Your EWA Newsletter for Oct. 1, 2009

<ON THE BLACKBOARD>

Looking for Work?
Check out EWA's Job Center for the latest reporting, public relations
and research vacancies on our website.
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=Kb14S8NY7lnUbKCLZ7DT4w..

Post Your Release Today!
Also you can now post your press release or read about organizations'
events or major reports on EWA's website. The cost is $50 to
post items. Just go to our home page and visit the press release
center to get your message out today!
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=BLDIqAhOQcAX7nJaxVp6PA..

Call for Proposals
EWA is pleased to invite researchers and organizations to propose speakers, sessions and/or
themes for our 63rd annual National Seminar in San Francisco May 13-15, 2010. If you have any questions, email Lori Crouch at lcrouch@ewa.org or call 202-452-9820.


Don't Miss...

EWA, the National Panel on Latino Children and Schooling, and the Pew
Hispanic Center are collaborating to offer a day-long discussion on
Latino youth and education on Oct. 6 at the Pew Hispanic Center in
Washington, DC.  Reporters can apply for a fellowship stipend to
pay for travel. Pew will release preliminary findings from a survey of
Latino teens and young adults about their attitudes toward high school
and whether they plan to go to college or to work. Sign up today!
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=Pf8GYgBRzkq4KyRiKr9slg..

EWA, Investigative Reporters and Editors and the Student Press Law
Center are launching a program to help college newspapers better cover
campus issues the training program will include: using the Internet as
an investigative tool, learning how to read budget documents,
preparing for interviews and much more. If you teach journalism
courses, work with college newspapers, or know those who do please
pass this great opportunity on.

http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=2a5nlUL7hts3FWFNST2rDA..

Listen to EWA's podcasts on stimulus spending for K-12 school
districts and higher education.
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=9QsVQea_9Gxd9k51r44AkQ..
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=xnpFjY6Ll8XUQBWY8Lm0yQ..




The Public Editor Says....

An Untraditional Approach
These students aren't all in school, but they have a lot to tell
us about it.
By Linda Perlstein

You cover K-12 education--so what students are you concerned
with? What if you are a higher ed reporter? Generally, journalists
adhere to the narrowest definition. The vast majority of the time,
K-12 reporters write about children in kindergarten through twelfth
grade at public schools. Higher ed reporters write about students on
campus at bricks-and-mortar universities. Read more here. http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=iDw1gPUf7m6HACkrF_oRTw..

Upcoming Reports:

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) will release
the 2009 Nation's Report Card in mathematics on October 14, 2009 at
10:00 a.m. EDT. The Nation's Report Card will present scores for
fourth- and eighth-graders from all fifty states, the District of
Columbia, Department of Defense schools, and the nation.


Reports: Community Colleges, Undergraduate enrollment, New York City
charter schools

International Education: What Foreign Students Mean to America's
Future
The American Council on Education has released Sizing Up the
Competition examining  the enrollment trends of foreign college
students in the U.S., United Kingdom, Germany, France and Australia.
The report identifies factors that could affect the growth of
international student enrollments in the U.S., including stronger
recruiting efforts made by other countries, the global economic
crisis, and the number of students who seek an education abroad. http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=iwEINqSADrhhm68QUA0r1g..

Keeping Pace at Community Colleges
A renaissance of sorts is happening at America's community
colleges as institutions try to keep up with unprecedented enrollment
demands. A report released by the Education Policy Center finds that
interest in community colleges continues to grow but funding is not
keeping pace. A majority of community college leaders report that they
expect to make mid-year budget cuts in 2010 and that student aid has
dropped 70%. Read the rest of the report here. http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=tn4bToLIR0iF6ucT9ql-kg..

Enrollment Snapshot at Private Colleges and Universities
Private college enrollments are healthier than predicted, according to
the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.
Most NAICU member institutions report record or near record
enrollment. Low tuition increases, federal stimulus aid, colleges
accepting a higher percentage of applicants and an extending the
recruitment cycle for the academic year all contributed to the
enrollment picture, NAICU says. http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=OeSpVhWAvAPGYURApPMIEQ..

Leading the Pack
A new study examines New York City charter schools and achievement
levels. The New York City Charter Schools Evaluation Project is a
multi-year study in which nearly all of the city's charter
schools are participating. More than 90 percent of students are
admitted to New York City charter schools through a lottery.
Researchers compared student achievement levels of students who attend
charter schools versus students who attended traditional public
schools. Data collected over an eight-year span finds charter school
students perform better on state exams than
"non-lotteried" students. This is the second year of the
study.  Caroline M. Hoxby served as one of the principal
investigators of the study and has done extensive research on charters
and vouchers. The Institute for Education Sciences helped fund some
parts of the research. http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=my9tJBW1bm_wokkkpPe4pg..

News of Interest
The Harvard Graduate School of Education will offer a new degree in
education leadership next year. The program, supported by the Wallace
Foundation, will train graduates for senior leadership roles in school
systems, government agencies, non-profit organizations and the private
sector. Grad students are expected to participate in a year-long
residency with partner organizations in urban school systems in New
York City, Atlanta and Denver, as well as, work with national
organizations like Teach for America and New Leaders for New Schools. http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=gqUaA3cgI9CrYnEXJ2xkdA..



Media Notes

Catalyst Chicago has announced several staff changes including a new
editor in chief. Lorraine Forte now serves as editor in chief of
Catalyst after former editor Veronica Anderson left to accept a Knight
fellowship at Stanford University. Sarah Karp has been promoted as
deputy editor and the publication is seeking a journalist to fill her
previous position as associate editor. Debra Williams is the new
community editor. Data and Research Editor John Myers has left the
publication to move to Boston, where he continues to write and perform
research for Catalyst on a contract basis.

Popular ed blogger and Education Sector co-founder Andrew Rotherham
surprised reporters and policy wonks by announcing his plans to step
down from the Washington-based think tank next year. People who enjoy
reading Eduwonk shouldn't worry because Rotherham says he still
plans to provide education commentary on his blog.  Tom Toch,
co-founder of Education Sector left the organization over the summer
to lead the Association of Independent Schools of Greater
Washington. http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=kiBnKG6ju294Y03Lglid6g..

To Tweet or not to Tweet? ABC got into some hot water when a star
reporter and other employees tweeted remarks made by President Obama
that were supposed to remain off the record. By now, you probably have
heard that the president called rapper Kanye West a jack@!# for his
outburst during Taylor Swift's acceptance speech at the MTV
Video Music Awards this month. President Obama's remarks were
made during a CNBC interview, when ABC reporter Terry Moran posted the
tweet online. At least two other ABC staffers got caught up in the
tweet frenzy. ABC issued an apology to the White House for the tweet
and said its employees didn't realize that portion of the
conversation wasn't meant to be reported. The incident provoked
a debate over journalism standards and what's proper reporting
during the era of Twitter, You Tube and Facebook. The American
Journalism Review has a feature examining journalists' personal
and professional use of social networks. Many newsrooms across the
country are "developing policies ranging from restrictive use to
common sense approaches" for it employees, AJR reports. How do
you use social networking in your reporting? Should there be limits to
its use? How do you handle a situation when a source wants to go off
the record? http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=5ykaac9Zus5Cshhrs814NQ..

http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=oshJ7TfnQ8C4s3kTDVFPLg..
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=cANfevwg649UIQhiDP8Mjw..

Upcoming Events and Jobs

Catalyst Chicago is seeking an associate editor to join its staff to
write in-depth stories and blog posts. If interested, send resume and
2 to 3 clips to editorjob@catalyst-chicago.org.
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=NJZDdoYsu_hnQAUfLOxZTA..

The National Immigration Forum seeks a communications professional to
lead its staff in developing media/communications strategies.
Candidates are encouraged to apply by October 6, 2009; however, the
position will remain open until filled. Send cover letter, resume and
salary requirements mailto:to%3Aresume@immigrationforum.org; subject: Senior
Communications. Visit http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=MKXj3FgE682f550FasfjMA.. .

The Hechinger Institute will host a seminar for higher education
reporters and what they need to know to cover the beat. EWA member and
Chicago Tribune reporter Jodi S. Cohen is a featured seminar expert.
Application deadline is Oct. 9 and seminar is scheduled Nov. 20-22.
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=UK4lBUfMsNqIE_2SlSsKjQ..

The Spencer Foundation is accepting applications for the 2010 Spencer
Dissertation Fellowship for Research Related to Education.
Applications are due Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2009. For more information,
visit http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=XZlcVmNSRWVph3mcA-FLuw..

The National Center on School Choice at Vanderbilt is hosting School
Choice and School Improvement Research in State, District and
Community Contexts in Nashville October 25-27. To learn more and
register for the conference go here.  For more information,
contact kit.lively@vanderbilt.edu
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=ItikVbnArtG4DNM8zR_BKw..

From the Beat

Coming Out in Middle School
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=J1d1fF_m6ZB73_5W7kq7qw..
Benoit Denizet-Lewis
The New York Times Magazine
How 13-year-old kids are dealing with their sexual identity --
and how others are dealing with them.

N.J. colleges borrow billions; students stuck with the tab
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=renJlR0WI52nTxxkP3zBiw..
Patricia Alex,
The (North Jersey) Record
Credit crunch? Not at New Jersey's public colleges and universities,
which have racked up huge debt loads while expanding over the past
decade. The dozen four-year schools have taken on a record $3.86
billion in debt. And students are paying the bill.

B-ESD consultant: Land decision's past paves way for grim future
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=kjvCy-J3s2KAQKZGfT3LpA..
Kate Martin
Skagit Valley Herald
Financial decisions made by the Burlington-Edison School Board in
Mount Vernon, Wa., could harm the quality of education for the
district's students for years to come. This is a fourth in a
series.

Stop the Presses! Revamped Journalism Courses Attract Hordes of
Students
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=dLDaZEmUZdcfvZZ5mkX2fQ..
Katherine Mangan
The Chronicle of Higher Education
At a time when the newspaper industry is in free fall and thousands of
jobs are being cut each year, one would think that the halls of the
nation's journalism schools would be awfully quiet. Think again. Many
universities report that journalism enrollments are up this year.

Learning another language improves children's skills in many areas of
their life
http://www.ewa.org/site/R?i=MArNk0jQP-ACnbdsuMPoFg..
Kimberly Isburg
The Des Moines Register
Early childhood is the optimal time for learning a second language,
according to The National Network for Early Language Learning (NNELL).
Research shows that children who learn a second language develop an
increased understanding of their native language in addition to
learning a second. Research also shows that the benefits of learning a
second language extend beyond having the ability to communicate with
people of another culture.



Please send your best stories and member news to Mesha Williams at
publications@ewa.org.

**About us**

Dale Mezzacappa, president, Public School Notebook; Tanya Schevitz,
vp/actives, free lance reporter; Marie Groark, vp/associates, Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation; Stephanie Banchero, secretary, Chicago
Tribune; Richard Whitmire, immediate past president, freelancer;
Kathryn Baron, freelance radio reporter; John Merrow, Learning
Matters, Inc.; Linda Lenz, Catalyst; Rodney Ferguson, Lipman Hearne,
Inc.; Cornelia Grumman, First Five Years Fund; Elizabeth Green, Gotham
Schools.org; Scott Elliott, Dayton (Ohio) Daily News; Kent Fischer,
GMMB.