Education
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Wednesday Must Reads: Assembly Speaker Perez Rewarded Big Fundraisers; Brown’s Budget Boosts Spending for Schools, But Nothing Else
People / Education / Environment Robert Gammon — Wed, May 15, 2013 at 7:00 AM
Stories you shouldn’t miss:
1. Speaker John A. Perez rewarded politicians who raised the most funds to help elect more Democrats last year with prime jobs in the Assembly, the Center for Investigative Reporting reports. In all, Perez’s efforts pumped $5.8 million into campaigns to help Democrats win a super-majority in the Assembly. And then Perez handed out choice positions to the biggest fundraisers. San Diego Democrat Toni Atkins donated the most money — $282,000 — and Perez made her Assembly majority leader. Most of the cash raised by Democrats came from special interests with business in front of key committees in the Assembly.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Tuesday Must Reads: Brown to Propose Big Boost in Education Spending; Feds to Probe Bay Bridge Bolt Scandal
Media / Education / Transportation Robert Gammon — Tue, May 14, 2013 at 6:55 AM
Stories you shouldn’t miss:
1. Governor Jerry Brown will propose a major boost in education spending later this week when he unveils his budget plan, the AP reports. The billions in new spending will be financed by a $4.5 billion increase in tax revenues this year. Brown wants to direct more than a $1 billion toward schools in low-income areas. In addition, he wants to spend another $1 billion to implement new, more rigorous academic standards.
Friday, May 10, 2013
Friday Must Reads: Consultants Criticize OPD’s Failure to Investigate Crimes; Berkeley Schools Slash Acclaimed Cooking and Gardening Program
Law Enforcement & Crime / Food / Education Robert Gammon — Fri, May 10, 2013 at 6:56 AM
Stories you shouldn’t miss:
1. A team of high-priced consultants, led by William Bratton, the former head of the New York and Los Angeles police departments, criticized OPD’s failure to adequately investigate crimes — a problem that has plagued the department for years. Bratton’s team issued a set of recommendations that it promised would reduce crime in the city, calling on OPD to beef up its investigative units and assign detectives to cover smaller areas of the city. As the Express has repeatedly reported, OPD has one of the worst records for solving crime in the nation.
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Thursday Must Reads: Brown Pushes for More Funding for Low-Income Students; Oakland School Board Member Gary Yee Becomes Superintendent
Politics / Education / Transportation Robert Gammon — Thu, Apr 25, 2013 at 6:58 AM
News stories that East Bay progressives and environmentalists shouldn’t miss:
1. Governor Jerry Brown vowed to fiercely battle for more funding for K-12 schools in low-income areas of the state, calling it his “cause” of 2013, the LA Times$ reports. Brown wants to steer $2 billion toward educating low-income students, but some legislative Democrats want to spread the money around the state, a move that the governor argued would be unfair to the schools that need the money the most. "If people are going to fight it,” he said of his plan, “they're going to get the battle of their lives. Everything we have to bear in this battle, we're bringing it."
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Tuesday Must Reads: CHP Agrees to Step Up Patrols of Oakland; Quan Pushes to Block Warriors from Moving to SF
Sports / Law Enforcement & Crime / Education Robert Gammon — Tue, Apr 23, 2013 at 6:56 AM
News stories that East Bay progressives and environmentalists shouldn’t miss:
1. The California Highway Patrol has agreed to increase its presence in Oakland, following the decision by the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office to stop patrolling the city, the Trib and Chron$ report. The CHP will step up its patrols from two to four days a week under a new agreement. Late last week, county Sheriff Greg Ahern said his department would stop its two-days-a-week patrols because Oakland refused to pay workers’ comp to deputies injured on the job. The city hired the CHP and the Sheriff’s Office to patrol Oakland as a stopgap measure until OPD can hire and train more officers.
Friday, April 19, 2013
Friday Must Reads: One Boston Marathon Bombing Suspect Is Dead; Massive Manhunt for His Brother
Business / Law Enforcement & Crime / Education Robert Gammon — Fri, Apr 19, 2013 at 9:45 AM
Stories you shouldn’t miss:
1. Authorities shot and killed one of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects earlier today, and are conducting a massive manhunt for his younger brother as the Boston area remained on lockdown this morning, The New York Times$ reports. The suspects are identified as Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, and Dzhokhar A. Tsarnaev, 19, and are said to be of Chechen descent. Police shot and killed Tamerlan after the brothers had allegedly killed an MIT campus police officer late last night. The young men’s motive for setting off the bombs at the marathon remains unclear.
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Tuesday Must Read: Environmentalists Win Fracking Decision; Climate Change Will Devastate California’s Wine-Growing Regions
Education / Health & Medicine / Environment Robert Gammon — Tue, Apr 9, 2013 at 9:45 AM
Stories that East Bay progressives and environmentalists shouldn’t miss:
1. Environmental groups won a key decision in federal court yesterday that could slow the expansion of fracking in California, SFGate reports. A US magistrate ruled that federal authorities violated federal environmental laws when they leased public land in the state to energy companies that plan to use hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, a controversial process that threatens groundwater. The magistrate said the Bureau of Land Management, which has been leasing public land for fracking throughout California, should have fully examined the potential environmental impacts of its leasing program.
Friday, April 5, 2013
BREAKING NEWS: Oakland Schools Chief Tony Smith Resigns
Breaking News / Education Robert Gammon — Fri, Apr 5, 2013 at 11:39 AM
Tony Smith, the superintendent of Oakland public schools, announced his resignation today, citing the poor health of his wife's father. Smith said his last day will be June 30, and that his family is moving to Chicago to take care of his father-in-law who was recently hospitalized. Smith was the district's first superintendent after local control was returned to Oakland schools.
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Thursday Must Read: Oakland May Owe the State More than $30 Million in Redevelopment Funds; East Bay School Districts Get Bad Grades for Educating Low-Income Students
Politics / Law Enforcement & Crime / Education Robert Gammon — Thu, Apr 4, 2013 at 10:14 AM
News stories that East Bay progressives and environmentalists shouldn’t miss:
1. Oakland Mayor Jean Quan told a city council committee this week that state officials will demand that the city pay the state more than $30 million in former redevelopment funds, the Trib reports. The money came from the sale of several properties, including the Henry J. Kaiser Center, by the city to the Oakland redevelopment agency before the state killed such entities in 2011. The city never spent the money; it’s sitting in an $84 million reserve fund. However, the expected move by the state means the city’s finances are in much worse shape than expected.
Monday, April 1, 2013
Monday Must Read: Frequent 911-Callers Overwhelm OPD; Spare the Air Days Appear to Be Working
Law Enforcement & Crime / Education / Environment Robert Gammon — Mon, Apr 1, 2013 at 10:03 AM
Stories you shouldn’t miss:
1. Nearly half of all calls for police assistance in Oakland last year came from frequent callers at a relatively small number of addresses, the Chron$ reports. The flurry of calls from these locations overwhelmed OPD, and consumed a disproportionate amount of police time, diverting cops away from actual crime-fighting. OPD consultant Robert Wasserman, who has said that Oakland residents too often call 911 for non-emergencies, is studying the issue for the city and plans to devise a proposal to help solve the problem.
