In the news

For Blind Students, a Place Where Art and Life Skills Meet "When Cory Kadlik, a talkative 10year-old at the Perkins

To read the full article, visit www.csmonitor.com/2002/0115/ p14s1-lecs.html.

U.S. Agents Raid Charter School Misuse of Public Funds by Gateway is Suspected

"State Department of Justice agents raided offices and campuses of a controversial charter school Thursday, looking for evidence that school officials had misused public funds."-The Mercury News, January 25, 2002.

To read the full article, visit wwwO.mercurycenter.com/premium/ ioc./docs/charter25.hbn.

Mandate Schooling Until 18, Some Say

"North Carolina education leaders are talking about raising the minimum legal age for quitting school from 16 to 18 years old, but they caution that such a change alone won't solve the state's stubborn dropout problem."-- The News Sr Observer (Raleigh, N.C.), January 25, 2002.

To read the full article, visit www.newsobserver.com/friday/ news/Story/905976p-904517c.html.

Principal Shortage Looming As Task Grows, Leaders Dwindle

"J.J. Sawyer is considered one of the best principals in the country and part of a disappearing breed in Colorado.

"A report released Wednesday says 740 principal positions will be open in the state's 176 school districts over the next five years, and little is being done to get people to fill their chairs."-The Denver Post, January 24, 2002.

To read the full article, visit www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,10 02,53%257E355072,00.html.

Justice, 1st Lady Taking Democracy Dialogue to School

"Struck by the misinformed responses of some teenagers to the Sept. 11 attacks, Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy developed a program to help schoolchildren understand the values of a democratic society.

"Kennedy and First Lady Laura Bush plan to visit a District of Columbia public high school on Monday to begin what Kennedy and the American Bar Association envision as a broad give-and-take among students, parents, lawyers and judges."-The Chicago Tribune, January 24, 2002.

To read the full atl visit http://chagotribune.com/news/ printedition/chi-02012403Oan4. story?coll--chi%2Dpdnews%2Dhed.

Research: Boys to Men

"in the fall of 1998, Peter Holland, the superintendent here, wondered if something was amiss. A disproportionate majority of the high school students being inducted into the National Honor Society were girls. Many more girls than boys were receiving end-of-the-year awards for academic achievement. And significantly more girls than boys were on the honor roll. What was going on?"-Education Week, January 23, 2002.

To read the full article, visit www.edweek.org/ew/newstory. cfm?slug=19boys.h21.

ESL Experiment Shifts Focus Back to Spanish

"For Viviana Simon, helping out as a Spanish interpreter at a county women's clinic has served as a poignant reminder of the isolation that comes when words fail.

"The patients she helps, members of Howard County's growing Hispanic population, are often pregnant and worried about pains they cannot describe in English."-The Washington Post, January 24, 2002. To read the full article, visit www.washingtonpost.com/ wp-dyn/articles/A2S823-- 2002Jan23.html.

Minority Kids' FCAT Failures Are Down Since '99, State Says

"Test scores of minority students on the FCAT math and reading exam have steadily improved over the past three years, according to a Florida

Department of Education report. "The report, released this week, shows the number of black students who failed the fourth-grade reading exam dropped from 56 percent to 43 percent between 1999 and 2001. The number of Hispanic students who flunked that test fell from 40 percent to 29 percent."-The Miami Herald, January 25 2002.

To read the full article, visit www.miami.com/herald/ content/news/local/broward/ digdocs/104899.htm.