Local School Topics

Student truancy is a problem for many school districts across the country, impacting student performance and even the amount of funding schools receive. Some schools in Texas think they have found a way to address the problem directly, by requiring students to wear special badges that allow school administrators to monitor their whereabouts. While school officials call the new tracking cards a boon to student safety and attendance, some parents and students have voiced concern over whether schools are going too far in violating student privacy.

Monitoring Programs Introduced in San Antonio, Austin

The Huffington Post reports that the Northside Independent School District in San Antonio has distributed the special ID cards to all of its students as part of a pilot program dubbed the “Student Locator Project.” The identification cards contain a microchip that allows teachers and staff to track students while they are on school property. Currently, the project is underway at two Northside schools: Jay High School and Jones Middle School. The program impacts around 4,200 students between the two schools.

The new tags use radio frequency identification technology (RFID) for the tracking mechanism. In a notice sent out to parents, district officials stated the RFID tags would be used to make schools safer, identify the location of students, and increase school revenue. The cards are to be used as general student identification cards as well. ID cards must be presented for various functions on school campuses, such

The District of Columbia is a popular place for charter schools, with these institutions taking in about 41 percent of the city’s public school students. However, that percentage appears to be a tenuous one, as reports of high numbers of expulsions have recently begun to surface. With expulsion rates significantly higher than the rest of D.C. public schools, some educators in the city have begun to question the motives behind the actions. And while charter schools are disputing some of the data, no one seems to know for sure exactly how many students are kicked out of the city’s charter schools once they enroll.

Numbers are In, Concerns are Raised

The Washington Post recently conducted an in-depth piece on how expulsion rates at D.C. charter schools compared with the rates of other public schools across the city. The report was based on data released by the D.C. Public Charter School Board, which showed charter students were expelled at rates as high as eight percent in some charter schools. Charter schools expelled approximately 72 students for every 10,000 in the schools. At the same time, other public schools in the city expelled one student for every 10,000.

Not all of the charter schools in D.C. expelled students, leaving those that did with even higher percentages. Another Washington Post article reported that Friendship Collegiate Academy-Woodson, a charter high school, expelled eight percent of its student body during the 2010-2011 school year. In addition,

The New Year may see more than the return to school for New York City’s students. It may also usher in a school bus strike that threatens to leave thousands of New York students without transportation to and from every day. While a school bus strike is far from imminent, according to most accounts, concerns over a strike have continued to grow throughout the city as parents, students, and city officials wait to see how the rising conflict will shake out.

City Bids Spark Strike Threats

The city’s decision to solicit bids for lower contract rates from bus companies is at the core of the controversy. The bids were launched at the impending termination of the current contract with school bus drivers, which is scheduled to expire in 2013. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg told CBS New York and other media channels the bids were necessary to reduce transportation costs for the school system. However, current bus drivers said the city is not promising to protect the jobs of current drivers based on seniority as it goes through the process of cutting costs.

CBS New York reports that New York City currently spends around $1 billion on the transportation of around 152,000 students daily. That number had increased significantly over the last three decades when the cost of bussing students was around $7.1 million. The 1,100 busses that currently run throughout the city are operated by 52 private companies, according to the New

In the aftermath of the tragedy that struck Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut last month, a stream of hoax threats was received by school districts across the country. District officials took those threats very seriously, however, launching investigations and school lockdowns nationwide with the intent of protecting students at all costs. In Florida, threats made by a bank employee and a student both resulted in action by school and district officials. However, the handling of those threats raised the eyebrows – and the ire – of some of the individuals involved.

Threats Circulate Social Networks

WLRN reports that a number of phony threats surfaced in Florida shortly after the Connecticut shootings. Many of those threats were circulated on social websites like Facebook, according to some of the students that reported the threats. However, officials were unable to verify the threats through this medium, since the posts appear to have been deleted before officers were alerted. At least a portion of those threats were posed against schools in Coral Springs, Pompano Beach and Davie.

WOGX also reported on threats received throughout the state, in the counties of Brevard, Seminole, Orange, and Volusia. At one prep school in Orlando, authorities were called when a woman carried a sword onto school property. Police departments across the state said that every threat received was taken very seriously in light of recent events in Connecticut. That meant several area

Education is one of the most important components to breaking the cycle of poverty across the United States. In Colorado, one school district is taking that theory to heart by providing its own students with basic supplies to ensure a successful education experience. Whether the family needs food, clothing, or even a home of their own, Denver Public Schools is available to provide much-needed assistance to students and their families within the district. In some cases, the school system is the first line of assistance to struggling families moving into the city come in contact with.

The Need Grows

According to a report at CBS Local, Denver Public Schools has around 2,000 homeless students this year, which translates to about one homeless child in every classroom. That number marks a 30 percent increase for the current school year alone – an alarming statistic that has left homeless shelters filled to capacity and required some families to live out of their cars because there is no more room for them at city shelters. Filling the needs of these families is no easy task, but the Education Outreach Program through Denver Public Schools has been doing its best to help those struggling families find relief.

Still, homeless students have more than their share of challenges. According to Bridges 4 Kids, 14 percent of homeless students have to repeat a grade due to moving to a new school, as opposed to only five percent