About Public Schools

School cafeteria food has never been a particularly gourmet experience, but parents can at least rest assured the food their children are eating at school is relatively fresh and safe, right? Maybe not. Recent reports about two different school districts suggest that some systems are not as vigilant about food expiration dates as they should be. We'll take a closer look at these expired food allegations and find out what the districts in question are now doing to ensure a safe fare is served to their student body daily.

This video reports on expired food being served in Douglas County schools.

Outdated Food Raising a Ruckus in Boston

Boston schools are currently investigating allegations that the cafeterias may be offering students food that has gone long past its expiration date. According to a report at Boston.com, Councilor at Large John Connolly began his investigation after receiving reports about expired food in some schools around the Boston area. Connolly checked the kitchens of four different schools to see if the reports had any substantial basis. As a result of his personal research, he showed up at a recent City Council meeting with nine photos of food in school cafeterias that had been reportedly frozen for up to two years. This timeframe goes well beyond USDA's freezer storage guidelines and raised serious concerns with educators and parents alike.

After the City Council meeting,

When kids are hungry, they can't learn, according to many education experts today. To combat the problem, many school districts offer free or reduced-costs meals to kids who might not get three square meals a day at home. Most schools across the country offer free lunches to low-income students and a few offer breakfast and dinner options as well. Now, Chicago plans to expand their free breakfast program to all students in the Windy City, offering options kids can munch during the first few minutes of their school day.

Expanding on a Current Program

Last week, Chicago's school board voted to allow a sweeping new program that would provide free breakfast to the city's 410,000 students in public schools, according to a report in the Chicago Tribune. The new state-run program would expand the current federally funded one that provides free breakfast to kids from low-income families. The current program, dubbed "Breakfast in the Classroom," is available to about 199 public schools in the district. The new plan hopes to expand the program to an additional 299 schools, most of which have at least 80 percent of their students qualifying for free or reduced price lunches.

Under the new program, students will be able to grab a bag of breakfast items before heading into their classrooms at the start of the day. Students will be given 10 minutes to eat their breakfasts before learning time begins. In the schools that currently use the program,

Amidst the heated debate surrounding charter vs. traditional schools, one conclusion has been clear: charter schools may only be as good as the laws that govern them. To find out which states offer the best environment for charter school growth and development, the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools issues an annual report on the best – and worst – state charter laws in the country. The results for 2010 were recently printed in the 2011 NAPCS State Charter Law Ranking Report and we have the highlights of the findings below.

What is the NAPCS?

The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools is considered the leading nonprofit organization committed to the success of charter schools throughout the country. The goal of this organization is to "increase the number of high-quality charter schools available to all families, particularly in disadvantaged communities that lack access to quality public schools," according to the organization's website. To achieve this purpose, the NAPCS provides information about the current state of charter schools across the country, including this report on the state of charter laws in every state.

In this video, the Executive Director of The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools explains how the organization works.

The NAPCS website reports that significant legislative changes were made in various states during 2010. These changes made it easier for charter schools to perform at top levels,

Many education and business experts agree that Chinese is the language du jour if the United States hopes to compete in a global marketplace that is significantly dominated by the PRC. However, the number of students learning this language in school isn't adding up to what some perceive as the demand for more Mandarin-speaking Americans. To help create a more diverse climate, Chinese immersion charter schools are opening across the country, with hopes to teach children one of the most difficult languages at a very young age. We'll take a look at some of these charter schools, including those already in operation and those hoping to launch in the not-so-distant future. Here is an overview of this type of school.

Why Chinese?

It is no secret that China has one of the most robust economies across the globe today. To compete with this country, most agree that we need to better understand them. According to an op-ed piece in Newsweek, training a culturally-savvy workforce is something that other countries understand much better than the United States does. For example, Chinese is the second-most-popular language in Japan and South Korea. In the United States, Chinese is down in the fifth spot for foreign language instruction.

Multi-lingual students are not restricted to Asia, either. In Europe, most children learn a second, third or fourth language while they are still in elementary school. Students in the

Local schools and charter schools have historically clashed in many school districts. Local schools have complained that charters take away district funds and promote competition that has no place in the public school system. On the other hand, charter schools counter the fact that they typically receive less funding than other local schools, even though they are also considered public schools.

The District-Charter Collaboration Compact

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is addressing this conflict directly at its source by providing financial incentives for charter and local schools to work together for the benefit of the students they serve. The District-Charter Collaboration Compact was designed by the foundation to encourage these two groups to find new and creative ways to work together to raise the bar on the standard of education in their communities. Schools that prove they can work well together will be rewarded with grants from the foundation that will go to providing access to consultants and advisors that will help them improve the quality of education across the board.

Vicki L. Phillips, director of education, College Ready, at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, said in a press release on the foundation's website, "Traditional public schools and public charter schools share a common goal of preparing all students for future success. Too often, issues not tied to academic outcomes can make it difficult for schools and teachers to have the opportunity to learn from each other and build upon successful practices,