Dear Friend of MeckEd,

As of last Friday there have been more than 40 bills introduced in the North Carolina House and Senate related to PreK – 12 education. I encourage you to visit www.ncleg.net and bookmark this site for future reference. Here is a quick recap of some of the more interesting bills:

• HB 144: Would provide a $1,250 tax credit per semester for parents of children who are homeschooled
• HB 146: Would require cursive writing and multiplication memorization to be in the standard course of study
• HB187: Would allow Forsyth County private school employees with concealed carry permits to carry a gun
• HB 269: Would provide $3000 grants to disabled children whose parents choose to homeschool them

On the Senate side:

• SB 12: Would authorize the Governor to appoint the State Superintendent
• SB 42: Would make charter schools part of a state government unit
• SB 59: Would allow local sheriffs to develop a training program for armed guards in K-12 schools

MeckEd is committed to providing you with informed and objective information about these rapid changes that will ultimately affect many children, families, and communities.

Read the complete March 20th e-Newsletter

Dear Friend of MeckEd,

MeckEd is raising money to help a talented, college-bound MeckTech student intern pay for transportation to and from an internship. The student has no access to personal transportation and public transportation would result in a two-hour commute each way. We need your help to ensure this student has the opportunity to complete this vital internship that will provide the student with the necessary skills to be better prepared for college and the workforce. Your support at any level will make a tremendous impact in this student’s future!

Help us reach our goal! Learn more, and Donate here.

Read the complete March 13th e-Newsletter

Dear Friend of MeckEd,

Last week, 10 North Carolina superintendents from the state’s largest school districts, which make up 43 percent of all public school students in the state, sent a letter to the General Assembly asking elected officials to reject efforts to spend taxpayer dollars on private/parochial school tuition vouchers, tuition tax credits, and education savings accounts. These superintendents suggested such public policy would only cause an increased segregation of poor, minority, and disabled children in underfunded traditional public schools. MeckEd will continue to provide you with the latest news from Raleigh as legislation is debated that may change the face of public education in our state. Read letter here.

Read the complete March 6th e-Newsletter

Read this week’s For Your Consideration

Dear Friend of MeckEd,

In the past two weeks, there were two impactful Charlotte events that placed the importance of education front and center. The first event was the second-annual TEDxCharlotteED conference, which highlighted 12 speakers who spoke to a crowd of more than 100 participants. While the topics were varied, the underlying theme was clear—innovation and creativity must be encouraged and implemented if America is to remain a leader in the international arena. And while technology is certainly an important part of all future education initiatives, effective teachers, equity, and access for all children are also critical factors tied to all future successes or failures.

The second event was the Global Competitiveness Summit II. The GCS II brought together more than 400 business leaders, educators, and elected officials to not only look into what the future may hold, but to also discuss how Charlotte is poised as a region to be a significant international economic player. There is one underlying question that no one seems to be able to answer at this time: Will the Charlotte region be able to provide a qualified workforce? Will our current PreK-12 and higher education systems currently in place be able to mesh effectively with the private sector and government to make the systemwide changes needed to ensure long-term economic prosperity and a reduction in the unemployment rate?

Read the complete February 27th e-Newsletter

Dear Friends of MeckEd,

MeckEd believes there will be much discussion in the General Assembly over the next few months around public education with regard to potential public policy changes that could be far-reaching and change the face of public education as we know it today. Issues such as changes to teacher tenure law; vouchers/education savings funds; how the state superintendent is chosen; armed, locally appointed safety marshals; and deregulation for some school districts to have more flexibility are all on the table. MeckEd will provide you with the most current, factual, and objective analysis of these developments as they occur.

Read the complete February 13th e-Newsletter

MeckEd prides itself on providing you with the most up-to-date information about public education on a local, state, and national level. This past week, MeckEd hosted the first of two Community Conversations about charter schools in Mecklenburg County. Regardless of how you feel about these nontraditional, publicly funded schools, this event provided a platform for civilized discussion. The second Community Conversation about Mecklenburg charters schools will be held on February 19th. Learn more here.

Interactive Data Maps of CMS – Teacher Turnover, Student Attendance, and Suspension Rates

This week, MeckEd is featuring Interactive Data Maps of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, which display several sets of data, including teacher turnover rates, student attendance rates, and suspension rates. I also encourage you to take a look at our other Interactive Maps featuring high school data, student proficiency data for all schools, and Mecklenburg County charter school data. It is MeckEd’s goal to inform and engage all education stakeholders in our community with objective, nonpartisan, and easily accessible data for all schools within CMS.

Read the complete February 6th e-Newsletter

This week MeckEd is featuring Interactive Data Maps of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools that display student proficiency data for all elementary, middle, and high schools. MeckEd believes in informing the community with factual, objective data that will allow individuals to form their own opinions. We hope these interactive maps will be a great resource for you, and we encourage you to share these maps with friends and colleagues who are also interested in the importance of high-quality public education in the Charlotte community. Please note these maps also display data from the last three school years to help you observe trends within individual schools.

Read the complete January 30th e-Newsletter

View Interactive Data Maps of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools

Dear Friend of MeckEd,

Last night, the CMS Board of Education unanimously approved year-round calendars for four Project LIFT schools—Druid Hills Academy, Thomasboro Academy, Bruns Academy, and Walter G. Byers School—that will take effect in the 2013-14 school year. Druid Hills and Thomasboro will add 19 school days to their calendars, and Bruns and Byers will have a 180-day calendar like the rest of CMS, but have breaks spread out over the year. This step to increase instructional time for students in order to reduce summer learning loss could be especially impactful in high-poverty schools where students often have fewer summer enrichment activities. Read more.

Read the complete January 23rd e-Newsletter

Provide your input on CMS’ Budget Survey

Provide your input on CMS’ Task Force Feedback Survey

Dear Friend of MeckEd,

Last week MeckEd published our interactive data maps of Mecklenburg Charter Schools that highlight student proficiency, student demographics, and other important data for local charter schools. This week, MeckEd is publishing updated (2011-2012 data) interactive data maps of all Charlotte-Mecklenburg high schools. Use the maps to learn student proficiency, graduation rates, SAT scores, and more data. Stay tuned for more updated interactive data maps of CMS next week!

Read the complete January 16th e-Newsletter

View updated Interactive Data Maps of CMS

Dear Friend of MeckEd,

Happy New Year! In the past few months much of the local, state, and national news about public education has been less than stellar, and we have had little to cheer about. I am pleased to report we have some significantly good news to share with you. In December 2012, two major international research studies—TIMMS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) and PISA (Progress in International reading Literacy Study)—published their four-year findings and reported U.S. math and science achievement is now exceeding the world average.  While this news does not erase the fact that the United States has a long way to go in closing the achievement gap compared to several East Asian countries, there is some very encouraging news from North Carolina—in particular, our 4^th grade TIMMS reading scores, when compared to other countries. It is unfortunate that this news and data has received scant attention from the local and national media, but it is good news and indicates our elementary schools are trending upward.

Read more: U.S. Math, Science Achievement Exceeds World Average

Read the complete January 9th e-Newsletter