of school policies and in creating new policies to increase student success. This carefully developed inventory is free and can be modified to fit local needs. Also included is a student questionnaire for their views.

Dr. Ray Morley on a recent webcast (see below) reported on this excellent tool on crucial factors impacting student dropouts and what unfortunately may result in "push outs."

Information about participating in dropout professional development opportunities is at www.dropoutprevention.org/webcast. If you have further questions, feel free to contact the National Dropout Prevention Center or 864•656•2580. Participation in their monthly webcasts is free and no registration is required.

Brady is one of the most thoughtful and clear educators writing today. His article appeared in Educational Leadership (Feb., 2008, pp 54-67). The issue contains other thoughtful articles calling for schools to ramp up thinking skills--in my view, a terrific objective but unlikely to be achieved in today's environment.

Of the ten major goals of schooling (basic academic skills, critical thinking and problem solving, social skills and work ethic, readiness for citizenship and community responsibility, foundation for lifelong physical and emotional health, appreciation of the arts and literature, and preparation for work) only two or three areas are systematically assessed. We're left to guess about the rest with considerable doubt about their achievement. In addition, national measures, such as they are, show the familar gap between black and white students.

This thought-provoking double-spaced 27 page report will be a foundation for an upcoming book.

It describes Earthwatch, travel, overseas, military service, special academic programs, apprenticeships, internships, volunteer work, online and distance learning, deferred admission, part-time work, trades–-a partial list of what is available in this excellent resource, which is based extensively on interviews with young people, college administrators, teachers, guidance counselors, parent/caregivers, demographers, and career specialists.

See the complete book review below.

That’s not what a school is supposed to be. School is supposed to be full of hope, and it’s a place where you go to find out how magical your mind is and how terrific it will be when you develop your mind to its full potential."

This quote by Ruth Simmons begins the report Student-Centered High Schools: Helping Schools Adapt to the Learning Needs of Adolescents. It states that schools must serve student needs for: voice, belonging, choice, freedom, imagination and success. A fine, readable 12 page report from Brown University with excellent references.

Their website contains a host of other information including state by state ranking of charter school laws and other general education reform news and policy information.

- International Mind, Brain and Education Society initiated at Harvard University but now independent.
- Centre for Neuroscience in Education at the University of Cambridge, UK.
- Learning Lab at the University of Aarhus, Danish University of Education, Copenhagen.

In addition, an online forum discussion enables interaction for interested people and scholars

A celebrated pending case is the Bruce Randolph School in Denver. A new principal worked collaboratively with staff to increase student learning and made progress. Now the staff wants to make more changes but continuously runs into cumbersome district and union procedures. They petitioned the district for greater leeway in decisions. The district school board unanimously agreed. Despite an urgent appeal to the teacher union, it has yet to agree to changes. Now Colorado legislators may take those decisions out of the hands of districts and unions by granting schools site authority over decisions through "innovation zones."

This cry for greater freedom by school staffs to make decisions has a long history. For a time, site based management was the reform movement. But that turned out to be hollow as districts agreed to the words but not the intent and schools still had to play, "Captain, May I."

Some districts have forged ahead with school site management. The most famous is Edmonton, Canada where all 190 schools control their budget, staffing and program. Boston has its Pilot schools, New York and Chicago are experimenting with giving successful schools autonomy. Sadly, however, there is little progress to report on this decades-old promising reform. Tradition and top-down management have fierce holds on education with few signs of changing those controls. That becomes the main drive for teachers and principals starting charter schools in states with charter school laws granting school autonomy.