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In Los Angeles yesterday, the board of education voted to make Birmingham High School the city’s fourth conversion charter. School board member and BHS alum Tamar Galatzan voted for conversion, reported the Los Angeles Times today. "My community is crying out for choices," she said. "My community is crying out for innovation."

According to the Boston Globe Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick will seek legislation to take control of about 30 of the state’s lowest performing schools. The state’s law allows state officials to take over entire districts, but is ambiguous about the takeover of individual schools.

In other headlines...
Green Dot Public Schools in Talks with DCPS
North Carolina Editorial Urges Cap Lift
Arizona State Budget Crisis Threatens Charter Funding

According to the L.A. Times the Board of Education today votes on whether Birmingham High School will secede from Los Angeles Unified School District and convert to a charter school. Three other L.A. schools already have, Palisades, Granada Hills and Locke.

In other headlines...
Two Minnesota Charters Top State Math and Reading Scores
Vote on Indiana Budget May Allow for Charter School Growth
Maine Risks Access to Race to The Top Funds by Defeating Charter Bill
Philadelphia Cyber Charter Files Suit Against State

The good news from Arizona is that twice as many charter high school students could pass a basic citizenship test than could their district peers. The bad news is that their pass rate was 7%.

But goshdarnit , does anyone know what Al Franken thinks about charter schools…?

The thing that makes the new education blog over at the National Journal a little different than the rest is that every week now the magazine is offering up a question and seeking responses from a range of leaders from non-profits like ours to Education Secretary Duncan. So the first question this week was...

According to the Kansas City Star Cole County Judge Richard Callahan yesterday rejected Kansas City School District’s claim that direct state funding to charter schools, previously siphoned through the local school district, was unconstitutional.

In other headlines...
Missouri Judge Rules that Charters Deserve State Funding
Louisiana Lifts State Cap on Charter Growth
Mass. Governor to File for Cap Lift
As Charter Schools Introduce More Choices, Parents Must Decide Carefully

An opinion in the Wall Street Journal examines how Mayor Tom Menino last month announced that Boston needed to support the growth of high-quality public charter schools that use flexibility to help close the achievement gap. While the Boston Teachers union called the mayor’s charge a betrayal, the Journal reports that Menino’s actions place additional pressure on Gov. Patrick to support charter-friendly policies.

In other headlines...
Boston Mayor Menino's Charter Support Puts Pressure on Gov
Union Contracts Raise Costs for Longer School Days Threatening Successful Baltimore Charter
Charters Face Uphill Climb in Virginia
North Carolina Enters Race to the Top
Use of Stimulus Dollars in Texas May Jeopardize Future Funding

Folks at this week’s National Charter Schools Conference applauded Arne Duncan and gave Michelle Rhee a Standing O – but after hearing Howard Fuller’s closing speech they were positively Fired Up! 

This is a guy who doesn’t mince words, including when talking about certain “scoundrels”  in our own movement. Click here for the video.

NS

The Providence Journal and the Woonsocket Call report that the Rhode Island House of Representatives passed the $7.76 billion state budget after an 11-hour debate, including $1.5 million slated for two charter schools. “We should be proud of what we've done with this budget," said the House Finance Committee Chairman just before the final vote, at 2 A.M. on Thursday. "As a whole, it's pretty fair." The charter school funding survived despite deep cuts to cities and towns, and narrowed pension benefits for state workers and teachers. The Senate Finance Committee later unanimously approved the budget after just seven minutes discussion, passing it on to the full Senate for a vote.
Source: Providence Journal, http://politicsblog.projo.com/2009/06/house-passes-bu.html,and http://newsblog.projo.com/2009/06/776-billion-sta.html%3E%20http://newsblog.projo.com/2009/06/776-billion-sta.html%20%3C/A%3E,%20Woonsocket%20Call,%20%3CA%20href=