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THE PUBLIC EDUCATION NETWORK (PEN) will host its 1999 conference, "Teachers & Teaching," November 14-16, 1999 in Washington DC. The conference will bring together the foremost community-based school reform advocates in the country to "renew, reflect and recharge" the discussion on improving student achievement.

Speakers will include Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond, award-winning author and Professor of Teaching and Teacher Education at Stanford University and Dr. Parker Palmer, a Senior Associate of the American Association for Higher Education and senior advisor to the Fetzer Institute.

Register online today! Deadline is September 30, 1999.

California public schools rank well below the national average in per-pupil spending and the amount spent on teacher salaries, according to new Census Bureau figures.

Principal for a Day

More than 200 executives from the business and entertainment world recently became "Principals for a Day." See them in action.

NECC 1999

Step into NECC '99's Spotlight on the Future and experience the 20th anniversary of the country's most comprehensive and longest-lived educational technology event!

CURIOUS ABOUT HOW WELL your 16-year-old has mastered "geometry from a synthetic perspective"? Or is your burning desire for information focused more on "geometry from an algebraic perspective"? Fret not.

A little bit of insight on those two questions and many more will show up in a report from your son or daughter's school, arriving in the mailbox or your kid's backpack sometime before the end of July.

Be warned, though. California's $35-million Standardized Testing and Reporting program, commonly known as the Stanford 9, is about to disgorge data by the gigabyte covering student achievement in all of the state's 8,100 public schools.
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For one week this summer, high school humanities teachers can explore interactive online arts resources.

AOF Students Graduate

In addition to their diplomas, Academy of Finance graduates received critical math, accounting, computer science, banking and bookkeeping skills.

Award Winners Feted

Check out the LA Educational Partnership "Excellence in Education Awards" photo gallery.

OUTSTANDING INDIVIDUAL TEACHERS as well as schools and learning communities were honored Thursday at the inaugural Los Angeles Educational Partnership Excellence in Education Awards in downtown Los Angeles.

Nearly 400 invited guests gathered at the awards recognition dinner at Los Angeles' Inter-Continental Hotel and paid tribute to more than 50 educators, school administrators and parents who demonstrated exemplary educational practices in pre-K through 12th grade. Award winners received framed plaques as well as grants of up to $10,000.
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Check out the LA Educational Partnership "Excellence in Education Awards" photo gallery.

Teachers, Schools, Community

Take a look at a list of the EIE award winners.

Making Progress

Dr. Judy Johnson, associate director of the LA Educational Partnership, explains LA public schools' progress toward improving student achievement.

THE LOS ANGELES EDUCATIONAL PARTNERSHIP (LAEP) will recognize exemplary educators, schools, and learning communities that demonstrate a measurable impact on student achievement with awards of up to $10,000 at the inaugural LAEP Excellence in Education Awards, Thursday evening, June 10th at the Hotel Inter-Continental in downtown Los Angeles.

The LAEP Excellence in Education Awards aim to highlight the achievements of teachers, schools and communities in the Los Angeles Unified School District that demonstrate exemplary educational practices in pre-K through 12th grade. [MORE]

Academy of Finance graduates will receive diplomas; critical business skills will help them in college and in pursuing careers in finance and economics.

School to Work

Whether you're headed for college or into the work force, these resources will help you make a well-informed decisions.

CD-ROM Now Available

So long floppy disks! The new LALCNet/OCLCNet CD-ROM has arrived.

CAN SCHOOLS DRAMATICALLY IMPROVE THEMSELVES by instituting high standards for academic achievement? Reflecting a growing consensus on the need to link classroom instruction to academic standards, leading literacy experts last week, unveiled a collection of grade-by-grade skills children should master to become proficient readers and writers.

Authors of the new guidelines say they are intended to fill a void in primary grade classrooms.

Although California and a few other states have adopted language arts standards for all students, most states have focused on selected upper grades such as fourth, eighth and 10th.
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PFD SURVEY: Read what "Principal for a Day" participants thought about their experience.

Link to dozens of independent, community-based school reform organizations working to improve public education throughout the country.

Vote June 8

On June 8, voters will decide between incumbent Barbara Boudreaux and challenger Genethia Hayes for a seat on LAUSD's Board of Education.

Summer Fun

With Memorial Day upon us, we have compiled a list of hot summer Web sites for kids, teachers and parents.

Ocassionally, the Learning Exchange will publish articles spotlighting candidates and education issues of importance leading up to the upcoming November 2000 election.

VICE PRESIDENT AL GORE CALLED FOR TOUGH new teacher tests, recruiting bonuses of up to $10,000 and "second-chance schools" as he began this week to detail his agenda for his White House bid.

Gore used a commencement speech at Graceland College for the first in a series of public policy addresses he said would bring substance to his campaign for the Democratic nomination for president in 2000.

He urged the hiring of 2.2 million new teachers, while making them pass tough tests, and said preschool programs should be extended "for every child, in every community in America."
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Smaller schools, like Elizabeth Learning Center in Los Angeles, may have the antidote to curb school violence.

Kosovo in the Classroom

Confused about the crisis in Kosovo? Let Homework Central's spotlight student study section give you some incite.

PFD Survey

Principal for a Day participants told us what they would like to do to help LA public schools.

THIS WEEK, LOS ANGELES COUNTY TOOK A KEY STEP toward creating the nation's largest after-school child care program to help thousands of "latchkey" children.

The Board of Supervisors got a standing ovation from a group of single mothers Tuesday after approving $74 million for free child care at 225 elementary schools With large numbers of children from families on welfare.

As many as 16,000 children could be enrolled in the program, which is funded by Federal and state welfare grants. It will begin this summer and expand through next year. The program will concentrate on education rather than the after-school recreation some districts now offer.
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Principal for a Day participants are telling us they had a terrific experience. Here is sample of what they are saying they will do to help our schools.

Power Breakfast

LAUSD school principals met with their one-time counterparts from the entertainment and corporate worlds for breakfast to discuss their "Principal for a Day" experiences.

Improving Teacher Quality

Read selected highlights of the Testimony on Teacher Quality and Professional Development.

THEY CAME FROM DIVERSE BACKGROUNDS. Some came from the corporate world, some from the entertainment world. Some of them taught classes and took attendance, while others supervised recess and met with students, teachers and parents. But whatever their backgrounds, most came away with valuable learning experiences by serving as a "Principal for a Day."

"It's all about coming together and effecting change," said Barry Blumberg, executive vice president of Walt Disney Animation., during his visit to Selma Avenue school. "My coming here is the first step in learning how I can make a difference."

Blumberg, along with more than 200 leaders in business and entertainment communities carried out a full day's worth of duties as the "principals" of some of the most diverse and challenging elementary, middle, senior high and special education schools in Los Angeles. Their goal was to learn more about public education in Los Angeles.
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See some "Principal for a Day" participants in action.

What They Said

Read what "Principal for a Day" participants said about their experience behind the desk and in the classroom.

Thank You "Principals"

Thanks to the more than 200 members of the entertainment industry as well as business and community leaders from Los Angeles who accepted the challenge to serve as a Principal for a Day.