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The shadow of the APS cheating scandal is apparently hard to escape. Especially if you know how to use Google.

From the Connecticut Post:

BRIDGEPORT A consultant brought in by Interim Schools Superintendent Paul Vallas to help fix the school district left days after she arrived when it was learned she was caught up in one of the nations largest cheating scandals.

Millicent Few, the former human resources director for the Atlanta school system, spent two days in the district, according to Vallas, who said he let her go Tuesday.

She is not going to remain on the transition team. She is gone. She may be the most skilled person on the planet but I dont need any controversy, said Vallas.

Few, who was with the Atlanta system for a dozen years, resigned in July with a number of other system leaders amid a widespread standardized-test cheating scandal that reportedly involved 178 teachers and principals and 44 schools. According to a Atlanta School District investigation by the state of Georgia and released in June 2011, Few, on two occasions, ordered those under her supervision to illegally destroy and alter public documents in order to hide evidence related to test cheating and misconduct.

In published reports in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Few denied to investigators that she tampered with documents or ordered anyone else to do so.

Vallas said Few was recommend by Elizabeth Arons, a New York-based human resources consultant for school districts who also does work with the Gates Foundation Human Capital Reforms. The cheating scandal was brought up, but Vallas said he was told Few was outstanding and was an innocent casualty of the cheating controversy. He said he has since done more online research.

The newspaper articles and the online network suggests otherwise, although we cannot attest to the veracity of those accusations, Vallas said. I felt and we mutually agreed her services would not be in her best interest at this time.

Vallas said that he will have to step up the search for a permanent human resources director. This time Ill do a Google search, Vallas said.

The achievement gap between low-income students and their more affluent peers has grown by roughly 40% since the 1960s, according to a recent study by researchers at Stanford University. Another study from University of Michigan researchers shows a 50% increase since the late 1980s in the imbalance between rich and poor students completing college. Furthermore, researchers say they expect the gap to widen amid the effects of the economic downturn.

It is a well-known fact that children from affluent families tend to do better in school. Yet the income divide has received far less attention from policy makers and government officials than gaps in student accomplishment by race.

Now, in analyses of long-term data published in recent months, researchers are finding that while the achievement gap between white and black students has narrowed significantly over the past few decades, the gap between rich and poor students has grown substantially during the same period.  Additionally, the gap also exists at the college level.  In a study conducted by The University of Michigan, researchers looked at two generations of students, those born from 1961 to 1964 and those born from 1979 to 1982. By 1989, about one-third of the high-income students in the first generation had finished college; by 2007, more than half of the second generation had done so. By contrast, only 9 percent of the low-income students in the second generation had completed college by 2007, up only slightly from a 5 percent college completion rate by the first generation in 1989.  Some experts maintain that the recession over the past few years has not only impacted the gap but will continue to widen it.

Read the entire article here at NYTimes.com with additional information about the research data.

Schoodoodle.com carries a wide selection of resources to improve teaching and learning in preschool through high school.  Also, browse our materials designed to help parents support the learning process at home such as  Parental Involvement resources,  resources for home school kids, early childhood, standardized test prep, and learning games for kids.

Grad photo re-takes are scheduled February 21, 22 and 23.  Appointment bookings can be made in Room 228 this Thursday and Friday (Feb 9-10) at lunch.  Priority will be given to those students who did not have their photos taken in November.  Please bring $25.00 cash for the sitting fee or return your grad photo proof package when you book your appointment.   If you have any questions, email Ms. Chiarello at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Republican Sen. Joe Zarelli from Ridgefield, center, sits at his desk on the floor of the Senate Chamber.

OLYMPIA Clark County lawmakers this week promoted bills to fund the Columbia River Crossing project and protect education budgets.

Columbia River Crossing

Vancouver Democrats Rep. Jim Moeller and Sen. Craig Pridemore are sponsoring companion bills that would authorize tolling as a partial means to replace the Interstate Bridge joining Portland and Vancouver.

Both bills passed votes in Transportation committees Tuesday and could make their way to the floor in the next couple of weeks.

Finding the money for a new Interstate 5 bridge is a complicated process, Moeller said. It relies upon a combination of funds from Washington, Oregon and the federal government.

“We have to show the federal government that we are serious and that we have a funding plan,” Moeller said.

The Columbia River Crossing is the largest construction project in the history of Southwest Washington, Pridemore said.

“It will bring 16,000 jobs over the next seven years in direct stimulus and more than 27,000 jobs in economic impact,” he said. “It’s the single greatest thing we can do in both the short term and the long term to promote the economic vitality of the region.”

Education

Sens. Joe Zarelli, R-Ridgefield, and Don Benton, R-Vancouver, are sponsoring SB 6567, a bill intended to solidify education funding as a top priority.

“It’s just another way to ensure we fulfill our paramount duty,” Benton said.

State government has a spending limit for its general fund. Spending cannot exceed the prior year’s expenditures plus a fiscal growth factor calculated by taking into account inflation and population growth for the previous three years.

This bill would pull education funding out from under that spending-limit umbrella.

The shift would apply not only to K-12 education but also higher-education appropriations and financial aid.

The bill came up for its first public hearing in the Senate Ways and Means Committee Tuesday. Benton admitted he doesn’t know whether it will gain traction with enough lawmakers.   

“It’s hard at this point to get a sense of anything right now,” he said. “We’re so late at getting things moving.”

Benton said in all his previous years working at the Capitol he never witnessed the Senate struggle so much to focus on budgeting during a short session.

– Justin Runquist

Engage in a discussion about the positive portrayal of women in media at a 90 minute screening of MISS REPRESENTATION. Written and directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom, this film shares the stories of women from various industries, experiences and ages about the impact media has on its audience. Join in this critical discussion of the portrayal of women in todays media, and how you can help others see what they can be.

Two viewings of MISS REPRESENTATION will be hosted on the College of Charleston campus. This first showing will be held in room 235 of the Robert Scott Small building this Saturday, January 28 from 11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. The address for this building is 175 Calhoun Street, and is located near the corner of St. Philip Street. The second event will be on Wednesday, February 1 at 3:00 p.m. These showings are free and open to the public.

See you all there!

Midway through the 2011-12 Loyola Ramblers season visiting schools are continuously taking delight in the newly renovated Gentile Arena. The finalization of the court concluded Phase Two of the 100 million dollarreimagine campaign Loyola University Chicago has embarked on. Phase One comprised of erecting the state-of-the-art Norville Center for Intercollegiate Athletics. The Norville Center also houses the Gentile Arena in addition to world class locker rooms and weight lifting exercise facilities. These two athletic department venues together have already shifted the Rambler culture forward and initiated a true “Rambler Renaissance” for the rest of the university.

Complementing the upgrade in facilities, Porter Moser, men’s basketball head coach, and Dr. Grace Calhoun, athletic director, tirelessly work to keep Rambler Pride flowing around campus and within the student body. They have successfully instilled a new-found swagger in students and Loyola alums, evident each home game at the ‘Joe. The tenacious crowd plays well into the thunderous design of the arena.

Mark Lazerus of the Post-Tribune is marveled by the construction and believes Loyola has made the perfect decision on the cozy size of Gentile.  He also sees the gym as a microcosm for other Horizon League arenas.  ”Well, Loyola has created a mid-major paradise,” Lazerus writes. ”The Gentile high school gym has been converted into arguably the nicest facility in the league.” Anyone that has been to the Gentile pre-renovation knows exactly what Mark is talking about by referring it to a ‘high school gym.’ Valpo plays home to a high school style gym and would cherish in the chance to convert the Arc into a Gentile like arena.

Not only have the renovations increased fan fare, but have had an insurmountable effect on recruiting. When talking to Class of 2012 commit Matt O’Leary he stated the following for the reason he chose the Ramblers for college, “What ultimately drew me to Loyola was the fact that the campus is amazing, I see the program as one that has a chance to be very successful in the future.”

Bill Potter, Director of Communications for the Horizon League, finally took in a game last Saturday when Butler paid Loyola a visit. “I was lucky enough to take a hard-hat tour of Gentile Arena earlier in the year, and the finished product is remarkable. The fans are on top of the action, which I think they enjoy, and I think will serve Loyola well in terms of building a home court advantage in the years to come,” Potter explicated. Last month when cross town team DePaul played at Gentile, Blue Demon head coach Oliver Purnell took notice of the crowd right away. Having the Rambler Rowdies jeering and screaming amplified by the dynamics of the stadium is the ultimate form of home court advantage.

“What I was fortunate to see on Saturday was the energy in Gentile. I look forward to seeing the energy continue to pick up as Porter Moser builds his program,” Potter said. As delightful as it is to have a brand new first rate home court, the potential and forward direction for the Ramblers is the most enticing. All of Rambler nation anticipates the return to college basketball greatness.

Porter Moser and his Gentile Arena are just the first two steps.